01/30/2007

With violence in Darfur worsening, African leaders rebuked President Omar Hassan al-Bashir of Sudan for his refusal to end the fighting in Sudan’s Western province.

Leaders of the African Union, meeting in Addis Ababa, refused to elect Al Bashir president of the 53 country organization. This is a victory for Refugees International, Save Darfur and many other groups that worked to prevent al-Bashir from assuming the presidency while the war in Darfur continues. Thanks to all who urged President Bush to use all diplomatic means to convince African leaders not to elevate al-Bashir to the AU post he has sought for the last two years. 
   
Sadly, the political victory has done nothing to stop the fighting in Darfur, where violence is getting worse. Government-backed forces are continuing to attack rebel groups and innocent civilians, rebel groups are fighting among themselves, and banditry is rising.  The best description of Darfur today is chaos.
   
Earlier this week the French agency, Doctors of the World, pulled out of Darfur, saying it was too dangerous to work there.  On the eve of the AU summit, six major aid agencies warned that the enormous humanitarian infrastructure in Darfur, where nearly three million people are dependent on international relief, may soon be paralyzed unless the fighting ends.  UN agencies issued a similar warning earlier in the month. 
   
On Jan 10, Gov. Bill Richardson of New Mexico, after meeting with al-Bashir and representative rebel leaders, issued a joint statement with the government of Sudan in which the government agreed to a 60-day ceasefire designed to pave the way for political talks.  The government’s commitment to the ceasefire is contingent on acceptance by the rebel groups as well. In their meetings Richardson and al-Bashir agreed that the war in Darfur can only be settled politically. A military victory doesn’t seem possible for any party now.
   
Unfortunately, neither the Khartoum government nor the rebel leaders have done anything to produce a ceasefire since the Richardson meeting.  However, in meetings with UN Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon this week, al-Bashir said he welcomed a joint UN-AU peace initiative. A pair of high level UN-AU envoys is supposed to arrive in Khartoum to start talks early next month. 
   
In the meantime, more people are dead and more people are displaced in Darfur, and the world watches and waits, either unable or unwilling to find the approach that will force the government of Sudan to stop the killing and enable international forces to restore order to Darfur.
   
Refugees International reiterates its call for a tougher U.S. policy, including stricter economic and diplomatic sanctions, on Sudan, as well as similar actions by other countries.  If humanitarian conditions continue to deteriorate in Darfur, calls for military action will grow louder and more persuasive.