Sudan: Peace, No Peace

AfricaFocus Bulletin
Mar 6, 2004 (040306)
(Reposted from sources cited below)

Editor's Note

As peace talks continue in Kenya between the Sudanese government and its principal opponent, the SPLM/A, the prospects of securing a sustainable peace are increasingly threatened by other issues not on the table in this process. These include intense fighting in Darfur in western Sudan and unresolved questions of democratic participation throughout the country. The humanitarian crisis of as many as one million people displaced in Darfur and across the border in Chad, is currently rated among the worst in the world.

This issue of AfricaFocus Bulletin contains several brief statements from different sources on the current crisis. The e-mail version also contains excerpts from the latest monthly report from the Sudan Focal Point, while the web version contains the full text of that monthly report.

Other sources for updates and analysis include:

AllAfrica.com
http://allafrica.com/sudan
A variety of current news and statements.

UN Integrated Regional Information Networks (IRIN)
http://www.irinnews.org/frontpage.asp?SelectCountry=Sudan
Includes a series of "Special Reports" on peace prospects as well as current news.

Sudan Tribune
http://www.sudantribune.com/mot.php3?id_mot=42
Extensive portal for news & views

Sudan Information Gateway
http://www.unsudanig.org
Wide variety of reports and news links provided by UN

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Darfur Conflict Threatens Peace in Sudan

Sudan Ecumenical Forum Press Release

27th February 2004

Contact persons:

John Ashworth, Sudan Focal Point Africa, [email protected]. +27-82-853-3556

Marina Peter, Sudan Focal Point Europe, [email protected], +49-175-1647-413

"A new threat to peace in Sudan has emerged." This stark warning was given by South African Catholic Bishop Kevin Dowling after his recent visit to Sudan, as the conflict in Darfur continues to escalate. The armed forces and associated militia of both the Government of Sudan and the liberation movements have been responsible for gross violations of human rights, and a humanitarian tragedy is unfolding in Darfur. Hundreds of thousands of people have been displaced and many thousands killed. To date the Government of Sudan has restricted humanitarian access, and has prevented human rights monitors from visiting Darfur.

Bishop Dowling was speaking in his capacity as Chair of the Sudan Ecumenical Forum, a coalition of Sudanese and international churches under the auspices of the World Council of Churches. Dr Sam Kobia, the Secretary-General of the World Council of Churches, added his voice, expressing concern at "the on-going conflict in the western region of Darfur that has resulted in an alarming deterioration in the humanitarian and human rights situation and threatens to unravel the gains made in the peace process."

While negotiations aimed at ending the war in southern Sudan continue under the auspices of the Inter-Governmental Authority on Development (IGAD), there are no talks in sight to end the conflict in Darfur. The Sudan Ecumenical Forum urges the international community, and particularly the African Union and the European Union, to press for meaningful internationally-supervised ne
otiations to end this conflict, and calls on the parties to the conflict to negotiate in good faith. At th
same time, the Sudan Ecumenical Forum calls on all parties to immediately safeguard the lives and property of the citizens of the area, and to allow unimpeded international access for humanitarian aid and human rights monitoring.

Bishop Dowling made a special plea to African countries, and particularly South Africa, to engage in this issue which poses such a threat to the security and development of the region. "African countries have taken the lead in working for peace in southern Sudan through IGAD; let Africans now also stand in solidarity with their suffering sisters and brothers in Darfur."

[For additional background on Darfur see the IRIN special report
most easily available at:
http://allafrica.com/stories/200402160771.html">

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SUDAN: Peace process threatened by exclusivity, says think-tank

UN Integrated Regional Information Network (IRIN)
http://www.irinnews.org

3 March 2004

[This material comes via IRIN, a UN humanitarian information unit, but may not necessarily reflect the views of the United Nations or its agencies. If you re-print, copy, archive or re-post any item on this site, please retain this credit and disclaimer.]

NAIROBI, 3 Mar 2004 (IRIN) - The ongoing peace process between the government and the Sudan People's Liberation Movement/Army (SPLM/A) is threatened by its almost total exclusivity, necessitating a new approach from both the negotiating parties and Inter-Governmental Authority on Development (IGAD) mediators, according to the Institute for Security Studies (ISS) think-tank.

Whereas the first phase of the process had necessitated a narrow focus on the two main belligerents, a second phase after the signing of a bilateral peace agreement would need to radically change to involve the Sudanese public, said ISS in a report entitled: "The Sudan IGAD Peace Process: Signposts for the Way Forward".

"For IGAD it means a marked change in philosophy and direction from that of the first stage, which can be characterised as secretive, eite driven, narrowly focused and which pointedly ignored the issue of human rights, to the next stage where transparency, engaging the large mass of Sudanese, and vastly expanding the focus and direction of the peace initiative, must set the tone," it said.

Once a peace agreement was signed, a new approach taking account of the rights of all Sudan's citizens needed to be implemented, said the report. "It will be a critical test of the IGAD mediators whether they can adapt to the new demands placed upon them and carry the process forward."

The Machakos Protocol, signed by both the government and the SPLM/A in July 2002, underlines the need for a democratic transformation of Sudan, referring to "democratic governance, accountability, equality, respect and justice for all citizens of Sudan", and for the Sudanese to establish "a democratic system of governance".

But so far, a number of key groups, including northern opposition groups, southern militias and the National Democratic Alliance have been pointedly excluded from peace negotiations.

The rebellion in Darfur, northwestern Sudan, which exploded in February 2003, is deemed by observers to be a direct reaction to this exclusivity and to fears that the national cake is being divided up into only two slices.

In southern Sudan, there has also been no sustained effort to bring about south-south reconciliation, despite the fact that the South Sudan Defence Forces, an umbrella of government-aligned militias, are armed, control large swathes of the region, and hold many strategic positions particularly around the oil fields.

According to ISS, a failure to win the popular support of Sudanese civil society and the country's major political players threatens the viability of the entire peace process and raises the possibility of a return to war. "However difficult the task, IGAD must play a leading role in the intimately lin
ed objectives of an inclusive peace process and establishing a democratic Sudan," it warned.

"The building of a democratic Sudan is not a luxury, but the best - and perhaps only - insurance that the many aggrieved groups in Sudan do not take up arms," said ISS, adding that southern grievances increasingly coming to the fore represented "only the tip of the iceberg of resentment".

"Remarkably, the issue of human rights has received almost no attention thus far in the IGAD negotiations, but it cannot be ignored much longer," it added, urging a change of approach and the setting up of a Truth and Reconciliation Commission.

Last week, the US State Department's 2003 report for Sudan noted that the two key parties to the peace process - who will be governing Sudan once a peace agreement is signed - had poor human rights records.

The Sudanese government's record "remained extremely poor", with security forces and associated militias responsible for extrajudicial killings and disappearances, beatings, torture, rape and harassment with impunity. Similarly, the SPLM/A was accused of killings, beatings, rape, arbitrary detention, forcible military conscription of underage young men, and the manipulation of humanitarian assistance for military advantage.

[For the ISS report,see
http://www.sudantribune.com/article.php3?id_article=1796
or visit http://www.iss.co.za]

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Largely Ignored by International Community, Yearlong Massive Displacement and Death in Darfur Region Continues

United States Committee for Refugees (Washington, DC)

[Excerpts: for full text see:
http://www.refugees.org/news/press_releases/2004/022404.cfm">

Press Release

February 26, 2004

Violence that erupted in Sudan's western Darfur region nearly one year ago and continues unrestrained today, has displaced at least 800,000 Sudanese civilians-including more than 110,000 who have fled to the remote deserts of eastern Chad-and has killed countless thousands of others. Although precise numbers are difficult to determine, it is estimated that the displacement caused by the Darfur crisis has increased the number of uprooted Sudanese from more than 4.5 million to nearly 5.5 million.

Poor security and Sudanese government-imposed travel restrictions to the Darfur region have prevented humanitarian assistance agencies from conducting adequate assessment missions to determine the extent of the crisis and the precise number and needs of displaced people in the region. Various sources suggest that an estimated more than 1,000 Darfurians are dying every week. While the true scale of the violence remains largely unknown, some international observers believe that the yearlong bloodshed has disrupted the lives and further isolated more than half of the Darfur region's estimated six million residents.

High-level peace negotiations seeking to end 20 years of civil war in Sudan between the Islamic government in Khartoum and the mainly southern Christian and animist Sudan People's Liberation Army (SPLA) have garnered tremendous international attention, but are void of discussions surrounding the crisis in Darfur.

Roots of Conflict

Residents of Darfur's North, West, and South states-which cover approximately one-fifth of Sudan's territory-have long claimed that they inhabit one of the most neglected and underdeveloped areas of the country. The arid Darfur region also suffers from chronic drought. In addition, nomadic groups reportedly killed hundreds of civilians from pastoral and sedentary agriculture populations in the region from 2000-2002.

In early 2003, Sudanese authorities reportedly armed and provided horses to [one of these groups] ... [engaged in] raids against civilian populations. "These attacks have reportedly included burning and looting of villages, large-scale killings, and abductions," the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) recently
eported.

Responding, in part, to the lack of government protection against increasingly frequent raids and indiscriminate killings, Darfurian residents organized and armed themselves. Two main groups, the Sudanese Liberation Army (SLA) and Justice and Equality Movement (JEM), eventually emerged as formidable forces in the Darfur region. Initially, the Sudanese government and the SLA sought to peacefully resolve the burgeoning conflict through dialogue. Halting talks failed to produce meaningful resolution, however.

Massive Internal Displacement

In late April 2003, Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir declared that, "Khartoum will not negotiate with those who raised arms in Darfur." Immediately after President al-Bashir's statement, targeted attacks against civilians intensified. SLA assaults on government administrative and military sites also increased. The violence surrounding the massive displacement began in earnest in June 2003 and slowed briefly during a tentative agreement between the Sudanese government and the SLA to end hostilities in September before resuming and expanding in late 2003.

Intensified and sustained Janjaweed raids, Sudanese government aerial bombings, and alleged joint Chadian military and Sudanese government-aligned militia offensives on Darfurian civilian populations have decimated and emptied hundreds of towns, villages, and other populated areas throughout the Darfur region. ...

Nearly 400,000 Darfurians remain sheltered in some 20 displacement camps scattered throughout the Darfur states, including nearly 10 camps with more than 50,000 residents each. An estimated additional 300,000 internally displaced Darfurians remain disbursed in remote mountains, in the desert near the Sudan-Chad border, and with relatives and others in host communities. ...

Refugee Flows

The situation in and around sites hosting refugees immediately across the border in neighboring Chad, where militia incursions and aerial bombardments have reportedly occurred, is as troublesome as the internal displacement in Sudan.

Many of the more than 110,000 Sudanese refugees who fled to neighboring Chad during the past 10 months remain strewn along a 375-mile (600 km) stretch of border and are struggling to survive under difficult humanitarian and climatic conditions. Chadian villagers provided already scarce food and water to refugees upon their arrival last year. The sizeable Sudanese influx, however, quickly exhausted meager local resources.

Sudanese refugees continue to battle harsh weather in eastern Chad, where international humanitarian assistance has been slow to arrive. Tens of thousands of refugees, many who fled with minimal personal belongings, are living in the open and enduring sandstorms and temperatures that exceed 120 degrees Fahrenheit (50 degrees Centigrade) during the day and fall below freezing during the night. They are also susceptible to cross border Sudanese government and militia attacks. ...

UNHCR has begun airlifting 265 tons of relief supplies to the border region and has identified three additional sites to construct camps. International donors have provided the agency with approximately $1 million, or one-tenth of what UNHCR estimates is needed to continue and expand its relocation and humanitarian assistance operations.

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A View of Sudan from Africa

Monthly Briefing February 2004

Sudan Focal Point - Africa, Pretoria

24th February 2004

[For more information about Monthly Briefings and other information from Sudan Focal Point - Africa, contact John Ashworth at [email protected]]

The Peace Process

Peace talks under the auspices of the Inter-Governmental Authority on Development (IGAD) have resumed in Naivasha, Kenya, after a break to allow members of the Government of Sudan (GoS) delegation to complete the hajj. ...

The first item of business is the "contested areas" of the Nuba Mountains, the Funj Region (also known as southern Blue Nile), and Abyei, which are technically in the north according to the 1956 colonial boundaries but which are culturally, ethnically, politically and militarily closer to the south. A tentative agreement is believed to have been reached on the first two, but Abyei remains a major stumbling block. GoS appears unwilling to offer even the limited concessions which it made on the other two areas. Once agreement has been reached, the talks will move on to the issue of power-sharing.

Much of the discussion on power-sharing will be relatively easy. ...

More controversial and less easily solved is the status of the national capital. For GoS, it is in the north, the majority of its citizens are Muslims (this partially explains why GoS brutally transported internally displaced southerners from the outskirts of Khartoum into camps in the desert - there was a real danger that the more than two million southerners resident there would change the electoral balance within the capital), and therefore Islamic shari'a should be the source of law. For southerners, the national capital must be equally accessible to all Sudanese who might be based there as cabinet ministers, members of parliament, civil servants, other government officials or employees, or simply citizens accessing their national government, and therefore its law should not be that of only one section of the community. Thus southerners seek at least an enclave within the national capital which is free of shari'a. This is an issue which challenges GoS as to what are its r
eal priorities - the territorial integrity of Sudan or the primacy of Islam. It cannot have both. ...

Once these issues have all been agreed, the next stage is to discuss the implementation of the peace agreement, and this opens up a new range of pitfalls and potential disagreements. Nobody trusts GoS to implement the agreement without reneging, based on southerners' bitter experience of agreements with the north since 1947, and most agree that strong guarantees must be built into the implementation process. In particular a robust peace-keeping force is needed, preferably under Chapter VII (peace-keeping) rather than Chapter VI (monitoring), although the latter looks more likely at the moment. The USA has estimated that up to 10,000 troops could be needed. SPLM/A has welcomed the prospect of foreign troops, saying that Sudan needs not only monitors but also peace-keepers on the ground to ensure that both parties fully implement the terms of the peace accord during the interim period. GoS is completely opposed. ...

It is convenient to speak of "pragmatists" and "hard-liners" within the ruling regime, but it is unlikely that the National Islamic Front has really changed. For some years it has been willing to make superficial (and usually reversible) changes as part of a "charm offensive" to regain international respectability. ... But few believe that a leopard can change its spots. Its radical expansionist Islamic agenda may be on the back burner for a while but has not gone away. And southerners have also yet to be convinced that the north in general has changed. After all, it was not the current regime that reneged on treaties and promises from 1947 to 1989 - it was the northern political elite of all parties.

However the biggest threat to the peace process at the moment comes from outside the south. The escalating conflict in Darfur poses an imminent and concrete threat, while the ongoing conflict in northern Uganda presents a less immediate but no less real threat to peace and stability in the south.

[The web version of this Bulletin contains additional sections of the Monthly Briefing omitted here, on Darfur and Northern Uganda. See http://www.africafocus.org/docs04/sud0403.php">

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