03/08/06, Allan Rock, We can't let Mideast blind us to Darfur's crisis
Post
While the world focuses on the drama in the Middle East, another deadly conflict eludes diplomatic solution. The people of Darfur have endured more than three years of displacement, violence and death. More than a million have sought refuge from the marauding Arab militias known as the janjaweed by fleeing to makeshift camps with appalling conditions and uncertain access to humanitarian aid. Many others have escaped to Chad, only to be followed by the janjaweed, and to find a nation overwhelmed by the burden of refugees and beset by its own internal tensions.
Conditions in Chad have become so bad that, according to United Nations humanitarian chief Jan Egeland, refugees are fleeing across its border into Darfur. Hope for a ceasefire and a durable peace flickered briefly just three months ago, with the signing of the Darfur peace agreement after prolonged negotiations in Abuja, Nigeria.
Under the agreement, the Sudanese government and the largest of three rebel groups in Darfur agreed to settle all issues, including the sharing of power and revenues between the national government and regional authorities in Darfur. Khartoum undertook to disarm the janjaweed, and to integrate rebel forces into the national army. The agreement provided for significant investments by Khartoum in rebuilding Darfur's infrastructure, compensation payments to the war's victims, and a special process aimed at achieving reconciliation among competing tribal factions in Darfur.
From the beginning, however, the accord faced fierce opposition from the two rebel groups that refused to sign. Those groups have worked hard to convince people in the camps that the deal was a sellout of Darfur's interests. The three rebel groups then began fighting among themselves, and some now stand accused of the kinds of atrocities against civilians (and each other) for which the janjaweed have been condemned. The accord's timetable for a ceasefire and disarmament, meanwhile, has been ignored, and the janjaweed continue their murderous attacks.
How can Darfur's population be protected and the prospects for peace salvaged in this toxic environment? At least four things must be done urgently.
-- Those who can must do more to strengthen the African Union force that is already on the ground in Darfur. Despite its good intentions and best efforts, its insufficient numbers and inadequate equipment leave this force unable to provide meaningful protection to a beleaguered population spread over a vast area. A recent pledging conference in Brussels was disappointing. Much more will be needed, and quickly.
-- The world must dramatically increase its financial support for the humanitarian effort in Darfur, and now in Chad. Contributions have dropped off significantly compared with last year, and the vulnerable are paying the price for “donor fatigue.”
-- Efforts must be intensified to bring dissident rebel groups into the peace accord, which remains a sound basis for an overall deal. We got as far as we did in Abuja only because the U.S., Britain, the European Union and Canada led a truly international push to get a deal. Let's renew that effort, appoint negotiators, and invest the political capital to help them succeed. Sticking points should be looked at afresh, and every attempt made to find common ground. The distance between the parties at the end of the Abuja talks was not unbridgeable. We can yet produce a deal that all parties can sign.
-- Finally, let's prepare for the transition later this year from the AU force to a larger and well-equipped UN protection force. The Sudanese government continues to send, at best, mixed messages about allowing UN troops into Darfur. We need to get Moscow and Beijing, with influential regional actors such as Egypt and Libya, to press Sudan.
The world must simply refuse to take no for an answer from Khartoum, whose allegations that such a force would “recolonize” Sudan ring hollow, especially given the presence of thousands of UN troops in southern Sudan under the peace agreement that settled the prolonged conflict there.
Canada has been a leading contributor to humanitarian assistance and to peace efforts in Darfur, under both the Martin and Harper governments. Despite the current preoccupations in the Middle East, we must remember that urgent needs elsewhere have not gone away. Our influential voice should be raised now, in a renewed effort to save the many lives being lost each day in Darfur's tragic conflict. Allan Rock is Canada's former ambassador to the United Nations.
Conditions in Chad have become so bad that, according to United Nations humanitarian chief Jan Egeland, refugees are fleeing across its border into Darfur. Hope for a ceasefire and a durable peace flickered briefly just three months ago, with the signing of the Darfur peace agreement after prolonged negotiations in Abuja, Nigeria.
Under the agreement, the Sudanese government and the largest of three rebel groups in Darfur agreed to settle all issues, including the sharing of power and revenues between the national government and regional authorities in Darfur. Khartoum undertook to disarm the janjaweed, and to integrate rebel forces into the national army. The agreement provided for significant investments by Khartoum in rebuilding Darfur's infrastructure, compensation payments to the war's victims, and a special process aimed at achieving reconciliation among competing tribal factions in Darfur.
From the beginning, however, the accord faced fierce opposition from the two rebel groups that refused to sign. Those groups have worked hard to convince people in the camps that the deal was a sellout of Darfur's interests. The three rebel groups then began fighting among themselves, and some now stand accused of the kinds of atrocities against civilians (and each other) for which the janjaweed have been condemned. The accord's timetable for a ceasefire and disarmament, meanwhile, has been ignored, and the janjaweed continue their murderous attacks.
How can Darfur's population be protected and the prospects for peace salvaged in this toxic environment? At least four things must be done urgently.
-- Those who can must do more to strengthen the African Union force that is already on the ground in Darfur. Despite its good intentions and best efforts, its insufficient numbers and inadequate equipment leave this force unable to provide meaningful protection to a beleaguered population spread over a vast area. A recent pledging conference in Brussels was disappointing. Much more will be needed, and quickly.
-- The world must dramatically increase its financial support for the humanitarian effort in Darfur, and now in Chad. Contributions have dropped off significantly compared with last year, and the vulnerable are paying the price for “donor fatigue.”
-- Efforts must be intensified to bring dissident rebel groups into the peace accord, which remains a sound basis for an overall deal. We got as far as we did in Abuja only because the U.S., Britain, the European Union and Canada led a truly international push to get a deal. Let's renew that effort, appoint negotiators, and invest the political capital to help them succeed. Sticking points should be looked at afresh, and every attempt made to find common ground. The distance between the parties at the end of the Abuja talks was not unbridgeable. We can yet produce a deal that all parties can sign.
-- Finally, let's prepare for the transition later this year from the AU force to a larger and well-equipped UN protection force. The Sudanese government continues to send, at best, mixed messages about allowing UN troops into Darfur. We need to get Moscow and Beijing, with influential regional actors such as Egypt and Libya, to press Sudan.
The world must simply refuse to take no for an answer from Khartoum, whose allegations that such a force would “recolonize” Sudan ring hollow, especially given the presence of thousands of UN troops in southern Sudan under the peace agreement that settled the prolonged conflict there.
Canada has been a leading contributor to humanitarian assistance and to peace efforts in Darfur, under both the Martin and Harper governments. Despite the current preoccupations in the Middle East, we must remember that urgent needs elsewhere have not gone away. Our influential voice should be raised now, in a renewed effort to save the many lives being lost each day in Darfur's tragic conflict. Allan Rock is Canada's former ambassador to the United Nations.
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