SAAF Update 13-2008
April 29, 2008
U.S. offers to restore ties with Sudan
This situation update seeks to provide a summary of the U.S. offer to restore ties with Sudan and put it in the perspective of the situation in Sudan. While the details have just been released, the diplomatic effort has been ongoing for much of this year at least.
In February, Sudanese Foreign Minister Deng Alor was quoted, after meeting with Presidential envoy Ambassador Richard Williamson, as saying there was a timetable for normalizing ties that would include returning a U.S. ambassador in Khartoum, the lifting of at least some American sanctions, and removing the country from the U.S. list
of state sponsors of terrorism. The State Department downplayed the comment denying that there was such a timetable. (Reuters, State Department Release)
In March, Williamson confirmed that the U.S. offered to restore full diplomatic ties, lift sanctions and remove Khartoum from Washington's list of state sponsors of terrorism. In return, Sudan would have to remove obstacles to the deployment of a UN-led peacekeeping force, stop violence against civilians in Darfur, release U.S. shipping containers stuck in customs and carry out the Comprehensive Peace Agreement between north and south Sudan, including elections in 2009. Sudan's ambassador to the United Nations called the negotiations "a strategic shift," made possible by his government's "exemplary" cooperation on terrorism matters. (LA Times)
In April, details began to emerge when part of a series of negotiating papers exchanged between the two governments in preparation for talks were provided to The New York Times by an American government official critical of the administration's position.
- Sudan wants an end to economic sanctions imposed by the United States since 1997, United States backing for its membership in the World Trade Organization, support for the cancellation of Sudan's foreign debts, release of the Sudanese detainees at Guantánamo, and a formal apology for the Tomahawk missile strike on the Shifa pharmaceutical plant in Khartoum in 1998.
- In return the U.S. is asking for: additional visas for humanitarian workers, Sudanese consent to the inclusion of Thai and Nepalese units in the U.N.-African Union civilian protection force, permission for private aid organizations to work in Darfur, violence against civilians in Darfur to be stopped, release of U.S. shipping containers stuck in customs, and the Comprehensive Peace Agreement to be implemented. (NYT)
Advocates response was immediate:
• Roger Winter, a long time advocate for a just peace said, “Given the fact that Khartoum has been involved in negotiations repeatedly over the years regarding Darfur and the comprehensive peace agreements and has signed documents and consistently failed to implement what they’ve signed, why are we discussing normalization with them?” (NYT)
• Jerry Fowler of the Save Darfur Coalition summarized reactions well, "Darfur activists around the world were at-once stunned, confused and outraged by this report on the content of the U.S.-Sudan negotiations...." (SDC Press Release)
• An outraged Democratic presidential contender, Barack Obama said, "This reckless and cynical initiative would reward a regime in Khartoum that has a record of failing to live up to its commitments." (Sudan Tribune)
SAAF Notes:
• Why apologize? Sudan seeks an apology from the U.S. for destroying a pharmaceutical factory because Sudanese agents attacked U.S. embassies in several African countries, the factory was being used for processing VX nerve agent, and alleged ties existed between the owners of the plant and al-Qaeda. Where is the Government of Sudan's apology for killing up to 450,000 in Darfur? For displacing up to 3,000,000 in Darfur? Where is the National Islamic Front apology for horrors committed against her own citizens in Southern Sudan, the Blue Nile, the Nuba Mountains, Abyei and Darfur.
• Why believe? SDC's Fowler said, "Khartoum sets the gold standard for breaking international promises...." Why believe a government which among others has failed to uphold agreements such as the Sudan Peace Agreement? Indeed, not just the Sudan Peace Agreement, but also the Eastern Sudan Peace Agreement and the Darfur Peace Agreement! The United States should be holding the Government of Sudan accountable for its past promises to let UN peacekeepers operate within its borders; inaction and obstruction when it comes to the deployment of the AU-UN force must not be rewarded.
• Why remove a nation from the State Department's list of state sponsors of terrorism when it is in the midst of genocide in Darfur, has killed 2.75 million of its own citizens, has displaced 7,000,000 just since 1982 and is deliberately terrorizing the citizens of neighboring nations to create instability? No nation should be removed from the list of state sponsors of terrorism for any reason other than the existence of proof that the government in question does not support terrorist organizations or is not itself engaged in terrorism.
If we examine our options in dealing with the Government of Sudan, we find that there are three:
• Economic. That tool has been used since 1997 in the form of U.S. economic sanctions which were expanded and strengthened last year. This form of influence has had only modest impact because the wealth from Sudan's oil production has allowed Sudan to pursue other options.
• Military. While there is no question that the United States has the military ability to subdue the janjaweed and Sudanese Armed Forces and force the acquiescence of the National Congress Party, the consequences of such action likely destabilize the entire region.
• Political. The only viable option is political engagement which the United States must pursue. The objectives of our negotiations should be the full implementation of the Comprehensive Peace Agreement, a negotiated settlement in Darfur, and, ultimately, a plan for sharing the nation's wealth equitably. Meanwhile we should continue to develop the SPLM into an increasingly capable, professional defensive force. A stronger Southern Sudan is a key to peace in Sudan and stability in the nation and region.
Nonetheless, in our negotiations, we should provide no benefit to the NCP based on their promises, but only on their demonstrated actions. Presidential envoy Amb. Williamson has clearly agreed stating that, "Concrete, verifiable, significant progress must be achieved on the ground before we can contemplate improved relations." Darfur and Sudanese advocates should be cautious to avoid creating an environment in this nation which precludes that which they seek...a just and lasting peace.
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SAAF Update 12-2008
April 20, 2008
Government Suspends Indefinitely Signing Peace Deal With LRA: The much-anticipated signing of the peace agreement between the Ugandan government and the Lord's Resistance Army (LRA) rebels has been put off indefinitely. The failure of LRA Leader Joseph Kony to sign the Final Peace Agreement, painstakingly negotiated in Juba since July 2006, came as a big blow to the people of northern Uganda who hoped the deal would bring permanent peace after two decades of war. South Sudan leader Salva Kiir says that peace talks will continue despite the current setback. (The Nation, AFP)
Census Delayed, Rescheduled. Last week the Sudan People Liberation Movement (SPLM) withdrew from a census that will help decide how wealth and power are shared. The SPLM wanted boundary disputes to be resolved and southerners living in the north to return to the south before the census to give a better indication of the population and how wealth and power ought to be shared. Sudan’s ruling National Congress Party condemned the decision by the SPLM, while the two largest Darfur rebel groups applauded. The SPLM action was a surprise coming only one day after the President of the Government of Southern Sudan Salva Kiir urged all Sudanese to participate. Although none of the issues SPLM raised to explain why they wanted the census to be postponed has been solved, following heated debate between NCP and SPLM members, and international diplomatic efforts, the Presidency finally decided to postpone the census for only one week. It will begin on April 22. (Reuters, Sudan Tribune)
Humanitarian Conditions in Darfur. Darfur’s rainy season largely coincides with the traditional “hunger gap” between spring planting and fall harvest; so the loss of transport capacity, rebel violence along the Chad/Darfur border, humanitarian obstruction by Khartoum, pervasive insecurity throughout Darfur, and the failure of effective UNAMID deployment may make this rainy season the “perfect storm” of human destruction. The UN’s World Food Program (WFP) is falling further behind every day in meeting the necessary benchmarks in transporting and pre-positioning food in anticipation of the rainy season. The current shortfall in food actually in transit to Darfur is approximately 50% according to WFP. The Government of Sudan's open and continuous contempt for the international community and international law tells all too much about the fate of ongoing humanitarian efforts .... Increased cost of food and fuel for transport, increased insecurity and violence toward humanitarian workers, increased numbers of those requiring food assistance, and continued obstruction by the Government of Sudan, suggest massive starvation could follow the rains this year. Never have the odds been so fully stacked against the people of Darfur and Eastern Chad. (Eric Reeves)
SAAF Update 11-2008
April 10, 2008
Fifth year of conflict in Darfur and the National Census in Sudan
Comment: This month marks the fifth year of conflict in Darfur as noted by the organizers of the Day for Darfur which will be held on Sunday April 13th. They have chosen the children of Darfur for the 2008 focus and note:
“This April many children in Darfur will be reaching their 5th birthdays without ever having known peace. That's five years in which the international community has failed to respond adequately to the scale of the crisis.
"Many of the children living in the camps are traumatized by what they have seen. The climate of fear, uncertainty, and rising domestic violence is compromising their security today; the denial of a normal childhood is compromising their future.
"Children outside the camps live in fear of attacks on their homes and villages. Their access to education and health care is under constant threat, and some are forcibly recruited to serve as child soldiers.”
But it should also be noted that half the post-conflict reconstruction period in southern Sudan has elapsed and neither the institutional foundations nor the requisite electoral processes are in place to establish the kinds of prerequisites necessary for the referendum elections of 2011. One of the most important parts of this, the population census, will finally be attempted between April 15th and 30th. This is vital to not only South Sudan’s future referendum but also for the Nationwide General Elections slated for 2009. While the census would not be an electoral registration, it would help determine the spread and number of constituencies which in turn is necessary for determining power and wealth sharing.
There are reports from numerous refugee assistance agencies that over 215,000 Sudanese have returned to southern Sudan in an effort to participate in the census. However, there is not the same kind of enthusiasm for the census in Darfur. A spokesperson for the Justice and Equality Movement, a major rebel faction in Darfur, has said he is strongly against support for the census taking and is urging a boycott of the process, an action which could seriously harm the outcome. His opinion is based on the fact that due to the lack of security in Darfur there are significant numbers of Darfuri who will not be counted and this alters the outcome in a way favorable to the National Congress Party.
Sudan Census $13 million Short Two Weeks Before the Start.Sudan's government has not released $13 million in funds needed to pay those carrying out its first census since a north-south peace deal ended Africa's longest civil war in 2005, a U.N. official said on Monday. The census is due to start on April 15 and for two weeks will employ around 60,000 people throughout the million square mile nation to count the number of people, with questions on whether they are northern or southern -- critical for a 2011 referendum in which southerners could decide on secession. "This year they (the government) said they would pay an additional $18 million ... but they have only released $5 million as we speak," Herbert Kandeh, the chief U.N. technical adviser to the census, said. “This was for salaries for those filling out the questionnaires and said if employees were not paid they may be reluctant to hand over their work, so it was important to have the money as early as possible.” (Herbert Kandeh: Interview with Reuters and the BBC.)
SAAF Update 10-2008
April 1, 2008
New Voices Heard and Welcomed
Arab NGOs in a communiqué to the Arab League summit meeting held March 29-30 wrote that while "All sides to the Darfur crisis bear responsibility for the widespread abuses of humanitarian and human rights law", they believe that "the Sudanese government has fuelled the crisis through its support to the Janjaweed militias, who committed war crimes and crimes against humanity." The group notes that long deliberations and procrastination have failed to provide protection for civilians or to stop the conflict and crisis in Darfur. It requests strong action and effective solutions by the Arab League.
An unprecedented coalition of Muslim groupsgroups in an appeal issued March 28 asked the Arab League to do more to address the killings in Darfur. In the open letter the groups criticize the lack of attention paid to the crisis so far saying, "The crisis has cost the lives of at least 200,000 Muslims yet has not yet captured the attention of the Muslim world in the way that it should."
Both groups offered strong recommendations to the Arab League nations to contribute much more to the humanitarian effort, to getting Sudan to cease obstructing the deployment of U.N. troops in Darfur, to protecting the humanitarian workers, and to obtaining a genuine cease fire and peace effort.
Abyei. Conflict between the SPLM and Misseriya Militia continues in Abyei threatening the peace hoped for when the Comprehensive Peace Agreement was signed. In the midst of this, a voice rises encouraging peace. Dhieu Mathok Ding repeatedly thrusts his left fist in the air and together with the more than 100 representatives of the Aweil, a Dinka community living along the north-south Sudan border, chants enthusiastically, "United we stand, united we stand, united we stand."
His is not a call for a unified Sudan after the referendum in 2011, nor a cry to war, but a call for unity to peacefully counter attacks by the Misseriya, Arab nomads they suspect want to annex parts of their lands in the north.
"Since we are neighbors, we believe we should co-exist peacefully," Ding said. "We have no problem with allowing the Misseriya to graze their cattle on our land, provided they do not come with guns." (The Nation, March 26)
SAAF Update 09-2008
March 20, 2008
Nationwide Census April 14-15. Sudan needs to conduct a nationwide census before scheduled general elections can be held next year. According to UN figures, 4.6 million people were displaced by war, largely from southern Sudan. The Comprehensive Peace Agreement, signed in 2005, brought an end to the north-south conflict and since then, there has been a steady and voluntary return of internally displaced people. "We believe over the last three years close to two million people have already returned, either refugees from the seven neighboring countries or displaced people largely from the north and they returned south," said Khaled Mansour of the UN Mission in Sudan. Mansour says the mapping of enumeration areas has been under way for some time and the UN has been delivering materials. Sudanese will be counted wherever they are on the night of April 14-15 and they will indicate where they come from. One critical area where it will be extremely difficult to carry out the census is Darfur, where hundreds of thousands have yet to return to their villages and Mansour admits there may be some inaccuracies due to difficulties in access to some of the areas. (Voice of America, 03/14/08)
AFRICOM Restates Its Mission. In a key briefing to the United States Congress on March 13, General William “Kip” Ward, head of the US Command for Africa (AFRICOM) devoted only 15 seconds of his opening remarks to a possible humanitarian role. Focusing instead on military training, security and counter-terrorism, his remarks came in sharp contrast to a year ago when officials announced that the command would concentrate on humanitarian assistance, alarming many aid agencies, which were concerned that US military involvement in humanitarian aid would undermine their neutrality. Ever since AFRICOM was launched as a separate US military command for a continent that had previously been divided between the European, Central and Pacific commands, it has raised concern over the emphasis put on its humanitarian and developmental dimensions. (IRIN, 03/14/08)
Chinese Arms for Oil. A major report by NGO Human Rights First, “Investing in Tragedy, China’s Money, Arms and Politics in Sudan,” documents that by 2003, when the worst violence in Darfur had commenced, China was providing small arms to Sudan valued in excess of $3 million. From that year to 2006 (the latest year in which small arms data is available), China sold over $55 million worth of small arms to Khartoum. Starting in 2004—the year in which the UN imposed an arms embargo—China sold Khartoum on average 90% of its small arms, and continued to be the near-exclusive provider through 2006. Recent television footage of a military parade showed that Sudan had late-model battle tanks, infantry fighting vehicles, and military trainers from China. Despite the fact that Chinese arms have been well-documented in Darfur, the government of China has variously either disavowed their existence, minimized the scope of China’s arms trade with Sudan, or simply denied that its weapons make a difference in the conflict. China’s refusal to cease arms exports under these circumstances to Sudan indicates the greater significance of that aspect of its relationship with Khartoum. Beijing has used arms exports to help it both to enter and to stay in Sudan’s oil markets.
SAAF Update 08-2008
March 10, 2008
General Comment. Twelve actual or potential conflict situations around the world deteriorated in February according to International Crisis Group. Sudan was among the twelve as ICG noted that in Darfur, the Sudanese government attacked three towns and an IDP camp from both ground and air, marking the worst violence in the region in months. ICG might well have noted the increased violence in Abyei and the growing tension relating to southern fears that the census, elections and referendum are being threatened as well. Clearly the CPA is at increasing risk and there is no evidence that the international community is working to forestall a failure. See "A Genocide Foretold" by Nicholas Kristof at: http://www.sudanadvocacy.com/Editorial.htm
Abyei. The oil-rich region straddling northern and southern Sudan, remains a flash point three years after the signing of the Comprehensive Peace Agreement. Since late November, there have been repeated clashes in Abyei between South Sudan's armed forces and a large tribe of Arab nomads, the Misseriya, which is armed and backed by the Sudanese government in Khartoum. Continuing conflict between the SPLA and the Misseriya tribe exploded on March 1 resulting in the deaths of more than 70 tribesmen and SPLM soldiers. Another 120 were wounded. (Reuters and others)
Darfur. It was just over five years ago that an attack by rebels from non-Arab tribes seeking greater wealth and autonomy for the neglected and impoverished region of Darfur, prompted the Arab-dominated government to marshal Arab militias in the region that ultimately evicted millions from their homes, burning, looting and raping along the way. The campaign pushed many non-Arab people off their land and into vast, squalid camps across Darfur and Chad.
As the conflict enters its sixth year, an older, deadly pattern is returning, and with it fears are rising among villagers, aid workers, diplomats and analysts that Darfur is headed for a new cycle of bloodletting and displacement on a vast scale. Attacks by the janjaweed, the fearsome Arab militias, accompanied by government bombers and followed by the Sudanese Army, reflect a return to the tactics that terrorized Darfur in the early, bloodiest stages of the conflict. Such brutal, three-pronged attacks of this scale resemble the kinds of campaigns that first captured the world’s attention. (NYT March 2)
China's Action. China has urged Sudan to do more to stop fighting in Darfur and speed the arrival of more peacekeepers, Beijing's envoy on the crisis said, defending his country as a diplomatic bridge to help end the bloodshed. In an unusually explicit press release, Beijing envoy Liu Guijin called the violence in Darfur a "humanitarian disaster," urged Khartoum to give ground on disputes holding up full deployment of UN-African Union peacekeepers, and conveyed China's grave concerns about the deterioration of conditions in western Darfur. (Reuters)
SAAF Update 07-2008
February 27, 2008
SOUTHERN SUDAN:
• CPA Envoy Appointed by AU. The Chairperson of the Commission of the African Union appointed a Special Envoy for the Implementation of the Comprehensive Peace Agreement (CPA). In his capacity as Special Envoy, Ambassador Adeniji of Nigeria will work closely with the Government of National Unity and the Government of Southern Sudan, as well as with relevant members of the international community, to ensure that the AU fully accompany the parties in their efforts towards the successful implementation of the CPA and the promotion of lasting peace and reconciliation in the Sudan. AU Liaison Offices will be established in Khartoum and Juba. (various sources)
• LRA Ceasefire Brokered in Southern Sudan. The government of Uganda and the Lord’s Resistance Army and Movement have signed a Permanent Ceasefire Agreement in Juba, the capital of southern Sudan. The accord was endorsed by: Riek Machar, Vice President, Government of Southern Sudan, representatives from several African countries, the European Union and a senior advisor from the U.S. Dept of State for African Affairs. The Sudanese Peoples Liberation Army will be responsible in part, for providing the security for the LRA encampment. (Sudan Tribune)
• U.S. President Bush’s Sudan Funding Requests. President George W. Bush has requested Economic Support Funds for Sudan in the amount of $254 million, targeted to support implementation of the Comprehensive Peace Agreement to ensure a just peace in Sudan and support peace processes in Darfur. President Bush has also made a request for $70.8 million for Peacekeeping Operations for the transformation of the Southern Sudanese military from a guerilla force to a conventional military force. Eyed are construction of various headquarters, provision of strategic and operational advisory assistance, professional training, as well as communications and other equipment for the new military force. (White House News & Policies)
CHINA CHALLENGED ON DARFUR
• On February 12, one hundred twenty Members of Congress sent a letter urging President Hu Jintao of the People's Republic of China to extend far more pressure on the Government of Sudan to help end the killing in Darfur.
• The Darfur Olympics campaign has gained momentum with letters being delivered to Chinese Embassies urging China to put more pressure on the GoS to bring an end to the conflict in Darfur and reopen peace negotiations.
• Olympians Shannon Shakespeare and Nikki Dryden delivered an open letter to China's United Nations offices. "We are all aware of the tremendous potential for China to help bring an end to the conflict in Darfur," said the letter, signed by eight Nobel Peace Prize winners and 13 former Olympians. (Seattle Post-Intelligencer)
SAAF Update 06-2008
February 18, 2008
No US Troops for Darfur. US President, George W. Bush, has defended his decision not to send troops to the Sudanese region of Darfur, despite what he calls a genocide taking place there. However, Mr. Bush, speaking before leaving for Africa, said he was frustrated by the slow pace of international action on Darfur. He was scheduled to meet with UN Secretary-General, Ban Ki-moon, about efforts to boost peacekeeping forces in Darfur. He also discussed the controversy over China’s Olympics, saying he would attend the event as scheduled. "I view the Olympics as a sporting event," he told a BBC interviewer. “I’ve got a firm, heartfelt commitment to the continent of Africa.” But he added that he would meet Chinese President Hu Jintao and "remind him that he can do more to relieve the suffering in Darfur". (ST, 15-Feb-08)
Chinese media stifle Darfur connection to Olympic Games. Across China, people woke Feb. 15 to news that atrocities in Darfur could have an impact on next summer's Beijing Olympics. It was startling news for most readers in China and seemed to come totally out of the blue. The high profile effort to convince China to use its economic clout to pressure the Sudanese government to end the killing in Darfur has been making headlines worldwide for nearly a year, but not in China's state-controlled media. International pressure groups have been trying to use China's fixation on the success of the Olympics as leverage to force Beijing to act on pressing human rights issues inside China and on Darfur, but the results have been negligible. The advocacy group Reporters Without Borders lamented the situation: "Nobody apart from the International Olympic Committee seems to believe the (Chinese) government will make a significant human rights concession before the Games start.” (Canwest News Service, 15-Feb-08)
Sudan’s Two Faces. Many lauded the signing of the “Status of Forces Agreement” by Khartoum on Feb. 9. The agreement provides the legal framework for some 9,000 UN/AU peacekeepers in Darfur. With the signing, the Sudanese government has dropped restrictions which were previously handcuffing the force. But even as officials in Khartoum signed the documents, Darfur refugees were fleeing into Chad to escape bloodshed from air strikes Feb. 8 by Sudanese helicopter gunships and fixed-wing aircraft. This latest violence left many wondering which is the true face of Sudan. Many observers suggest the authorities signed the agreement under extreme pressure from the international community to avoid a confrontation with the UN. Additionally, by signing the agreement, Sudan has shifted responsibility to the international community to fully fund and equip the peacekeeping force in Darfur, which it has been slow to do. (Institute for War & Peace Reporting, AR No. 156, 13-Feb-08)
Hundreds of Darfuri Children Missing. Several days after the Feb. 8 attacks, hundreds of Darfuri children remain unaccounted for, according to UNICEF. Initial reports suggested that up to 800 children were unaccounted for following an assessment mission to the towns of Sirba and Abu Surouj. The attacks sparked a mass evacuation from the region. "There are indications as many as 30,000 people might have been displaced," said UNICEF. The UN World Food Programme, which participated in the joint assessment mission, said about 5,000 people were in urgent need of food, shelter, medical support and other non-food items. (IRUN, 14-Feb-08)
SAAF Update 05-2008
February 11, 2008
Chad - Darfur: The United Nations condemned a failed rebel attempt to overthrow the government of Chad and cleared the way for possible French military intervention to support President Idriss Deby, although it is not clear that the French intend direct intervention. While the United States, France, Chad and others accuse the Government of Sudan of masterminding the failed coup attempt, the GoS likewise accuses Chad of supporting rebels in Darfur. Tens of thousands of people fled when rebels entered the city last Saturday, and casualties, particularly among civilians, were high. Cleanup is in progress and the capital N’Djamena is returning to a semblance of normalcy. Conflict impedes the ability of aid agencies to provide for Darfur refugees in Eastern Chad and has stalled the European Union plans to deploy troops to protect those refugees. (Bloomberg, NYT and others) Comment: This has direct parallels with the Ugandan/ LRA conflicts that took place on the border with Southern Sudan during the Civil War.
UN Urges Implementation of CPA In a report to the U.N. Security Council, Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon warned that although Sudan's government of national unity has been restored, "its resilience will depend on its ability to ensure sustained implementation" of the Comprehensive Peace Agreement that ended the 21-year civil war in 2005. He said "major challenges" need to be addressed in the weeks and months ahead, including redeploying forces, forming joint military units, marking the north-south boundary, and resolving the crucial issue of who should control the contested oil-rich Abyei region. The two sides also need to move forward with a census which is essential to prepare for elections which must take place in 2009, he said. (International Herald Tribune, Feb 4)
Kiir Expresses Satisfaction. Following a meeting with Sudanese vice-president Ali Osman Taha in Juba on Friday, First Vice President Salva Kiir Mayadrit showed satisfaction over the CPA implementation. He asserted that the two peace partners are going in the right direction and determined to resolve the outstanding issues. Kiir reported that the two had discussed the electoral law, issue of Abyei, and the national census. The two partners have diverged positions on the electoral law. (ST, Feb 7)
Excerpts from previous Situation Updates
Sudan Cannot Speak In Our Name. To the relief of many and credit to its membership, Tanzania, with president Jakaya Kikwete, was elected African Union chair at the ongoing summit in Addis Ababa Thursday, taking over from Ghana. (Various wire sources)
Comment: "The Government of Sudan is one of the most unscrupulous governments in the world, and this is no mean 'achievement' given the many claimants to this dubious honour. It is so cynical that the words 'shame' and 'sensitivity' do not exist in its political dictionary...It cannot be right that a country and a government that kills its own people is allowed to be spokesperson for Africa. Khartoum should be disallowed from assuming the chair of the Union..." (Dr. Tajudeen Abdul-Raheem)
China out of patience on Darfur. A senior Chinese diplomat today warned Sudan that "the world is running out of patience over what’s going in Darfur". The Special envoy of Chinese government to Sudan Liu Guijin met with Sudan’s foreign minister Deng Alor on the sidelines of the African Union (AU) summit in Addis Abbaba. Alor said that the Chinese envoy reaffirmed his government’s support to Sudan, but called on Sudan "not to do things that will cause the international community to impose sanctions on them". China has generally avoided appearing to pressure Sudan directly over the Darfur crisis to be in line with its long standing policy of not interfering in internal affairs of other countries. Beijing, a veto wielding member in the UN Security Council, has protected Sudan from international condemnation and sanctions causing frustration among Western powers and human rights group worldwide. (Sudan Tribune January 30, 2008)
Kenya Impacts Sudan "Think of Kenya (and other parts of sub-Saharan Africa) as a wall, made up of stones of different sizes representing the different tribes. Imagine this wall as being weakly cemented together and acting as a dam holding back a huge body of water. Think of the body of water as poverty, joblessness, increasing populations, hunger and so on. There is an obvious strain on the wall as the water dams up. Democracy, religion, rule of law, constitutions and some of the other institutions that you may be familiar with can be considered merely as wallpaper that one can bring and paste over this wall. It would certainly look pretty, but trouble would be brewing as the mass of water increased." (Raphael Marambii Jan 9)
Sudan needs reality check (Excerpts from Al Jazeera Analysis Jan 7)
• The Comprehensive Peace Agreement between the Sudanese government and the Sudan's People Liberation Movement signed on January 9, 2005 ended years of bloody warfare which had effectively split the country in two.
• History still haunts the peace partners to this day; the walls of distrust are too thick to be demolished by the mere exchange of smiles and pleasantries.
• The CPA deliberately prolonged the transitional period in order to build trust between North and South. The goal was to convince south Sudanese that they would be better off in a united Sudan. Unfortunately, unity seems like an impossible goal right now after three years of this strange power and wealth-sharing formula.
• The CPA, which was designed to bring about peace and prosperity to the Sudanese people after 22 years of war, has so far very little to show for itself.
• It is time for a reality check for all of Sudan. Otherwise, the partition of the country is a very likely prospect.
(Al Jazeera Analysis Jan 7; for complete story see: http://english.aljazeera.net/NR/exeres/D91576FE-E30A-4A4B-B431-533277048B89.htm)
Bush Signs SADA into Law. On December 31, President Bush signed the Sudan Accountability and Divestment bill into Law. The law aims to shield state and local governments, mutual funds and private pension funds from investor lawsuits if they divest shares of companies active in Sudan’s oil, mining, power and military equipment industries. It also denies federal contracts to foreign companies involved in Sudan’s oil, mining, power, and military equipment industries. (Various wire sources)
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Worth Remembering from 2007
"This is another timely reminder that the problem in Sudan is not in Darfur (nor in Nubia, nor the south, nor the east, nor Abyei, nor southern Blue Nile, nor Kordofan) but is in Khartoum. Until the centre-periphery dynamics and the entrenched power of a small elite are addressed, the problems will not be resolved. And as long as the world continues to focus its attention on Darfur rather than Khartoum there will not be peace in Darfur or Sudan." John Ashcroft, Sudan Advocate.
Natsios Criticizes Sudan's Government. Andrew Natsios, the (former) special envoy of President George W. Bush accused the Sudanese government of delaying the implementation of the Comprehensive Peace Agreement (CPA) that ended the 21-year North-South civil war. “If the Sudanese government is serious about improving relations with the United States, they need to implement the peace agreement between the North and the South,” Natsios said. He noted failure to withdraw troops from Upper Nile and delays in implementing the census and elections as examples of delays. (Sudan Tribune July 24, 2007)
Root of the Problem. We will make no progress in either understanding or halting the ongoing, indeed spreading, human destruction in Darfur and eastern Chad unless we look to the heart of darkness that beats relentlessly in Khartoum. The real explanation to genocide in Darfur lies in the ruthless and brutal regime that rules in Khartoum. (Eric Reeves)
Responsibility to Protect. " It has taken the world an insanely long time to come to terms conceptually with the idea that state sovereignty is not a license to kill – that there is something fundamentally and intolerably wrong about states murdering or forcibly displacing large numbers of their own citizens, or standing by when others do so." (Gareth Evans, International Crisis Group, 13 April 2007)
The comments of Stephanie Nyombayire, a survivor of the Rwandan genocide, are pertinent, "You cannot call it a genocide and allow the Sudanese government to continue its killing sprees happening in Darfur today. We said 'never again' after World War II. We said 'never again' after Cambodia. We said 'never again' after Rwanda. I think it's time to make 'never again' be meaningful,'”
Khartoum's agreement to anything is not "news"; real news would be if Khartoum were to honor any of its agreements. John Ashworth
As we celebrate the contributions of Martin Luther King, Jr., it is worthwhile to consider some of his words in the light of the situation in Sudan.
"Cowardice asks the question, 'Is it safe?'
Expediency asks the question, 'Is it political?'
Vanity asks the question, 'Is it popular?'
But conscience asks the question, 'Is it right?'
And there comes a time when one must take a position that is neither safe, nor political, nor popular...... simply because it is right."
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