Fatou Bensouda met with authorities and representatives of communities that are victims of the genocide. The Gambian lawyer is close to ending her term, but she continues to urge the transitional government to hand over to her suspects accused by the ICC of crimes committed in Darfur.
With our regional correspondent in Nairobi, Sebastien nemeth
It is a unique visit, but above all symbolic. Fatou Bensouda visited Darfur for the first time. When she leaves the office in a few days, the ICC prosecutor asked the Sudanese power again to refer those subject to international arrest warrants to the Court.
They are four. Former President Omar al-Bashir, already on trial in Khartoum, Abdelrahim Muhammad Hussein, a former regime minister, Ahmed Haroun, a former senior security official, and finally, Abdallah Banda Abakaer. This former rebel leader of the JEM group is the only one who is not being held. He’s still wanted.
For researcher Cameron Hudson, this is a “first major test to see if the new Darfuri government can have a real impact.” After the peace agreement between Khartoum and the rebels, several members of the armed groups actually joined the transitional authorities. The new governor of Darfur, former rebel leader Minni Minnawi, has also supported Fatou Bensouda’s demands this weekend.
According to Human Rights Watch, Sudan has a legal obligation to surrender the four men, unless national authorities prove that they will try them on the same charges. However, the organization believes that the Sudanese procedures in Darfur are not progressing. The NGO adds that legal loopholes and regulatory barriers can make a fair trial in Sudan impossible.
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