The intensified political climate and confrontation in Darfur has led the international community to respond with wariness in providing future aid to war-torn Sudan.
After a violent rebel attack on the African Union mediation base in Darfur last week, future prospects may decline for United Nations humanitarian aid and an upcoming 26,000-man U.N. force.
This is especially damaging for future peace agreements in Darfur considering how the conflict ““ which has resulted in over 400,000 deaths and more than 2 million refugees since 2003 ““ has only recently begun to receive direct international and humanitarian attention.
Although the latest rebel aggression may deter other countries from getting involved in the Darfur genocide ““ as President Bush dubbed the situation last spring ““ perhaps the guerilla violence and the resulting 10 deaths of African Union peacekeepers only further signal the desperate need for intervention in Darfur from the U.N. Security Council.
And it’s now more apparent that the United Nations must take immediate action, not proceed with further procrastination.
The Darfur controversy represents a civil war that began with ethnic and religious clashes between a Muslim-Arab Sudanese government and black African rebel forces in 2003.
It is the only conflict in United States’ history to be labeled as a genocide while it is still ongoing.
Despite the evident violence and war crimes that Sudanese armed forces committed against civilians ““ which include mass rape, murder, torture and scorched-earth policies ““ the international community first responded by writing off the conflict and leaving it as the sole responsibility of the African Union.
As a result, in October 2004, the African Union established a peacekeeping force called AMIS (African Union Mission in the Sudan), which was designed to serve as a buffer between rebel groups and armed forces.
But AMIS has proved to be ineffective and underfunded, as it only provided Darfuris with 7,000 troops ““ barely enough manpower to maintain and mediate the conflict, or ward off random rebel brutality.
Additionally, heightened conflict and continued guerilla attacks have led even African Union member countries to reconsider their involvement in the Darfur genocide, further illustrating the slacking aid and effort being invested in Sudan.
Last Monday, the president of Senegal, whose country lost five African Union members due to rebel violence in April, threatened to pull his troops out of the Darfur controversy. The Nigerian government reflected similar sympathies in terms of peace efforts and war aid in Darfur.
It’s clear that global attention and aid is needed now more than ever. The U.N. Security Council ““ which was hard-pressed to fulfill the 26,000 troop quota ““ must make grander strides to follow through with the scheduled arrival of the international peacekeeping force as AMIS continues to falter in managing Darfur’s civil war.
In addition, help in Darfur must go beyond military gains and consider the after effects of constant fighting and global warming on Sudan’s environment. Water resources in refugee camps are scarce ““ rainfall in Sudan has fallen 34 percent in the past 50 years, and climate changes are particularly hurting northern Darfur. Scorched-earth policies and attacks on agricultural villages have led to mass deforestation and the destruction of valuable arable land in Sudan’s delicate ecology.
As a coalition of international superpowers, the United Nations cannot back out of its humanitarian and mediation responsibilities, especially with a critical peace summit scheduled for Oct. 27 and as environmental problems, such as the oncoming threat of famine and increased climate changes, builds into another danger.
Most coverage and assistance for Darfur has been facilitated through celebrity-clad campaigns or student activism, including UCLA’s own Darfur Action Committee. Both activist outlets may not hold the same political endowment of the United Nations, but they allow for important discussion and support regarding the Darfur genocide to occur at both the MTV and grassroots levels.
Student attention and education can only further peace efforts in the civil war.
As such, UCLA’s Darfur Action Committee has been instrumental in spreading Darfur awareness as well as following with the University of California’s decision to divest from Sudan in March 2006.
In a time of crisis and unrelenting violence, the Darfur conflict commands more complete and immediate relief that goes beyond simply facilitating security troops and hoping for a cease-fire.
There has to be an international effort geared toward addressing the health and environmental concerns of the Darfuri civilians and refugees, in addition to the arrival of next year’s United Nations peacekeeping forces.
E-mail Chung at lchung@media.ucla.edu. Send general comments to viewpoint@media.ucla.edu.