Sudan: At war with its people

Bill Andress,
co-moderator, Sudan Advocacy Action Forum

Sudan

• Since 1956, more than 2.25 million Sudanese civilians have been killed directly or through engineered starvation, dehydration and disease. A significant portion of the population have been driven from their homes at some time during these years of conflict.
• Power and wealth have been concentrated in a small number of Arabic tribes living along the Nile River near Khartoum.
• A few well-educated, intellectually capable, radically committed men from these tribes, who are members of the National Congress Party, control the nation.
• Sudan has known war for all but ten years since independence. The victims are Sudanese. The perpetrators are Sudanese. It is a country at war with its own people.
• The current military dictator, Omar al-Bashir, came to power through a coup in 1989 and was appointed president in 1993.
• Regardless of their ethnic, religious or cultural identity, groups on the periphery of power remain marginalized, largely destitute and
  lacking development.

Conflict in Darfur

• Located in western Sudan, the region known as Darfur is larger than Texas.
• In 2003, rebels from indigenous African tribes in Darfur attacked government military installations hoping to correct ills caused by years of neglect by the central government.
• Rather than limit its response to rebel combatants, the government of Sudan, in concert with the Janjaweed militia, adopted a scorched-earth policy against the civilian population.
• After four years, the conflict has resulted in the deaths of at least 200,000 people (some sources put the figure significantly higher) and the forced removal of more than 2.5 million from their homes into refugee camps in neighboring countries or internal displacement camps, most near the larger towns and cities of Darfur.
• Violence has been directed at the people living in the camps for displaced persons; men have been gunned down, children have been clubbed and burned to death, and women have been gang-raped.
• President Bush and the U.S. Congress have condemned the killings in Darfur as genocide.

The World Responds

• The African Union has a peacekeeping force of about 7,000 currently operating in Darfur (as of June 21, 2007). Such a force is too small, too poorly equipped, and even lacks a mandate to protect the civilian population. At the time of this writing, there was little peace to monitor.
• The United Nations has passed eight resolutions condemning the violence in Darfur, none of which has stopped the genocide. The Security Council has approved sending a force of 22,000 troops into Darfur as part of a hybrid UN/AU peacekeeping force. Sudan’s government recently agreed to accept such a force.
• The force has not deployed at the time of this writing.
• The United States has provided humanitarian aid to the people of Sudan, sponsored forceful U.N. resolutions and prohibited U.S. companies from doing business with Sudan. Sudan is on the State
  Department’s list of state sponsors of terrorism.
• The Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) and other churches and other churches help provide humanitarian aid.
• An effort is underway to develop Sudan divestment campaigns around the world at the university, asset management, city, state and national levels. This focused approach seeks to maximize impact on the Sudanese government, while minimizing potential
  harm to both innocent Sudanese civilians and investment returns.

Still, the genocide continues. What can followers of Jesus do?

PRAY.

The Sudan Advocacy Action Forum (SAAF), a Christian grassroots effort that advocates for a just and lasting peace for Sudan, provides prayer suggestions.

LEARN.

Sources of information include:

• Sudan Advocacy Action Forum
• Presbyterian Worldwide Ministries
• Presbyterian Peacemaking Program
• Presbyterian Disaster Assistance

ACT.

• Participate in the work of SAAF.
• Advocate. The SAAF, the Presbyterian Washington
  Office and the Presbyterian Peacemaking Program
  provide opportunities to contact Congress at
  appropriate moments.
• Reach out to Sudanese refugees in your community.
• Explore the use of personal investments to
  create an economic incentive for Sudan's
  government to end the violence.

RAISE THE ISSUE OF DARFUR IN THE UPCOMING ELECTION.

• Question presidential candidates of all parties at candidates’ forums.
• Write letters to the candidates.
• Write letters to the editors of local newspapers.
• Ask about actions, not policy. Ask:
  1. What specific economic measures will you use
     to stop genocide in Darfur?
  2. How will you protect the threatened people
     of Darfur?
  3. What specific steps will you take to end the
     terrorism in Darfur sponsored by the government
     of Sudan?

GIVE.

Contribute to the relief work sponsored by Presbyterian Disaster Assistance or one of the other groups providing humanitarian assistance.

Jesus teaches that what we do to our sisters and brothers, we do to him. This Christmas, as we celebrate the coming of the Prince of Peace, may we reach out to the people of Darfur.