Sudan demolishes village by force – UN

Aug 17, 2006 (KHARTOUM) — Sudanese authorities bulldozed houses and removed by force Darfuris living in an area south of Khartoum, the United Nations said on Thursday, adding there had been reports of people killed and injured.

Khartoum is surrounded by miles of slum housing where millions of Sudanese from the war-torn south and west of the country have sought shelter over the past two decades from conflict, disease and famine.

But land prices have soared and the government wants the land the build houses or sell to investors.

Authorities often demolish the camps without prior notice and forcibly move the residents to areas without running water, electricity or sufficient healthcare.

More than 12,000 Darfuris live in the Dar es-Salaam area, around 45 km (28 miles) south of Khartoum, having fled famine in the arid west in the 1980s.

“A U.N. verification mission to the area witnessed heavily armed policemen and tanks stationed around the community,” a U.N. statement said on Thursday.

The statement said U.N. employees who went there on Wednesday heard gunshots before being refused entry and told to leave.

“Reports have been received of deaths and injuries of residents within the camps, including the death of a child,” it added. It was not immediately clear who the reports were from.

The Interior Ministry did not comment, despite repeated calls.

In the past year, the United Nations has condemned the demolitions policy and has been monitoring negotiations between the government and slum residents about consensual relocations.

“The United Nations demands that the Sudanese authorities cease this operation immediately and return to the process of dialogue with residents,” the statement said.

Reporters from the independent daily al-Ayyam paper said on Thursday authorities had arrested nine community leaders, including members of parliament and two of its journalists during the demolition operation.

(Reuters)