EU urged to act now on Khartoum sanctions
June 12,2007 (BRUSSELS) — EU foreign ministers must step up efforts next week for a ceasefire in Darfur and impose sanctions on members of Sudan’s government responsible for the violence, activists said on Tuesday.
Increasing violence against civilians and aid workers has displaced 140,000 more people this year and 900,000 were now beyond the reach of aid agencies, British aid group Oxfam said.
“It is not an exaggeration to say that there is a potential collapse of the aid effort in Darfur unless the situation improves,” Michael Bailey, Oxfam UK’s head of humanitarian policy, told a news conference.
“Four million people are dependent on international aid, so this is a very big issue,” he said. adding that a “really intense” diplomatic effort was needed to secure a ceasefire.
Alain Deletroz of the Brussels-based International Crisis Group think-tank said it was time to act for EU foreign ministers who are meeting on Monday in Luxembourg and heads of state who meet the following Thursday in Brussels.
“What we expect … is a clear set of targeted sanctions against government members directly responsible for the mess,” he said. “We don’t want a 58th expression of deep concern without any political agenda, without anything biting.”
Lotte Leicht of Human Rights Watch said a so-called hybrid force combining African Union and United Nations troops was needed quickly.
She said the EU had been threatening sanctions throughout the six months of the German EU presidency and should no longer stick to its preference for a U.N. framework for such steps.
“We would all prefer that to happen, but it doesn’t happen and the people of Darfur cannot wait any longer,” she said.
Deletroz was sharply critical of German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier for weakness over Darfur.
“This is the biggest massacre going on in the world right now,” he said. “But I haven’t seen any move by Mr Steinmeier on that, nothing at all.”
Leicht said Brussels must get tougher on energy-hungry China’s involvement in Sudan: “It needs to engage China much more directly, much more forcefully.”
The United States tightened sanctions on Sudan last month in hopes of pressing it to end the Darfur bloodshed.
Rebels in Darfur rose up in 2003, saying Khartoum discriminated against non-Arab farmers. Khartoum mobilised proxy Arab militia to help quell the revolt and experts estimate at least 200,000 people have been killed in the region. Sudan says 9,000 have died.
Washington says the violence amounts to genocide and last year the U.N Security Council resolved to deploy a “hybrid” U.N.-AU force of 22,500 to replace and absorb the present African Union force, which has been unable to stem the violence.
Sudan has so far refused to agree to its deployment.
(Reuters)