Malawi president asks to ban Bashir from summit

On Friday Malawi president Joyce Banda said that she asked the African Union to stop Sudanese President Omar Hassan al-Bashir, wanted by the International Criminal Court on charges of genocide, from attending the summit hosted by her country.

Bashir visited Malawi last year when former President Bongo Mutharika was in power. It was a trip that raised international criticism but Malawi had said it did not maintain the obligations of its membership in the Court.

Banda, who came to power last month, said she had asked the African Union not to invite Al-Bashir to the EU summit to be hosted by her country in July.

In a press conference she stated that she had written to the AU fearing the economic repercussions that may result.

‘Does not need permission’

However, the Justice and Equality Movement (JEM) said that Malawi does not need permission from the AU to implement ICC resolutions, it has to implement because it is an ICC member state.

Ahmed Hussein Adam JEM’s secretary of foreign relations told Radio Dabanga that Banda’s action is an encouraging step, demanding the AU to live up to its responsibility.

He said it should not be a forum or haven for violators of human rights, as stipulated in its statute; therefore it should clearly refuse to receive El Bashir in its conferences, summits and member states.

The secretary said ‘Omar al-Bashir, who will end up in a cell in The Hague along with his regime, is now besieged and internationally isolated in a big prison.’

Article source: http://www.radiodabanga.org/node/30025