Addis Abeba — Ethiopian government proved its position in making practical action it has been promising to welcome Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir despite an arrest warrant issued by the International Criminal Court (ICC) against him.
Al-Bashir has arrived here on Tuesday to attend the Second Ethio-Sudan High-level Joint Commission Meeting opened the same day.
It was the president's sixth foreign trip since his indictment on charges of war crimes in Darfur.
State media here reported that Al-beshir was accorded warm-welcome up on arrival at the Addis Ababa Bole International Airport by Prime Minister Meles Zenawi, senior government officials, resident ambassadors and the members of the Sudanese community in Ethiopia.
Prime Minister Meles Zenawi has been showing that his government does not recognize the ICC in that Ethiopia is not yet a member of the international criminal court institution. Meles recently told BBC HardTalk that he was ready to welcome the Sudanese president provided that he likes to come to the Ethiopian capital and the AU.
According to him Ethiopia had always deplored the ICC resolution against Al Bashir, and made it clear it would ignore calls to apprehend Al Bashir and has led the Addis-based AU delegation demanding United Nations Security Council to suspend the indictments.
It is worth noting that the Joint Higher Committee convenes bi-annually. Its previous meeting was held in Khartoum.
President Al Bashir arrived here in Addis Ababa leading Sudan's delegation to participate in the two-day meeting commencing.
As the two leaders drove out of the airport yesterday morning, security was tighter than ever before, with federal police officers chasing people off the streets, an eye witness told the Daily Monitor.
In one of his first engagements on arrival in Addis Ababa, the Sudanese president went to Sheraton Addis to attend the joint commission high level talk that was last held in 2005.
Bilateral relations including political, trade, finance and social issues and implementation progress on accords signed recently between the two countries will be on the table before the joint committee meeting which will be concluded today by the leaders of the two countries, according to a statement issued by the Ministry of Information.
Since the International Criminal Court issued the arrest warrant on March 4, al-Bashir has visited Eritrea, Egypt and Libya, attended an Arab League summit in Qatar and performed a pilgrimage to Islam's holiest city, Mecca, in Saudi Arabia. In March, the Arab League formally rejected the charges against al-Bashir.
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In his piece entitled White Collar War Crimes, Black African Fall Guys,
investigative journalist Keith Snow writes:
First note that the ICC can now be viewed as a tool of hegemonic U.S. foreign policy,
where the weapons deployed by the U.S. and its allies include the accusations of, and
indictments for, human rights violations, war crimes and crimes against humanity.
To understand this, we can ask WHY NO WHITE MAN HAS YET BEEN CHARGED
with these or other offenses at the ICC (International Criminal Court) which now holds
five black African warlords and seeks to incarcerate and bring to trial another black man,
also an Arab, Omar Bashir.
Why hasnt George W. Bush been indicted ? Or what about Donald Rumsfeld ?
Dick Cheney? Henry Kissinger? Ehud Olmert? Tony Blair?
The sad fact is that the International Criminal Court has become terribly
politicized, as has the entire international justice apparatus.
The ICC has issued indictments, for the first time in history, against a sitting head of
state. Meanwhile, according to Snow, an Israeli weapons dealer, also a reputed Mossad
operative, is revealed to be shipping weapons into Sudan with Pentagon support.
And Belgium changed its law rather than prosecute Ariel Sharon for war crimes.
The double standard cries out to us.
One country in the West, however, increasingly stands out as a place where
justice can be found?and that is Spain. With its landmark indictment of
Pinochet and its current consideration of Israeli war crimes in Lebanon and
U.S. torture in Guantanamo, we increasingly look to the Spanish Courts with
hope. It was the Spanish courts that returned indictments against Rwandan
soldiers for genocide even as the world coddles U.S. proxy Rwanda and its
leader, Paul Kagame.
[allthingscynthiamckinney.com]
[This inspiring poem was featuring in the movie Coach Carter ]
Our Deepest Fear Is Not That We Are Inadequate, Our Deepest Fear Is That We Are Powerful Beyond Measure. It Is Our Light , Not Our Darkness That Most Frightens Us.
We Ask Ourselves, Who Am I To Be Brilliant, Gorgeous, Talented, And Fabulous ?
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Your Playing Small Doesnt Serve The World.
There Is Nothing Enlightened About Shrinking So That Other People Wont Feel Insecure Around You.
We Are All Meant To Shine, As Children Do.
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Its Not Just In Some Of Us; Its In Everyone.
And When We Let Our Own Light Shine We Unconsciously Give Other People Permission To Do The Same.
And As We Are Liberated From Our Own Fear, Our Presence Automatically Liberates Others
- Marianne Williamson -
[NOTE BEING AFRAID AND REFUSING TO GET INVOLVED WONT STOP US FROM DYING. BUT BEING AFRAID CAN PREVENT US FROM LIVING]
(Nkosi Sikeleli Africa )
God bless Africa May her glory be lifted high Hear our petitions .
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[Enoch Mankayi Sontonga]
WAKE UP !!! STAY UP !!!
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