Rebel JEM says Sudan obliges Darfur tribes to joint Chadian rebels

April 5, 2006 (ABUJA) — News received from our sources in New Halfa, Gadaref, Fao, Gezira and other Sudanese towns indicate that the Khartoum regime is embarking on a campaign of forced recruitment amongst Darfur tribes residing in these areas. Specifically targeted in this notorious campaign are the Tama and Bargo tribes who are forced to join the Khartoum-supported Chadian opposition forces. The Khartoum regime carries this forced recruitment with the assistance of village sheikhs who provide information about men aged between 18-40 years.

These heinous acts have made it almost impossible for men of the above-mentioned tribes and age group to freely roam the streets of eastern and central Sudan without being subjected to extensive interrogation, and thereafter forced to immediately join the training camps located at Soba and Shendi. Upon completion of immediate and intensive training they are then transferred and handed to the Chadian opposition in the name of so-called REPATRIATION Of CHADIAN REFUGEES.

In response to this bizarre and heinous act the Justice and Equality Movement would like to bring your attention to the following:

1. Forcible recruitment of Sudanese citizens to fight in the ranks of an opposition group from a foreign country amounts to a flagrant violation of the rights of these citizens; and we hereby call upon the national and international human rights organizations to intervene, publicize, and ultimately, stop these activities;

2. Forcible recruitment of your own citizens to fight in the ranks of an opposition group from a neighbouring country is tantamount to a clear interference in the internal affairs of that country; it is also a grave violation of good neighbourly relations and a direct threat to international peace and security; furthermore, this act is clear proof that the Khartoum government seeks to change the Chadian regime by force, posing as Chadian opposition; it is, therefore incumbent upon the African Union and the United Nations to bring forward these credible facts to the attention of Khartoum regime so as to desist from this heinous behaviour.

3. By openly supporting the Chadian opposition the perpetrators put the lives of the Sudanese refugees in jeopardy and transform the land of Darfur to a wider battlefield whose impact on the lives of Darfur citizens can only be serious for years to come;

4. Exclusive recruitment of tribes which reside in both countries to join the ranks of Chadian opposition intensifies tribal conflicts and increases the prospects of civil wars in the area; it is therefore important that the targeted tribes guard themselves against this lingering danger before it is too late; the region cannot admit new inter-tribal conflicts that are bound to subject it to more interference and control by the center;

Ahmed Hussain Adam ,
Spokesperson for the JEM delegation