Darfur force deployment has a long way to go: UN official
April 22, 2008 (NEW YORK) — Rodolphe Adada, the AU-UN Joint Special Representative for Darfur told the UN Security Council (UNSC) today that the forces currently deployed “are serving under exceptionally difficult conditions, facing daily dangers and hardships”.
“As I speak to you today, I must report frankly that there is a long way to go before we can say that we have met these expectations and fulfilled the promise made by this Council” he said.
After the meeting the head of the UNAMID told reporters that “logistical problems” are slowing the full deployment of the force.
UN Security Council adopted resolution 1769 on July 31st which authorized a hybrid UN-AU force (UNAMID) consisting of 26,000 troops and police but so far it only has only 9,000 personnel.
However the deployment was impeded by Khartoum’s objections to the composition of the force and lack of helicopters. The UN has for months been seeking 6 attack and 18 transport helicopters to support the force with no success.
Washington has warned the UN Secretary General (UNSG) Ban Ki-Moon last month that it wants to see progress on the force deployment.
However Adada said that it is unlikely that full force deployment would be completed before 2009. He said that a number of deployments were scheduled over the next three months, including from China, Egypt, Bangladesh, Nigeria and Ethiopia.
The South African envoy at the UN Dumisani Kumalo and the current president of the UNSC told reporters that the there is conflicting information from the UNSG, UN Peacekeeping Department and UNAMID on the timeframe for force deployment. He suggested that the UNSC is considering benchmarks for the deployment of the force.
Kumalo said that the UNSC was concerned about the slow progress on all tracks for resolving the Darfur crisis.
“The biggest problem that there is no movement whatsoever on the political process; there is slow movement on the deployment and slow progress on the humanitarian side. We are in a mess” he said.
Asked whether it was time to consider sanctions against those obstructing the peace in Darfur he said that “the people who are obstructing the peace are those who are sitting in the nice capitals of Europe so what can we do”.
The South African envoy was likely referring to Abdel-Wahid Al-Nur, leader of Sudan Liberation Movement (SLM) who resides in Paris, France.
Al-Nur has refused to participate in peace talks before the deployment of peacekeepers and achieving security on the ground.
His demands have caused deep frustration among diplomats and the Sudanese government who called on France to expel him.
Kumalo appeared critical of France for not pressuring Abdel-Wahid saying that “Europe is represented in the council”.
The head of the UNAMID gave further pessimistic outlook for Darfur peace.
“Unfortunately, it is commonly understood today in Darfur that peace is not at all attractive. Neither economically, nor politically,” Adada said.
“The conflicts in Darfur and Chad were now closely intertwined and it would be extremely challenging to secure a solution to one of the conflicts while the other continued to rage.” he added.
The Darfur conflict began in 2003 when an ethnic minority rose up against the Arab-dominated government in Khartoum, which then was accused of enlisting the Janjaweed militia group to help crush the rebellion.
International experts estimate 200,000 people have died in the conflict, which Washington calls genocide, a term European governments are reluctant to use. The Sudan government says 9,000 people have been killed.
(ST)