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GRIM
ANNIVERSARY FOR DARFUR: NO END IN SIGHT FOR FIVE YEAR LONG CONFLICT,
BY CAROLINE PATTON: 22/04/2008
(MaximsNews Network)
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UNITED
NATIONS - / MaximsNews Network / - 22
April 2008 --
There
was little optimism today as the fighting in
Darfur
entered its sixth year and few believe that an end to the genocide is more
likely now than it was five years ago. “We continue to see the goalposts
receding, to the point where peace in
Darfur
seems further away today than ever,” was the evaluation of John Holmes, the
Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs.
He
said that the last year has only seen an increase in the violence in
Darfur
and despite the involvement of people and organizations around the world, an
end to the fighting is still far off. But Holmes also urged the international
community to remain focused on the situation in
Darfur
and warned that without continued efforts, conditions could quickly grow even
worse.
Already
the numbers of killed and displaced are staggering. The death toll in
Darfur
stands at 300,000, killed over the last five years by fighting, attacks on
villages, malnutrition, disease, and other complications of the violence. In
addition, 2.7 million people have been driven from their homes and now live in
difficult conditions. Around 260,000 made the dangerous journey across the
border into
Chad
, which is now experiencing its own unrest. The rest remain in
Sudan
.
Some
lack shelter, adequate food, safe water, and other basic necessities. Many are
heavily reliant on aid from the UN and its partners. The majority have lost
everything; their homes are gone, their property has been looted or had to be
left behind. Almost all have seen friends and family members killed or had to
flee without knowing if they would ever see their loved ones again. Women face
widespread sexual violence.
Holmes
offered hope that security will be better once the AU-UN peacekeepers have
arrived in
Darfur
. However, the AU-UN Joint Special Representative for Darfur, Rodolphe Adada,
told the Security Council that despite the international prominence of the issue
of Darfur, UNAMID had not been given sufficient resources and help in carrying
out its mission.
The
transfer of the peacekeeping duties from AU troops, scheduled for the beginning
of 2008, has only partially occurred with 10,000 of the 26,000 forces actually
deployed. Mr. Adada called for greater international contribution of soldiers
and materiel.
The UN
and the AU are involved in negotiations with rebels in
Darfur
and are seeking to bring into the political process factions that have not
participated in the past. The leaders of the UN/AU team, Jan
Eliasson and Salim Ahmed Salim have asked for both sides to put aside violence
in order to fully join in finding a peaceful end to the conflict.
In
the final analysis, as John Holmes opined today, “only an end to all
violence and concrete steps towards a political settlement will make the
fundamental difference needed, as the rebel movements themselves above all need
to recognize. Otherwise the reality is that the people of
Darfur
face a continued steady deterioration of their conditions of life and their
chances of lasting recovery.”
--Caroline
Patton
Labels:
United
Nations, U.N.
~~~~~
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