Darfur rebels address joint letter to UN Secretary-General
In a joint letter to UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-Moon, the Justice and Equality Movement (JEM) leader Dr Jibril Ibrahim, Sudan Liberation Movement (SLA/M) faction leaders Minni Minawi and Abdel Wahid Al Nur, have called for transparent and independent investigations by the International Criminal Court into allegations of mass rape in Tabit, North Darfur, and to bring the perpetrators to justice. They affirmed that the Tabit incident is a war crime and a crime against humanity, whose perpetrators are persons known by name. Dr Jibril Ibrahim told Radio Dabanga that the army’s assault and rape of women in Tabit are contrary to Sudanese ethics. He expressed doubts about the credibility and performance of Unamid. He demanded the Security Council and the African Union to hold a meeting to discuss the performance of the mission and its mandate. He stressed that “the Mission must either be changed, withdrawn or reformed because it has become inefficient”. Abdel Wahid El Nur appealed to the international community to form a fact-finding committee. He told Radio Dabanga that “the Tabit mass rape proves that government policy deals with nothing but rape and genocide and this confirms that no peace can be reached with this regime”. He added that this incident unified the resistance forces of Darfur (JEM and SLM) in demanding an investigation into this heinous crime. “This incident strengthened us and demanded the political forces and National Consensus Forces to unite in order to topple this regime and bring the criminals to justice.” Minni Minawi expressed concern that “the international community and the Security Council only denounce specific crimes that occur. The crime that occurred in Tabit cannot be tolerated because it is an extension of the systematic crimes by the regime.” He called for urgent action and the formation of an investigation committee by the international community. He asserted that Unamid has lost its credibility and wants to cover-up the government’s crimes. “There should be an international investigation with the participation of human rights organisations such as Human Rights Watch, as Unamid has become unable to conduct any investigation,” he concluded. File photo: SLA/M faction leader Minni Minawi (left) during a workshop on peace and security in Darfur held in Addis Ababa. (Albert González Farran/Unamid) Related:USA joins call for full access to Tabit, North Darfur (12 November 2014)Darfur rape allegations: EU, Norway call for accountability (12 November 2014)Political parties demand new inquiry into North Darfur rape (12 November 2014)Darfur Bar asks UN for independent inquiry on rape allegations (12 November 2014)
In a joint letter to UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-Moon, the Justice and Equality Movement (JEM) leader Dr Jibril Ibrahim, Sudan Liberation Movement (SLA/M) faction leaders Minni Minawi and Abdel Wahid Al Nur, have called for transparent and independent investigations by the International Criminal Court into allegations of mass rape in Tabit, North Darfur, and to bring the perpetrators to justice.
They affirmed that the Tabit incident is a war crime and a crime against humanity, whose perpetrators are persons known by name.
Dr Jibril Ibrahim told Radio Dabanga that the army’s assault and rape of women in Tabit are contrary to Sudanese ethics. He expressed doubts about the credibility and performance of Unamid. He demanded the Security Council and the African Union to hold a meeting to discuss the performance of the mission and its mandate. He stressed that “the Mission must either be changed, withdrawn or reformed because it has become inefficient”.
Abdel Wahid El Nur appealed to the international community to form a fact-finding committee. He told Radio Dabanga that “the Tabit mass rape proves that government policy deals with nothing but rape and genocide and this confirms that no peace can be reached with this regime”. He added that this incident unified the resistance forces of Darfur (JEM and SLM) in demanding an investigation into this heinous crime. “This incident strengthened us and demanded the political forces and National Consensus Forces to unite in order to topple this regime and bring the criminals to justice.”
Minni Minawi expressed concern that “the international community and the Security Council only denounce specific crimes that occur. The crime that occurred in Tabit cannot be tolerated because it is an extension of the systematic crimes by the regime.”
He called for urgent action and the formation of an investigation committee by the international community. He asserted that Unamid has lost its credibility and wants to cover-up the government’s crimes.
“There should be an international investigation with the participation of human rights organisations such as Human Rights Watch, as Unamid has become unable to conduct any investigation,” he concluded.
File photo: SLA/M faction leader Minni Minawi (left) during a workshop on peace and security in Darfur held in Addis Ababa. (Albert González Farran/Unamid)
Related:
USA joins call for full access to Tabit, North Darfur (12 November 2014)
Darfur rape allegations: EU, Norway call for accountability (12 November 2014)
Political parties demand new inquiry into North Darfur rape (12 November 2014)
Darfur Bar asks UN for independent inquiry on rape allegations (12 November 2014)
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