And the Darfur Envelope, Please...

I know, I know - I'm operating on too little sleep, and that's always when things begin to go pear-shaped.  I should be looking forward to Wednesday's decision by the International Criminal Court on whether to issue an arrest warrant for Sudanese President Omar Bashir with the appropriate solemnity, as befitting any discussion about genocide.

And certainly no snide remarks allowed.

Yet, well, perhaps I've been living in LA too long, but it almost seems like the genocide version of the Oscars.  You have ICC Prosecutor Luis Moreno Ocampo very much enjoying his slow walk down red carpet.  Activists absolutely love him, but his popularity overseas - especially in, say, Sudan - is a somewhat touchy subject.

(And please, his publicist has requested no questions about that sexual harrassment charge.  Let's focus on the big picture, people.)

Unfortunately, Sudanese President Omar Bashir couldn't be with us for the event, but he's sent his greetings via satellite.  You never know what you're going to get with Omar; he's such a character.  Sort of a genocidal Mickey Rourke.

Speaking from his home in Khartoum, he doesn't disappoint: "They will issue their decision tomorrow, and we are telling them to immerse it in water and drink it." Not only defiant, but somewhat bizarre.  Almost makes you wonder what pharmaceuticals he might have lying around the house.

At the least, he's never boring.  Which is why we love him so.

(Also, foreigners are always funny.)

And, as always, a little controversy to enliven the proceedings.  Some say that the Bashir doesn't deserve to be considered for the genocide award.

After all, it's not like he's killed all that many people in the past few years.   (The estimate of 1,551 violent deaths in Darfur last year sounds impressive, until you realize that the Lord's Resistance Army in Congo killed almost that many civilians in just a few months.  And where's the Joseph Kony love?)

Others point to his impressive body of work since 2003, and say that anything less than genocide would be a slap in the face.

And, of course, the press packed along the red carpet, while we bloggers stand somewhere closer to the back, craning for a glimpse of the excitement.

In just a few hours, the lights will dim, everyone will grow momentarily silent, and the justices will open the envelope.  Will they issue an arrest warrant for war crimes?  For crimes against humanity?  For genocide? Or will Bashir earn the rare genocidaire trifecta, and get all three?

Meanwhile, all the ICC excitement risks obscuring the main story.  What does this actually mean on the ground?  According to some, the people of Darfur would love nothing more than justice.  As John Prendergast and Omer Ismail wrote on Tuesday:

"During our eight trips to Darfur since the genocide began in 2003, we have found that displaced and war-affected Darfuris don't see a tension between justice and peace, and rightly note that one will be very hard without the other. The refugees and displaced put the problem in the clearest of terms: How can you have peace when the president of Sudan has tried to exterminate us, stealing our land, killing our men and raping our women? How can you have peace without justice?"

Others disagree. The mostly reputable Rob Crilly is actually now on the ground in Darfur, and has a slightly different view than Prendergast and Ismail:

"I can't help feeling that they've been speaking to different people from the ones I have met in five camps across North and South Darfur this past week. Few have time for this debate. Few have heard of the International Criminal Court. Those that have are worried the government will come down hard on anyone celebrating Bashir's indictment. And most seem to think that going home is more important than anything else.

Forgive me for putting words in their mouths, but I'm interpreting that as putting peace ahead of justice."

It's probably no surprise on which side my sympathies lie.  And not just because I've gotten drunk with Crilly once or twice in the past.  In a different piece, Crilly quotes an aid worker in Darfur,

"We are the ones on the ground, and while we will try to keep operating as normal, it is very difficult with all of this hanging over us, knowing that the government could easily expel some of us just to make a point that it is still in control."

Maybe justice is more important.  Maybe the ICC's actions will bring peace to Darfur.  Maybe.  I just hope that the immediate costs aren't too high.

[Sudanese President Omar Bashir in fine form - Photo from AP / The Washington Times]