Today (February 3rd 2010) the Appeals Chamber of the International Criminal Court unanimously reversed ICC Pre-Trial Chamber I’s decision of March 2009 which excluded the charge of genocide on the arrest warrant for President Omar al-Bashir.  The decision was based on the grounds that the judges had set the standard of proof too high for the Pre-Trial stage. The Appeals Chamber remanded the decision to the Pre-Trial Chamber to decide, based on the correct standard of proof, whether a warrant of arrest should be extended to cover the crime of genocide.

In 1989 Omar Al-Bashir came to power in a military coup. Throughout his presidency, there have been several violent struggles between the Janjaweed militia and rebel groups such as the Sudan People's Liberation Army (SPLA), Sudanese Liberation Army (SLA) and the Justice and Equality Movement (JEM) in the form of guerilla warfare in the Darfur region. Since 2003 violent conflict in Darfur has resulted in 2.5 million people reportedly being displaced and death tolls estimated at between 200,000 and 400,000.

Don Kraus, Chief Executive Officer of Citizens for Global Solutions stated:

“Today’s ruling by the International Criminal Court (ICC) judges demonstrates the wheels of international justice at work.  We are now one step closer to holding accused war criminal Omar Al-Bashir in front of the world’s premier court for trying perpetrators of mass atrocities. Adding a charge of genocide to Al-Bashir’s arrest warrant, would be a first for the ICC and for a sitting head of state. This charge would add to the equally grave charges Al-Bashir faces of Crimes against Humanity and War Crime, including murder, extermination and rape.… President Al-Bashir is still evading arrest, despite the grave charges against him and still presides over a government that is harboring a fugitive from the law.  Each day that Al-Bashir is free from remand is another win for impunity for the world’s most egregious crimes.”

With this decision, the issue of genocide is once again in the spotlight.  Citizens for Global Solutions has worked on the issue of genocide prevention and the importance of engaging internationally to help prevent circumstances like those that occurred in Darfur.  The focus of this year’s annual meeting, to be held May 19-22, 2010, is on the United Nations and measures for the prevention of genocide.  Activists, scholars and Citizens for Global Solutions members from across the country will be convening in Washington, D.C. to participate in a Model UN simulation, with additional opportunities to lobby members of Congress and hear from experts in the field.

Join us at the 2010 Annual Meeting & Model United Nations: May 19-22, 2010

The United Nations: Confronting Genocide:CLICK HERE for more information and to register!