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Renewing the Pledge – joint paper released

Wednesday, July 14th, 2010

In a joint paper released today titled Renewing the Pledge: Re-engaging the Guarantors to the Sudanese Comprehensive Peace Agreement, 25 signing organizations including the Save Darfur Coalition call for more intensive political involvement by the international community in the final six months leading up to the referendum on southern secession, scheduled for January 9, 2011.  The paper emphasizes the need for a holistic approach to the multiple political concerns in Sudan and outlines concrete steps that CPA guarantors can take to help ensure adequate preparations for a peaceful and credible referendum.

The executive summary is below; read the full paper here.

The clock is ticking fast towards what might be the most important date in modern Sudanese history – two referenda in Sudan that are likely to result in the breakup of Africa’s largest state. With six months remaining until 9 January 2011, the scheduled date of the referenda, the run-up to, and outcome of, the vote must be managed with extreme care. The Guarantors to the Comprehensive Peace Agreement (CPA ), who invested considerable effort in obtaining the CPA on 9 January 2005, have both a responsibility and an ability to help Sudan implement the CPA and prevent further conflict. It is imperative that the Guarantors urgently redouble their efforts to ensure adequate preparations for the referenda, and help secure agreements on sensitive issues such as border demarcation and oil sharing.

The experiences of recent years have demonstrated that focusing on one part of Sudan at the expense of another complicates the situation in both. Focusing too narrowly on the challenges of securing a peaceful post-CPA transition in Southern Sudan could backfire. The CPA Guarantors must not relegate the situation in Northern Sudan – especially the conflict in Darfur, where violence in May 2010 claimed the highest number of lives since 2008 – to the second tier of priorities.

As the Guarantors step up their political involvement, we hope to see generous donor support. More needs to be done now to bring in the requisite diplomatic, financial, and technical resources to put in place the requirements for the referenda and, after the vote, to improve Sudan’s stability and dire state of human development.

1. Use the upcoming Consultative Forum meeting in Khartoum on 17 July 2010 to agree to an urgent expansion of international efforts to prepare for peaceful, credible and timely referenda in Southern Sudan and Abyei.

2. Restate publicly, clearly and collectively the internationally recognized right of the people of Southern Sudan to self-determination. At the July 2010 AU Summit in Uganda, African Heads of State should reaffirm their unequivocal support for this right and pledge to recognize the outcomes of two free and fair referenda. The League of Arab States and the Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD) should follow suit, and be encouraged to do so by the Troika (US, UK and Norway) and the UN Secretary-General.

3. Appoint a high-level individual to travel to Abyei, Blue Nile, and Southern Kordofan consistently over the next six months to ensure adequate preparations for the referendum in Abyei and the popular consultations in Blue Nile and Southern Kordofan.

4. Call on the UN Mission in Sudan (UNMIS) to build up its civilian capacity in Abyei and facilitate inter-communal dialogue on the future of the area and call on the UN Development Program (UNDP) to consider extending its Southern Kordofan conflict prevention program to Abyei.

5. Persuade the National Congress Party of Sudan (NCP ) and the Sudan People’s Liberation Movement (SPLM ), the two parties to the CPA , to make public commitments that the rights to freedom of movement, residence and property currently afforded to all Sudanese citizens will be preserved regardless of the outcome of the referenda.

6. Provide technical assistance to the CPA parties to reach an equitable agreement on oil sharing, to be backed up by independent third party monitoring.

7. Encourage UNMIS to carry out a careful assessment of its civilian protection capabilities, including identification of the weakest links, leading to preventive UNMIS deployments in flashpoint areas to deter future violence.

8. State clearly and publicly that international human rights standards must be respected in Northern as well as in Southern Sudan, and that the Guarantors will uphold their commitment to the goals of democratic transformation in Sudan.

9. Call on the African Union/UN Hybrid operation in Darfur (UNAM ID) to focus on its primary objective of protecting civilians and to increase and make public its human rights reporting.

10. Call on donors to Sudan to revisit the present plan to hold a large donor conference only after the announcement of the referenda results and consider additional closed-door resource mobilization meetings to ensure adequate resources are available in time. Guarantors should encourage investment in renewed South-South dialogue, conflict prevention and strengthening local peace-building capacities.

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Posted in African Union, Human Rights, Peace Process, Peacekeeping, Referendum, United Nations | No Comments »

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Darfur Needs Leaders, Not Rulers

Wednesday, May 12th, 2010

Former South African President and AUPD Chairman Thabo Mbeki (Getty Images)

When former South African president Thabo Mbeki was appointed to lead the African Union’s High Level Implementation Panel on Darfur (AUPD), many Western governments and rights groups feared his work would undermine efforts to secure a peace agreement that could deliver justice to the people of Darfur and help Sudan on its way toward national reconciliation.

Instead, far from letting Sudan’s government and its indicted leader Omar al-Bashir off the hook for atrocities committed in the country’s war-torn region, the panel’s highly anticipated report—made public last fall—challenged the Sudanese government to take responsibility for war crimes prosecutions, and included a nuanced appeal to address the ongoing political and economic marginalisation of Darfur, cited as the conflict’s key causative factors.

Neither justice nor peace, it makes clear, can be realized without the Sudanese government’s full participation in promoting accountability for atrocities committed in Darfur and in reforming the country’s hitherto centrifugal and divisive political system, including the inequitable distribution of power and wealth in Sudan.

Mbeki in Darfur (SSRC: Making Sense of Sudan)

Mbeki’s report stated clearly that a peace agreement followed by Darfur’s full participation in free and fair national elections should be part of this solution.

But Sudan’s historic nationwide polls have closed. Bashir has declared overwhelming victory as a new chapter in the country’s troubled narrative begins—one that will ultimately determine the nation’s continued existence. Amidst the declarations of triumph and denunciations of a stolen vote, it seems the election process has done little to address the root causes of Darfur’s troubles.

Just the opposite, in fact.

(more…)

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Posted in African Union, Elections | No Comments »

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UNAMID Under Fire – Peacekeepers Killed in Darfur

Tuesday, May 11th, 2010

UNAMID Soldiers Mourn the Death of Fellow Peacekeepers (REUTERS/Stuart Price/2008)

The last six months have been both difficult and deadly for UNAMID. On Friday, the targeted slaying of two peacekeepers served as a troubling reminder of that fact.

Although the operation has made significant progress toward full deployment, and it has finally received six of its desperately needed tactical helicopters, the mission’s peacekeepers remain under direct threat from Darfur’s rampant lawlessness and insecurity. Numerous incidents consistently underscore the reality that greater troop numbers, more materiel, and sporadic donations of force multipliers are not the only elements necessary for a robust and effective operation capable of implementing its mandate to protect civilians and humanitarian aid efforts.

As we wrote late last year, the UN-AU hybrid mission in Darfur has been called many things, from being described as a pawn or a proxy to being dismissed as incompetent or irrelevant. But the truth is almost ignored: these peacekeepers are quite literally the only force standing between a vulnerable, victimized population and criminally rampant insecurity. In December, five Rwandans gave up their lives as part of that important effort. Last week, two Egyptian soldiers were killed as they served to bring peace to Darfur. Three others were seriously wounded.

The peacekeepers were travelling near Katila on Friday when they were ambushed by unidentified gunmen not far from Edd al-Fursan in South Darfur. The assailants launched their attack without warning, indiscriminately shooting at the Egyptian convoy. They fled after the contingent returned fire.

AU and UN officials have expressed outrage at Friday’s attack, from describing it as “cowardly” to denouncing it as a “war crime.” In a statement, UNAMID confirmed its “undaunted and unwavering” commitment to its mission, while calling on the Government of Sudan (GoS) to identify the perpetrators and bring them to justice.

This incident comes not long after the results were announced in Sudan’s historic nationwide elections. Last month, shortly after the polls opened, four South African peacekeepers were kidnapped in an apparent attempt by their abductors—newly formed militia —to demonstrate that the necessary security conditions for elections to take place in Darfur did not exist. Just before the voting took place, the European Union withdrew its observer team over staff safety concerns.

But banditry and kidnapping are not the only threats facing both the local population and the force tasked with its protection. Fighting between the GoS and rebel group Justice and Equality Movement (JEM) has been confirmed in Jebel Moon, near the Chadian border, amid a faltering ceasefire between the two sides. In the central region of Jebel Marra, regular clashes between the Sudan Armed Forces (SAF) and the Sudan Liberation Army – Abdel Wahid faction (SLA-AW) have killed an estimated 400 civilians and displaced tens of thousands more. Obstructionism by all parties involved – notably the Government of Sudan and the SLA-AW – has left the local population without access to military protection or humanitarian assistance. In March, a UNAMID convoy was attempting to verify the clashes and the civilian toll when its 60 peacekeepers were ambushed, detained overnight, and robbed of their vehicles and equipment. The Government of Sudan chastised the mission for failing to heed its advice by attempting to undertake their investigation.

In response to Friday’s attacks, the GoS appears to have acted quickly. Wire services are reporting that Sudanese police have arrested two suspected perpetrators and are looking for five others also believed to have taken part in the assault. It remains to be seen whether these men will be held to account in a transparent manner consistent with the rule of law.

If Sudan is committed – as it claims – to ensuring UNAMID’s success and protecting its citizens from criminal violence, these suspects should be interrogated and tried with full UN and AU involvement. When the Rwandan peacekeepers were killed last December, Khartoum announced the arrest of the six men responsible, but little information has been publicly available about the process by which they have been tried for these crimes. This is, after all, a government that – through embracing impunity – has historically not simply failed to deter, but has effectively provided incentives to opportunistic criminals and looters to rob well intentioned peacekeepers of their equipment and, more importantly, their lives.

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Posted in African Union, Peacekeeping, United Nations | No Comments »

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Gunships Can’t Save Darfur Alone

Wednesday, March 3rd, 2010

UNAMID Mi-35P

Newly deployed M-35P in Nyala. Photo: UNAMID/Albert Gonzalez Farran

It’s been a painfully long time coming, but last week, five Mil Mi-35P gunships settled in to their new home in Nyala, South Darfur. The Ethiopian helicopters – whitewashed for peacekeeping service – will in theory greatly enhance UNAMID’s aerial capacity. They represent a key force multiplier, essential in developing the mission’s rapid reaction capability, including emergency response and tactical intervention.

But after celebrating their long overdue arrival, the first thing on Force Commander Nyamvumba’s agenda was to ask for more. He has made it very clear that this is only one step in a series of many that UN and AU member states must take to provide his peacekeepers with the very best odds possible as they confront endless challenges in Darfur, an advantage they have not thus far enjoyed.

This means giving them the mobility and muscle needed to successfully confront hostile operating conditions, the adversities of which have been compounded by continued obstruction by both the government and rebel groups, as well as by violent attacks directly targeting the mission and its assets.

Amid reports of civilian deaths and mass displacement, recent events illustrate the complex reality of a place far from peace. The use of indiscriminate aerial bombardment by the Sudan Armed Forces against rebel positions in Jebel Moun and Jebel Mara has a disproportionately devastating effect on local populations. Rebel movements have likewise hurt Darfuri civilians by restricting both UNAMID investigations and humanitarian access. In at least one battle – which resulted in more than a dozen deaths, 31,000 displaced civilians, and serious human rights abuses, including sexual violence – highly placed military sources told me that “helicopters and aerial reconnaissance units would have helped…prevent the incident.”

In fact, over the last three months, fatal incidents have repeatedly highlighted the essential role of helicopters in life-saving medical evacuation, rapid investigations and assessment following clashes, tactical intervention and quick reaction capacity, aerial reconnaissance and monitoring, as well as troop and equipment deployment. The Mi-35P is only capable of fulfilling a small number of these tasks.

The Mi-35Ps – with their powerful 30-mm twin-barrel automatic cannons – bring exciting new strength to an operation consistently criticized for being weak and ineffective, but they are in reality only a few items on a long list of aircraft that UNAMID desperately needs to implement its protection mandate. The gunships, while important, have limited impact on the mission’s ability to negotiate Darfur’s harsh terrain, rampant banditry, and prohibitive lack of infrastructure necessary for the efficient movement of troops and equipment to the region’s hotspots. For that, UNAMID requires many more utility and transport helicopters.

(more…)

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Posted in African Union, Peacekeeping, United Nations | 1 Comment »

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Rebel Contraindication

Wednesday, February 24th, 2010
UNAMID/UN Photo

Former UNAMID Force Commander Meets SLA Field Commander (UN Photo/Stuart Price)

Without excuses and without exception, when humanitarian and human rights are threatened, there must be independent monitoring; when violated, there must be an investigation. This applies as much to oppressive government forces as it does to their challengers. When clashes threaten the lives and livelihoods of civilians, the rebel cause is weakened. SLA-AW, take note.

Obstructionism – sometimes enforced by hostile threats – against Darfur’s embattled peacekeeping mission (UNAMID) has become a serious problem. Despite recent advances toward full deployment, other factors have severely limited its troops from implementing their mandate to effectively protect civilians. Perhaps most troubling of these is the extent to which all key belligerent parties continue to restrict UNAMID’s monitoring patrols and access to the sites of ongoing or recently concluded clashes, most of which have resulted in the limitation of humanitarian assistance and direct abuses against local populations—including human rights violations, civilian deaths, and mass displacement.

Though this is far from an emerging problem in Darfur, it requires renewed attention and must be addressed with the rigorous application of impartial standards to all groups involved, while acknowledging responsibility is not shared equally. The reality – which varies over time depending on military and political strategy –  is some are worse offenders than others. In December, we highlighted the role of the Government of Sudan (GoS) in impeding the work of UNAMID and the UN Panel of Experts. Today, we single out the SLA-AW for obstructionist actions that have complemented, rather than counteracted, GoS destabilizing activities and have further eroded civilian security while promoting impunity in Darfur.

(more…)

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Peace and Security in Sudan

Tuesday, February 2nd, 2010

Ahead of the 14TH Ordinary Session of the Assembly of the African Union held in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, Amnesty International called on the African Union to:

  • Call on the government of Sudan to protect the civilian population in Darfur and to call on all parties in the conflict to stop directing attacks against civilians, including humanitarian staff.
  • Continue to support the reinforcement of national and international justice mechanisms in order to end the culture of impunity in Sudan by bringing to justice those suspected of committing war crimes and crimes against humanity in Darfur.
  • Call on the government of Sudan, and the authorities of South Sudan, to protect civilians and provide UNMIS with the support it needs.
  • Call on the UN to urgently develop an action plan for UNMIS to strengthen the protection of civilians in Southern Sudan in light of the deteriorating conflict situation. This should include more long range patrols, more stations of peacekeeping troops – including in remote areas, and rapid deployment units that can respond to outbreaks of violence.
  • Call on the Sudanese government to bring the National Security Act in line with international human rights standards and with the Sudanese Bill of Rights. The immunity of NISS agents must be removed and allegations of human rights violations must be investigated and those responsible prosecuted in accordance with standards of fair trial.

In previous Ordinary Sessions, the AU debated issues related to international justice and peace and security. In December 2009, many African countries pledged to comply with their obligations under the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court and surrender anyone with an arrest warrant issued for their name. With the ICC decision on al-Bashir being announced tomorrow and today being the last day of the 14th Ordinary Session of the AU, we hope that the Commission honors its commitments to the ICC and that additional African countries join the pledge.

Chairperson Jean Ping, of the African Union Commission, recalled that 2010 was declared to be a year of peace and security. With the help of its neighbors and regional support let’s hope that 2010 is certainly a year of peace in Sudan.

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Posted in African Union, ICC / Justice | No Comments »

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Jerry Fowler Discusses The AU Panel Report On Darfur With VOA

Tuesday, December 22nd, 2009

Earlier today, Save Darfur Coalition President Jerry Fowler appeared on Voice of America’s In Focus program to discuss the African Union panel report on Darfur. Check it out:

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In Search of Peace

Tuesday, July 28th, 2009

This week begins a crucial chapter in furthering a necessary response to the genocide in Darfur. The U.S. House and Senate will hold four hearings on Wednesday and Thursday of this week— undoubtedly, the most consequential in the Senate Foreign Relations Committee on Thursday, where U.S. Special Envoy to Sudan General Scott Gration will testify on a comprehensive strategy for Sudan.  We are hopeful that General Gration will demonstrate that the Obama administration is serious about completing its long running policy review and soon announce its strategy for promoting peace.

Senate Foreign Relations Committee Chairman Sen. John Kerry talks with Ranking Member Sen. Richard Lugar

Senate Foreign Relations Committee Chairman Senator John Kerry talks with Ranking Member Senator Richard Lugar

In thinking about what that strategy should look like, it’s useful to recall what led to the Comprehensive Peace Agreement (CPA) that ended decades of conflict between Khartoum and south Sudan in 2005: a sustained investment in diplomacy, led in part by the United States, supported by relevant regional and international powers, and backed by significant incentives and pressures. The United States has another opportunity to provide strategic leadership to help create a space for the Sudanese themselves to resolve the country’s interlocking crises.

To be effective, there are four key components for U.S. Sudan policy, explained at greater length in the Blueprint for Peace that we published with our partners at the Enough Project and Genocide Intervention Network:

(more…)

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Protecting Civilians

Wednesday, January 14th, 2009

In the year since the deployment of the African Union-United Nations Hybrid Operation in Darfur, we have seen the force struggle to deploy and fulfill its mandate. It has faced obstructionist tactics by the Sudanese government, a lack of resource support from U.N. member states, and increased banditry in the region.

Even as the force struggled, it did not fall short of leaving an impact on the lives of Darfuri civilians. And we haven’t stopped calling for its full and effective deployment because we know how much greater that impact could be. For over a year, the Save Darfur Coalition, our international partners, and millions of concerned citizens worldwide have called on the international community to overcome barriers, muster political will, and effectively support civilian protection in Darfur.

Today, just over a year since UNAMID took over in Darfur, we saw the force take a proactive approach to saving civilians from attack. The U.N. News Centre reported that a UNAMID patrol was able to thwart an attempted abduction of six women who were collecting firewood outside the Hassa Hissa internally displaced persons camp in West Darfur.

This is just one example of UNAMID’s potential ability to provide desperately needed protection to Darfuri civilians. If fully equipped and empowered to fulfill its mandate, the force’s impact would increase exponentially.

At a moment when it might seem easier to declare UNAMID a failure in the face of downgraded deployment targets and a year’s worth of struggles, it is more important now than ever to keep pressing for a fully functional force.

Next month, you have an opportunity add your voice to this pressure and make a difference. Take a look at www.savedarfur.org/women today to see how people across the country are coming together on one night, with one voice to demand protection for the women of Darfur. You can host an event to spread the word and take action to make sure that stories like we have heard today are not few and far between, but rather, an everyday reality.

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ICC Prosecutor Requests Warrants for Darfur Rebels

Friday, November 21st, 2008

Yesterday, The International Criminal Court (ICC) prosecutor on sought arrest warrants for three Darfur rebel leaders over a deadly attack on African Union peacekeepers in 2007 in Haskanita, Darfur.  The Darfur advocacy community responded with praise for the fairness of the process of the International Criminal Court, and hope that the perpetrators of all of the most serious crimes in Darfur will be brought to account.

The Save Darfur Coalition‘s Jerry Fowler:

“While we don’t equate this horrendous attack with the systematic campaign of destruction of violence orchestrated by Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir – we strongly denounced this attack when it occurred and applaud Prosecutor Moreno-Ocampo for pursuing the responsible parties. All actors in Sudan must recognize this fundamental truth: those who obstruct peace, security and lasting stability and who target civilians must be held to account.

As we have previously noted, the focus of attention must now shift back to the U.N. Security Council, which has the responsibility to end the crisis and bring peace. So far, the council has abdicated that responsibility. It has refused to act on standing ICC arrest warrants, failed to provide the necessary equipment to UNAMID, and has allowed the Sudanese to both obstruct peacekeeper deployment and continue to use violence and destruction against its own population. That must end. Moreno-Ocampo has acted. We call again on the council to follow suit.”

(more…)

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