أول مقبرة جماعية في منطقة الجيلي شمال الخرطوم

Quote: Letter to the UN Security Council in Advance of its June Mission to Africa May 23, 2008 To Members of the Security Council Your Excellency, We write in advance of the Security Council’s mission to Africa on June 1-10, 2008, to urge you to use this opportunity to address pressing human rights issues in Sudan, Chad, Côte d’Ivoire, Democratic Republic of Congo and Somalia. Your itinerary takes you to five nations in which, altogether, millions of civilians have or are continuing to suffer the effects of often horrific violence carried out by government security forces and non-state armed groups. These abuses include killings, mutilation, rape, and other physical abuse, abduction of children, large-scale and prolonged displacement and arbitrary arrest and detention, and are in most cases carried out with near-total impunity. While armed conflicts entailing serious abuses continue in Sudan, Somalia and—intermittently—Chad, some progress towards improved human rights is occurring in Côte d’Ivoire and the Democratic Republic of Congo. However in all of these nations, Security Council action is urgently needed to ensure an end to persistent abuses by all parties to the conflict, to protect civilians still at risk of violence, and to provide accountability of those responsible for serious human rights abuses and redress for their victims. Sudan Darfur While widespread abuses have continued in Darfur over the last two years, the situation has worsened dramatically in 2008. In February 2008, the Sudanese government has reverted to the “scorched earth” counterinsurgency tactics it used to such devastating effect in the early days of the conflict. A Human Rights Watch investigation into a series of attacks on civilians by government forces and allied militia in West Darfur in February 2008 found that the attackers killed more than 120 civilians, injured hundreds more and destroyed and pillaged civilian property, including homes, schools, medical facilities, and food and water supplies. The government has continued to carry out deliberate or indiscriminate bombings of civilian villages in Darfur: in May government forces bombed a school and marketplace in the village of Shegeg Karo in North Darfur, killing 13 civilians, seven of them children. The United Nations/African Union peacekeeping force for Darfur (UNAMID), meanwhile, remains barely one-third of its authorized strength, and unable to protect civilians in the face of ongoing and escalating violence in Darfur. The government of Sudan has continued to hinder deployment of UNAMID, in particular by refusing to accept deployment of non-African forces, despite their being no equivalent African troops ready to deploy, and by limiting the force’s freedom of movement in Darfur. Violence between the government and the Justice and Equality Movement (JEM) rebel group has continued to escalate, culminating in an attack by JEM forces on Omdurman, a suburb of Khartoum, on May 10, 2008. Human Rights Watch welcomes the Council’s rapid calls for all sides to exercise restraint and respect international humanitarian law following that attack, but we remain concerned these calls will not be heeded. We are also deeply concerned by reports that government forces in Khartoum arrested more than 100 people following the attack, many of whom remain unaccounted for, that some of those arrested have been tortured and that at least two people have been summarily executed in public. The International Criminal Court and Darfur Over a year ago, the International Criminal Court (ICC) issued arrest warrants for Ahmed Haroun and Ali Kosheib for 51 counts of war crimes and crimes against humanity in Darfur. During the Council’s mission to Khartoum in June 2007, rule of law and accountability issues were notably absent from the terms of reference. The omission of the ICC from the agenda did not go unnoticed by Khartoum. Instead of surrendering the accused, the Sudanese government promoted Ahmed Haroun to Minister of State for Humanitarian Affairs, and released Ali Kushayb from custody for “lack of evidence.” The current terms of reference for the mission include language that allows the Council to formally raise Sudan’s obligation to cooperate with the ICC pursuant to resolution 1593. While in Khartoum, we urge you to call on the government of Sudan to fulfill its obligations to arrest and surrender the two accused. Failure to follow through on the commitment to justice will further embolden Khartoum to continue with its culture of impunity, manifested in ongoing attacks against civilians. The Comprehensive Peace Agreement and Southern Sudan While conflict continues to escalate in Darfur, across southern Sudan the political and security situation is deteriorating. The unresolved status of Abyei is a flashpoint for recent clashes that have resulted in hundreds of deaths and the displacement of thousands of others. While Abyei is perhaps the most potent symbol of the fragility of the 2005 Comprehensive Peace Agreement (CPA), tensions connected to ongoing insecurity and the slow implementation of the CPA are mounting throughout southern Sudan. The ruling National Congress Party in Khartoum remains the primary obstacle on issues such as Abyei's status, but the government of southern Sudan is also failing to implement essential steps that would improve the human rights situation of southern Sudanese. Human Rights Watch’s recent research in southern Sudan also indicates that security forces in the south, including the Sudan People's Liberation Army and the police, continue to be responsible for a range of abuses against civilians, including beatings, rape and #####ng. The Security Council should: Publicly and privately condemn the attacks by government forces and allied militia against civilians in West Darfur in February 2008, and ongoing indiscriminate and deliberate attacks on civilians; urge all sides to protect civilians and respect international humanitarian law, and make it clear that the Council will investigate and hold accountable any party responsible for indiscriminate or deliberate attacks on civilians. Call on the government of Sudan to account for the whereabouts of all detainees held following JEM’s May 10 attack on Khartoum, and to ensure that those arrested are promptly released, or charged and tried in accordance with international fair trial standards. Urge the government of Sudan to actively facilitate full deployment of UNAMID, including by immediately and formally authorizing deployment of Thai and Nepalese units, and of other non-African troops as needed, and to allow UNAMID full freedom of movement throughout Darfur. Urge the government of Sudan to fulfill its obligations to arrest and surrender the two suspects wanted by the ICC, and ensure that any public statements and reports following the mission include reference to the need for Khartoum to cooperate with the ICC. Call on the National Congress Party and the Sudan People’s Liberation Movement to promptly implement the outstanding elements of the Comprehensive Peace Agreement. Emphasize that the government of southern Sudan is responsible for the conduct of its forces and must take appropriate action to investigate and prosecute as appropriate alleged abuses by its personnel. During its visit to Juba, urge the government of Southern Sudan to expedite the passage of relevant legislation on a range of issues affecting protection of human rights, including the mandate of the Southern Sudan Human Rights Commission, corruption and land rights. Ugandan peace negotiations in Juba As negotiations in Juba, southern Sudan to end the conflict in northern Uganda have faltered, the Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA) is reportedly committing new atrocities, including at least 100 abductions in Central African Republic (CAR), Democratic Republic of Congo and Southern Sudan. Around the Juba talks, the LRA has tried to portray the ICC as the obstacle to peace. Nevertheless, LRA leader Joseph Kony failed to appear to sign a final peace agreement on April 10,2008 despite its focus on holding national trials of ICC cases. Recent alleged abuses and Kony's month-long silence only intensify ongoing questions as to the LRA leadership's commitment to peace talks. The Security Council should: Make full inquiries into alleged LRA abuses since February 2008, including reported unpublicized UN inquiries into abuses in the CAR. While in Juba discuss with key interlocutors—including UN officials, the mediation team, regional governments and observers to the talks—how to stem abuses and effectively execute ICC arrest warrants while minimizing the risk to civilian life and without use of excessive force. In the event that Kony does emerge to sign the final peace agreement, the Council should press for prompt implementation of key provisions of the Juba agreements that provide for trial for the most serious crimes and for the release of women and children currently with the LRA. The council should also reject any request to defer the ICC's investigation and prosecution as it would legitimize improper political interference in a judicial institution while risking making the Security Council hostage to the LRA leadership's agendas.