The ICC issued an indictment on March 4 calling for the arrest of al-Bashir, who is believed to have committed war crimes and crimes against humanity in Sudan’s Darfur region. Ankara, pointing to the fact that it is not party to the ICC statute, said the court directive is not binding on Turkey.This stance has become a topic of interest in the Western media, particularly amid a series of events that have made it easy for the West to paint Turkey as a country slowly drifting away from the West. Turkey’s cancellation of a joint military exercise with Israel, an anti-Israeli TV series broadcasted on state TV, a series of visits by Turkish diplomats to Arab states and Iran as well as al-Bashir’s planned visit, cancelled at the last minute, put Turkey in a tough position. “Turkey has not changed its outlook,” said Zeynel Abidin Erdem, the chairman of Erdem Holding and Turkey’s goodwill ambassador to Sudan, while speaking to Sunday’s Zaman regarding the Sudanese president’s visit to Turkey. “Countries that claim Turkey had turned its face to the East are trying to cover up their sins in the region,” he added.
Speaking at the Turkish Confederation of Businessmen and Industrialists (TUSKON) investment forum two weeks ago, held in the Sudanese capital of Khartoum, al-Bashir greeted the Turkish delegation, saying, “Welcome to your second homeland.” He also promised to lift visa requirements between the two countries soon.
Considering the good relations between Turkey and Sudan, the Turkish government and Western states got into a brief spat following Turkey’s statement that it would not arrest the Sudanese president if he comes to Turkey. OIC Secretary-General Ekmeleddin İhsanoğlu told the Hürriyet daily earlier this week that the COMCEC event is a multilateral meeting and that Turkey is only hosting it. “Turkey has no right to decide on al-Bashir’s arrest,” he said.
Speaking to private CNN Türk station on Monday, Rıza Türmen, a former judge at the European Court of Human Rights, said that although Turkey is not party to the ICC, the United Nations Security Council has passed a resolution calling on all countries to cooperate with the ICC.
The conflict started in Darfur in February 2003 when the Sudan Liberation Army (SLA) and the Justice and Equality Movement (JEM) began an armed rebellion against the Sudanese government, accusing it of discrimination and oppression against African tribes in Darfur.
Among items leading the list of allegations were water shortages and injustice in water distribution. Meanwhile, the Janjaweed, an illegal militia dubbed by the Sudanese government as “thieves and pirates,” brutally suppressed the rebellions and conducted piracy in Darfur’s camps, which are home to internally displaced persons (IDPs). International human rights organizations and other states accuse Sudan’s government of supporting the Janjaweed in committing crimes against humanity. However, the Sudanese government rejects these allegations, calling them a clear fabrication of the West to muddy the image of the government. The US is leading the international embargo and sanctions against Sudan, but observers argue there are many American and Israeli firms operating in Sudan.
Commenting on the Darfur crisis, John Prendergast, a senior adviser to the International Crisis Group (ICG) and the director of African affairs at the National Security Council during the Clinton administration, spoke to Sunday’s Zaman about the Darfur crisis. “The regime in Sudan headed by Gen. Bashir is responsible for orchestrating the violence that has left hundreds of thousands of Muslims dead in Darfur, and millions displaced from their homes,” Prendergast said. According to Sudanese estimates, the crisis has claimed the lives of 9,000 and left 450,000 IDPs. UN estimates draw the number at close to 300,000 dead and more than 2 million displaced as a result of the conflict.
Erdem does not believe Turkey pressured or warned al-Bashir not to come to Turkey. He also rejected several claims that appeared in the media claiming that OIC Secretary-General İhsanoğlu talked to al-Bashir and persuaded him to cancel his trip to Turkey. Noting that he has visited the region eight times, Erdem said he has researched the area and believes the causalities should not be linked to the government. “Nomadic Arab and African tribes are just irritating each other,” he said. He ruled out any state support to the militia committing crimes against humanity in Darfur.
Erdem said Turkey strongly believes al-Bashir has not committed genocide in Darfur. “Western countries constantly interfere in the affairs of Muslim countries to seek ways to appropriate their energy resources,” Erdem claimed, adding that only a small portion of Sudan’s population is Christian but controls 20 percent of the country’s total oil wealth. Criticizing pressure put on Turkey to arrest al-Bashir upon his arrival in Turkey, Erdem said there are many mass murders in various parts of the world against Muslims, but nothing is being done to stop them.
In contrast, Prendergast said Turkey’s unwillingness to stand up for the victims of the conflict is distressing. “Fortunately,” he emphasized, “the EU’s advocacy helped convince al-Bashir not to go to Turkey; otherwise, a deeply embarrassing situation would have resulted for the Turkish government.” Responding to the claims of Western countries, Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan said last weekend that he had visited the region and did not observe any situation that would constitute genocide. “A Muslim would not commit genocide,” he added.
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