According to the Enough Project’s John Prendergast, “Obama is Still AWOL on Sudan.” The Wall Street Journal published a piece by Prendergast of the same name in which he explains how President Obama has failed to formulate, communicate, and implement effective United States policy towards Sudan. As the country makes further preparations for the January 2011 referendum, having a cogent policy on Sudan is essential.

“For a second-tier foreign policy issue, Sudan has seen its share of first-tier finger-pointing over the last decade. Congress has blamed the White House, administrations have blamed activists and Congress, and everyone has condemned the Chinese whose multibillion dollar oil investment underwrites the Khartoum regime’s war policies in Darfur and the South”, he explains.

“It’s true that internecine battles are par for the course in the shaping of foreign policy. The real problem here is that the decider hasn’t decided. The absence of presidential clarity has left allies confused and the Sudanese regime gleeful.”

Prendergast goes on to note that the U.S. has been able to effectively exert pressure in Sudan in the past to achieve its goals by using its allies and relaying clear objectives. The U.S. succeeded in reducing al Qaeda’s presence in the country and helping broker the peace deal that brought an end to the war between the North and the South in 2005.

Prendergast’s piece also includes his recommendations for the Obama administration in its effort to maintain the fragile peace the U.S. helped establish and to prevent a return to war in the region in advance of the impending referendum on Southern independence. He advocates using a combination of incentives like debt relief and pressures like restrictions on the flow of arms, assets and certain individuals’ travel in working with the parties involved in the referendum.

Tell President Obama to do what he can to ensure that Sudan holds the January 2011 referendum as promised.

The opinions expressed here are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the position of the Save Darfur Coalition.

Tags: Enough Project, John Prendergast, President Obama, Referendum, Referendum On Secession

This entry was posted on Friday, September 3rd, 2010 at 3:51 pm and is filed under Obama Administration, Referendum. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.