PRESIDENT BASHIR ACCUSES INTERNATIONAL COMMUNITY OF

UNCLAS KHARTOUM 002831 SIPDIS SIPDIS E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: PREL PGOV PHUM KPKO UN SU SUBJECT: PRESIDENT BASHIR ACCUSES INTERNATIONAL COMMUNITY OF SUPPORTING DARFUR REBELS AT ACP SUMMIT ¶1. Sudanese President Omer Hasan Ahmed al-Bashir used the occasion of the two-day African, Caribbean, and Pacific (ACP) Summit hosted in Khartoum December 7-8 to criticize the UN and accuse the international community of supporting Darfur rebels. In both his opening and closing remarks, Bashir criticized the "unjust and imbalanced" system of the UN, specifically singling out the Security Council for needing change. He accused unnamed members of the international community for supporting the National Redemption Front (NRF),including shipping arms and turning a blind eye to ceasefire violations committed by it. ¶2. In his opening speech to the ACP, Bashir argued that principles of good governance demanded of national governments should also be practiced at the international level by the UN, but that injustice and imbalance characterize both the UN and international financial institutions. The UN system, he said, requires "radical reforms." "The current formation of the Security Council, the modes of its work and manner of its decision-making process do not respond to the desired needs, and do not provide the aspired opportunity of the member states in (the ACP) to express their view points regarding vital and crucial issues effecting (them all)." ¶3. Bashir's most forceful words were saved for his closing remarks. He blamed all of the violence since the signing of the Darfur Peace Agreement (DPA) on the NRF, which he said had been able to take control of all the territory formerly under the control of the SLA/Minawi. He blamed this fighting, instigated by the NRF, for causing the recent displacement of Darfurians from their homes and villages. The NRF had dared to perpetrate such an aggressive offensive because it believed the international community would turn a blind eye on its actions. Indeed, Bashir claimed the NRF has been receiving large quantities of arms, military equipment, and vehicles from across the border with Chad. Nevertheless, Bashir ended on an optimistic note, spuriously claiming reports coming from AMIS forces in Darfur indicate an improving security situation. HUME