The dispute between the West and Sudan masks a deeper faultline -- the struggle between China and the US for hegemony in Africa, writes Gamal Nkrumah Actus reus, or the guilty act, is a serious charge when it comes to murder, rape and wanton destruction on a massive scale. The regional and international interventions in the Darfur crisis have only added to the heat of the molten lava building up in this African volcano. The international controversy surrounding the call for the arrest of those responsible has climaxed in a stand-off between Sudan, its African neighbours, fellow Arabs, the West and China. A power struggle, simultaneously political and economic in nature, with religious undertones is underway. Warrants of arrest were issued last month by the International Criminal Court (ICC) for two senior Sudanese officials suspected as perpetrators of war crimes in Darfur. The two men are Sudanese Humanitarian Affairs Minister Ahmed Haroun and Ali Mohamed Abdul-Rahman, also known as Ali Khushayeb, the notorious Janjaweed leader. They are wanted on 51 counts, but the Sudanese authorities have adamantly refused to hand them over to the ICC. The ICC Chief Prosecutor Luis Moreno-Ocampo urged Khartoum to hand over Haroun and Khushayeb for instigating violence and committing serious human rights abuses against the people of Darfur. Haroun was in charge of Darfur in 2003 and 2004, when the first gross human rights atrocities were committed. Ironically, today he oversees the welfare of Darfur's two million refugees. The Sudanese government flatly rejected Moreno-Ocampo's urgings. This is not a recipe for success. The international community -- Western powers, African and Arab neighbours of Sudan -- urged the Sudanese authority to cooperate with the ICC. Khartoum, with a few exceptionally strong backers, most notably China -- Sudan's major economic and trading partner -- shrugged off international criticism. On the face of it, China and Sudan are odd bedfellows. China is officially a Communist state that espouses market economic policies and Sudan has adopted a zealous religious-oriented image. Ideologically, the Sudanese are reluctant to let go of theocracy's promise and be an integral part of the modern secular world. Neither it seems is Khartoum fearful of the consequences of religious warfare. But, Sudan and China need each other, Sudan more desperately so. Darfur is typical in terms of the traditions and culture of Sudan's vast regional backwaters: liberal voices seldom penetrate this hermetically sealed world in which women are systematically gang-raped. The women of Darfur have emerged as the most downtrodden victims of violence in the Sudan's westernmost province. As the humanitarian catastrophe worsens, world interest in Darfur deepens. Regional and international factors have intervened to keep the conflict constantly evolving. The conflict between Chad and Sudan is just one facette. Arab and African states have intervened there as mediators. The Chadian government released Sudanese army officers in a bid to ease border tensions in a deal facilitated by Saudi King Abdullah Bin Abdul-Aziz. However, it is the ICC that remains the most serious concern and bone of contention. "Sudan is not a member of the Statute of Rome. It is not bound by the ICC," Sudanese Foreign Minister Lam Akol told reporters in Khartoum. "The ICC is a voluntary body. Countries that choose to join it are bound by it," he elaborated further. The Sudanese Ambassador to Egypt Abdul-Moneim Mohamed Mabrouk concurred. "Sudan is a sovereign nation and we are not obliged to obey any foreign directives," he told Al-Ahram Weekly. He said that Egypt, Libya, Saudi Arabia and other Arab countries are supportive of the Sudanese position. Sudan's ambassador to Egypt also applauded the positive contribution of China to Sudan's cause. China, for its part has appointed a special minister for African affairs to look into the problems of Darfur, Liu Gujin, a 61-year-old veteran diplomat focus on Darfur. Meanwhile, in a flurry of diplomatic activity, Sudanese officials and opposition figures have been meeting foreign leaders to discuss the crisis of Darfur. In Cairo, Sudanese President Omar Hassan Al-Bashir met Al-Mirghani, leader of the umbrella opposition National Democratic Alliance, and called for a historic national reconciliation conference including Communist Party leader Mohamed Ibrahim Nuqqud, opposition Popular Congress Party leader Sheikh Hassan Al-Turabi and Umma Party leader Sadeq Al-Mahdi. The meeting was followed by a tripartite summit in Libya on Darfur last week between President Hosni Mubarak, the Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi and his Chadian counterpart Idriss Deby. What is clear is that Khartoum is urging Arab states to play a more prominent part in the resolution of the Darfur crisis. "Saudi Arabia has the biggest share in the humanitarian effort in Darfur and there should be no misunderstanding between Arab countries over the way to bring a solution to the problem in Sudan's westernmost region," said Special Advisor to Sudanese President Mustafa Othman Ismail. Indeed, the rivalry between Saudi Arabia and Libya over influence in Sudan has reached unprecedented levels. "Though Libya is the most qualified country to play a role in settling the problem in Darfur, other complimentary Arab efforts are also welcome," explained Ismail. The Sudanese are in a conundrum. As they attempt to draw in Arab support for Khartoum's cause, they find themselves drawn into traditional Arab rivalries, in particular, the antagonism between Saudi Arabia and Libya. The Saudi peace initiative incensed Libya's leader. "There are question marks over the reason why the Riyadh accord was signed, given that similar accords had previously been signed in Tripoli and Sirte," protested Gaddafi. Still, the Sudanese are hoping against hope that the Saudis' row with the Libyans will not compromise peace efforts concerning Darfur. Then there is China. "The Chinese government takes a responsible attitude and a strict management policy on arms exports," Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Jiang Yu was reported as saying recently in response to a report by Amnesty International criticising China over its military and economic support of Sudan. "This is a groundless accusation," the Chinese official explained. China recently delivered six K-85 military aircraft to Sudanese Air Force. The Sudanese government welcomed Beijing's decision to appoint a special Darfur envoy and to bolster Sudan's air power. Humanitarian Affairs Minister Haroun is accused by the ICC of promoting policies that prevent communities from integrating in Darfur, enforcing Arabisation of the region, one of Africa's oldest independent Muslim kingdoms. He is further accused of fomenting inter-communal conflict by openly encouraging the government-allied Janjaweed militias. Haroun is on a career high. The ICC, however, argues that it is critically important to uncover the men behind the massacres in Darfur.
