20100924
reuters

UNITED NATIONS (Reuters) - The African Union urged the United Nations on Thursday to put war crime charges against Sudan's leader on hold, warning they could destabilize Africa's biggest nation and endanger an upcoming referendum on southern independence.

Malawian President Bingu wa Mutharika urged the annual U.N. General Assembly to back a one-year deferral of the case against President Omar Hassan al-Bashir, charged with genocide and war crimes in Sudan's western Darfur region.

"While efforts to secure lasting peace in Sudan are ongoing, the International Criminal Court seems to push for a 'pound of flesh'," said wa Mutharika, who chairs the AU.

"There is a general consensus in Africa that this will negatively polarize the different positions of stakeholders, thereby driving them away from a peaceful settlement."

The U.N. Security Council has the power to suspend ICC prosecutions under Article 16 of its statute but is deadlocked on whether to do so. Wa Mutharika urged the 192-nation General Assembly to amend the Rome Statute to give it the power to defer Bashir's case to avoid disrupting peace talks.

Renewed African backing for Bashir, who rejects the ICC charges that made him the world's only sitting leader wanted for war crimes, comes only a few months ahead of the January 9 plebiscite that could bring independence for southern Sudan.

Foreign powers are stepping up pressure on Khartoum to hold the vote on time and follow through with a key point in the 2005 peace deal that ended decades of north-south civil war.

There are growing concerns about whether poor Sudan can pull together the complex referendum on time and whether the high-stakes vote can be held without sparking new conflict.