ASEAN parliamentarians urge Indonesian President to deny entry to Sudan’s Bashir

JAKARTA — Lawmakers from across Southeast Asia have called on the Indonesian government to deny Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir entry to Indonesia to attend this month’s Asia-Africa Summit.

In a letter addressed to Indonesian President Joko Widodo, ASEAN Parliamentarians for Human Rights (APHR) expressed deep concern about the decision to extend an invitation to Bashir, noting his deplorable record of human rights abuses and his outstanding arrest warrant from the International Criminal Court (ICC).

President Bashir is wanted by the ICC for genocide, war crimes, and crimes against humanity. He has perpetrated ongoing atrocities in Darfur, which have resulted in the deaths of hundreds of thousands since 2003. Millions there remain displaced, and violence has the potential to become much worse in the months ahead, having already spread to other regions of Sudan.

As a result of Bashir’s crimes, APHR declared in its letter, “his presence in Indonesia would be a stain on the nation and all of ASEAN.”

The letter noted that UN Security Council Resolution 1593, which referred the tragedy in Darfur to the ICC in 2005, urged all UN member states to fully cooperate with the court.

It further noted Indonesia’s opportunity to affirm its commitment to holding individuals accused of the worst crimes against humanity accountable. Indonesia’s position as a leader within ASEAN and as one of the world’s largest democracies demands that its government take a principled stand against such heinous crimes and those who perpetrate them, APHR asserted.

By denying President Bashir entry into the country, APHR argued, “Indonesia can declare in a most meaningful and powerful way that when genocide, crimes against humanity, and war crimes are committed, those responsible must be held accountable and brought to justice.”

A copy of the letter is accessible here.