Darfur rebels hail Obama’s victory in US elections

November 4, 2008 (WASHINGTON) – Darfur rebel groups welcomed the election of US senator Barack Obama as the next president and expressed hope that his administration would make Sudan’s troubled western region a top item on his foreign agenda.

“Our congratulations go to Mr. Obama on his well deserved victory. We look forward to working with him and the next administration on ending the crisis in Darfur” Sudan’s senior presidential assistant Minni Arcua Minnawi told Sudan Tribune today.

Minnawi who is also leader of Sudan Liberation Army (SLA) said that Obama’s “track record of supporting the cause of Darfur makes him in a unique position to foster a lasting peace for our people”.

Abdel-Wahid Al-Nur, leader of Sudan Liberation Movement (SLM) said that Obama’s election “demonstrates the greatness of America and its leadership in the world”.

“I urge Mr. Obama to translate these great values in his handling the Darfur crisis to stop the genocide and resolving the conflict his priority” Al-Nur told Sudan Tribune by phone from Paris France.

The SLM chief said he aspires to replicating the US model of racial and religious tolerance one day in Sudan.

The spokesperson of Darfur Justice and Equality Movement (JEM) Ahmed Hussein echoed Al-Nur’s call and said that the election results “decided which direction the world is going to take”.

The JEM official expressed appreciation to the outgoing Bush administration and stressed that action is needed to restore peace and security to Darfur.

“Rhetoric and slogans to action particularly after six years of speech but little has been done. Obama has the duty to level the world to speak with one voice against what is happening in Darfur and to work collectively he said.

Obama and his running-mate Joe Biden have backed forceful measures to protect civilians in Darfur. Obama characterizes the Darfur conflict as genocide and visited refugees from Darfur in eastern Chad in 2006.

Obama wrote in 2005, “when the history of this tragedy is written, nobody will remember how many times officials visited the region or how much humanitarian aid was delivered. They will only remember the death toll.”

Vice President-elect Biden has said that if necessary, the US should work with its allies to “shut down the Janjaweed” if UNAMID deployment is interfered with.

On July 23, 2007, Biden stated, “2,500 American troops, if we do not get the 21,000 UN troops in there, can stop the genocide now.”

On the other hand the ruling National Congress Party (NCP) is wary of a democratic party which it considers as hostile to them.

However the Sudanese president Omer Hassan Al-Bashir who faces a possible arrest warrant from the International Criminal Court (ICC) conveyed a message of congratulations to Obama through his foreign minister Deng Alor.

Alor expressed hope that a new page with the new US administration to find solutions to Sudanese problems.

Sudan has been on the U.S. list of state sponsors of terrorism since 1993 and subject to U.S. economic sanctions since 1997.

(ST)