Parliament - A showdown was expected in Parliament on Tuesday over the escape of Sudanese President Omar Hassan al-Bashir when opposition parties take on the ANC in a furore that has raged for a week.
Political parties agreed to a debate on the matter at their meeting last week, following unhappiness among the opposition in the manner Bashir left the country.
The debate is set to feature senior politicians from the ANC and opposition parties.
The ruling party is on record denouncing the manner in which the International Criminal Court (ICC) was applying “double standards” when it comes to the prosecution of war criminals.
The DA, ACDP, Cope and other opposition parties believe the government hatched a plan for Bashir to evade arrest in South Africa.
It followed an order by the high court in Pretoria that the Sudanese leader was not to leave the country pending the finalisation of the court application.
But the government on Monday denied claims of a plot to sneak Bashir out of the country last Monday.
“Government categorically denies that there was a secret meeting held by the security cluster ministers including Minister in the Presidency (Jeff Radebe) and the director-general in the Presidency (Cassius Lubisi) in Cape Town,” acting cabinet spokeswoman Phumla Williams said.
“Government remains committed to finalising this matter through the court process. It is expected to provide the court with a report that explains how President al-Bashir left the country,” she added.
The full bench of the high court in Pretoria ordered an investigation into the circumstances around Bashir’s departure despite an earlier order barring him from leaving.
It has been reported that the government had assured Bashir and AU leaders that he would not be arrested if he arrived for the summit.
The government is said to have issued diplomatic immunity to Bashir when he arrived for the summit in Sandton more than a week ago.
Tuesday’s debate in the National Assembly was expected to draw fireworks from across the floor, with opposition MPs questioning the government’s decision to allow the Sudanese leader to escape.
The ANC was expected to defend the government’s decision allowing Bashir to be spirited out of the country.
At its special meeting at the weekend, the ANC’s national executive committee criticised the ICC.
It said the ICC had been used by Western powers to go after African leaders to pursue the regime-change agenda.
The ANC called on the AU to strengthen the African Court on Human and People’s Rights to prosecute war crimes suspects from the continent, rather than rely on the ICC.
The DA has roped in the public protector to investigate the Bashir matter.
The Sudanese leader, who has been in power for more than a quarter of a century, has been indicted by the ICC for war crimes, genocide and crimes against humanity. These relate to atrocities committed in the western Darfur region by the militia group, the Janjaweed, in the 2000s.
The ICC issued the indictment against Bashir in 2009.
Political Bureau