UN Acts on Sudan but Ignores Darfur
With the mandate of the United Nations Advance Mission to Sudan (UNAMIS) (resolution 1547) expiring today after the second extension this month, the UN Security Council voted unanimously in support of the US introduced resolution calling for 10,000 peacekeepers in Southern Sudan. The vote comes after more than five weeks of stalled debate on a comprehensive resolution, one that would address how to deal with the violence and war crimes of the western Darfur region of the Sudan. To break the stalemate, the US divided its comprehensive draft resolution into three draft resolutions: 1) peacekeepers, 2) sanctions, and 3) a non-ICC, ad hoc tribunal for Darfur war crimes.
While today’s vote on the peacekeeping force for Southern Sudan passed easily, the resolution does not provide for peacekeepers in Darfur. Moreover, the two other US draft resolutions to address Darfur have garnered limited support within the Security Council. The US draft resolution regarding the ad hoc tribunal prompted the introduction of two competing draft resolutions during the past two weeks. One of those resolutions, advocating the International Criminal Court (ICC), seemed likely for approval today.
Under pressure from France, the UN Security Council was expected to vote today on the draft resolution introduced this week to refer the war crimes of the Sudan to the ICC, but the vote has been delayed until next week. The United States has been the most vocal opponent to the ICC referral. If the United States can neither finesse the means to abstain from the vote nor gain the consent of at least eight other members to a compromise on one of the other two draft resolutions, the US will face a harsh predicament next week. In the absence of political cover, the US will deliver either an endorsement of the international court or an embarrassing veto of an international effort to bring justice to the war crimes of the Sudan.
The three draft resolutions regarding the jurisdiction for Darfur war crimes include:
- International Criminal Court
France introduced
Introduced this week as a direct challenge to the US draft resolution.
Calls for the UN Security Council to refer the war crimes
of the Sudan to the International Criminal Court (ICC). - United Nations/African Union Hybrid
United States introduced
The comprehensive resolution had been stalled for weeks and was broken into three
separate resolutions on Tuesday of this week.
Calls for the UN Security Council to adopt three draft resolutions for the Sudan:
1) peacekeepers 2) sanctions and 3) a non-ICC mechanism to prosecute the war crimes.
An ad-hoc tribunal, located in Tanzania and co-administered by the United Nations and the African Union, would be created to
prosecute the war crimes. - African Union
Nigeria introduced
Introduced last week as an effort to break the deadlock on the
US comprehensive draft resolution. Calls for the UN Security Council
to defer to a tribunal administered entirely by
the African Union. Nigeria currently heads
the African Union and claims to have the support of the
Sudanese government for the resolution.
The ICC draft resolution requires at least nine votes of the 15 Security Council members for approval, but approval is not dependent on the unanimous approval of permanent members.
Of the 10 non-permanent members, seven of the countries have ratified the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court, the treaty establishing the ICC. The seven countries include Argentina, Benin, Brazil, Denmark, Greece, Romania, and Tanzania. These countries would be likely to vote in favor of the ICC referral.
Algeria, Japan, and the Philippines are uncertain votes. While Algeria is likely to vote against the ICC, Algeria and Tanzania may be open to voting for the Nigerian proposal, with additional votes from China, Russia, and the United States. However, four additional votes would be needed and the source of funding to support the cash-strapped Africa Union has not been addressed. Moreover, African human rights groups are opposed to the Nigerian solution.
The permanent members are divided on the ICC referral issue. France, having introduced the draft resolution, will vote in favor of the ICC. The United Kingdom, which also ratified the Rome Statute, is likely to vote for the ICC. China, Russia, and the United States are more likely to veto it. China is a key trading partner of the Sudan and its government-owned PetroChina Company recently partnered with the Sudanese government on a $1 billion petroleum project. Russia, who opposes the US-proposed sanctions, may be fearful of voting in favor of the ICC for the Darfur war crimes because of the potential legal precedent regarding a state’s ability to suppress secessionists movements. The United States
retracted its support of the ICC in May 2002 and seeks to avoid giving the ICC credibility.
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