US Rice makes passionate appeal to Congress on Darfur

Dec 16, 2005 (WASHINGTON) — U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice has made an impassioned personal appeal to Congress to provide $50 million for African troops trying to keep peace in Sudan’s Darfur region, officials said on Friday.

U.S. funding for about 6,000 African Union peacekeepers runs dry at the end of this year and the State Department is concerned spiking violence in Darfur will only get worse if more money is not found soon to keep the mission going.

“We are in critical need of funding to continue this mission at a robust level into 2006,” said Rice in letters sent late on Thursday to the heads of appropriations committees in both the Senate and House of Representatives.

“Taking immediate action to meet this unanticipated expense is of the highest priority,” she added in the letter, which was obtained by Reuters.

A State Department official said Rice was trying to convince Congress it must follow through on its vocal concern for the people of Darfur and provide additional funding for the peacekeepers before next week’s Christmas break.

“We want to help the peacekeepers and we need this money,” said the official, who asked not to be named, as the letter has not been made public.

Tens of thousands of people have been killed and more than 2 million have fled their homes during the revolt in Sudan’s remote west.

Neither appropriation committee could immediately be reached for comment on Rice’s plea for funding.

Rice’s appeal came as the African Union said that its peace mission in Darfur faced a serious financial crunch with resources available for only a few months.

The AU troops and police are trying to stop escalating violence in the region. But those in charge say they lack the vehicles and communications equipment needed to operate effectively in a desert region the size of France.

The Darfur conflict began in February 2003 when rebels rose against what they called their marginalization by the government in Khartoum. The government sent in Arab militias to put down the rebellion, but they have been accused of rape, looting and murder.

Last month, lawmakers stripped $50 million in U.S. funding for the troops from a foreign funding bill. The State Department hopes to get the money reinstated via the defense appropriations bill under discussion.

This amount represents about one-third of the monthly cost for the peacekeepers. The European Union is responsible for most of the remainder.

This week, leading foreign policy experts, including former Secretary of State Madeleine Albright, also wrote to Congress urging lawmakers to restore the funds. Aid groups have also been putting pressure on lawmakers.

(Reuters)