PRESIDENT BASHIR'S PATRIOTIC SPIRIT AND A LOOK AT DARFUR
Kanini Evans Kariuki
May 25, 2009
IN a straight- shooting and no-nonsense speech, President Omar Al-Bashir recently announced important decisions, top of which is the immediate unconditional ceasefire in Darfur between Sudanese Armed Forces and the warring factions, besides stopping all unnecessary and hostile media campaigns against the vast African nation.
Al-Bashir called, while delivering his speech at the concluding session of the Sudanese People's Forum Initiative held at the Friendship Hall, Khartoum, on the UN, AU and the monitoring parties to initiate an effective joint monitoring mechanism to put into action this decision.
The Head of State affirmed the Sudanese government's commitment in enabling the hybrid forces conduct their mission according to what is stipulated in the comprehensive peace agreement(CPA),signed between government and rebel forces for the sake of lasting peace in the Sudan.
He also emphasized commitment of negotiations to reach peaceful solutions which will guarantee the eradication of disputes, adding that the nation can achieve the development.
President Al-Bashir renewed his government's commitment to achieve justice through supporting its institutions, and encouraging the reconciliations announcing the establishment of blood money fund with a capital of SDG100 million.
He welcomed the steps taken within the framework of normalization of relations between Sudan and Chad, affirming Sudan´s keenness to establish good relations with the neighbouring countries.
President Al-Bashir reiterated his confidence in the upcoming Arab-African initiative talks which will take place in Doha to reach a peaceful solution to the Darfur issue.
Eritrean President, Isaias Afeworki, who attended the session, considered the forum as a start of a new chapter, adding that it opened the way for a Sudanese solution and not an 'exported' one.
Afeworki urged the Sudanese people to overcome all the challenges facing them through an internal Sudanese solution.
On his part, the UN-AU joint mediator, D'jibril Bassole, considered the recommendations as the cornerstone in achieving peace in Darfur.
Bassole announced his commitment to contact all the armed movements for the purpose of stopping hostilities and creating conducive environment for peace talks.
Tanzanian Foreign Minister who attended the session while representing the AU Chairman, said that the forum is a message to the world that Africa is capable of resolving its problems peacefully through negotiations
He added that Sudan has proved to the world that Ocampo's genocide allegations against president AL-Bashir are misplaced, and that all the Africans and Arabs will defend President Al-Bashir.
He described the initiative as a model to be emulated in Congo and other countries to resolve the problems of the African continent, affirming AU's support to the outcome of the forum.
Deputy Chairman of AU Commission described the Darfur problem as a moral responsibility for all Sudanese people, calling on all government and rebel parties to adopt the recommendations, affirming the Commission's support to those recommendations.
The bone of contention in the Darfur issue is the shocking move against president Bashir over accusations of alleged genocide in Darfur.
That president Omar Bashir could be charged with masterminding genocide in Darfur three years after he signed a peace deal in Nairobi with rebels from Southern Sudan, has sent shock waves across the world.
Disbelief took center stage after President Bashir was accused by the international criminal court´s prosecutor of masterminding the genocide, killing 35,000 people and using rape as a weapon of war.
ICC prosecutor Luis Moreno-Ocampo asked the court for a warrant of arrest against president Bashir, the first sitting head of state to be pursued by an international court since Liberia´s Charles Taylor and Yugoslavia´s Slobodan Milosevic.
As the news spread across the world like wild fire, various individuals and groups in Sudan including some members of the Sudan´s peoples liberation army (SPLA), got so exasperated by the move that they quickly moved to throw their support behind President Bashir.
The Sudanese ambassador to Kenya Majok Guandong also rushed to the president´s defence during a hastily –convened press conference at the Sudan embassy in Kenya, located at Kibera.
"The case against President Bashir is illegal, totally unacceptable and a bad precedent against a sitting president," charged Guandong who was accompanied by Somaya Sadig, the press counsellor of the Sudanese Embassy.
The envoy stressed that Sudan would not enter into any deal with The Hague and that the country should be left alone to solve its problems without any interference from any quarters "since some individuals and nations are behind this move."
Guandong told the press that Sudan had its own judicial system capable of handling and resolving any issues effectively.
The move against President Bashir is curious and ironical in the sense that it comes hot on the heels of indefatigable efforts that have currently been made by the president in resolving the Darfur crisis.
It is hard to imagine that President Bashir can stand to be accused of genocide or to be impeached, after appearing to have done so much to resolve the problem in Darfur.
Just recently, the President said he was absolutely committed to the restoration of peace in Darfur, while accusing rebels of prolonging the conflict.
"We think a number of factions are not ready for peace. They are enjoying their stay in luxurious hotels in Europe," Bashir told an evening news conference in Rome some times back. "We can say they are marketing the suffering of their people in Darfur."
Basher made the ceasefire offer ahead of his first meeting with Pope Benedict XVI, who voiced his "heartfelt hope" for the success of the peace talks.
"We stated that we are prepared for a ceasefire for the start of negotiations in order to create a positive climate conducive to a positive end to the negotiations," Bashir said after recent talks with Italian Prime Minister Romano Prodi.
The government and Darfur rebels who refused to sign a peace agreement are to hold talks in Tripoli from October 27.
Several ceasefires have already broken down. Months back, the UN and African Union mediators brokered talks in Tanzania between the myriad rebel factions to thrash out a common platform for new talks with the government. The African Union mission in Sudan indicated that it was deeply concerned about renewed fighting.
President Bashir stated that 350,000 internally displaced people "have returned voluntarily to their homes and villages."
The president asked Prodi to pressure "certain European countries harboring some of these rebel groups" to persuade them to come to the negotiating table.
"Every day we see a new faction, more splintering, even a group riding only in three cars," Bashir said, adding: "I would like to declare that coming negotiations will be final … Any party (not honoring it) should be subject to punishment."
During Bashir´s audience with Benedict at the papal residence at Castel Gandolfo near Rome, the Vatican said "very positive views were expressed concerning fresh peace negotiations for Darfur."
A Vatican communiqué said: "It is the Holy See´s heartfelt hope that these negotiations prove successful in order to put an end to the suffering and insecurity of those people´s."
For his part, Prodi pledged financial help, transport and logistical assistance, as well as training for a UN peacekeeping force to be deployed in Darfur.
It is indeed, worthy of note, that some big foreign powers portray Darfur as a bad place where there is no room for humanity, stability and security.
Consequently, when Darfur is mentioned, the external world imagines of a group of suffering refugees, a grinding civil war, insecurity and others. Such are the images the world expects from any Western journalist who goes to cover life in Darfur. Therefore, the false accumulated images the world received about the truth in the region!
On the contrary, if you are a Sudanese national or if you live in Sudan, you will be able too know the real situation in Darfur and consequently, you would reject the false news which the Western media insist on transmitting about the region. The reason is that you would realize that there are good news and things about Darfur and a glorious history of this region that deserves reflection. Darfur, in fact, does have a rich experience in conflict resolution along with deeply-rooted norms and traditions that are taught at Harvard University.
The people who receive the news in the West do not bother to know about the achievements other parts of the world have had, but focus their media concerns on Darfur.
They do so because they are keen to reflect the images that match the imagination of their clients about the different parts of the world.
In this regard, no African country is allowed to send a TV team to some of these big foreign nations to document the disasters, human rights violations and racial discrimination there, but instead, the African TV´s depend on what these nations transmit of images of their success and power, which for sure, conceals the reality.
Such negative media coverage is used to justify the nation´s weakness in shouldering their responsibilities towards the third world.
Consequently, the National Salvation Revolution (NSR) and the government of National Unity had to send positive signals of deep meanings and effect on the world, signals of deep meanings and effect on the world people, and therefore, came the visit of the president of the republic of Sudan field Marshal Omar al-Bashir to the Fashir states along with the historical session (no.29) of the council of ministers in Al-Fashir.
The distinguished speeches of the President at the capitals of the three Darfur states corrected the impression that what was being conveyed to the world about Darfur were merely media fabrications tending to tarnish the images of Sudan before the world.
There are many countries which keep silent. They don´t do so because they have nothing to say, but because they are trapped between doubt and certainty, a matter which is the real problem.
The real challenge now is what President Al-Bashir presented to the external world, i.e. making the external world see the real image of Darfur which enjoys peace, fraternity and love.
This is evident in the service utilities the president inaugurated during the visit. Such utilities as Kalamando area´s hospital, Wada´s hospital, the court center, Kalamando´s health quarantine, a five star hotel, a guest house and Al-Fashir-Saqal-Naam-Wada road with a cost of 10 million dollars, besides many other accomplishments in the economic social, political, service and security domains.
The visit of president Bashir to the Darfur states was considered as an important turning point in the history of Sudan in the light of the international and regional changes. The importance of the visit came from the point that it represented the program of the National Unity government and was in response to the region´s desire to implement the Darfur Peace Agreement.
The visit proved some main facts; the first one being the Sudanese nation´s desire to realize peace in Darfur and confront all the challenges, the second one being refuting allegations of Sudan enemies that aim to create conflicts targeting to hinder the country´s concentration on development of the Darfur states, and boosting performance of all development sectors in the region.
The presidents´ address tackled several elements such as commitment of the government to implement development projects in the region, the government support to Darfur and its citizens to achieve stability and security, renewing calls to the armed movements to join the peace process to pave way for development projects in the region.
During his visit to the Darfur states, President Bashir called on the citizens to avoid tribalism as it is one of the main causes of sedition in Darfur, vowing to resolve the crisis there as quickly as possible.
The problem in Darfur seems historical and if peace has to be restored there fully and in the interests of the success of the implementation of the comprehensive peace agreement(CPA), President Bashir and his country men and women should be left alone to solve their issues.
Arresting and prosecuting the President, may turn out to be the very antithesis of the desired change in Sudan. It could shatter the peace accord in the vast African nation, and cannot be an answer or panacea to the problems of the Sudanese and those of the Darfur region.
Al-Bashir called, while delivering his speech at the concluding session of the Sudanese People's Forum Initiative held at the Friendship Hall, Khartoum, on the UN, AU and the monitoring parties to initiate an effective joint monitoring mechanism to put into action this decision.
The Head of State affirmed the Sudanese government's commitment in enabling the hybrid forces conduct their mission according to what is stipulated in the comprehensive peace agreement(CPA),signed between government and rebel forces for the sake of lasting peace in the Sudan.
He also emphasized commitment of negotiations to reach peaceful solutions which will guarantee the eradication of disputes, adding that the nation can achieve the development.
President Al-Bashir renewed his government's commitment to achieve justice through supporting its institutions, and encouraging the reconciliations announcing the establishment of blood money fund with a capital of SDG100 million.
He welcomed the steps taken within the framework of normalization of relations between Sudan and Chad, affirming Sudan´s keenness to establish good relations with the neighbouring countries.
President Al-Bashir reiterated his confidence in the upcoming Arab-African initiative talks which will take place in Doha to reach a peaceful solution to the Darfur issue.
Eritrean President, Isaias Afeworki, who attended the session, considered the forum as a start of a new chapter, adding that it opened the way for a Sudanese solution and not an 'exported' one.
Afeworki urged the Sudanese people to overcome all the challenges facing them through an internal Sudanese solution.
On his part, the UN-AU joint mediator, D'jibril Bassole, considered the recommendations as the cornerstone in achieving peace in Darfur.
Bassole announced his commitment to contact all the armed movements for the purpose of stopping hostilities and creating conducive environment for peace talks.
Tanzanian Foreign Minister who attended the session while representing the AU Chairman, said that the forum is a message to the world that Africa is capable of resolving its problems peacefully through negotiations
He added that Sudan has proved to the world that Ocampo's genocide allegations against president AL-Bashir are misplaced, and that all the Africans and Arabs will defend President Al-Bashir.
He described the initiative as a model to be emulated in Congo and other countries to resolve the problems of the African continent, affirming AU's support to the outcome of the forum.
Deputy Chairman of AU Commission described the Darfur problem as a moral responsibility for all Sudanese people, calling on all government and rebel parties to adopt the recommendations, affirming the Commission's support to those recommendations.
The bone of contention in the Darfur issue is the shocking move against president Bashir over accusations of alleged genocide in Darfur.
That president Omar Bashir could be charged with masterminding genocide in Darfur three years after he signed a peace deal in Nairobi with rebels from Southern Sudan, has sent shock waves across the world.
Disbelief took center stage after President Bashir was accused by the international criminal court´s prosecutor of masterminding the genocide, killing 35,000 people and using rape as a weapon of war.
ICC prosecutor Luis Moreno-Ocampo asked the court for a warrant of arrest against president Bashir, the first sitting head of state to be pursued by an international court since Liberia´s Charles Taylor and Yugoslavia´s Slobodan Milosevic.
As the news spread across the world like wild fire, various individuals and groups in Sudan including some members of the Sudan´s peoples liberation army (SPLA), got so exasperated by the move that they quickly moved to throw their support behind President Bashir.
The Sudanese ambassador to Kenya Majok Guandong also rushed to the president´s defence during a hastily –convened press conference at the Sudan embassy in Kenya, located at Kibera.
"The case against President Bashir is illegal, totally unacceptable and a bad precedent against a sitting president," charged Guandong who was accompanied by Somaya Sadig, the press counsellor of the Sudanese Embassy.
The envoy stressed that Sudan would not enter into any deal with The Hague and that the country should be left alone to solve its problems without any interference from any quarters "since some individuals and nations are behind this move."
Guandong told the press that Sudan had its own judicial system capable of handling and resolving any issues effectively.
The move against President Bashir is curious and ironical in the sense that it comes hot on the heels of indefatigable efforts that have currently been made by the president in resolving the Darfur crisis.
It is hard to imagine that President Bashir can stand to be accused of genocide or to be impeached, after appearing to have done so much to resolve the problem in Darfur.
Just recently, the President said he was absolutely committed to the restoration of peace in Darfur, while accusing rebels of prolonging the conflict.
"We think a number of factions are not ready for peace. They are enjoying their stay in luxurious hotels in Europe," Bashir told an evening news conference in Rome some times back. "We can say they are marketing the suffering of their people in Darfur."
Basher made the ceasefire offer ahead of his first meeting with Pope Benedict XVI, who voiced his "heartfelt hope" for the success of the peace talks.
"We stated that we are prepared for a ceasefire for the start of negotiations in order to create a positive climate conducive to a positive end to the negotiations," Bashir said after recent talks with Italian Prime Minister Romano Prodi.
The government and Darfur rebels who refused to sign a peace agreement are to hold talks in Tripoli from October 27.
Several ceasefires have already broken down. Months back, the UN and African Union mediators brokered talks in Tanzania between the myriad rebel factions to thrash out a common platform for new talks with the government. The African Union mission in Sudan indicated that it was deeply concerned about renewed fighting.
President Bashir stated that 350,000 internally displaced people "have returned voluntarily to their homes and villages."
The president asked Prodi to pressure "certain European countries harboring some of these rebel groups" to persuade them to come to the negotiating table.
"Every day we see a new faction, more splintering, even a group riding only in three cars," Bashir said, adding: "I would like to declare that coming negotiations will be final … Any party (not honoring it) should be subject to punishment."
During Bashir´s audience with Benedict at the papal residence at Castel Gandolfo near Rome, the Vatican said "very positive views were expressed concerning fresh peace negotiations for Darfur."
A Vatican communiqué said: "It is the Holy See´s heartfelt hope that these negotiations prove successful in order to put an end to the suffering and insecurity of those people´s."
For his part, Prodi pledged financial help, transport and logistical assistance, as well as training for a UN peacekeeping force to be deployed in Darfur.
It is indeed, worthy of note, that some big foreign powers portray Darfur as a bad place where there is no room for humanity, stability and security.
Consequently, when Darfur is mentioned, the external world imagines of a group of suffering refugees, a grinding civil war, insecurity and others. Such are the images the world expects from any Western journalist who goes to cover life in Darfur. Therefore, the false accumulated images the world received about the truth in the region!
On the contrary, if you are a Sudanese national or if you live in Sudan, you will be able too know the real situation in Darfur and consequently, you would reject the false news which the Western media insist on transmitting about the region. The reason is that you would realize that there are good news and things about Darfur and a glorious history of this region that deserves reflection. Darfur, in fact, does have a rich experience in conflict resolution along with deeply-rooted norms and traditions that are taught at Harvard University.
The people who receive the news in the West do not bother to know about the achievements other parts of the world have had, but focus their media concerns on Darfur.
They do so because they are keen to reflect the images that match the imagination of their clients about the different parts of the world.
In this regard, no African country is allowed to send a TV team to some of these big foreign nations to document the disasters, human rights violations and racial discrimination there, but instead, the African TV´s depend on what these nations transmit of images of their success and power, which for sure, conceals the reality.
Such negative media coverage is used to justify the nation´s weakness in shouldering their responsibilities towards the third world.
Consequently, the National Salvation Revolution (NSR) and the government of National Unity had to send positive signals of deep meanings and effect on the world, signals of deep meanings and effect on the world people, and therefore, came the visit of the president of the republic of Sudan field Marshal Omar al-Bashir to the Fashir states along with the historical session (no.29) of the council of ministers in Al-Fashir.
The distinguished speeches of the President at the capitals of the three Darfur states corrected the impression that what was being conveyed to the world about Darfur were merely media fabrications tending to tarnish the images of Sudan before the world.
There are many countries which keep silent. They don´t do so because they have nothing to say, but because they are trapped between doubt and certainty, a matter which is the real problem.
The real challenge now is what President Al-Bashir presented to the external world, i.e. making the external world see the real image of Darfur which enjoys peace, fraternity and love.
This is evident in the service utilities the president inaugurated during the visit. Such utilities as Kalamando area´s hospital, Wada´s hospital, the court center, Kalamando´s health quarantine, a five star hotel, a guest house and Al-Fashir-Saqal-Naam-Wada road with a cost of 10 million dollars, besides many other accomplishments in the economic social, political, service and security domains.
The visit of president Bashir to the Darfur states was considered as an important turning point in the history of Sudan in the light of the international and regional changes. The importance of the visit came from the point that it represented the program of the National Unity government and was in response to the region´s desire to implement the Darfur Peace Agreement.
The visit proved some main facts; the first one being the Sudanese nation´s desire to realize peace in Darfur and confront all the challenges, the second one being refuting allegations of Sudan enemies that aim to create conflicts targeting to hinder the country´s concentration on development of the Darfur states, and boosting performance of all development sectors in the region.
The presidents´ address tackled several elements such as commitment of the government to implement development projects in the region, the government support to Darfur and its citizens to achieve stability and security, renewing calls to the armed movements to join the peace process to pave way for development projects in the region.
During his visit to the Darfur states, President Bashir called on the citizens to avoid tribalism as it is one of the main causes of sedition in Darfur, vowing to resolve the crisis there as quickly as possible.
The problem in Darfur seems historical and if peace has to be restored there fully and in the interests of the success of the implementation of the comprehensive peace agreement(CPA), President Bashir and his country men and women should be left alone to solve their issues.
Arresting and prosecuting the President, may turn out to be the very antithesis of the desired change in Sudan. It could shatter the peace accord in the vast African nation, and cannot be an answer or panacea to the problems of the Sudanese and those of the Darfur region.
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