Violence forces 12,000 refugees to flee in South Darfur
April 30, 2008 (KHARTOUM) — Around 12,000 civilians fled their homes following an outbreak of fighting in South Darfur according to the spokesperson of displaced and refugees in the region.
Hussein Abu-Sharati told Sudan Tribune that the freshly displaced civilians were made up of 2,700 families who arrived at the Kalma camp in south Darfur. He said that fighting erupted between forces loyal to Sudan’s senior presidential assistant Minni Arcua Minnawi and Janjaweed militias.
Abu-Sharati said violence was triggered by differences over the census process underway all over Sudan. He also said that he is scheduled to meet with UN officials tomorrow to discuss the recent developments.
The Comprehensive Peace Agreement (CPA) signed between the North and South in 2005 mandated that a census be conducted as a prerequisite for next year’s elections.
However the five year conflict in Darfur casted shadows over whether the census can be fair at a time when millions of Darfuris are displaced in and out of Sudan. All Darfur rebel groups including the signatory to the peace agreement rejected the census.
The Darfur leading figure said the displaced people came from the towns of Muhajriya, Tani Affendi, Labado, Om-Kassab, Tegaisha, Drumai, Ummpoi, Um-Ta’ali and Um-Turu. He added that the homes in these towns were burnt down.
“The displaced belong to wide array of tribes including Fur, Daju, Zaghawa, Tanjor, Tur. The people of Darfur are still paying a high price to this war” he added.
Abu-Sharati criticized the UNAMID force and accused it of “failing to discharge its mandate of protecting civilians”.
UN Security Council adopted resolution 1769 on July 31st which authorized a hybrid UN-AU force (UNAMID) consisting of 26,000 troops and police but so far it only has only 9,000 personnel.
However the deployment was impeded by Khartoum’s objections to the composition of the force and lack of helicopters. The UN has for months been seeking 6 attack and 18 transport helicopters to support the force with no success.
International experts also say more than 300,000 were killed and 2 million have been driven from their homes by the conflict in Darfur, a region that is roughly the size of France.
(ST)