Annan not ready to send ‘cavalry’ to western Sudan to protect civilians there
UNITED NATIONS, June 25, 2004 (AP) — U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan, who said Friday he isn’t ready “to send in the cavalry” to protect Sudanese civilians, will team up with U.S. Secretary of State Colin Powell in Sudan next week to pressure the government to end a 16-month conflict raging in the western region of Darfur.
If that fails, Annan said, the possibility of sending in international troops must be considered.
Annan said his goal is to ensure that Sudan ‘s government can protect thousands of civilians in Darfur and disarm Arab militias blamed for widespread attacks that have left up to 30,000 dead and forced 1 million people to flee their homes.
“It must create an environment that will allow the displaced to go home, and it should engage with the rebel side very seriously in political settlement and in negotiations,” he told a news conference.
If Sudan ‘s government isn’t able to protect civilians there, “the international community must be prepared to assist,” he said.
“I don’t think we are ready to send in the cavalry,” Annan said, “and I’m not sure I have that many countries ready to go.”
But he noted that when the Indonesian military and its proxy militias went on the rampage after the people of East Timor voted for independence in 1999, and the local population had nobody to protect them, a multinational force was sent in by the international community to restore order.
“That willingness to go in and help must also be there and be demonstrated (in Sudan ), and I think we should all begin thinking about that,” Annan said.
The conflict, which pits Sudanese government forces and Arab militias called Janjaweed against black African tribes, “is bordering on ethnic cleansing,” Annan said. But he stressed that putting a label on what’s happening isn’t important, it’s action now that counts.
Human rights groups have accused the Sudanese government and the Arab militias of engaging in a campaign to forcibly displace Darfur’s inhabitants. At least one group, Physicians for Human Rights, says there are indications that a genocide is underway.
Commercial satellite photos analyzed by the U.S. government show that the fighting has destroyed or seriously damaged nearly 400 villages in Darfur, where an estimated 400,000 people lived, and 32 villages in neighboring Chad.
The government denies any complicity in the militia attacks, blaming the trouble in Darfur on rebels and criminal gangs. In Paris on Friday, Sudan ‘s minister for humanitarian affairs, Mohammed Yousef Abdallah, repeated the denials and said the situation in Darfur “is fully under control.”
Sudanese authorities are working to disarm militias, talks with one of the two main rebel groups are set, and “there is no widespread disease in the area, no widespread death,” Abdallah told a news conference.
But Annan said “terrible crimes” have been committed against the people of Darfur and the humanitarian needs “are massive.”
He warned the perpetrators – whether field commanders or leaders giving orders – that they will be held accountable for “the atrocities that have happened and the crimes that are being committed.”
According to the U.N., some 2 million people are in desperate need of food and humanitarian aid. Annan said access for humanitarian workers has improved, but “serious problems remain,” including trucks and supplies being held up and relief workers not getting visas.
The fighting started in February 2003 when The Justice and Equality Movement and the Sudan Liberation Army, two groups drawn from African tribes, rebelled against what they regarded as unjust treatment by the Sudanese government in their struggle over land and resources with Arab countrymen.
Andrew Natsios, administrator of the U.S. Agency for International Development, said there is strong evidence that Arab militias are responsible for killing and displacing the local tribes and are linked to the Sudanese government.
Annan will be in the Sudanese capital, Khartoum, on Wednesday and again Friday and plans visits to camps for displaced Sudanese in Darfur and Chad. He said his visit will coincide with Powell’s.
“We will be in Khartoum at least for one day together where we will collectively be putting pressure on the government to do what it has to do,” Annan said.
He said all countries with influence on Khartoum and the U.N. Security Council must also pressure the Sudanese government to take action to stop the fighting.
If the situation doesn’t improve, he said, there are a variety of actions the council can take. These include imposing sanctions and authorizing a multinational force.
Abdallah, the Sudanese minister, refused to elaborate on the government’s talks with the rebel group, saying that secrecy was “part of the agreement.” However, a source with knowledge of the situation said that negotiations with the Justice and Equality Movement were already underway in Paris.
Annan said he will be traveling with his new envoy to Sudan , Jan Pronk, and his representative at talks to end the 21-year civil war in southern Sudan , Mohammed Sahnoun, who will now be working with the parties in Darfur in search of a political solution.
Even though the government and southern rebels are nearing a final agreement to end their war, Annan stressed that “you cannot have comprehensive peace in Sudan if the west continues to burn.”