Students and community members gathered Tuesday evening to learn
about the complex history behind the current conflict in
Darfur.
In a lecture titled “The Crisis in Darfur: A Concise
History,” UCLA history Professor Edward Alpers outlined the
political and historical factors that have led to a situation in
which hundreds of thousands have died and even more have been
displaced in the Darfur region of Sudan.
The situation ““ which the U.S. has labeled a genocide
““ was brought into international headlines in 2003 when rebel
groups attacked the Sudanese government and the government
responded with strong military force.
Alpers said the initial attacks on the Sudanese government by
rebel groups were a cry for attention from civilians in the remote
western region of Darfur, who were neglected during the
nation’s development in the 20th century.
The rebel groups wanted Darfur “to be more a part of Sudan
and more a part of (its) growing wealth,” he said.
As the rest of the nation grew and developed, the Darfur region
was left out of the development.
“Darfur was neglected ““ in 1935 there were only four
primary schools,” with an estimated 2.5 million people living
in the region, Alpers said.
In response to rebel group attacks, the Sudanese government
called on Muslim militia from northern Sudan, called
“janjaweed,” for self-protection.
Since the initial use of janjaweed militia, countless villages
have been destroyed, hundreds of thousands of civilians have died,
and even more have been displaced.
So far little action in the region has been taken by the
international community for various reasons, Alpers said.
The U.N. Security Council has not put strong sanctions on the
government in part because China ““ who has veto power over
any security council resolution ““ is opposed to sanctions
because of their oil interests in the region, he said.
“China is absolutely opposed to sanctions because
approximately one-quarter of China’s oil comes from Sudan
right now,” Alpers said.
The U.S. also has not taken strong action in the region because
it has strong anti-terrorist ties to the head of Sudan’s
national intelligence service, Alpers said.
“Some of the best intelligence about Middle East terrorism
that the United States gets is from Sudan’s intelligence
service,” he said.
In a small audience of about 25, there was a mix of community
members and students.
Henry DeBey, a fourth-year design and geography student, said he
attended the lecture to educate himself on an issue he does not
know much about but thinks is extremely important.
DeBey said as a student in the U.S. he often hears about many
international issues but feels he is not directly affected by
them.
“You can easily fall into the feeling of being caught in
the bubble of the U.S. ““ Americans can rarely feel the
repercussions (of a conflict) directly, though we hear a lot about
it,” he said.
Karina Garcia, a member of UCLA’s Darfur Action Committee,
said these kinds of events are important to inform the public about
international issues.
“It’s important to have these experts to update us
on what’s going on,” she said.