Today comes the news that Malawi have pulled out of hosting the African Union summit due to pressures on the Malawi government from African Union leaders who want the country to allow President Omar al-Bashir of Sudan to attend. President Bashir has been indicted for war crimes by the International Criminal Court and this has caused political ripples throughout Africa.
I recently questioned whether the imprisonment of Charles Taylor would bring about a new era in war crimes justice. Looking at the way many African countries have dealt with President Bashir I could argue that the future is not so progressive. The Malawi government is clear on its position it will no longer accept the presence of President Bashir in the country. However this was not always the message of the state, or indeed amongst others around the continent.
The previous Malawian leader, President Bingu wa Mutharika, who died whilst in office, was not quick to support the ICC decision, despite Malawi’s recognition of ICC authority in their country, and defied demands to have Bashir arrested when the Sudanese President visited Malawi in October 2011. However President Mutharika was not alone in Africa in defying the ICC’s ruling. Chad, Kenya and Djibouti have all failed to arrest Bashir in their respective countries despite all of them recognising the authority of the ICC and have been subsequently referred to the UN Security Council.
What this seems to indicate, is a political atmosphere that on the one hand cheers at the outcome of the Charles Taylor trial, yet on the other, openly defies the ICC’s actions that seek to bring to justice another leader accused of war crimes, this time in the Darfur conflict in Sudan. It appears that any progress the international community achieved in the trial of Charles Taylor may have already been undone by the failure to achieve justice in Darfur. The question that must now be asked is; what are the motivations of the leaders who seek to appease the Sudanese, rather than uphold international law?
However the stance of the new President of Malawi, Joyce Banda, who became President in April 2012, may indicate that progress is not already faltering. President Banda’s administration are saying no to the Sudanese President and the African Union and instead are pursuing a path that condemns President Bashir’s role in war crimes and the ICC ruling.
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