Baroness Cox has been leading the Humanitarian Aid Relief Trust for decades, and travels continually to bring aid and hope to the worst hell holes on the globe. "You meet the most amazing people in the darkest places," she told me today.
She joined me to day to discuss the grim realities of Darfur's ongoing genocide -- it hasn't stopped, it has just dropped from Western agendas-- the push by Islamists into southern Sudan, and the jihad underway in northern Nigeria. The transcript will be posted at Radioblogger.com.
Thursday, February 23, 2006
Baroness Cox of Queensbury on Southern Sudan, Darfur, Uganda and Nigeria - Humanitarian Aid Relief Trust (HART)
Excerpt from Hugh Hewitt 12 Feb 2005:
UN envoy Jan Pronk admits peace strategy to halt "cleansing in Darfur" had failed - Let's hope Libyan leader Col Gaddafi succeeds in brokering peace
On 14 Jan 2006 UN envoy in Sudan Jan Pronk called for up to 20,000 UN peacekeepers to disarm militias in Darfur and admitted the peace strategy to halt "cleansing in Darfur" had failed.
British blogger Lord Soley of Hammersmith says:
Feb 14 2006 Reuters report says NATO ready to help in Darfur, but not with troops
Feb 10 2006 Reuters report says NATO commander fears rapid-reaction force delay
Feb 18 2006 Tony Blair hails Gaddafi's efforts for Darfur
Feb 21 2006 Libya's Gaddhafi and Senegal's Wade discuss African solution to Darfur crisis - United States of Africa?
Feb 22 2006 UN can provide access to technology that could spot raiding parties approaching human settlements
Feb 23 2006 Libya offers African Union 100,000 troops, 1,000 tanks, 100 aircraft to close Chad-Sudan border
British blogger Lord Soley of Hammersmith says:
I'm not optimistic about Darfur but the latest attempt by the US and UK to get a more effective peacekeeping force offers a glimmer of hope.But UN troops, if they ever materialise, will probably not be in Darfur until late this year or next year. Meanwhile, how will Khartoum protect and take care of millions of defenceless Sudanese women and children ... There must be a solution. The onus is on the Sudanese rebels and Khartoum to come up with it. It is their country. They must take responsibility. My thoughts always seem to wander to Libya, how the Sudanese, Egyptians and surrounding neighbours listen to Libyan leader Col Gaddhafi. Surely he can do something to get the Janjaweed leaders and everyone else together to hammer out a deal. He speaks their language.
Feb 14 2006 Reuters report says NATO ready to help in Darfur, but not with troops
Feb 10 2006 Reuters report says NATO commander fears rapid-reaction force delay
Feb 18 2006 Tony Blair hails Gaddafi's efforts for Darfur
Feb 21 2006 Libya's Gaddhafi and Senegal's Wade discuss African solution to Darfur crisis - United States of Africa?
Feb 22 2006 UN can provide access to technology that could spot raiding parties approaching human settlements
Feb 23 2006 Libya offers African Union 100,000 troops, 1,000 tanks, 100 aircraft to close Chad-Sudan border
Signs of a clash of civilisations - FT on China: a new force in Africa's development
China is back in Africa in a big way, as the FT reports today, but this time Beijing's foreign policy is shaped by China's voracious development needs. We are only just beginning to grapple with the implications. The report concludes by saying:
For Africa, therefore, China's hunger for resources is a blessing that pulls in not just investment in Angolan oil or Zambian copper but in roads and schools too. But it could turn into a curse if it turns African leaders away from the hard choices of political and economic reform.Thanks to a British Sudan Watch reader in the UK for pointing us to the report - and for posting the following comment at "Sudan rejects help to quell death and anarchy in Darfur":
Signs of a clash of civilisations. "Anarchy in Sudan threatens the stability of Africa. . . Drinking water is more important than oil."
But economics may be more important than politics, in 'one-size-fits-all'. An editorial today comments that China's commercial dealings with Africa could undercut "efforts by the African Union and western partners to make government and business more transparent and accountable. In summary, China's partnership "could turn into a curse if it turns African leaders away from the hard choices of political and economic reform."
The list of Sudan's trade partners suggests that China's economic involvement in Africa is becoming very influential. Is this a good or a bad thing?
Incidentally, China is still not a member of the G8 world economic grouping.
Forbes' list of the world's most corrupt countries includes Sudan, Chad, Nigeria, Kenya, DRC
ComingAnarchy.com publishes Forbes' list of the world's most corrupt countries and notes 9 of the 16 countries are in Africa. Sudan is one of them. See the list at Congo Watch.
Darfur peace talks nearing end - EU says Sudanese gov't and Darfur rebel leaders losing control as new elements wage wars - Onus on Khartoum re CAP
Yesterday, the European Union's special representative to Sudan Pekka Haavisto told a news conference that all the necessary elements for making decisions on power-sharing, wealth-sharing and security arrangements were on the table at the Darfur peace talks, but reaching a deal was not a guarantee for sustained peace. Excerpts from Reuters report:
"We are now in a situation where it could optimistically be said that the peace negotiations in Abuja are nearing their end," Haavisto said.
"In the European Union, there is a feeling that even if a peace deal is reached in Abuja, the means to realise the peace deal on the ground are lacking if the situation in Darfur worsens," he added.
Haavisto said a major problem was that the Sudanese government and the leaders of armed groups seemed to have lost control, and guerrilla groups had become bandit-like gangs that waged their own wars.
He said the worsening of relations between Sudan and neighbouring Chad was a threat to the entire peace process.
"This is a kind of nightmare that everyone has feared, that the situation in Darfur spreads across borders even more ... It is possible that this will add to the conflict completely new elements," Haavisto said.
When asked about the sustainability of any peace deal reached for Darfur, Haavisto said the onus was on Khartoum.
"We turn to Khartoum. If you want peace with Darfur, you need to work quicker to fulfil the peace deal between the north and the south. This is a question of Khartoum's own credibility," he said.
"We are now in a situation where it could optimistically be said that the peace negotiations in Abuja are nearing their end," Haavisto said.
"In the European Union, there is a feeling that even if a peace deal is reached in Abuja, the means to realise the peace deal on the ground are lacking if the situation in Darfur worsens," he added.
Haavisto said a major problem was that the Sudanese government and the leaders of armed groups seemed to have lost control, and guerrilla groups had become bandit-like gangs that waged their own wars.
He said the worsening of relations between Sudan and neighbouring Chad was a threat to the entire peace process.
"This is a kind of nightmare that everyone has feared, that the situation in Darfur spreads across borders even more ... It is possible that this will add to the conflict completely new elements," Haavisto said.
When asked about the sustainability of any peace deal reached for Darfur, Haavisto said the onus was on Khartoum.
"We turn to Khartoum. If you want peace with Darfur, you need to work quicker to fulfil the peace deal between the north and the south. This is a question of Khartoum's own credibility," he said.
Libya offers African Union 100,000 troops, 1,000 tanks, 100 aircraft to close Chad-Sudan border
Feb 22, 2006 Al-Jazeerah news report re Libya's hosting of mini Africa summit does not say who would pay for 100,000 Libyan troops to patrol the Chad-Sudan border to stop armaments and insurgents from criss crossing the two countries. Excerpt:
Mass migration, nomads, IDPs and illegal immigration
Libya's Foreign Secretary met Tuesday in Tripoli with the Ambassadors of Spain, France and Italy. During the meeting, they discussed illegal immigration and the special arrangements to hold a conference under the umbrella of the African and European Unions to deal with this phenomenon and take the practical measures that enable the Africans to stay in their countries by establishing agricultural and industrial projects and provide them with essential services.
Note Feb 22, 2006 UNHCR calls for European leadership to bridge gap between humanitarian assistance and development aid.
- - -
Africa's tragic borders and the illusory African brotherhood
Chenjerai Hove's opinion piece in The Zimbabwean on Africa's tragic borders notes African countries can loot across each other's borders, they can plunder wealth and lives across borders, but when it comes to proper official trade, they prefer the spoils of worthless wars. Zimbabwe and Uganda looted the DRC, and the African Union never protested, all in the name of the illusory 'African brotherhood.'
Col Gadhafi said Chad and Sudan had "crossed a red line" with their war of words and called for their desert border to be sealed to prevent rebel infiltration in either direction.- - -
"We can settle our problems ourselves," Col Gadhafi insisted, stressing that UN peacekeepers were not needed.
"Libya is ready to put 100,000 troops with 1,000 tanks and 100 aircraft at the disposal of the African Union to close the border," he informed at the summit. "All our forces are at the disposal of the African Union."
The Libyan leader said it was vital that the region's leaders agree on an "African solution" to the problem in order to "avoid foreign interference and keep the door firmly shut to outside machinations."
Mass migration, nomads, IDPs and illegal immigration
Libya's Foreign Secretary met Tuesday in Tripoli with the Ambassadors of Spain, France and Italy. During the meeting, they discussed illegal immigration and the special arrangements to hold a conference under the umbrella of the African and European Unions to deal with this phenomenon and take the practical measures that enable the Africans to stay in their countries by establishing agricultural and industrial projects and provide them with essential services.
Note Feb 22, 2006 UNHCR calls for European leadership to bridge gap between humanitarian assistance and development aid.
- - -
Africa's tragic borders and the illusory African brotherhood
Chenjerai Hove's opinion piece in The Zimbabwean on Africa's tragic borders notes African countries can loot across each other's borders, they can plunder wealth and lives across borders, but when it comes to proper official trade, they prefer the spoils of worthless wars. Zimbabwe and Uganda looted the DRC, and the African Union never protested, all in the name of the illusory 'African brotherhood.'
Wednesday, February 22, 2006
Sudan's army and Janjaweed attack and destroy water pump, livestock and huts in villages Likalik and Al Amin, North Darfur
Armed forces supported by militia attacked two villages in North Darfur this week and an AU vehicle was assaulted and stolen, reports UN News Centre today. Excerpt:
Attackers stormed the village of Likalik and its market area and destroyed its source of water as they attacked the water pump area and killed many animals at the site, the UN Mission in Sudan reported today.Meanwhile, Jan Pronk said the AU Peace and Security Council will meet March 3 to explore how its security forces might make a shift to a proposed peacekeeping force supervised by the UN.
On Monday, the village of Al Amin came under assault and its market was raided and huts were burned. The same day, an armed group attacked a vehicle of the AU peacekeeping force, injuring AU soldiers and stealing the car.
Arab Women Can Power Peace, Progress
Politicians have failed to bring about peace in many parts of the world. The Arab world in particular has suffered the most. There are many reasons behind the failed diplomacy. One of them is the absence of women in negotiations for peace.
Women so empowered can take an active role in ending hostilities, first and foremost by raising the next generation. If educated and enlightened they will be able to teach their children the importance of dialogue, opening channels to present their positions - but not in a combative manner.
Peaceful ways and means can be the weapons to end wars. Educated mothers can do that. Instead of having men negotiate settlements, why not allow those who suffer the most to resolve these conflicts?
Full story at Arab News 22 Feb 2006 Arab Women Can Power Peace, Progress.
Women so empowered can take an active role in ending hostilities, first and foremost by raising the next generation. If educated and enlightened they will be able to teach their children the importance of dialogue, opening channels to present their positions - but not in a combative manner.
Peaceful ways and means can be the weapons to end wars. Educated mothers can do that. Instead of having men negotiate settlements, why not allow those who suffer the most to resolve these conflicts?
Full story at Arab News 22 Feb 2006 Arab Women Can Power Peace, Progress.
Sudan ministers named in leaked UN Darfur list
Financial Times report Sudan ministers named in leaked UN Darfur list by Mark Turner at the United Nations 22 Feb 2006 - excerpt:
"Sudan's interior minister, defence minister and the director of its national intelligence service, are named in a confidential list of individuals who could be considered for sanctions by the UN Security Council over their alleged role in the conflict in Darfur."[Note List of top wanted Janjaweed leaders - Who's who on Darfur (African Confidential) via Sudan Online Discussion Board 4/3/2005]
Cartoons led to attacks on aid workers in Sudan - EU Official
The European Union's representative to Sudan, Pekka Haavisto, said Wednesday that the prophet drawings controversy had led to attacks on foreign aid workers in Sudan.
"The Danish cartoon scandal did not help the situation (in Darfur) at all," Haavisto told reporters in the Finnish capital. "There were some attacks, that were driven by the cartoon scandal, against foreign aid organisations," Haavisto said, but didn't give details.
Full story AP/ST 22 Feb 2006.
Note, mainstream media can't report everything but uncensored bloggers are free to discuss anything.
This photo and excerpt from The Religous Policeman's blog entry entitled Emergency Meeting! - OIC Calls for Emergency Meeting - via Will the EU listen?
"The Danish cartoon scandal did not help the situation (in Darfur) at all," Haavisto told reporters in the Finnish capital. "There were some attacks, that were driven by the cartoon scandal, against foreign aid organisations," Haavisto said, but didn't give details.
Full story AP/ST 22 Feb 2006.
Note, mainstream media can't report everything but uncensored bloggers are free to discuss anything.
This photo and excerpt from The Religous Policeman's blog entry entitled Emergency Meeting! - OIC Calls for Emergency Meeting - via Will the EU listen?
Sudan rejects help to quell death and anarchy in Darfur
Khartoum regime sound like they live on another planet. Today, Reuters says Sudan rejects UN troops for Darfur. The report quotes Sudanese Foreign Minister Lam Akol as saying the UN had not approached Sudan about the deployment of troops.
Listen up Mr Akol, news reports have said over and over again: the AU mission is dependent on the whim of donor nations, whereas UN peacekeepers are paid from the UN budget. So, please stop evading the issue of who is willing to protect the millions of defenceless Sudanese women and children. In Darfur, handpumps are on the frontline of peacebuilding. Stop talking hot air and wasting time at the expense of suffering civilians. Drinking water is more important than oil. Do and say something useful - like getting the good for nothing bandits and Janjaweed to build peacekeeping waterpumps.
Feb 17 2006 3.4 million people in Darfur depend on aid for survival
Feb 17 2006 6.7 million people in Sudan need aid despite good harvest
Feb 1 2006 6,100,000 Internally Displaced People in the Sudan - 770,000 fled elsewhere
"Our position is if you have a problem you solve it. If the African forces are short of money, you provide them with money," he said.Well Mr Akol, bandits and Arab militia are looting, attacking, maiming, raping and killing. You have a problem with your Arab militia, you solve it: disarm them or ask for the world's help. Anarchy in Sudan threatens the stability of Africa.
Listen up Mr Akol, news reports have said over and over again: the AU mission is dependent on the whim of donor nations, whereas UN peacekeepers are paid from the UN budget. So, please stop evading the issue of who is willing to protect the millions of defenceless Sudanese women and children. In Darfur, handpumps are on the frontline of peacebuilding. Stop talking hot air and wasting time at the expense of suffering civilians. Drinking water is more important than oil. Do and say something useful - like getting the good for nothing bandits and Janjaweed to build peacekeeping waterpumps.
Feb 17 2006 3.4 million people in Darfur depend on aid for survival
Feb 17 2006 6.7 million people in Sudan need aid despite good harvest
Feb 1 2006 6,100,000 Internally Displaced People in the Sudan - 770,000 fled elsewhere
Benn calls for UN force in Darfur
BBC report 22 Feb 2006 quotes Hilary Benn, who arrived in Darfur yesterday, as saying "We have to step up the international effort here in Darfur." He told BBC Radio 4's Today programme (see link in earlier entry here below):
Khartoum ought to ask its Arab and African neighbours for double the amount of 10 million pounds it costs donors each month for African Union troops in Darfur. Sudan and chums insist on 'African solutions to African problems' but their solution appears to consist of eliminating people who get in the way. What exactly are Khartoum's other solutions, can anyone explain? Why aren't Arab tribal leaders attending Darfur peace talks?
Recently, Sudan spent 15m pounds on villas for a two-day African Union summit in Khartoum and who knows how much on two new presidential boats.
On 14 Jan 2006 UN envoy Jan Pronk called for up to 20,000 UN peacekeepers to disarm militias in Darfur and admitted peace strategy to halt "cleansing in Darfur" had failed.
Also, on Jan 14 news reports said British troops may join UN Darfur force as the UN is to ask Britain to provide troops for a beefed-up peacekeeping force. 13 Jan 2006 British military sources said that Britain would actively consider such a request.
"The security situation has deteriorated compared with last June when I was last here in El-Fasher.Note, the UN plan for an expanded peacekeeping force has been opposed by Sudan who said funding should go to the AU troops already there. Khartoum does not appear to want to understand that UN peacekeepers are paid from UN funds and AU troops are paid for by donors.
"The rebels have been responsible for an increasing proportion of the attacks. The Arab militia are still at work.
"It really reinforces the point that we have to step up the international effort here in Darfur."
Khartoum ought to ask its Arab and African neighbours for double the amount of 10 million pounds it costs donors each month for African Union troops in Darfur. Sudan and chums insist on 'African solutions to African problems' but their solution appears to consist of eliminating people who get in the way. What exactly are Khartoum's other solutions, can anyone explain? Why aren't Arab tribal leaders attending Darfur peace talks?
Recently, Sudan spent 15m pounds on villas for a two-day African Union summit in Khartoum and who knows how much on two new presidential boats.
On 14 Jan 2006 UN envoy Jan Pronk called for up to 20,000 UN peacekeepers to disarm militias in Darfur and admitted peace strategy to halt "cleansing in Darfur" had failed.
Also, on Jan 14 news reports said British troops may join UN Darfur force as the UN is to ask Britain to provide troops for a beefed-up peacekeeping force. 13 Jan 2006 British military sources said that Britain would actively consider such a request.
Benn: Time is running out for people of Darfur - UK donates 40m pounds to humanitarian fund for Sudan plus 23m pounds to NGOs
UK government Press Release 22 Feb 2006 says the international community is running out of patience with the crisis in Darfur, Hilary Benn, International Development Secretary, said today as he pledged 40 million British pounds for a new Common Humanitarian Fund for Sudan, including Darfur, and called on other donors to commit to the fund.
He also announced the UK's contribution of a further 23 million British pounds for NGOs - 5 million pounds of which will go to the IC Red Cross for tools, seeds etc., to help some Sudanese people grow their own food.
He also announced the UK's contribution of a further 23 million British pounds for NGOs - 5 million pounds of which will go to the IC Red Cross for tools, seeds etc., to help some Sudanese people grow their own food.
Important BBC Four Radio Interview with Hilary Benn: Sudan's curfew hinders Darfur peacekeepers and aid workers
Thanks to a British Sudan Watch reader in the UK for posting the following comment and link to interview with Hilary Benn:
Photo: Hilary Benn
BBC interviewer: A ceasefire was signed in Darfur in April 2004. It's been widely ignored. Raids by the Janjaweed militia are continuing despite the presence of African Union peacekeepers. A curfew imposed by the Sudanese government is intefering with the AU's ability to stop the atrocities that's something the Intenrational Development Secretary Hilary Benn says he'll puruse when he meets members of the Khartoum government today. His visit to the area comes as the US is increasing the pressure on the UN to pass a resolution before the end of this month authjorising UN peacekeepers to replace the AU forces. Well I spoke to Hilary Benn a little earlier and asked him first to describe the conditions for people in Darfur
Mr Benn: The conditions in the camps are OK, the huge humanatarian effort in darfur over last 2 years or so means the people are getting food and water I have to say the seucurity sistuion has deteriored compared with last june when I was in El-Fasher and I have been talking to the AU force commander about that. The rebels have been responsible for an increasing proportion of the attacks. The Arab milia are still at work. There are people in the second camp I visited this afternoon who'd fled recently from a town called Shearia where there's disturbances and violence going on as we speak and it really reinforces the point that we have to step up the international effort here in Darfur to protect people while at the same time putting pressure as Jack Straw did last week in Nigeria on those who are talking part in the talks in Abuja because only a political settlement is going to allow the people I spoke to in the camps to ...
BBC interviewer: Going back to the distressing news you bring are you saying the Sudanese government are colluding in that violence?
Further reading:
Feb 2 2006 US, UK move to get UN troops into Darfur
Feb 3 2006 UK sets list of priority actions on Darfur for new Sudanese Government of National Unity
Feb 4 2006 UK offers Sudan gov't 7-Point "Plan for Peace" in Sudan
Feb 13 2006 British PM Blair vows to keep up pressure on aid for Africa
Feb 13 2006 British PM Blair writes "Towards real action in Africa" - AU Standby Force of 20,000 personnel
Feb 13 2006 Britain's top diplomat Straw to attend Darfur peace talks
Feb 14 2006 Britain's top diplomat Jack Straw at Darfur peace talks - Warns of sanctions
Feb 14 2006 AU top mediator hails UK efforts to bring peace in Darfur
Feb 15 2006 TEXT: UK Foreign Secretary's speech to Darfur peace talks
Feb 16 2006 Darfur: Stop the killing, or pay the price warns Britain's Foreign Secretary Jack Straw
Feb 18 2006 Africa A New Agenda - How Africa Can Succeed, by UK Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs Jack Straw
Feb 20 2006 UK's Cardinal O'Brien with SCIAF in the Sudan sees hope amid horror of African nightmare
Feb 21 2006 UK urges lifting of Sudan curfew - AU says curfew hinders Darfur peacekeepers
Feb 21 2006 Benn: UK to provide 20 million pounds for African Union mission in Sudan
Feb 28 2006 Tony Blair hails Gaddafi's efforts for Darfur
Photo: British Foreign Secretary Jack Straw, pictured here in January 2006, called on his Sudanese counterpart Lam Akol to accept the deployment of UN peacekeeping troops to help resolve the humanitarian crisis in Darfur. (AFP/POOL/File/Carl De Souza)
Photo: A general view of a Sudanese internally displaced people camp housing over 730 families, December 3,2005. NATO allies would look kindly on new appeals for back-up help to African troops in Darfur, but rule out for now a major deployment of their own, NATO diplomats said on Tuesday. (Reuters/Antony Njuguna/Yahoo News)
See NATO ready to help in Darfur, but not with troops Feb 14 2006 (Reuters).
Photo: Sudanese President Omar el-Bashir shakes hands with British Prime Minister Tony Blair at the presidential palace in Khartoum in Sudan, Oct 6, 2004. (AFP/Sudan Watch archive)
"The short-term incentive for other states to send peacekeepers to Sudan's Darfur is of course missing. But a more serious problem is how to moderate the rights of a sovereign government.This morning, I started transcribing the interview but it is taking me too long to type. Here's what I have so far - will add more later if able to transcribe more:
A recent post here reports: Sudan is hindering the African Union's ability to monitor a ceasefire in Darfur by imposing a curfew and restricting airport access, the head of the mission said on Tuesday. . . [UK Cabinet Minister Hilary Benn] urged the local state governor to lift the curfew. "I can see no justification for imposing a curfew on peacekeepers".
The UK Minister talked this morning (22/2/06) about the possibility of a UN mission for Darfur. He said the Sudanese government may be failing to meet the obligations it has entered into for protecting its people. If this is the case, the international community should act. If it does, Sudan shouldn't be able to impose preconditions on such UN official missions as it is doing on the AU at present."
Photo: Hilary Benn
BBC interviewer: A ceasefire was signed in Darfur in April 2004. It's been widely ignored. Raids by the Janjaweed militia are continuing despite the presence of African Union peacekeepers. A curfew imposed by the Sudanese government is intefering with the AU's ability to stop the atrocities that's something the Intenrational Development Secretary Hilary Benn says he'll puruse when he meets members of the Khartoum government today. His visit to the area comes as the US is increasing the pressure on the UN to pass a resolution before the end of this month authjorising UN peacekeepers to replace the AU forces. Well I spoke to Hilary Benn a little earlier and asked him first to describe the conditions for people in Darfur
Mr Benn: The conditions in the camps are OK, the huge humanatarian effort in darfur over last 2 years or so means the people are getting food and water I have to say the seucurity sistuion has deteriored compared with last june when I was in El-Fasher and I have been talking to the AU force commander about that. The rebels have been responsible for an increasing proportion of the attacks. The Arab milia are still at work. There are people in the second camp I visited this afternoon who'd fled recently from a town called Shearia where there's disturbances and violence going on as we speak and it really reinforces the point that we have to step up the international effort here in Darfur to protect people while at the same time putting pressure as Jack Straw did last week in Nigeria on those who are talking part in the talks in Abuja because only a political settlement is going to allow the people I spoke to in the camps to ...
BBC interviewer: Going back to the distressing news you bring are you saying the Sudanese government are colluding in that violence?
Further reading:
Feb 2 2006 US, UK move to get UN troops into Darfur
Feb 3 2006 UK sets list of priority actions on Darfur for new Sudanese Government of National Unity
Feb 4 2006 UK offers Sudan gov't 7-Point "Plan for Peace" in Sudan
Feb 13 2006 British PM Blair vows to keep up pressure on aid for Africa
Feb 13 2006 British PM Blair writes "Towards real action in Africa" - AU Standby Force of 20,000 personnel
Feb 13 2006 Britain's top diplomat Straw to attend Darfur peace talks
Feb 14 2006 Britain's top diplomat Jack Straw at Darfur peace talks - Warns of sanctions
Feb 14 2006 AU top mediator hails UK efforts to bring peace in Darfur
Feb 15 2006 TEXT: UK Foreign Secretary's speech to Darfur peace talks
Feb 16 2006 Darfur: Stop the killing, or pay the price warns Britain's Foreign Secretary Jack Straw
Feb 18 2006 Africa A New Agenda - How Africa Can Succeed, by UK Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs Jack Straw
Feb 20 2006 UK's Cardinal O'Brien with SCIAF in the Sudan sees hope amid horror of African nightmare
Feb 21 2006 UK urges lifting of Sudan curfew - AU says curfew hinders Darfur peacekeepers
Feb 21 2006 Benn: UK to provide 20 million pounds for African Union mission in Sudan
Feb 28 2006 Tony Blair hails Gaddafi's efforts for Darfur
Photo: British Foreign Secretary Jack Straw, pictured here in January 2006, called on his Sudanese counterpart Lam Akol to accept the deployment of UN peacekeeping troops to help resolve the humanitarian crisis in Darfur. (AFP/POOL/File/Carl De Souza)
Photo: A general view of a Sudanese internally displaced people camp housing over 730 families, December 3,2005. NATO allies would look kindly on new appeals for back-up help to African troops in Darfur, but rule out for now a major deployment of their own, NATO diplomats said on Tuesday. (Reuters/Antony Njuguna/Yahoo News)
See NATO ready to help in Darfur, but not with troops Feb 14 2006 (Reuters).
Photo: Sudanese President Omar el-Bashir shakes hands with British Prime Minister Tony Blair at the presidential palace in Khartoum in Sudan, Oct 6, 2004. (AFP/Sudan Watch archive)
Bump up Darfur on NewsBump.net - where YOU decide what's important
Interesting new site NewsBump.net - where YOU decide what's important.
[Via a comment at The Little Green Blog's post on the resignation of Harvard's president, divestment and Darfur - excerpt:
[Via a comment at The Little Green Blog's post on the resignation of Harvard's president, divestment and Darfur - excerpt:
"In my opinion, activist movements from across the spectrum of strategies and political beliefs have played the largest role in bringing Darfur to the forefront. But I don't really care if people agree with me or not, because the world is taking action, and this genocide will end."]More on Lawrence Summers' resignation at Jim Moore's Journal.
UN can provide access to technology that could spot raiding parties approaching human settlements
Excerpt from Associated Press report 21 Feb 2006 UN envoy denies Sudan's accusation :
"I am not going to have a discussion with the government through the media," Pronk told reporters at the weekly U.N. press briefing Tuesday. "I can only say the following: the UN is acting within its own mandate.No doubt NATO have the technology. Why this monitoring technology is not part and parcel of a ceasefire agreement is beyond me. Whoever breaks the ceasefire agreement goes to jail. Darfur war criminals are continuing to get away with murder. Maybe the hold up on employing this technology in Darfur is due to the African Union not requesting the help offered by NATO? Or Khartoum stopping the African Union from requesting UN/NATO's help?
"We are not overstretching our mandate, and I have always been completely impartial," Pronk said.
Pronk said the AU forces hadn't managed to stop militia and rebels from killing civilians in Darfur, and that what we needed was advanced technology that could spot raiding parties approaching human settlements.
"I don't think African countries have that technology," he said.
Sudan's "Hakamaat" find their voice again - Modiba's Afropop Darfur benefit CD
Canadian Leslie Morris, a public health promoter for Oxfam in North Darfur explains that Oxfam has "enlisted the hakamaat -- traditional women storytellers -- to help to promote potentially life-saving public health messages, such as washing your hands and storing drinking water safely. These messages may seem simple, but in overcrowded camp conditions they can literally make the difference between life and death.
Hakamaat women, old and young, are prevalent in almost every village in Darfur and traditionally serve a very important role: to spread important news and to help mark and celebrate notable events. But they are also highly effective social mobilizers."
Read all about it - and the Afropop CD to benefit Kebkabiya, a small town in North Darfur where the hakamaat are back in business - at Patrick's blog The Horn of Africa: Darfur.
Hakamaat women, old and young, are prevalent in almost every village in Darfur and traditionally serve a very important role: to spread important news and to help mark and celebrate notable events. But they are also highly effective social mobilizers."
Read all about it - and the Afropop CD to benefit Kebkabiya, a small town in North Darfur where the hakamaat are back in business - at Patrick's blog The Horn of Africa: Darfur.
Tuesday, February 21, 2006
UK urges lifting of Sudan curfew - AU says curfew hinders Darfur peacekeepers
Reuters report 21 Feb 2006 by Opheera McDoom says Sudan is hindering the African Union's ability to monitor a ceasefire in Darfur by imposing a curfew and restricting airport access, the head of the mission said on Tuesday. Excerpt:
"Of course with the curfew, the airport shut, there are some constraints because if we cannot move about in that hour we cannot know what the government is doing in that hour," said Collins Ihekire, head of the AU military mission in Darfur.
Ihekire said the government had been flying helicopters offensively, a breach of the ceasefire signed in April 2004, which has since been widely ignored. Last week rebels shot down a government helicopter in South Darfur and captured a pilot alive and are still holding him.
"Those were helicopter gunships supporting their troops fighting with the SLA (Sudan Liberation Army) ... offensive flying," he added of the two helicopters the government used in the attack.
The government has imposed a curfew in el-Fasher from 2100 until 0630, U.N. officials said. The AU also says the airport in el-Fasher, the force headquarters, is closed from 1800.
Benn urged the local state governor to lift the curfew. "I can see no justification for imposing a curfew on peacekeepers," he said.
A state minister, Adam Haribush, told Benn that rebels were seeping into the town at night and it was impossible to differentiate the AU forces from rebel troops.
"The rebels are even within the AU base and are taking their cars to go around the town at night," he declared in Arabic, but which the government translator did not repeat in English.
The AU's Ihekire told Benn the Sudanese army was also using white helicopters and vehicles, the same colour used by the AU peace monitoring force and aid agencies working in the vast region, which compromised their neutrality.
Benn: UK to provide 20 million pounds for African Union mission in Sudan
Press Release UK government 21 Feb 2006 via ReliefWeb:
Hilary Benn, International Development Secretary, today announced an additional 20 million pounds of UK support for the African Union Mission in Sudan (AMIS) during a visit to El Fasher, Darfur.
Mr Benn discussed the current security situation and plans to hand over peacekeeping in Darfur to a UN 'blue-hatted' force with Major-General Ihekire (the AMIS force commander) and said:
"I have seen firsthand today how AMIS soldiers and police on the ground are making every effort in difficult circumstances to protect the lives of the people living in the Darfur camps. But talking to women who were forced to flee their homes, it is clear that they don't feel it is safe to go back.
"Funding for AMIS is running low, and the international community must do more to ensure the African Union can operate effectively, as preparations are made for a handover to the UN. Improving security must be the priority. This means predictable, sustainable support for AMIS and I am confirming that the UK will provide a further 20m pounds for this. The UK stands ready to provide equipment, fund essential expenses, for example fuel costs, and provide experts to strengthen AMIS headquarters and operations.
"I urge other donors, who along with the UK will be attending a pledging conference in early March, to join us in committing significant additional resources to ensure that AMIS gets the support it needs."
Notes to editors
1. The UK has already committed 19m pounds funding this financial year to the African Union Mission in Sudan (AMIS). This money is providing equipment, including over 900 vehicles, military and civilian policing advice, expertise and training, airlift of troops into Darfur, and further troop rotation. Today's announcement brings our total contribution to AMIS since its inception to almost 52m pounds.
2. The UK will work with AMIS to ensure the additional funding announced today is put to best use. While exact requirements are still unclear, we expect funding to provide support for core running costs and any additional experts required. As part of this support we will pay for AMIS' fuel requirements for their ground vehicles.
3. The AU has decided in principle that it will ask to hand over responsibility for peacekeeping to the UN. The AU's Peace and Security Council will meet on 3 March and is expected to agree formally the handover to the UN.
4. A pledging conference will take place in Brussels on 8 March. If a formal decision about handover has been made, the pledging conference will aim to remove uncertainty about AMIS funding until the transition to UN. Cash reserves are currently running critically low.
Hilary Benn, International Development Secretary, today announced an additional 20 million pounds of UK support for the African Union Mission in Sudan (AMIS) during a visit to El Fasher, Darfur.
Mr Benn discussed the current security situation and plans to hand over peacekeeping in Darfur to a UN 'blue-hatted' force with Major-General Ihekire (the AMIS force commander) and said:
"I have seen firsthand today how AMIS soldiers and police on the ground are making every effort in difficult circumstances to protect the lives of the people living in the Darfur camps. But talking to women who were forced to flee their homes, it is clear that they don't feel it is safe to go back.
"Funding for AMIS is running low, and the international community must do more to ensure the African Union can operate effectively, as preparations are made for a handover to the UN. Improving security must be the priority. This means predictable, sustainable support for AMIS and I am confirming that the UK will provide a further 20m pounds for this. The UK stands ready to provide equipment, fund essential expenses, for example fuel costs, and provide experts to strengthen AMIS headquarters and operations.
"I urge other donors, who along with the UK will be attending a pledging conference in early March, to join us in committing significant additional resources to ensure that AMIS gets the support it needs."
Notes to editors
1. The UK has already committed 19m pounds funding this financial year to the African Union Mission in Sudan (AMIS). This money is providing equipment, including over 900 vehicles, military and civilian policing advice, expertise and training, airlift of troops into Darfur, and further troop rotation. Today's announcement brings our total contribution to AMIS since its inception to almost 52m pounds.
2. The UK will work with AMIS to ensure the additional funding announced today is put to best use. While exact requirements are still unclear, we expect funding to provide support for core running costs and any additional experts required. As part of this support we will pay for AMIS' fuel requirements for their ground vehicles.
3. The AU has decided in principle that it will ask to hand over responsibility for peacekeeping to the UN. The AU's Peace and Security Council will meet on 3 March and is expected to agree formally the handover to the UN.
4. A pledging conference will take place in Brussels on 8 March. If a formal decision about handover has been made, the pledging conference will aim to remove uncertainty about AMIS funding until the transition to UN. Cash reserves are currently running critically low.
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