Declaration by the Committee of Ambassadors, ACP 01/10/2010

Declaration by the Committee of Ambassadors of the African, Caribbean and Pacific Group of States (ACP) on President Omar Al-Bashir’s presence in Kenya on 27 August 2010

The ACP Committee of Ambassadors

Meeting in its 833^rd session in Brussels on 23 September 2010,

Aware of the controversy generated in some quarters by the presence in Kenya on 27 August 2010 of   His Excellency Mr. Omar Al-Bashir, President of the Republic of Sudan who had been invited by the Kenyan Government to the promulgation ceremony of  Kenya’s new Constitution, which was adopted by referendum on 4 August 2010,

Recalling the Declaration of the 6th Summit of the ACP Heads of State and   Government meeting in Accra, Ghana, from 2 to 3 October 2008, in which the ACP Heads of State and Government noted the request for the indictment of President Omar Al-Bashir,  of Sudan, on charges of genocide, crimes against humanity and war crimes in Darfur by the International Criminal Court (ICC) and reaffirmed the call made by the African Union for the suspension of the ICC demarche to allow for political and diplomatic efforts to address the situation in Darfur;  

Recalling also the declaration adopted by the ACP Committee of Ambassadors on 12 March 2009 on the Decision of the International Criminal Court (ICC) to issue an arrest warrant against the President of the Republic of the Sudan, His Excellency Mr. Omar  Al-Bashir, for crimes against humanity and war crimes in Darfur, in which it, inter alia  reiterated its support for the Declaration of the 6th Summit of the ACP aforesaid, and that of the AU  Assemblies particularly requesting the implementation of the provisions of Article 16 of the ICC Statutes, which allows for the postponement of the said Decision in order to allow political and diplomatic efforts to find a lasting solution to the Darfur problem ;

 Recalling further that the Committee of Ambassadors expressed its firm belief in promoting the linkage between peace and justice but also its support for the peace efforts of the African Union (AU) and the United Nations in the Sudan, and its belief that a political settlement was the only realistic hope of achieving and ensuring a lasting peace in the region,

And recalling further the conclusions of the fact-finding mission sent by the Committee of Ambassadors to Sudan from 4 to 6 August 2008, acknowledging that international justice is a duty of the international community, but that it must be carried out with equity and discernment so that it does not do more harm than the wrong it seeks to redress;

Convinced that Kenya is fully aware and respectful of its obligations under the Rome Statute to which it is a signatory, and of Article 4 of the Constitutive Act of the African Union, of which it is a member and by virtue of which it remains committed to the principle of the rejection of impunity and the promotion of justice;

Aware that Kenya as a member of the African Union is bound under Article 23(2) of the Constitutive Act aforesaid “to comply with the decisions and policies of the Union”;

Aware of Kenya’s active involvement in the ongoing peace process in the Sudan and in the implementation of the Comprehensive Peace Agreement (culminating in the referendum on 9 January 2011) of which it is a guarantor, and therefore of the need for Kenya to maintain frequent interaction and engagement with both parties to the Agreement with a view to having lasting peace, security and stability in the region without which prosperity and sustainable economic development cannot be achieved;

Aware too, that it was in the context of all the foregoing that Kenya invited President Al-Bashir in full knowledge of the situation so as to facilitate and promote peace and security in a region otherwise ravaged by conflicts;

Recognizes that Kenya’s primary duty to itself and to its neighbors is peace and security at all costs because without this, there cannot be stability and /or sustainable economic development, and further that any policy of exclusionism would negate this duty;

Expresses complete support for the Government of the Republic of Kenya in its policy of engagement with both parties to the Comprehensive Peace Agreement in seeking lasting and sustainable peace particularly during this crucial time as the Sudan nears the referendum on 9 January 2011 which will be the culmination to the agreement aforesaid, and to oppose any initiative that may undermine the peace process.

Brussels, 23 September 2010