Melissa Overbeck
Assistant Perspectives Editor
The Sudanese government has failed to keep its promise to halt the violence ravaging its Darfur region in a situation all too similar to the 1994 ethnic cleansing in Rwanda.
Secretary of State Colin Powell acknowledged that the violence in Sudan constitutes genocide and claims the United States has “learned from Rwanda,” yet the government’s actions have shown no signs that it will act differently in Sudan.
In 1994 the world turned a blind eye as thousands were killed in a Rwandan ethnic-cleansing campaign. By the time the United Nations finally intervened after months of dancing around the issue, hundreds of thousands were already dead. The lesson from Rwanda is loud and clear — the international community cannot wait to take action when genocide is taking place.
Despite Powell’s claim, the United States has done little to stop the violence in Sudan. The United States and the rest of the world have already ignored 18 months of bloody raids by an Arab Militia called the Janjaweed. While the world sits around deliberating about what should be done, the Janjaweed run free in Sudan torching villages. Civilians are dragged out of their villages and shot, women are raped, and in a particularly gruesome incident, an elementary school for girls was burned, with all the students tied to their seats inside.
The militia has already killed 50,000 non-Arab civilians and left more than 1.2 million others homeless in a violent tour comparable to the ethnic cleansings in Rwanda, Bosnia and Somalia. Millions of displaced people have fled to Chad, while others are living in substandard conditions in camps along the borders where hunger and disease run rampant, killing an additional 10,000 people per month.
After months of ignoring the problem, the U.N Security Council passed a resolution July 30 threatening action against Sudan unless it disarmed the Janjaweed within 30 days. Yet 30 days came and went, the violence continues, and the only action from the United Nations is the circulation of a U.S.-sponsored resolution threatening moderate sanctions.
Sanctions will not stop the violence. The Sudanese government — the same government that refused to take responsibility for the Janjaweed’s actions and repeatedly denied that its citizens were dying of famine and disease — clearly does not intend to take action. In addition, Sudan has already rejected the U.N. resolution — its parliament’s deputy speaker told the press, “Sudan is not afraid of the threat of sanctions by the United States.”
The United Nations has waited long enough. With thousands of people dying each day, the international community cannot wait any longer for the Sudanese government to stop the violence. The international community must take immediate action and the United States must lead the charge and unite the rest of the world in this cause.
Powell claims that the United States learned from Rwanda, but we must also learn from Bosnia, Somalia and Liberia. A single country cannot stop the conflict unilaterally and the multinational intervening force must be large enough to accomplish the task.
The crisis in Darfur is an opportunity for the United States to demonstrate to the world that it is again ready to participate in the international community. The United States must go to the U.N. Security Council with a resolution to authorize the use of military force in Sudan. It must bring the world together to form a multinational force large enough to defend the civilians in Sudan. Once the coalition is formed, the United States must step back and allow the United Nations to lead and direct the force so the intervention is truly a world effort.-
The rest of the world is ready to act.The United Nations has called the situation in Darfur the world’s worst humanitarian crisis. The United Kingdom agreed with Powell that the Janjaweed are committing genocide. The European Union has called the situation “tantamount to genocide.” The African Union is already deploying troops to the region but those troops will need additional resources and support in order to be successful.
After failing to respond effectively to past humanitarian crises around the globe, the United States and the international community have another chance to demonstrate that the world cannot and will not stand for genocide. Hopefully, they will learn the lessons not only from Rwanda, but from Bosnia, Liberia and others as well. The world can only hope that this time action will be taken before time runs out for the citizens of Sudan.
09-23-2004