Finally the door was opened wide in order to achieve justice for the citizens of Sudan in the Darfu

10:00 PM August, 13 2021

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Mahmoud A. Suleiman-UK
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Finally the door was opened wide in order to achieve justice for the citizens of Sudan in the Darfur region
و اخيراً انفتح الباب مشرعة على مصراعيه من اجل احقاق العدالة لمواطنى السودان فى اقليم دارفور
Written by Mahmoud A. Suleiman
Since the Sudanese Council of Ministers has ratified the law that established the International Criminal Court (ICC) known as the Rome Convention – Rome Statute and at the same time the Sudanese Cabinet decided to hand over Omer al-Bashir into The Hague in the Netherlands, the citizens of Sudan in the Darfur region will feel that Justice has begun after Fifteen odd years ; as they say that Justice must be achieved, even if takes a long time! Thus, legitimate rights will return to their owners no matter how long it takes, and no matter how the authoritarian ruling regimes try to put barricades before justice, the case of the Sudanese people in the Darfur region is a good example. It is better to come, even if it is late, than to never come! Furthermore, the International Criminal Court (ICC) has received the Sudanese cabinet decision on al-Bashir. Human rights activists assert that there is no obstacle to handing al-Bashir over to the International Criminal Court. It is noteworthy that the ICC Indictment of al-Bashir was on the 4th March 2009 for the heinous crimes he has committed in Darfur; amounting to crimes against humanity, war crimes and genocide. However, al-Bashir remained fugitive ever since; widely travelled to various countries in defiance to the ICC. Currently, al-Bashir in a reform institution in the famous Kober Prison in Khartoum North for the elderly criminals following his accusation of corruption when huge amounts of foreign currency was found stored in his residence. Furthermore, the ICC is still keeps chasing a number of al-Bashir’s entourage who are similarly remaining fugitive. They include, of course Omer Hassan Ahmed al-Bashir, Abdelrahim Muhammed Hussein, Ahmad Harun, Abdallah Banda ; all remain at large while Ali Muhammad Ali Abd-Al-Rahman was transferred to the ICC's custody on 9 June 2020, after surrendering himself voluntarily in the Central African Republic (CAR). https://www.icc-cpi.int/darfurhttps://www.icc-cpi.int/darfur

Here one would like to reiterate the events that took place at the Sudanese cabinet under the Premiership of Doctor Abdalla Hamdok; Issued on: 03/08/2021 - 21:00Modified: 03/08/2021 - 20:58
Sudan's cabinet vote to ratify the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court on Tuesday, seen here in a picture provided by Sudan's Prime Minister's official Twitter account - Office of Sudan's Prime Minister/AFP https://www.france24.com/en/live-news/20210803-sudanese-cabi...ional-criminal-court
Sudan's cabinet voted Tuesday to ratify the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court, Prime Minister Abdalla Hamdok said, one step further towards ex-president Omar al-Bashir potentially facing trial for genocide.
"Today, in our cabinet meeting, we have unanimously passed a bill to join the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court," Prime Minister Abdalla Hamdok said on Twitter.
Since August 2019, Sudan has been led by a transitional civilian-military administration, which vowed to bring justice to victims of crimes committed under Bashir.
Sudan is yet to appoint a legislative body, but the decision still needs the approval of Sudan's sovereign council.
Hamdok said they would hold a joint council meeting "to pass it into law".
Bashir, who ruled Sudan with an iron fist for three decades, was deposed in April 2019 following months of protests in Sudan.
He is wanted by the ICC to face trial on charges of genocide, war crimes and crimes against humanity.
"Justice and accountability are a solid foundation of the new, rule of law-based Sudan we're striving to build," Hamdok added.
But Hamdok gave no further details as to what joining the ICC might mean in terms of putting Bashir and other Sudanese wanted by the court on trial, either in Sudan or in The Hague.
Sudan's transitional administration is in talks with the ICC about options for trying Bashir and his former aides.
One stumbling block was that Sudan was not party to the ICC's founding Rome Statute.
Bashir is being held in the high security Kober prison in Khartoum, along with former aides also wanted by the ICC.
The former president was convicted in December 2019 for corruption, and has been on trial in Khartoum since July 2020 for the Islamist-backed 1989 coup which brought him to power.
The United Nations says 300,000 people were killed and 2.5 million were displaced in the Darfur conflict.
War broke out in 2003 when African minority rebels, complaining of systematic discrimination, took up arms against Bashir's Arab-dominated government.
Khartoum responded by unleashing a notorious militia known as the Janjaweed, recruited from among the region's nomadic peoples.
Human rights groups have long accused Bashir and his former aides of using a scorched earth policy, raping, killing, looting and burning villages.
In late May, former ICC chief prosecutor Fatou Bensouda visited Darfur, and pressed Sudanese officials to hand over Bashir and other wanted leaders. Last year, alleged senior Janjaweed militia leader Ali Kushayb, who was wanted by the ICC, surrendered to the court. ICC judges said in July he will be the first suspect to be tried over the Darfur conflict on multiple counts of rape, murder, and torture.
Oscar Fingal O'Flahertie Wills Wilde the Irish poet and playwright has been quoted as saying: “He wanted to be where no one would know who he was. He wanted to escape from himself.” https://www.goodreads.com/quotes/tag/fugitivehttps://www.goodreads.com/quotes/tag/fugitive
Dr. Mahmoud A. Suleiman is an author, columnist and a blogger. His blog is http://thussudan.wordpress.com/http://thussudan.wordpress.com/

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