国际英语新闻：Sudanese president qualified to contest general election: authority

KHARTOUM, March 8 (Xinhua) -- The Sudanese Authority of Parties and Political Organizations announced Sunday that President Omar al-Bashir is qualified to participate in the next general election despite an arrest warrant against him.

    "President al-Bashir has made great achievements in Sudan's peace process and national reconciliation," Abud Jabir, chairman of the authority, said at a press conference.

A boy holds a poster during a rally to support Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir at Fashir, capital city of North Darfur state, March 8, 2009. Bashir said Sunday in Fashir, capital city of North Darfur state, that the country will fight against "neocolonialism".

"I propose to hold the general election before autumn," Jabir said, adding that Bashir's qualification to take part in the election was not affected by the International Criminal Court (ICC)'s move.

    "The Sudanese people should be wary of the Western powers which are trying to disassemble Sudan," he added.

    Earlier on Wednesday, The Hague-based ICC issued an arrest warrant against Bashir for war crimes and crimes against humanity in the country's restive western region of Darfur between 2003 and 2008.

    Sudan has rejected the ICC's jurisdiction since the court's chief prosecutor Luis Moreno-Ocampo launched a campaign against Bashir in July, saying that it is not a signatory of the Rome Statute on which the court is based.

    The United Nations has said Bashir is still the head of state of Sudan, and that UN forces in Sudan will continue to deal with him after ICC issued the warrant.

    Secretary General of the Cairo-based Arab League Amr Moussa said Saturday in Khartoum that the pan-Arab bloc expects that Bashir would participate in an Arab summit to be held in Doha on March 30.

A girl holds a poster of Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir during a rally at Fashir, capital city of North Darfur state, March 8, 2009. Bashir said Sunday in Fashir, capital city of North Darfur state, that the country will fight against "neocolonialism