Workshop on Intelligence and Security Services

(Sudan Vision Daily)--A seven-day workshop of the Committee on Intelligence and Security Services in Africa (CISSA) will kick off tomorrow in Khartoum to discuss a number of topics, including impact of the International Criminal Court on stability and security in the continent.

The meeting is expected to witness the participation of AU experts. CISSA was established at the behest of African leaders to become an arm of the African Union concerned with security information. Its membership embraces 46 security and intelligence services out of a total of 56 services in the African continent.

The African intelligence organisation was primarily founded for the objective of playing a role in acquiring information and passing that information on to the African Union as well as act as a sensory probe and early alert with respect to security conditions in the continent, locate security threats and propose concepts for resolving disputes and tensions in the continent.

CISSA and the International Criminal Court:

The workshop which will be held during the period 25-27 of the current November is scheduled to discuss security problems facing Africa, conflicts within the Committee’s countries and selecting quarters for the Committee which was established three years ago. The conference is expected to be dominated by the issues of Darfur and the International Criminal Court as the duo are held as threats to the security of the African continent.

To that effect, strategic expert Maj. Gen. Al-Abbas Mohammed Al-Amin considered addressing the above issues before the experts’ committee as extremely important. He reiterated that a warrant against President Al Bashir will adversely impact Darfur case and may totally route out the Comprehensive Peace Agreement. He further illustrated that the topic of the Criminal Court will be tackled for the purpose of containing its adverse impact and mitigating hazards.

On the other hand, another strategic expert, Lt. Gen. Mohammed Bashir Suleiman, said that the Committee will discuss the issue of the Criminal Court to come out with a unified vision that rejects any ruling the Court might come out with as well as to consider building a protective barrier to dissuade the Court from targeting the African continent.

Participants:

The bulk of the continent’s intelligence and security services are scheduled to participate in the workshop at the level of experts. Other participants include the AU Political Affairs Commission, Justice Minister Abdulbasit Sabdrat, international expert Mr. Shadrik, Senegalese jurist Mustafa Katte, a Rwandan expert and other personalities concerned with international law and conflicts in the African continent. The workshop will review experiences of some countries, such as Democratic Republic of Congo, Chad, Rwanda and Sudan, with the International Criminal Court.

Structures and Membership:

The CISSA comprises three permanent structures in its conference, namely: head of security and intelligence services in member countries, the experts committee formed out of representatives of member services and CISSA secretariat based in Addis Ababa.

Previous Workshop:

In 2006, the CISSA held a workshop in Addis Ababa that discussed security threats and their impact on the stability of the continent. The topics discussed at that occasion included insurgent organisations, mercenary activities, terrorism, organised crime as represented in drugs and illegal migration and others. The second workshop was held in Kigali, Rwanda in 2007, and addressed the issue of genocide and followed up progress of CISSA performance during the past year.

The current workshop in Khartoum is staged to discuss CISSA’s relations with other international intelligence agencies, including the CIA, in addition to Sudan’s stalemate with the International Criminal Court.

Participants in the workshop are expected to reach agreement over a unified channel for exchanging information among the Committee’s member countries. The workshop is also held as an opportunity for conflicting countries to resolve their disputes, be they in the continent or outside it.

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