Africa will not execute Gadaffi warrant
Jul 04, 2011
AFRICAN nations will not execute an International Criminal Court arrest warrant issued for Libyan leader Muammar Gadaffi, an African Union summit said on Friday.
AFRICAN nations will not execute an International Criminal Court arrest warrant issued for Libyan leader Muammar Gadaffi, an African Union summit said on Friday.
The summit in Equatorial Guinea said the warrant issued last week seriously complicates efforts to find a peaceful solution to the conflict between Gadaffi’s forces and Libyan rebels.
An assembly of the summit decided that “AU member states shall not cooperate in the execution of the arrest warrant,†according to a text of the decisions.
The assembly will also address, in a mutually reinforcing way, issues related to impunity and reconciliation, the summit said.
The African Union is under pressure to find a solution to the conflict after criticising the UN-mandated NATO-led air strikes against Gadaffi’s forces and insisting on “African solutions†to the continent’s problems.
The 53-nation African Union took a similar stance against an ICC warrant for Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir in 2009 on charges of genocide, war crimes and crimes against humanity in Darfur.
The ICC on June 27 issued warrants for Gadaffi, his son Seif al-Islam, and the head of Libyan intelligence, Abdullah al-Senussi, for atrocities committed in a bloody uprising that began mid-February.
The summit that opened outside the capital Malabo also agreed on a peace plan that rules Gadaffi out of talks with rebels to end the four-month conflict in his country, a top official said.
The plan, which has to be presented to the Libyan regime and rebels, says “Gadaffi must not participate in negotiations,†the head of the African Union peace council, Ramtane Lamamra, told AFP.
The document was finalised in hours of decisions among leaders at the African Union summit that started on Thursday and ended on Friday afternoon.
“It has been a big success. It has been long but good everybody was able to give their opinion,†Lamamra said.
He did not comment further on the plan, which was expected to be released to the media later.
The roadmap builds on one drawn up in March by African leaders mediating in the conflict from Congo-Brazzaville, Uganda, Mali, Mauritania and South Africa.
This plan was rejected by the rebels who demanded Gadaffi must first step down.
The new version also envisages a ceasefire, humanitarian aid, a transition period, reforms towards democracy and elections.
It says the transition must be consensual and inclusive, which one diplomat said on condition of anonymity meant all parties, including Gadaffi, would have to agree, in a potential hurdle to the peace effort.
Libyan rebel representatives were special guests to the sidelines of the summit outside the Equatorial Guinea capital Malabo, where members of the embattled regime were also present.
The rebel delegation insisted that Gadaffi must quit after over 40 years in power and also backed an ICC arrest warrant for him.
The summit in Equatorial Guinea said the warrant issued last week seriously complicates efforts to find a peaceful solution to the conflict between Gadaffi’s forces and Libyan rebels.
An assembly of the summit decided that “AU member states shall not cooperate in the execution of the arrest warrant,†according to a text of the decisions.
The assembly will also address, in a mutually reinforcing way, issues related to impunity and reconciliation, the summit said.
The African Union is under pressure to find a solution to the conflict after criticising the UN-mandated NATO-led air strikes against Gadaffi’s forces and insisting on “African solutions†to the continent’s problems.
The 53-nation African Union took a similar stance against an ICC warrant for Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir in 2009 on charges of genocide, war crimes and crimes against humanity in Darfur.
The ICC on June 27 issued warrants for Gadaffi, his son Seif al-Islam, and the head of Libyan intelligence, Abdullah al-Senussi, for atrocities committed in a bloody uprising that began mid-February.
The summit that opened outside the capital Malabo also agreed on a peace plan that rules Gadaffi out of talks with rebels to end the four-month conflict in his country, a top official said.
The plan, which has to be presented to the Libyan regime and rebels, says “Gadaffi must not participate in negotiations,†the head of the African Union peace council, Ramtane Lamamra, told AFP.
The document was finalised in hours of decisions among leaders at the African Union summit that started on Thursday and ended on Friday afternoon.
“It has been a big success. It has been long but good everybody was able to give their opinion,†Lamamra said.
He did not comment further on the plan, which was expected to be released to the media later.
The roadmap builds on one drawn up in March by African leaders mediating in the conflict from Congo-Brazzaville, Uganda, Mali, Mauritania and South Africa.
This plan was rejected by the rebels who demanded Gadaffi must first step down.
The new version also envisages a ceasefire, humanitarian aid, a transition period, reforms towards democracy and elections.
It says the transition must be consensual and inclusive, which one diplomat said on condition of anonymity meant all parties, including Gadaffi, would have to agree, in a potential hurdle to the peace effort.
Libyan rebel representatives were special guests to the sidelines of the summit outside the Equatorial Guinea capital Malabo, where members of the embattled regime were also present.
The rebel delegation insisted that Gadaffi must quit after over 40 years in power and also backed an ICC arrest warrant for him.