March 31, 2015
Ten years after the United Nations referred crimes in Darfur to the International Criminal Court, little has been done to hold the perpetrators responsible. Today, a group of human rights and aid groups including Humanity United reached out to all fifteen members of the UN Security Council requesting that they uphold justice and combat impunity. We outline steps for accountability in Darfur, highlighting how their support is needed to ensure the ICC is a resource worldwide.
The failure of the UN Security Council to support the decision made 10 years ago today to combat impunity in Sudan has contributed to the loss of thousands of lives in Sudan, South Sudan, and around the world. This failure of the United Nations Member States to uphold justice in Sudan has created a climate of impunity that has emboldened powerful criminals worldwide and may, over the past 10 years, have contributed to the unrest and terrorism that we have seen sweeping through the region and beyond.
Read the full text of the letter and its press release.
Meanwhile, 23 African NGOs have also called on the African Union to cease their support for the upcoming Sudanese election until there is a sustainable peace, a view echoed by today’s letter. In the words of the NGOS: “The African Union and all of its relevant bodies must set an important precedent by not sending elections monitors, call upon the Sudanese government to postpone national elections until a genuine and comprehensive national dialogue takes place and continue your steadfast efforts to bring about a lasting, just peace to Sudan through an inclusive process.”