Darfur: A Case of Diplomacy without Substance

By Anne Bartlett

October 31, 2007 — As if the people of Darfur needed further confirmation of the inefficacy of the international community, the peace talks in Sirte, Libya are set to provide it. Turned out in a show of strength, diplomats mill around Gadaafi’s grand table trying hard to give the impression that something meaningful is going on. Gadaafi in turn berates the West for meddling in the crisis which he argues does not constitute a threat to international security, preferring instead to label it a “tribal conflict”.

This carnival of stupidity and self-interest could almost be comical if it weren’t for the fact that the people of Darfur are suffering immensely. It might even be understandable if the international community hadn’t been warned repeatedly about the likely repercussions of staging the talks in Libya. Yet here we are, a few months further on, with little if any tangible progress. Far from any noticeable improvement in anticipation of the peace talks, violence is in fact spiraling. The Sudanese government – well versed in the discourse of international community inaction – now has the audacity to talk about exporting its ethics and morals elsewhere. Rightly unconcerned about the threat of sanctions, it goes about its daily business of murder, rape and pillage with an air of nonchalance and impunity, while making a mockery of the very peace process in which it claims to participate.

As the peace talks lumber along from one crisis to another, the security demanded by non-participant rebel groups continues to deteriorate. In the last few days, even in the shadow of the peace process, a government campaign to “resettle” the internally displaced has proceeded apace in Otash camp near Nyala, aided by the government soldiers, its trusty sidekicks the Janjawiid and the Humanitarian Aid Commission (HAC). This resettlement program has nothing of the feel of welfare to it; instead resettlement occurs in an involuntary manner while looking up the barrel of a gun. In Jebel Moon, aerial bombardment also continued over the weekend, to be met only by superficial denials by government ministers. Is the irony of this situation not apparent to those engaged in peace talks, or is the Government of Sudan’s participation in the “war on terror” intelligence too important to earn them anything more than a perfunctory slap on the wrist?

If the international community spent even a faction of the time it wastes on this sideshow trying to put together a realistic peace process, we may just see some progress. If it spent a little less time on labeling rebel groups “recalcitrant” and instead thought about their reasons for non-participation, we might be further along. If it put together a realistic pre-negotiations training program that supported SPLM efforts in the South, there may be a peace process to build on. But no, it is much easier to convey an impression of doing something, rather than engaging in the hard work of actually doing something.

With the fiasco of Libya clear for the whole world to see, the international community must now redouble its efforts to create a credible dynamic towards peace. If they are serious, this must mean that the talks are moved away from Libya – one of the perpetrators of this crisis – and re-situated in an African location such as Abuja. It should resist the temptation to stage the talks outside of the continent, since this will only give fuel to the Government of Sudan to allege colonial interference. Going back to the site of the original talks or to another African host nation will provide a solid base from which to try to reach common ground. It will also solidify the relationship between Africa and the UN as a precursor to a peace-keeping force.

At the present time the international community is on a road to nowhere where Darfur is concerned: a road that they themselves have built. If the current trend of diplomacy without substance is to be averted, this can only happen if grounded, substantive action is taken. For those now in Libya, this means a little less bullying and rhetoric, and a little more attention to crafting a framework onto which peace might eventually be built.

Dr. Anne Bartlett is a Director of the Darfur Centre for Human Rights and Development. She is also Assistant Professor of Sociology at the University of San Francisco. She may be reached at [email protected].