KHARTOUM (Reuters) - The chairman of the African Union affirmed support for deferring any war crimes indictment against Sudanese President Omar Hassan al-Bashir during a visit to Khartoum on Monday.
The chief prosecutor of the International Criminal Court(ICC) has asked judges to issue an arrest warrant for Bashirfor war crimes committed in Sudan's western Darfur region.
"Justice has to be done. Justice must be seen to be done.What the AU is simply saying is that what is critical, what isthe priority, is peace. That is priority number one now,"Tanzanian President Jakaya Kikwete said, standing besideBashir.
"We should do the first thing first. On this basis, the AUsupports deferral of the indictment," said Kikwete, whocurrently chairs the regional bloc.
Bashir rejects accusations of war crimes and genocide.
Both the African Union and Arab League have already saidthey want any indictment put on hold, saying it could obstructefforts to bring peace to Darfur, where international expertssay at least 200,000 people have died as a result of conflictsince 2003.
But Kikwete's statement on Monday was one of the most highprofile gestures of support to date for the Sudanese presidentin his efforts to postpone the global court's action.
Kikwete praised the Sudanese government during the pressconference at Khartoum's Republican Palace, saying he wasimpressed by its commitment to protect aid convoys in Darfur,further peace talks with the rebels and accelerate thedeployment of international peacekeepers.
His comments came as Sudan stepped up diplomatic efforts towoo members of the United Nations Security Council which hasthe power to order a recurring one year postponement of aprosecution or investigation by the ICC.
State media on Monday reported that Sudan's Ministry ofForeign Affairs was focusing on building bridges with China,Russia and other African and Asian members of the SecurityCouncil to win support for the "Article 16" postponement
Both Russia and China have signalled support for suspendingthe process, although neither has been willing to take the leadon the issue in the Security Council.
So far the three other permanent members of the SecurityCouncil -- France, Britain and the United States -- haveremained tight-lipped on whether they would use their vetopower to block a suspension.
Darfur rebels took up arms against Khartoum complaining ofneglect and discrimination against the region's non-Arabpeople.
Earlier this week, rebel groups accused Sudanese governmentforces of attacking a number of their positions in NorthDarfur.
Aid sources, who asked not to be named, said a "significantnumber" of people had been forced to flee their homes by thefighting and were now searching for shelter.
(Reporting by Andrew Heavens; editing by Sami Aboudi)
