African trade unions urge Sudanese govt. to end Darfur crisis

NAIROBI, July 31, 2004 (Xinhua) — African trade unions has called on the Sudanese government to disarm Arab militias blamed for killing thousands in the Darfur region in western Sudan and to put the crisis to an end.

In an open letter to Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir availed here Saturday, General Secretary Andrew Kailembo of the International Confederation of Free Trade Unions, a African regional organization, appealed to him to act decisively to disarm the Janjaweed militias involved in the “genocide.”

“We urge you to take immediate steps to disarm the Janjaweed militias and ensure those involved in the atrocities against ordinary citizens are brought to book to account for their crimes, ” the letter read.

“The militias are also committing acts of violence and human rights abuses, including raping women and girls and looting their villages,” Kailembo said. “There is no doubt at all that the scale and intensity of these acts against unarmed civilians amounts to genocide.”

The UN Security Council on Friday adopted a US-drafted resolution Friday giving Sudan 30 days to disarm the Arab militias or else face diplomatic and economic punishment.

The Darfur conflict stems from long-standing tensions between nomadic Arab tribes and their African neighbors over water and farmland.

The Darfur conflict have escalated into what the United Nations called the world’s current worst humanitarian crisis since the indigenous revolted against Khartoum government in February 2003 as over 10,000 people have been killed and more than one million displaced.