Mbeki to meet ICC boss over Bashir case

ADDIS ABABA, Sunday

Former South Africa president Thabo Mbeki will meet the prosecutor of the International Criminal Court, Mr Louis Moreno-Ocampo, on Sudanese President Hassan al-Bashir’s arrest warrant.

Mr Mbeki, who chairs the African Union Darfur panel, made the announcement to reporters at the AU headquarters in Addis Ababa Mbeki on Saturday.

He said the planned meeting was part of the search for lasting peace and ensuring justice in Darfur.

Mr Mbeki hinted that he had already established contacts with Mr Moreno-Ocampo.

The arrest warrant for President Bashir was issued last March.

“We have agreed that we would find an occasion as soon as possible to meet face to face with him,” Mr Mbeki said.

Specific demands

He declined to elaborate on any specific demands he hoped to make to the ICC.

According to the Rome statute, the prosecutor doesn’t have the right to drop the arrest warrant that has been authorised by a panel of judges.

Mr Mbeki’s Darfur panel is scheduled to submit a final report to the AU in early July.

The panel comprises eminent personalities from Africa and is charged with the task of fighting impunity and seeking accountability for suspects on the Darfur case.

The AU has criticised the arrest warrant against the Sudanese President and asked the UN to defer it. Several African leaders have also criticised the ICC, claiming it was targeting Africans.