US senators petition Chinese president over Darfur
May 3, 2007 (WASHINGTON) — Nearly the entire US Senate has signed a letter to Chinese President Hu Jintao asking him to step up pressure on the government of Sudan to end the bloodshed in Darfur.
In an indication of the widespread concern in Congress over the unending violence in Sudan’s troubled west, the letter, signed by 96 of the 100 senators, called on Hu to prod Sudanese President Omar al-Beshir to halt military operations throughout Darfur, withdraw troops from the area and follow through on Khartoum’s agreement to accept a joint UN and African Union peacekeeping force.
These steps were critical in enforcing a ceasefire, protecting civilians, ensuring access to humanitarian aid and beginning reconstruction and reconciliation in Darfur, the senators said.
“We must now work together as an international community; there is no time left to wait,” the senators told Hu.
“We therefore appeal to you today to use your influence in words and in deeds to protect civilians,” they said.
The Darfur conflict has caused 200,000 deaths and led to two million people being displaced, according to the United Nations. Sudan contests the figures, saying that only 9,000 have died.
China has been criticized for not using its clout as a veto-wielding member of the UN Security Council and a top investor in Sudan to force Khartoum to end the violence in Darfur, where ethnic tensions erupted into a revolt in 2003.
China is also the leading customer for Sudanese oil and a key supplier of military arms and equipment to the huge African state.
The senators also urged Hu to review Beijing’s recent decision to provide an interest-free loan to build a palace for President Beshir.
“We believe extending such a loan would clearly send the wrong message to Khartoum,” they said.
The United States and Britain have in recent weeks indicated that their patience with Beshir is running out.
US President George W. Bush had said he was “looking at what steps the international community can take to deny Sudan’s government the ability to fly its military aircraft over Darfur.”
A reliable source told AFP recently US officials were considering options including creating a no-fly zone like those that once blanketed huge swathes of Saddam Hussein’s Iraq, or even destroying Sudanese government airplanes on the ground.
(AFP)