OurPledge

Sudanese Government Is Holding the UN Hostage (Again)

From the AFP:

The United Nations said Wednesday that the Sudanese government is “severely” restricting movements by peacekeepers in Darfur where fresh clashes have broken out and peace talks are deadlocked.

The Khartoum authorities are also holding up hundreds of visa applications for military, police and civilian personnel for the UN mission in Darfur, UNAMID, peacekeeping chief Herve Ladsous told a UN Security Council meeting on the Sudanese region where there has been conflict since 2003.

Clashes between government forces and rebel groups have increased in various parts of Darfur since December.

“The marked increase in maneuvers and clashes between government and movement forces in recent weeks was accompanied by a sharp increase in restrictions of movement imposed on UNAMID by government authorities,” Ladsous told UN ambassadors.

This included restrictions on flights and patrols in areas where clashes were reported, the peacekeeping chief added.

“The denials of access have severely impeded UNAMID’s ability to implement its mandate and resupply team sites in affected areas,” Ladsous said, adding that repeated demands had been made to the Khartoum government to get promised “unhindered” access throughout Darfur.

The New Bystanders?

A must-read from Act for Sudan Co-Founder Susan Morgan in The Huffington Post:

“Still, in spite of this dedicated activism, the Obama administration seems blind and deaf to the ongoing genocide in Sudan. In Mohamed’s words, “It is morally wrong to keep millions of Darfuris in the IDP camps for almost a decade, Nuba Mountain people trapped in the caves, Blue Nile people refugees in another country (Ethiopia) away from their homes. We see clearly this administration has made its choice. Yet history is taking notice.”

More Media Attention for Sudan, Please

Good for Congressmen Frank Wolf. (Hope he has followed through on his promise below.) From the Enough Project blog:

Visibly frustrated by the lack of tangible U.S. action as human rights crimes unfold in Sudan, Congressman Wolf noted that part of the challenge of mobilizing the political will for the U.S. government to act is that the atrocities unfolding in Sudan are largely taking place without any media spotlight. Wolf said he would send all of the panelists’ testimonies to the main media networks, including ABC, FOX, NBC, and CNN, to stir up some needed media attention.

Article: How Many Internally Displaced Persons Are There in Darfur?

From Eric Reeves:

The simple answer to the question, “How many internally displaced persons are there in Darfur?” is easy: we don’t know, and we don’t know the margin of error for various figures that have been promulgated by the UN in the past. But we are not without data, and the data raise troubling questions about the integrity of the current UN estimate of 1.9 million IDPs, very quietly first published in July 2010. When precisely this consequential revision—down from a previous UN figure of 2.7 million IDPs—took place is unclear, as is the decision-making process itself. As recently as May 2010, a report from the UN General Assembly’s Economic and Social Council, presumably using UN data, declared that “more than 2 million people remain displaced.”

The history of the new UN figure provides context that is at once suggestive and disturbing. The three statistical snapshots below all come from the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA); none includes the more than 250,000 Darfuri refugees currently in eastern Chad, according to the UN High Commission for Refugees.

Read the full article in Dissent Magazine.

Quote of the Moment

“It is not Gration’s responsibility as U.S. special envoy to Sudan to play the role of the UN Undersecretary for Humanitarian Affairs in Darfur. But his role must certainly include speaking honestly about humanitarian realities as they exist, not as is convenient for obtaining a diplomatic post. In responding to the acute suffering of innocent civilians, he falls well short of what we have a right to expect of our representatives abroad. Gration’s consistent missteps, miscalculations, and disingenuousness make him unfit to be ambassador to Kenya. The Obama administration should withdraw its nomination. In the absence of such withdrawal, the Senate should vote against his confirmation.”
- Eric Reeves, “The Senate Should Not Confirm Scott Gration as U.S. Ambassador to Kenya”

In case you missed it

U.S. Special Envoy to Sudan Scott Gration claims — threatens, really — that the international community doesn’t have the capability to focus on the millions of Darfuris who have been violently displaced from their homes.

“There are going to be a lot of things that are keeping us from focusing on Darfur,” [Gration said.] “That’s why we have this little window where we really need to get the framework solidified.”

“…I think we are going to see a real big focus on the election,” Gration said. “There is not going to be a lot of bandwidth to be doing Darfur and negotiations.”

Read the full Washington Post article here.

Kony and the LRA Out of Darfur?

The notorious leader of the Lord’s Resistance Army, Joseph Kony, has apparently left Darfur for the Central African Republic, Reuters reports.

The LRA had recently sought refuge in Western Sudan, alarming human rights watchdogs that have long documented the group’s penchant for murder, child slavery, and mass rape.

***
Here’s one thing that struck me about this development. And it’s a part of the story that underlines what genocide has done to Western Sudan. According to Reuters, the LRA left Darfur because of the drastic food shortage there.

Not even brazen rebels — who steal and take whatever they want — can find daily sustenance in Darfur.

(Sudan) Letters to Obama

Tucked into a Washington Post story about President Obama’s daily ritual of reading letters from ordinary citizens:

“But [the] biggest job was to organize the mail into about 70 subject folders — an ever-changing list of categories that offers a barometer of the nation’s priorities. About half of the letters in February focused on health-care reform; about half last November focused on the war in Afghanistan. Six to 10 percent of all letters amount to fan mail for Obama, offering him support. Other regular categories include Global Warming, Faith and Politics, Gas Prices, Fort Hood, Death Penalty, Darfur, H1N1, Iran, Jobs, First Lady, Torture, From Inmates, POTUS Health and Single Parents.“

Darfur is on that list. Let’s hope the Sudan movement can continue flooding the White House with its appeals.

Using New Media for Social Good

Kudos! A nice video of Genocide Intervention Network’s Director of MembershipJanessa Goldbeck talking to CBS News:

New violence in Darfur

From The Christian Science Monitor:

“March 4, 2010 — One year ago Thursday, the International Criminal Court (ICC) issued an arrest warrant for Sudan’s president, Omar al-Bashir, on charges of crimes against humanity. Now, on the first anniversary of the arrest warrant, fighting is raging in Darfur – the war-torn Sudanese province that is the source of much of the case against Mr. Bashir.”

“…On Wednesday, the US State Department issued a statement saying it is “extremely concerned” about reports of new government offensives against rebels in Darfur. According to United Nations officials, the result has been a new spike in civilian deaths.”