[Peace-discuss] RE: a small-scaled metaphor for Darfur

[C. G. Estabrook]

"The Darfur Peace and Accountability Act (H.R. 3127) asks that
the African Union Peacekeeping Force be expanded and given a
stronger mandate (including more generous logistical support).
It also asserts that the International Criminal Court be
assisted to bring justice to those guilty of war crimes in
Darfur, Sudan."

There are at least two major difficulties with it:

[1] The Bush administration remains opposed to the
International Criminal Court and so presumably to any form of
this bill that contains support for it. A year ago the
Security Council considered deploying 10,000 peacekeepers, but
the proposal was blocked by the US because of the ICC requirement.

[2] American politicians on all sides -- Bush and Biden, Obama
and Brownback -- have made it clear this month that they want
NATO to take the lead.  Kosovo is being presented as a good
model.  --CGE


---- Original message ----
>Date: Wed, 22 Feb 2006 16:05:38 -0600
>From: "Scott Edwards" <scottisimo at hotmail.com>  
>Subject: [Peace-discuss] RE: a small-scaled metaphor for Darfur  
>To: peace-discuss at lists.chambana.net
>
>I do understand the hesitation people may have about military
intervention. 
>But I'm afriad that this particular analogy is not apt.
>
>First, there are not 2 sides (2 people on the street). There
are, in fact, 5 
>main actors operating in Darfur. The JEM, SLA, NMRD, GoS
military, and 
>GoS-backed militia. All of these actors are armed.
>
>I am glad folks have keyed in on the oversimplification of
the situation as 
>inherently ethnic. But there is, for the most part, a very poor 
>understanding of what is happening in Darfur, even among
activists, and 
>charaterizing Darfur as a 2-sided conflict necessarily
detracts from the 
>main reasoning for an interantional peacekeeping force.
>
>Sudan and Darfur-neighboring Chad are now in a �state of
belligerence�, 
>bringing further insecurity to the Darfur region. Numerous
cross-border 
>attacks in the past few weeks have severely worsened the
security situation 
>in Darfur, the most recent on 28 January when, according to
the Sudanese 
>military, a Chadian unit backed by artillery attacked a
Sudanese position 24 
>miles northwest of Geneina in West Darfur state. Chad denies
the attack was 
>carried out by Chadian forces.
>
>Both countries accuse the other of sponsoring rebel forces in
their 
>respective states, claims in keeping with the historical
strategies used by 
>Chad and Sudan.
>
>The government of Sudan and its militia allies are amassing
troops in the El 
>Geneina vicinity along the border with Chad. Individuals from
the area 
>around El Geneina told the Damanga Coalition for Freedom and
Democracy that 
>this is the largest military buildup they have seen. (El
Geneina is the 
>capital of West Darfur state and not far from Sudan�s border
with Chad).
>
>The presumably government-backed militia in the area have
told civilians 
>that there is a curfew and could shoot anybody out on the
street, and women 
>are reporting fear of random sexual violence. I am aware of
an individual in 
>El Geneina who was specifically told by a soldier that he had
been 
>transferred to the border region in preparation for a war
with Chad, and 
>that the military was looking for spies in towns like El
Geneina, Tandelti, 
>Abu-Sirog, Beida and Arara. This is THIS month.
>
>Peace talks between the JEM/SLA and GoS continue. Multiple
violations of a 
>truce have occurred in the past couple of weeks, particularly
by the SLA. A 
>3rd organization, the National Movement for Reform and
Development (NMRD), 
>is not taking part in the negotiations and continues attacks
against the 
>Sudanese military, with the military responding in kind. The
GoS claims the 
>NMRD is being sponsored by Chad.
>
>Fighting among the SLA itself continues, with factions
clashing particularly 
>in West Darfur, the most recent skirmish in the Kulbus area
of West Darfur 
>on Mon, 30 Jan.
>
>At this point, there is no real "Janjaweed" as an organized
militia as it 
>existed as recently as six months ago. Rather, it has
devolved back into 
>roving gangs who do not hesitate to interdict humantarian aid
and exact 
>human rights abuses on civilians, the likes of which we are
all familiar at 
>this point.
>
>And civilians are attempting to live in this security
environment.
>
>Not to mention the rest of Sudan. The Beja in the East,
because of oil 
>interests, find themselves in conflict with the government,
and the 
>potential for widespread conflict there is very real. Beja
political leaders 
>have been summarily imprisoned, and extrajudicial killings
have taken place.
>
>And the Comprehensive Peace Agreement is in trouble. And
there are hundreds 
>of thousands of vulnerable people in and around Khartoum
still displaced 
>from the North-South war who are at risk of forced relocation.
>
>My point is, an anology that implies this is a matter of
misunderstanding 
>that needs to be talked out is off the mark.
>
>An international peace keeping force will look like this:
UNMIS, the current 
>UN mission to monitor the North-South peace deal will be
combined with a 
>UN-backed Darfur peacekeeping force, with the current AU
peacekeepers 
>integrated under the UN.
>
>Sudan will protest and there will be a vote on the security
council. This is 
>what will happen. Folk should be prepared to apply pressure
at the 
>appropriate places, should it become necessary, should they
agree this is 
>the proper course of action.
>
>In the meantime I and others are working to get the Darfur
Peace and 
>Accountability Act out of committee. It is a way to be
involved that doesn't 
>touch on intervention, if you are averse.
>
>http://www.amnestyusa.org/countries/sudan/index.do
>
>best,
>scott
>
>Scott Edwards
>Amnesty International, US
>Country Specialist for Sudan
>