ME and Ophelia
Tuesday, August 31, 2004
SEEING THE LIGHT
Flies, bumble bees and a broken washing line
Today, at the Passion of the Present and Sudan Watch blogs, I have posted the following reports:
(1) Irish Prime Minister urged to press for UN intervention in Sudan - Khartoum had done "absolutely nothing" to meet UN demands. Plus:
(2) The UN's quiet diplomacy not working on Sudan - not one Janjaweed camp has been closed.
Can't do any more today - or post pictures - or reply to emails - it's been another heavy day today. Four unexpected visitors throughout the day, including decorator to rip out a windbreaker and paint something that was behind it - and bang windbreaker back in again - too long to explain here. But I had an earache and toothache and sore throat and couldn't use ear plugs.
Love getting emails but sorry I am unable to reply right now. Monalisa, your poem for Sudan was a wonderful surprise - thank you - still puzzling over meaning of Portugese word desamans - I'll email you as soon as I can. And Doug: thanks for the great pictures - heh - my Ophelia gives her tummy an airing like that too - it must be what cats do to keep so fragrant.
Here is a post I wrote a week or so ago that got buried amongst a pile of Sudan stuff in my drafts folder: it's called "SEEING THE LIGHT - Flies, bumble bees and a broken washing line", and I have posted it today, to my health blog, A Breath of Hope.
- - -
FACT OF THE DAY
Courtesy Scotsman.com
Fact of the day for August 31, 2004:
1997 Diana, Princess of Wales, 36, and her boyfriend, Dodi Fayed, died in a high-speed car crash in Paris, trying to evade chasing paparazzi.
Flies, bumble bees and a broken washing line
Today, at the Passion of the Present and Sudan Watch blogs, I have posted the following reports:
(1) Irish Prime Minister urged to press for UN intervention in Sudan - Khartoum had done "absolutely nothing" to meet UN demands. Plus:
(2) The UN's quiet diplomacy not working on Sudan - not one Janjaweed camp has been closed.
Can't do any more today - or post pictures - or reply to emails - it's been another heavy day today. Four unexpected visitors throughout the day, including decorator to rip out a windbreaker and paint something that was behind it - and bang windbreaker back in again - too long to explain here. But I had an earache and toothache and sore throat and couldn't use ear plugs.
Love getting emails but sorry I am unable to reply right now. Monalisa, your poem for Sudan was a wonderful surprise - thank you - still puzzling over meaning of Portugese word desamans - I'll email you as soon as I can. And Doug: thanks for the great pictures - heh - my Ophelia gives her tummy an airing like that too - it must be what cats do to keep so fragrant.
Here is a post I wrote a week or so ago that got buried amongst a pile of Sudan stuff in my drafts folder: it's called "SEEING THE LIGHT - Flies, bumble bees and a broken washing line", and I have posted it today, to my health blog, A Breath of Hope.
- - -
FACT OF THE DAY
Courtesy Scotsman.com
Fact of the day for August 31, 2004:
1997 Diana, Princess of Wales, 36, and her boyfriend, Dodi Fayed, died in a high-speed car crash in Paris, trying to evade chasing paparazzi.
# posted by Ingrid J. Jones @ 8/31/2004
0 comments
Monday, August 30, 2004
- - -
A JOKE THAT DOUG DEDICATED TO HIS BOSS -
And goofy stuff that even President Bush would smile at
For the past hour, I've been chuckling over several posts of Doug's. The first post I'd read of his, a few months back, was an incredible vent-rant - straight from the heart - about the state of the world. It was so passionate, I linked to it but I think he deleted it.
Doug's neat blog seems to be evolving into a humorous one, loaded with strong messages that make you smile. He lives in England, and is English, but seems to have a thing about posting goofy stuff that even President Bush would smile at.
Here's a copy of a post that Doug dedicated to his boss :)
Two strangers were seated next to each other on the plane ….. when the guy turned to the beautiful blonde and made his move by saying,
"Let’s talk. I’ve heard that flights will go quicker if you strike up a conversation with your fellow passenger.”
The blond, who had just opened her book, closed it slowly, and said to the guy, “What would you like to discuss?”
"Oh, I don’t know,” said the player. “How about nuclear power?”
"OK,” said the blonde. “That could be an interesting topic. But let me ask you a question first....A horse, a cow, and a deer all eat grass. The same stuff. Yet a deer excretes little pellets, while a cow turns out a flat patty, and a horse produces clumps of dried grass. Why do you suppose that is?”
"Oh brother,” said the guy. “I have no idea.”
"Well, then,” said the blond, “How is it that you feel qualified to discuss nuclear power when you don’t know sh*t?”
A JOKE THAT DOUG DEDICATED TO HIS BOSS -
And goofy stuff that even President Bush would smile at
For the past hour, I've been chuckling over several posts of Doug's. The first post I'd read of his, a few months back, was an incredible vent-rant - straight from the heart - about the state of the world. It was so passionate, I linked to it but I think he deleted it.
Doug's neat blog seems to be evolving into a humorous one, loaded with strong messages that make you smile. He lives in England, and is English, but seems to have a thing about posting goofy stuff that even President Bush would smile at.
Here's a copy of a post that Doug dedicated to his boss :)
Two strangers were seated next to each other on the plane ….. when the guy turned to the beautiful blonde and made his move by saying,
"Let’s talk. I’ve heard that flights will go quicker if you strike up a conversation with your fellow passenger.”
The blond, who had just opened her book, closed it slowly, and said to the guy, “What would you like to discuss?”
"Oh, I don’t know,” said the player. “How about nuclear power?”
"OK,” said the blonde. “That could be an interesting topic. But let me ask you a question first....A horse, a cow, and a deer all eat grass. The same stuff. Yet a deer excretes little pellets, while a cow turns out a flat patty, and a horse produces clumps of dried grass. Why do you suppose that is?”
"Oh brother,” said the guy. “I have no idea.”
"Well, then,” said the blond, “How is it that you feel qualified to discuss nuclear power when you don’t know sh*t?”
# posted by Ingrid J. Jones @ 8/30/2004
0 comments
- - -
THANKS TO DOUG
For two jazzy squirrels
Thanks to Doug at QuadroPHrenia for the two jazzy squirrels - and kind words for me and ophelia.
THANKS TO DOUG
For two jazzy squirrels
Thanks to Doug at QuadroPHrenia for the two jazzy squirrels - and kind words for me and ophelia.
# posted by Ingrid J. Jones @ 8/30/2004
0 comments
- - -
THERE ARE ONLY ELEVEN TIMES IN HISTORY
When the "F" word has been considered acceptable for use
Here's another post from Doug's blog. [Sorry for lifting your stuff Doug - but I've got some heavy ones coming up on the Sudan and need to lighten things up a little around here] Numbers 11, 10, 4 and 1 are my favourites.
There are only eleven times in history when the “F” word has been considered acceptable for use. They are as follows:
11. “What the @#$% do you mean we are sinking?” — Capt. E. J. Smith of RMS. Titanic, 1912
10. “What the @#$% was that?” — Mayor Of Hiroshima, 1945
9. “Where did all those @#$%ing Indians come from?” — Custer, 1877
8. “Any @#$%ing idiot could understand that.”— Einstein, 1938
7. “It does so @#$%ing look like her!” —Picasso, 1926
6. “How the @#$% did you work that out?” — Pythagoras, 126 BC
5. “You want WHAT on the @#$%ing ceiling?” — Michelangelo, 1566
4. “Where the @#$% am I?” — Amelia Earhart, 1937
3. “Scattered @#$%ing showers, my ass!” — Noah, 4314 BC
2. “Aw c’mon. Who the @#$% is going to find out?” — Bill Clinton, 1999
1. “Geez, I didn’t think they’d get this @%#*ing mad.” — Saddam Hussein, 2003
- - -
FACT OF THE DAY
For Saturday 28 August, 2004
Fact of the Day for Saturday 28 August 2004 - courtesy Scotsman.com:
Saddam Hussein declared Kuwait to be a province of Iraq on this day in 1990, prompting the First Gulf War.
THERE ARE ONLY ELEVEN TIMES IN HISTORY
When the "F" word has been considered acceptable for use
Here's another post from Doug's blog. [Sorry for lifting your stuff Doug - but I've got some heavy ones coming up on the Sudan and need to lighten things up a little around here] Numbers 11, 10, 4 and 1 are my favourites.
There are only eleven times in history when the “F” word has been considered acceptable for use. They are as follows:
11. “What the @#$% do you mean we are sinking?” — Capt. E. J. Smith of RMS. Titanic, 1912
10. “What the @#$% was that?” — Mayor Of Hiroshima, 1945
9. “Where did all those @#$%ing Indians come from?” — Custer, 1877
8. “Any @#$%ing idiot could understand that.”— Einstein, 1938
7. “It does so @#$%ing look like her!” —Picasso, 1926
6. “How the @#$% did you work that out?” — Pythagoras, 126 BC
5. “You want WHAT on the @#$%ing ceiling?” — Michelangelo, 1566
4. “Where the @#$% am I?” — Amelia Earhart, 1937
3. “Scattered @#$%ing showers, my ass!” — Noah, 4314 BC
2. “Aw c’mon. Who the @#$% is going to find out?” — Bill Clinton, 1999
1. “Geez, I didn’t think they’d get this @%#*ing mad.” — Saddam Hussein, 2003
- - -
FACT OF THE DAY
For Saturday 28 August, 2004
Fact of the Day for Saturday 28 August 2004 - courtesy Scotsman.com:
Saddam Hussein declared Kuwait to be a province of Iraq on this day in 1990, prompting the First Gulf War.
# posted by Ingrid J. Jones @ 8/30/2004
0 comments
Sunday, August 29, 2004
International Sudanese Peace MeetUp day Sep 6 -
Sudan's FM to visit Japan Sep 5-9 for talks on Darfur crisis
Over the past few days I have set up two more blogs: Congo Watch and Uganda Watch -- and copied over several of my posts from the Passion into Sudan Watch blog. They are my new electronic filing cabinets so this main blog does not get swamped with posts about Africa. Also, my blog A Breath of Hope, I am keeping for posts on M.E.
I've installed sitemeters but not inserted any links in the sidebars. In time to come, I hope to have all of the blogs in the same style as this one -- after it has had a few new tweaks. I'd like the font slightly larger, the text column slightly broader and the whole page wider and more in the centre of the screen - and the blue highlights to links toned down. On my screen, this blog sits to the far left of the page - the other half of my screen is blank. Other blogs fill the whole screen.
Setting up these blogs has taken time. And been a little hard going, because a friend -- who thinks what I am doing re Sudan is a complete waste of time -- told me again yesterday to forget about the Sudan and concentrate on something that is achievable. I don't have proof -- but believe what we are doing has had an effect. Exactly what, is too long to go into here right now. Have to leave it for another day. Note this article that wonders how Darfur and not Congo got all the attention - it is entitled "Scramble for Resources in DRC Leads to Massive Deaths, But Scant Attention".
Well here's some proof that blogging about the Sudan is not a total waste of time: a few days ago I received an email from a chap in America who teaches world history -- asking for permission to use some of the Sudan material in my main blog. He wanted to use it for teaching his students. I wrote back encouraging him and his students to start a blog where they could post their project material -- it would be a fun way for them to learn and hone computing skills. He replied saying he would look into starting a blog.
- - -
Warm thanks to Nick for leaving a comment here advising that September 6 is International Sudanese Peace MeetUp day. Nick has written a neat post on Google talking. I played around with Google talk: keyed in 'Passion of the Present' which came up with: sudan The song Sudan; my name brought up Political Science; Nick's name produced Student's Guide. Heh. Ophelia got "New York County, Government agencies and other Voices".
Here below is a copy of a comment I left at Finalvent - together with news that Sudan's FM Ismail is to visit Japan Sept 5-9 for talks on the Darfur crisis (which means he'll be in Japan on the International Sudanese Peace day: September 6) - and Finalvent's response.
- - -
Hello finalvent, I found your blog in the sidebar at Passion of the Present. Thought you might like to see a copy, here below, of a report in the Sudan Tribune today. Also, someone just emailed me to say Meetup.com is reporting September 6 is International Sudanese Peace Meetup day... I don't know if it's coordinated by another group or this is just a monthly, smaller event. I'll treat Sept 6 as a global "virtual" meetup day and aim to do a post that links to you in Japan from England and to Passion of the Present in the USA and other blogs I know of in Canada, Australia, Malaysia. What about China and Russia -- do you know of any bloggers writing about the Sudan there? If I link to you, will you know via Technorati? Seems the bloggers in Malaysia don't get the pings when I link to them. Best wishes from England, UK.
- - -
Hello, Ingrid-san. Thank you for your comment. I think that your suggestion is worth to be read by many Japanese people. I translated it roughly on the new entry.
As you know Japan now seems to hold more than three millions of bloggers (incredible!). Blog communication infrastructure in Japan is ready to easily catch RSS/ATOM, though some ping servers would not work well.
I referred your blog RSS/ATOM:
http://meandophelia.blogspot.com/rss/meandophelia.xml
Since May or June, Japanese journalism began informing Darfur genocide. But Japanese political situation inside is complicated. Human right aware people in Japan seem to be divided into several groups: the major poles are U.S. accepting group and China supporting group. The china group is, I guess, an obstacle for Japanese contribution for Darfur people. They pay too much attention in favor of china national interests. China is suspected to support the Sudan government, hoping to make strong tie to be suppleid with PETROLUEM bypassed from the world oil market.
投稿者: finalvent (8月 28, 2004 10:13 午前)
- - -
SUDAN'S FM TO VISIT JAPAN
Sept 5-9 for talks on Darfur crisis
TOKYO, Aug 27, 2004 (Kyodo) -- Sudanese Foreign Minister Mustafa Osman Ismail will visit Japan Sept 5-9 for talks on the conflict in the African nation's Darfur region, ministry sources said Friday.
- - -
U.N. SUDAN MISSION
Under preparation in Vienna
VIENNA, Aug 26, 2004 (dpa) -- A sensitive U.N. mission to Sudan is presently being prepared by Austria and 13 other countries, the newspaper Die Presse said on Thursday.
Sudan's FM to visit Japan Sep 5-9 for talks on Darfur crisis
Over the past few days I have set up two more blogs: Congo Watch and Uganda Watch -- and copied over several of my posts from the Passion into Sudan Watch blog. They are my new electronic filing cabinets so this main blog does not get swamped with posts about Africa. Also, my blog A Breath of Hope, I am keeping for posts on M.E.
I've installed sitemeters but not inserted any links in the sidebars. In time to come, I hope to have all of the blogs in the same style as this one -- after it has had a few new tweaks. I'd like the font slightly larger, the text column slightly broader and the whole page wider and more in the centre of the screen - and the blue highlights to links toned down. On my screen, this blog sits to the far left of the page - the other half of my screen is blank. Other blogs fill the whole screen.
Setting up these blogs has taken time. And been a little hard going, because a friend -- who thinks what I am doing re Sudan is a complete waste of time -- told me again yesterday to forget about the Sudan and concentrate on something that is achievable. I don't have proof -- but believe what we are doing has had an effect. Exactly what, is too long to go into here right now. Have to leave it for another day. Note this article that wonders how Darfur and not Congo got all the attention - it is entitled "Scramble for Resources in DRC Leads to Massive Deaths, But Scant Attention".
Well here's some proof that blogging about the Sudan is not a total waste of time: a few days ago I received an email from a chap in America who teaches world history -- asking for permission to use some of the Sudan material in my main blog. He wanted to use it for teaching his students. I wrote back encouraging him and his students to start a blog where they could post their project material -- it would be a fun way for them to learn and hone computing skills. He replied saying he would look into starting a blog.
- - -
Warm thanks to Nick for leaving a comment here advising that September 6 is International Sudanese Peace MeetUp day. Nick has written a neat post on Google talking. I played around with Google talk: keyed in 'Passion of the Present' which came up with: sudan The song Sudan; my name brought up Political Science; Nick's name produced Student's Guide. Heh. Ophelia got "New York County, Government agencies and other Voices".
Here below is a copy of a comment I left at Finalvent - together with news that Sudan's FM Ismail is to visit Japan Sept 5-9 for talks on the Darfur crisis (which means he'll be in Japan on the International Sudanese Peace day: September 6) - and Finalvent's response.
- - -
Hello finalvent, I found your blog in the sidebar at Passion of the Present. Thought you might like to see a copy, here below, of a report in the Sudan Tribune today. Also, someone just emailed me to say Meetup.com is reporting September 6 is International Sudanese Peace Meetup day... I don't know if it's coordinated by another group or this is just a monthly, smaller event. I'll treat Sept 6 as a global "virtual" meetup day and aim to do a post that links to you in Japan from England and to Passion of the Present in the USA and other blogs I know of in Canada, Australia, Malaysia. What about China and Russia -- do you know of any bloggers writing about the Sudan there? If I link to you, will you know via Technorati? Seems the bloggers in Malaysia don't get the pings when I link to them. Best wishes from England, UK.
- - -
Hello, Ingrid-san. Thank you for your comment. I think that your suggestion is worth to be read by many Japanese people. I translated it roughly on the new entry.
As you know Japan now seems to hold more than three millions of bloggers (incredible!). Blog communication infrastructure in Japan is ready to easily catch RSS/ATOM, though some ping servers would not work well.
I referred your blog RSS/ATOM:
http://meandophelia.blogspot.com/rss/meandophelia.xml
Since May or June, Japanese journalism began informing Darfur genocide. But Japanese political situation inside is complicated. Human right aware people in Japan seem to be divided into several groups: the major poles are U.S. accepting group and China supporting group. The china group is, I guess, an obstacle for Japanese contribution for Darfur people. They pay too much attention in favor of china national interests. China is suspected to support the Sudan government, hoping to make strong tie to be suppleid with PETROLUEM bypassed from the world oil market.
投稿者: finalvent (8月 28, 2004 10:13 午前)
- - -
SUDAN'S FM TO VISIT JAPAN
Sept 5-9 for talks on Darfur crisis
TOKYO, Aug 27, 2004 (Kyodo) -- Sudanese Foreign Minister Mustafa Osman Ismail will visit Japan Sept 5-9 for talks on the conflict in the African nation's Darfur region, ministry sources said Friday.
- - -
U.N. SUDAN MISSION
Under preparation in Vienna
VIENNA, Aug 26, 2004 (dpa) -- A sensitive U.N. mission to Sudan is presently being prepared by Austria and 13 other countries, the newspaper Die Presse said on Thursday.
# posted by Ingrid J. Jones @ 8/29/2004
0 comments
Friday, August 27, 2004
ON A DARK DESERT HIGHWAY
Cool wind in my hair...
Here outside below is a huge truck unloading sound systems. It's a band -- well known for its Eagles tribute. Hey. If I keep my window open tonight, I'll get to hear live Eagles songs. Welcome to the Hotel California -- you can check out any time you like, but you can never leave ...
Mirrors on the ceiling
Pink champagne on ice
And she said
We are all just prisoners here
Of our own device
And in the master's chambers
They gathered for the feast
They stab it with their steely knives
But they just can't kill the beast
Last thing I remember
I was running for the door
I had to find the passage back to the place I was before
Relax said the nightman
We are programed to receive
You can check out any time you like
But you can never leave
We twenty and thirty somethings in Las Vegas sure understood those lyrics. And Willie Nelson's Stardust album -- we wore out. Can't explain here right now. These are notes to myself for a later date. If I listed every song I can think of, each one would trigger memories of times, people, places and events that I could blog about - at a later date.
If only I could get just 20% more energy, maybe I'd be up to it. Sure, I can manage emotive posts on the Sudan. But posts about myself, before I became ill, stir up reminders of the person I used to be, up until five years ago, and are in stark contrast to the person I am now - and make me realise I don't recognise myself anymore - or know who I am. Hopes and dreams - and the rest of my life - disappeared. So it is best that I let sleeping dogs lay. For now.
Welcome to the Hotel California
Such a lovely Place
Such a lovely Place (background)
Such a lovely face
They're livin' it up at the Hotel California
What a nice surprise
What a nice surprise (background)
Bring your alibies
Cool wind in my hair...
Here outside below is a huge truck unloading sound systems. It's a band -- well known for its Eagles tribute. Hey. If I keep my window open tonight, I'll get to hear live Eagles songs. Welcome to the Hotel California -- you can check out any time you like, but you can never leave ...
Mirrors on the ceiling
Pink champagne on ice
And she said
We are all just prisoners here
Of our own device
And in the master's chambers
They gathered for the feast
They stab it with their steely knives
But they just can't kill the beast
Last thing I remember
I was running for the door
I had to find the passage back to the place I was before
Relax said the nightman
We are programed to receive
You can check out any time you like
But you can never leave
We twenty and thirty somethings in Las Vegas sure understood those lyrics. And Willie Nelson's Stardust album -- we wore out. Can't explain here right now. These are notes to myself for a later date. If I listed every song I can think of, each one would trigger memories of times, people, places and events that I could blog about - at a later date.
If only I could get just 20% more energy, maybe I'd be up to it. Sure, I can manage emotive posts on the Sudan. But posts about myself, before I became ill, stir up reminders of the person I used to be, up until five years ago, and are in stark contrast to the person I am now - and make me realise I don't recognise myself anymore - or know who I am. Hopes and dreams - and the rest of my life - disappeared. So it is best that I let sleeping dogs lay. For now.
Welcome to the Hotel California
Such a lovely Place
Such a lovely Place (background)
Such a lovely face
They're livin' it up at the Hotel California
What a nice surprise
What a nice surprise (background)
Bring your alibies
# posted by Ingrid J. Jones @ 8/27/2004
0 comments
Wednesday, August 25, 2004
SUDAN: WHY NOT IMPOSE AN OIL EMBARGO?
Chinese FM discusses Sudan with US, Russian, French counterparts
At Sudan Watch and Passion of the Present today, I have posted an extraordinary and dynamite report on sanctions by the Washington Post. I've spent all day composing posts and emails. Laptop is red hot. So are my eyes. Must take a rest break. And catch up on what my blogmates are writing. I'll add to this post on oil and sanctions in the next day or two.
- - -
AUGUST 25 DAY OF CONSCIENCE FOR SUDAN
MeetUps being held across America
Today, August 25, in America is Sudan Day of Conscience. MeetUps for Sudan peace supporters are taking place across America.
To join in the effort, I have published several posts at the American site Passion of the Present, sharing news of UK Foreign Secretary Jack Straw's visit to Khartoum, the British Government's policy on Sudan and what others are saying. Also to mark the day, the posts will appear later in my Sudan Watch blog.
- - -
At the moment, as I'm blogging, it's 20:56 at night. Beatles song "She Loves You" is playing outside -- in the distance -- out to sea -- in a nearby venue -- it's special Beatles show -- yay -- I'm opening the windows to hear better.
Amazing sight right now. Pitch dark in here because I haven't switched on any lights yet. Just the light of laptop screen shining into my face. If I look up, above the lid, I see a glistening black sea stretching out to the horizon into a dark inky blue sky. A three quarter shiny gold moon is hanging half way above the sea -- straight in front of me. It's warm out. I can hear a people laughing in the distance -- sea waves rolling on the shore -- no traffic sounds. Ticket to Ride is playing -- brings back a lot of memories ... Makes me want a glass of wine and a cig and to be with people.
Roll Over Beethoven is playing right now. It's a live band. Rockabilly -- giving the tunes a neat twist. Sounds pretty good. Wonder who they are. I can feel the atmosphere from here. Here comes: "All My Loving" I will send to you.... Now they're playing: "With Love From Me To You" ... hey I'm old enough to know all the lyrics :)
Now I'm foot tapping and nodding along to Eight Days A Week -- and Love Love Me Do... Ophelia looks at me funny when I sing. Ah yes, those were the days, twisting around in my mini skirt, hotpants and thigh length black shiny boots -- Heh Nick, I'll write about my Mary Quant Super Sweeper Eyelashes one day :)
- - -
SONG FOR SUDAN
Read the lyrics here
Warm thanks to Doug at Quadrophrenia for posting the lyrics of Song for Sudan.
Chinese FM discusses Sudan with US, Russian, French counterparts
At Sudan Watch and Passion of the Present today, I have posted an extraordinary and dynamite report on sanctions by the Washington Post. I've spent all day composing posts and emails. Laptop is red hot. So are my eyes. Must take a rest break. And catch up on what my blogmates are writing. I'll add to this post on oil and sanctions in the next day or two.
- - -
AUGUST 25 DAY OF CONSCIENCE FOR SUDAN
MeetUps being held across America
Today, August 25, in America is Sudan Day of Conscience. MeetUps for Sudan peace supporters are taking place across America.
To join in the effort, I have published several posts at the American site Passion of the Present, sharing news of UK Foreign Secretary Jack Straw's visit to Khartoum, the British Government's policy on Sudan and what others are saying. Also to mark the day, the posts will appear later in my Sudan Watch blog.
- - -
At the moment, as I'm blogging, it's 20:56 at night. Beatles song "She Loves You" is playing outside -- in the distance -- out to sea -- in a nearby venue -- it's special Beatles show -- yay -- I'm opening the windows to hear better.
Amazing sight right now. Pitch dark in here because I haven't switched on any lights yet. Just the light of laptop screen shining into my face. If I look up, above the lid, I see a glistening black sea stretching out to the horizon into a dark inky blue sky. A three quarter shiny gold moon is hanging half way above the sea -- straight in front of me. It's warm out. I can hear a people laughing in the distance -- sea waves rolling on the shore -- no traffic sounds. Ticket to Ride is playing -- brings back a lot of memories ... Makes me want a glass of wine and a cig and to be with people.
Roll Over Beethoven is playing right now. It's a live band. Rockabilly -- giving the tunes a neat twist. Sounds pretty good. Wonder who they are. I can feel the atmosphere from here. Here comes: "All My Loving" I will send to you.... Now they're playing: "With Love From Me To You" ... hey I'm old enough to know all the lyrics :)
Now I'm foot tapping and nodding along to Eight Days A Week -- and Love Love Me Do... Ophelia looks at me funny when I sing. Ah yes, those were the days, twisting around in my mini skirt, hotpants and thigh length black shiny boots -- Heh Nick, I'll write about my Mary Quant Super Sweeper Eyelashes one day :)
- - -
SONG FOR SUDAN
Read the lyrics here
Warm thanks to Doug at Quadrophrenia for posting the lyrics of Song for Sudan.
# posted by Ingrid J. Jones @ 8/25/2004
0 comments
Monday, August 23, 2004
POWERFUL IMAGE OF A DYING CHILD OF DARFUR
A mother held her ill daughter at a Doctors Without Borders MSF clinic near Nyala, Sudan, where violence and disease are killing tens of thousands.
Photo credit: Evelyn Hockstein/Polaris/CARE. Copyright 2004 The New York Times Company
Excerpt from the Passion of the Present: "Bich Ngoc Cao, artist and activist, has been working to assemble images of Darfur as a way of mobilizing action to stop the genocide. Bich Ngoc has sifted through many images.
The single most compelling image is that of a dying child, which was featured in a front page story on Sudan in the Sunday New York Times on July 18, 2004. Above is the image, one of many made by photographer Evelyn Hockstein.
Bich Ncog Cao attempted to license non-commercial rights to this image because she believes this image will make a difference to Sudan if it is very widely seen.
Other images have changed the consciousness of the world. Remember how the anti-Apartied movement in South Africa was galvanized by the photo from Soweto of a dead boy in the arms of a caring crowd?
CARE--the organization--refused to license us the rights to this photo because they argue that the photo is too graphic and the child, being naked, is too exposed. Our own view is that genocide itself is too graphic, and its victims too exposed. And in any case, this image has already graced the cover of the Sunday New York Times, with a circulation of well over a million copies in physical form, and the image is available now at the New York Times online.
If you happen to know Evelyn Hockstein or others at CARE, Jim would appreciate your help in urging them to see their way clear to license the image to us. On the other hand, if you think we are going too far in wanting to circulate this image widely, let us hear from you, too. Thanks for your help."
- - -
BRITISH GOVERNMENT BEHIND AFRICAN TROOPS
Britain stands ready to provide further assistance if necessary
Sudan is a former British protectorate. Britain is the world's largest cash donor, and the second-largest contributor of aid, to Sudan. It's historic ties with Sudan stretch back more than a century to when the region was under British control.
Today, British Foreign Secretary Jack Straw is on his way to Sudan to pile pressure on Khartoum. On leaving Heathrow Airport, he told reporters that the Sudanese government would "face the opprobrium of the world" if it failed to rein in the Arab Janjaweed militia by the UN security council deadline of August 30. His trip has been planned since July 22, 2004.
Rest of the story is at my new blog Sudan Watch. Note I published a copy of the full post at Passion of the Present today where there are updates on the AU and peace talks being held today in Nigeria.
A mother held her ill daughter at a Doctors Without Borders MSF clinic near Nyala, Sudan, where violence and disease are killing tens of thousands.
Photo credit: Evelyn Hockstein/Polaris/CARE. Copyright 2004 The New York Times Company
Excerpt from the Passion of the Present: "Bich Ngoc Cao, artist and activist, has been working to assemble images of Darfur as a way of mobilizing action to stop the genocide. Bich Ngoc has sifted through many images.
The single most compelling image is that of a dying child, which was featured in a front page story on Sudan in the Sunday New York Times on July 18, 2004. Above is the image, one of many made by photographer Evelyn Hockstein.
Bich Ncog Cao attempted to license non-commercial rights to this image because she believes this image will make a difference to Sudan if it is very widely seen.
Other images have changed the consciousness of the world. Remember how the anti-Apartied movement in South Africa was galvanized by the photo from Soweto of a dead boy in the arms of a caring crowd?
CARE--the organization--refused to license us the rights to this photo because they argue that the photo is too graphic and the child, being naked, is too exposed. Our own view is that genocide itself is too graphic, and its victims too exposed. And in any case, this image has already graced the cover of the Sunday New York Times, with a circulation of well over a million copies in physical form, and the image is available now at the New York Times online.
If you happen to know Evelyn Hockstein or others at CARE, Jim would appreciate your help in urging them to see their way clear to license the image to us. On the other hand, if you think we are going too far in wanting to circulate this image widely, let us hear from you, too. Thanks for your help."
- - -
BRITISH GOVERNMENT BEHIND AFRICAN TROOPS
Britain stands ready to provide further assistance if necessary
Sudan is a former British protectorate. Britain is the world's largest cash donor, and the second-largest contributor of aid, to Sudan. It's historic ties with Sudan stretch back more than a century to when the region was under British control.
Today, British Foreign Secretary Jack Straw is on his way to Sudan to pile pressure on Khartoum. On leaving Heathrow Airport, he told reporters that the Sudanese government would "face the opprobrium of the world" if it failed to rein in the Arab Janjaweed militia by the UN security council deadline of August 30. His trip has been planned since July 22, 2004.
Rest of the story is at my new blog Sudan Watch. Note I published a copy of the full post at Passion of the Present today where there are updates on the AU and peace talks being held today in Nigeria.
# posted by Ingrid J. Jones @ 8/23/2004
0 comments
Sunday, August 22, 2004
BRING TOGETHER ONLINE AND OFFLINE
Worlds and Communities
This post has taken me three days to complete. Today, out of necessity, I started up a third blog called Sudan Watch for my future posts on the Sudan. And my second new blog, "A Breath of Hope", I have now renamed Africa Aid Watch for my posts on the U.N. and aid agencies.
BlogSpots are still free of charge through Blogger.com. Unsure how it will all work out, but I needed to do something about my posts on the Sudan because they've overwhelmed my personal blog here for the past four months. Eventually, I hope to have all three in the same style as here, so the other two will look like categories within this blog.
Yesterday, I sent an email to each of the three contact names given at a UK site called Western Sudan Development Agency. Below is a copy of the email. One of the emails, with a hotmail address for Adam Down, has been returned to me as undeliverable. Hopefully, the other two got through OK.
Note: just as I was about to publish this post, I saw Jim's latest post "Bring together online and offline worlds and communities" that inspired me to change the title of this post.
Email to: Adam Down, Abubaker Rashid and Bakhit Fodoul
Date: August 21, 2004
Subject: Sudan: Day of Conscience - MeetUps across America on Wednesday August 25, 2004 by Sudan Peace Supporters
Hello to all at the Western Sudan Development Agency,
Today, while searching the Internet for the latest UK government news on Sudan, I found your website Western Sudan Development Agency.
As you are probably aware, UK Foreign Secretary Jack Straw is due visit Khartoum on Monday (Aug 23) for a meeting with government of Sudan - and on Tuesday (Aug 24) will visit Darfur (Mr Straw's plans to visit Sudan were first announced on July 22) - and so this is a critical time coming up and another opportunity to make our voices - from around the world - heard to put pressure on governments to intervene in Sudan.
Your site caught my eye because I have a personal weblog that I use to raise awareness of the plight of the Sudanese people in Darfur and Chad. I have published almost daily on the situation, since April 24 when I picked up on news of the genocide and ethnic cleansing in Darfur from Jim Moore's Journal out of Harvard in Boston, Mass, USA.
My weblog is called ME AND OPHELIA and can be found at http://meandophelia.blogspot.com
Jim is an American academic living near Boston and his weblog can be found at http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/jim/
Back in April, Jim and friends started a weblog on Sudan called "The Passion of the Present" at http://passionofthepresent.org
If you read Jim's recent posts, you will see that MeetUps are being organised by Sudan peace supporters across America.
The date for the MeetUps is Wednesday August 25, 2004.
"Sudan Day of Conscience" is next week, in just 4 days time. This day can make a difference as it comes: the day after Mr Straw meets with GoS and visits Darfur; 1 day before the United Nations (UN) meets to consider Sudan; and 3 days before the US Republican Convention (the party of President Bush).
At the Passion of the Present, people across America are being invited to respond by inventing an action to post at SaveDarfur.org Note the sidebar on the right where you will see a "Sudanese Peace MeetUp" button saying "Meet other Sudan peace supporters, let's make this happen!"
Unfortunately I am unable to participate in the MeetUps. I am located in Dorset, England, UK.
However, since Jim recently invited me to co-author the Passion of the Present, there is a chance I could contribute to the "Sudanese Peace MeetUps" by publicising news of your meeting for Darfur people that is scheduled to take place on August 26, 2004, in Birmingham, England.
Therefore, I am hoping someone at "Western Sudan Development Agency" would be willing to email me news of your work. It would be interesting to receive any news on Darfur - out of the UK or Europe - that I can share with my readers - and those at Passion of the Present in America (readers are from all over the world who also have weblogs).
I note from a recent news item from getreading,co.uk (see copy below) that Mr Ibrahim Hashim, 28, of Avon Place, who comes from Darfur, works for the Western Sudan Development Agency which is putting pressure on governments to intervene in Sudan. The item explains that Mr Hashim, who estimates there are 200 Sudanese living in Reading, England, called on people from the town to join him and other campaigners on a march from the Sudanese Embassy to 10 Downing Street last Friday. I would be most interested to receive and share your news and efforts to put pressure on governments to intervene in Sudan -- along with any other news, personal stories, photos - anything you think may prove helpful in raising awareness. Please don't worry if they are just scrap notes in an email - I can write around them and pull something together for publishing in my weblog and at the Passion of the Present.
Please forgive me if I have addressed you in this email incorrectly. Your website gives three contact names and addresses so, in order to be sure that this reaches at least one person, I am sending the same message, in separate emails, to each of you in the hope of an early reply. I would be most grateful if you could please pass on a copy of this email to Mr Ibrahim Hashim as I would be interested to know how he and other campaigners got on last Friday, along with any other news he might like to share.
With best wishes --
PS Below is a copy of the online report "Help Stop Sudan horror", followed by a copy of Jim's post at his Journal entitled "Please help, SOS for next Wednesday August 25:
HELP STOP SUDAN HORROR - Join protest march or donate cash
THE horrific images of Darfur may be a distant news story for most, but for one Newtown man the humanitarian disaster is all too close to home.
Ibrahim Hashim’s mother and two sisters are among the black Africans forced from their homes in Darfur, Western Sudan by Arab militia – the Janjaweed.
His mother is in a refugee camp in neighbouring Chad and his two sisters have also been forced from their homes and are living near her.
Mr Hashim, 28, of Avon Place, who comes from the region himself, has told the Evening Post of the refuges, famine, disease and terrible attacks inflicted there.
He said: “My mother is now in a refugee camp in Chad. I was able to talk to her on a satellite phone a few weeks ago.
“I also have two sisters who had to leave Darfur and are living near my mother in Chad.
“There are many reports of the Janjaweed militia raping black African women to humiliate them.
“My mother, who is 62, told me of an 82-year-old woman she knew who had been raped.”
He added: “I don’t want to say too much about my family, because everyone from Darfur living in this country has lost a member of their family.
"I have been told of people being bombed when they were out in the fields looking after their cattle.
“I know of a family – a father, mother and their little daughters – who were tied together and made to watch while their oldest daughter was raped.
“I know of another family whose two sons were killed before their eyes when they tried to stop the Arab militia men from raping their sister.”
Mr Hashim works for the Western Sudan Development Agency, which is putting pressure on governments to intervene in Sudan.
The Sudanese government in Khartoum has been accused of making the situation in Darfur worse by allowing the Janjaweed a free hand to ethnically-cleanse the area of black Africans.
Mr Hashim, who estimates there are 200 Sudanese living in Reading, has called on people from the town to join him and other campaigners on a march from the Sudanese Embassy to 10 Downing Street on Friday.
The protest march begins at 11am and anyone interested in taking part should contact Mr Hashim on (0118) 926 3801 or 07946 031 621.
He also urged people in Reading to give cash to the Red Cross and Oxfam for humanitarian aid for the people of Darfur.
- - -
SUDANESE AUSTRALIANS RALLY FOR DARFUR
Here is a copy of a report from Australia dated August 22:
Members of Melbourne's Sudanese community have rallied, calling for the immediate dispatch of an international peacekeeping force to Darfur in western Sudan.
About 100 protesters said the international community has been too slow to act on stopping Arab militias from killing thousands and driving a million black Africans from their homes in the western state.
The chairman of the Sudanese community in Australia, Ezekiel Arop, says they want the Australian federal Government to play its part in putting more pressure on the Sudanese Government to stop the violence.
So far, only a small contingent of 300 African Union troops have gone into Darfur to protect international observers and Mr Arop says only an international force will stop genocide similar to that which happened in Rwanda ten years ago.
"We are arguing for more, not just the African because we don't want what happened in Rwanda to be repeated again in Darfur and what happened in the South Sudan."
Another community member, Elhafiz Adal, says the international community is acting too slowly to help refugees fleeing to camps in Chad.
"Whenever we act so slowly people are dying and we know people are dying right now, so we need people to act more quickly.
"There are also people who have got stranded in the jungles, in deserts and in mountains and there is no way of making it to neighbouring countries, so their situation is much worse."
- - -
Note: over the past few days, I've found some great UK blogs while searching for Sudan news out of the UK, and have put some in my sidebar for reading on a regular basis, ie:
The Social Affairs Unit - Weblog
Downing Street Says
Chris Lightfoot
- - -
SEVEN DAYS BEFORE THE UN SECURITY COUNCIL
Resumes Consideration of Darfur -
The Grim Political Realities and Prospects
Any time now, British Foreign Secretary Jack Straw is due to arrive in Khartoum for meetings tomorrow (Monday).
Peace talks between Khartoum and the two rebel groups are also scheduled for Monday -- in Nigeria. Looks like Sudan's President Bashir won't be in Nigeria. Arab League (and possibly Libya and Egypt) are expected to sit in on the talks as observers, which is good that everyone gets to hear the same information, at the same time.
Mr Straw is due to visit Northern Darfur on Tuesday. The Governor of Darfur has been receiving quite a few foreign visitors -- Belgium visited sometime during the past few days.
The rebels are still holding out in Darfur. They estimate there are 600,000 civilians living in the areas under their control and surviving by grubbing around for food. On August 10, the UN said the two rebel groups in Darfur agreed to allow vaccination of up to a 500,000 children trapped behind rebel lines. The rebels use satellite phones to keep in touch with what is going on and say they stay glued to BBC radio reports in Arabic. Reports out today confirm that aid is being air dropped into Darfur.
On August 4, In an interview with Islam Online, the Janjaweed Leader was quoted as saying: “If disarmament is not all-encompassing, nobody will care,” he told IOL. “It makes no sense to disarm and leave us all by ourselves, facing bloody revenge sprees and ethnic cleansing.”
Tomorrow, at the talks in Khartoum and Nigeria, hopefully the issue of aid will be top of the agenda. Note my new blog Africa Aid Watch that logs recent UN delays and failures to reach at least 50% of those who are most in need.
Yesterday, John Prendergast, from the International Crisis Group criticized the international community for providing less than half of a March U.N. appeal for $350 million in humanitarian aid for Darfur, and for acting too slowly to stop Darfur's death toll from mounting. "As high-level officials from all over the world continue to talk very passionately, but act very timidly in Darfur, the Darfurian people continue to perish. And we're going to see those numbers increase dramatically," he added. In this report he calls for other measures if Security Council is blocked.
For the latest run down on the Sudan crisis please read Sudan expert Professor Eric Reeves' August 19, 2004 report entitled: "Ten Days Before the UN Security Council Resumes Consideration of Darfur: The Grim Political Realities and Prospects".
When reading Prof Reeves' report, it may feel like a train rushing headlong at you but sadly what he writes is true and is a must-read for anyone who has influence in politics and the media.
Grimly, the report concludes with these words: "A response adequate to the genocidal destruction that has occurred in Darfur, and is so clearly in prospect, seems nowhere in sight. This is "darkness visible."
In an effort to raise awareness in the UK re Wednesday's "Sudan Day of Conscience", I am pinging this post - via Technorati - to the below listed UK bloggers in the hope that they will read Dr Reeves' report. Thanks to everyone - sorry to bug you again.
Clive Soley MP
Tom Watson MP
Richard Allan MP
Alistair Coleman
Clive Summerfield
Tim Ireland
David Taylor
Norman Geras
Melanie Phillips (on holiday)
Councillor Bob Piper
Stephen Pollard
Gavin Sheridan
AndrewSullivan
Note: for the latest news developments on the Sudan please tune in to Jim Moore and friends at Passion of the Present blog out of Harvard in Boston, Mass, USA.
Worlds and Communities
This post has taken me three days to complete. Today, out of necessity, I started up a third blog called Sudan Watch for my future posts on the Sudan. And my second new blog, "A Breath of Hope", I have now renamed Africa Aid Watch for my posts on the U.N. and aid agencies.
BlogSpots are still free of charge through Blogger.com. Unsure how it will all work out, but I needed to do something about my posts on the Sudan because they've overwhelmed my personal blog here for the past four months. Eventually, I hope to have all three in the same style as here, so the other two will look like categories within this blog.
Yesterday, I sent an email to each of the three contact names given at a UK site called Western Sudan Development Agency. Below is a copy of the email. One of the emails, with a hotmail address for Adam Down, has been returned to me as undeliverable. Hopefully, the other two got through OK.
Note: just as I was about to publish this post, I saw Jim's latest post "Bring together online and offline worlds and communities" that inspired me to change the title of this post.
Email to: Adam Down, Abubaker Rashid and Bakhit Fodoul
Date: August 21, 2004
Subject: Sudan: Day of Conscience - MeetUps across America on Wednesday August 25, 2004 by Sudan Peace Supporters
Hello to all at the Western Sudan Development Agency,
Today, while searching the Internet for the latest UK government news on Sudan, I found your website Western Sudan Development Agency.
As you are probably aware, UK Foreign Secretary Jack Straw is due visit Khartoum on Monday (Aug 23) for a meeting with government of Sudan - and on Tuesday (Aug 24) will visit Darfur (Mr Straw's plans to visit Sudan were first announced on July 22) - and so this is a critical time coming up and another opportunity to make our voices - from around the world - heard to put pressure on governments to intervene in Sudan.
Your site caught my eye because I have a personal weblog that I use to raise awareness of the plight of the Sudanese people in Darfur and Chad. I have published almost daily on the situation, since April 24 when I picked up on news of the genocide and ethnic cleansing in Darfur from Jim Moore's Journal out of Harvard in Boston, Mass, USA.
My weblog is called ME AND OPHELIA and can be found at http://meandophelia.blogspot.com
Jim is an American academic living near Boston and his weblog can be found at http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/jim/
Back in April, Jim and friends started a weblog on Sudan called "The Passion of the Present" at http://passionofthepresent.org
If you read Jim's recent posts, you will see that MeetUps are being organised by Sudan peace supporters across America.
The date for the MeetUps is Wednesday August 25, 2004.
"Sudan Day of Conscience" is next week, in just 4 days time. This day can make a difference as it comes: the day after Mr Straw meets with GoS and visits Darfur; 1 day before the United Nations (UN) meets to consider Sudan; and 3 days before the US Republican Convention (the party of President Bush).
At the Passion of the Present, people across America are being invited to respond by inventing an action to post at SaveDarfur.org Note the sidebar on the right where you will see a "Sudanese Peace MeetUp" button saying "Meet other Sudan peace supporters, let's make this happen!"
Unfortunately I am unable to participate in the MeetUps. I am located in Dorset, England, UK.
However, since Jim recently invited me to co-author the Passion of the Present, there is a chance I could contribute to the "Sudanese Peace MeetUps" by publicising news of your meeting for Darfur people that is scheduled to take place on August 26, 2004, in Birmingham, England.
Therefore, I am hoping someone at "Western Sudan Development Agency" would be willing to email me news of your work. It would be interesting to receive any news on Darfur - out of the UK or Europe - that I can share with my readers - and those at Passion of the Present in America (readers are from all over the world who also have weblogs).
I note from a recent news item from getreading,co.uk (see copy below) that Mr Ibrahim Hashim, 28, of Avon Place, who comes from Darfur, works for the Western Sudan Development Agency which is putting pressure on governments to intervene in Sudan. The item explains that Mr Hashim, who estimates there are 200 Sudanese living in Reading, England, called on people from the town to join him and other campaigners on a march from the Sudanese Embassy to 10 Downing Street last Friday. I would be most interested to receive and share your news and efforts to put pressure on governments to intervene in Sudan -- along with any other news, personal stories, photos - anything you think may prove helpful in raising awareness. Please don't worry if they are just scrap notes in an email - I can write around them and pull something together for publishing in my weblog and at the Passion of the Present.
Please forgive me if I have addressed you in this email incorrectly. Your website gives three contact names and addresses so, in order to be sure that this reaches at least one person, I am sending the same message, in separate emails, to each of you in the hope of an early reply. I would be most grateful if you could please pass on a copy of this email to Mr Ibrahim Hashim as I would be interested to know how he and other campaigners got on last Friday, along with any other news he might like to share.
With best wishes --
PS Below is a copy of the online report "Help Stop Sudan horror", followed by a copy of Jim's post at his Journal entitled "Please help, SOS for next Wednesday August 25:
HELP STOP SUDAN HORROR - Join protest march or donate cash
THE horrific images of Darfur may be a distant news story for most, but for one Newtown man the humanitarian disaster is all too close to home.
Ibrahim Hashim’s mother and two sisters are among the black Africans forced from their homes in Darfur, Western Sudan by Arab militia – the Janjaweed.
His mother is in a refugee camp in neighbouring Chad and his two sisters have also been forced from their homes and are living near her.
Mr Hashim, 28, of Avon Place, who comes from the region himself, has told the Evening Post of the refuges, famine, disease and terrible attacks inflicted there.
He said: “My mother is now in a refugee camp in Chad. I was able to talk to her on a satellite phone a few weeks ago.
“I also have two sisters who had to leave Darfur and are living near my mother in Chad.
“There are many reports of the Janjaweed militia raping black African women to humiliate them.
“My mother, who is 62, told me of an 82-year-old woman she knew who had been raped.”
He added: “I don’t want to say too much about my family, because everyone from Darfur living in this country has lost a member of their family.
"I have been told of people being bombed when they were out in the fields looking after their cattle.
“I know of a family – a father, mother and their little daughters – who were tied together and made to watch while their oldest daughter was raped.
“I know of another family whose two sons were killed before their eyes when they tried to stop the Arab militia men from raping their sister.”
Mr Hashim works for the Western Sudan Development Agency, which is putting pressure on governments to intervene in Sudan.
The Sudanese government in Khartoum has been accused of making the situation in Darfur worse by allowing the Janjaweed a free hand to ethnically-cleanse the area of black Africans.
Mr Hashim, who estimates there are 200 Sudanese living in Reading, has called on people from the town to join him and other campaigners on a march from the Sudanese Embassy to 10 Downing Street on Friday.
The protest march begins at 11am and anyone interested in taking part should contact Mr Hashim on (0118) 926 3801 or 07946 031 621.
He also urged people in Reading to give cash to the Red Cross and Oxfam for humanitarian aid for the people of Darfur.
- - -
SUDANESE AUSTRALIANS RALLY FOR DARFUR
Here is a copy of a report from Australia dated August 22:
Members of Melbourne's Sudanese community have rallied, calling for the immediate dispatch of an international peacekeeping force to Darfur in western Sudan.
About 100 protesters said the international community has been too slow to act on stopping Arab militias from killing thousands and driving a million black Africans from their homes in the western state.
The chairman of the Sudanese community in Australia, Ezekiel Arop, says they want the Australian federal Government to play its part in putting more pressure on the Sudanese Government to stop the violence.
So far, only a small contingent of 300 African Union troops have gone into Darfur to protect international observers and Mr Arop says only an international force will stop genocide similar to that which happened in Rwanda ten years ago.
"We are arguing for more, not just the African because we don't want what happened in Rwanda to be repeated again in Darfur and what happened in the South Sudan."
Another community member, Elhafiz Adal, says the international community is acting too slowly to help refugees fleeing to camps in Chad.
"Whenever we act so slowly people are dying and we know people are dying right now, so we need people to act more quickly.
"There are also people who have got stranded in the jungles, in deserts and in mountains and there is no way of making it to neighbouring countries, so their situation is much worse."
- - -
Note: over the past few days, I've found some great UK blogs while searching for Sudan news out of the UK, and have put some in my sidebar for reading on a regular basis, ie:
The Social Affairs Unit - Weblog
Downing Street Says
Chris Lightfoot
- - -
SEVEN DAYS BEFORE THE UN SECURITY COUNCIL
Resumes Consideration of Darfur -
The Grim Political Realities and Prospects
Any time now, British Foreign Secretary Jack Straw is due to arrive in Khartoum for meetings tomorrow (Monday).
Peace talks between Khartoum and the two rebel groups are also scheduled for Monday -- in Nigeria. Looks like Sudan's President Bashir won't be in Nigeria. Arab League (and possibly Libya and Egypt) are expected to sit in on the talks as observers, which is good that everyone gets to hear the same information, at the same time.
Mr Straw is due to visit Northern Darfur on Tuesday. The Governor of Darfur has been receiving quite a few foreign visitors -- Belgium visited sometime during the past few days.
The rebels are still holding out in Darfur. They estimate there are 600,000 civilians living in the areas under their control and surviving by grubbing around for food. On August 10, the UN said the two rebel groups in Darfur agreed to allow vaccination of up to a 500,000 children trapped behind rebel lines. The rebels use satellite phones to keep in touch with what is going on and say they stay glued to BBC radio reports in Arabic. Reports out today confirm that aid is being air dropped into Darfur.
On August 4, In an interview with Islam Online, the Janjaweed Leader was quoted as saying: “If disarmament is not all-encompassing, nobody will care,” he told IOL. “It makes no sense to disarm and leave us all by ourselves, facing bloody revenge sprees and ethnic cleansing.”
Tomorrow, at the talks in Khartoum and Nigeria, hopefully the issue of aid will be top of the agenda. Note my new blog Africa Aid Watch that logs recent UN delays and failures to reach at least 50% of those who are most in need.
Yesterday, John Prendergast, from the International Crisis Group criticized the international community for providing less than half of a March U.N. appeal for $350 million in humanitarian aid for Darfur, and for acting too slowly to stop Darfur's death toll from mounting. "As high-level officials from all over the world continue to talk very passionately, but act very timidly in Darfur, the Darfurian people continue to perish. And we're going to see those numbers increase dramatically," he added. In this report he calls for other measures if Security Council is blocked.
For the latest run down on the Sudan crisis please read Sudan expert Professor Eric Reeves' August 19, 2004 report entitled: "Ten Days Before the UN Security Council Resumes Consideration of Darfur: The Grim Political Realities and Prospects".
When reading Prof Reeves' report, it may feel like a train rushing headlong at you but sadly what he writes is true and is a must-read for anyone who has influence in politics and the media.
Grimly, the report concludes with these words: "A response adequate to the genocidal destruction that has occurred in Darfur, and is so clearly in prospect, seems nowhere in sight. This is "darkness visible."
In an effort to raise awareness in the UK re Wednesday's "Sudan Day of Conscience", I am pinging this post - via Technorati - to the below listed UK bloggers in the hope that they will read Dr Reeves' report. Thanks to everyone - sorry to bug you again.
Clive Soley MP
Tom Watson MP
Richard Allan MP
Alistair Coleman
Clive Summerfield
Tim Ireland
David Taylor
Norman Geras
Melanie Phillips (on holiday)
Councillor Bob Piper
Stephen Pollard
Gavin Sheridan
AndrewSullivan
Note: for the latest news developments on the Sudan please tune in to Jim Moore and friends at Passion of the Present blog out of Harvard in Boston, Mass, USA.
# posted by Ingrid J. Jones @ 8/22/2004
0 comments
Thursday, August 19, 2004
POPULATION OF DARFUR IN SUDAN?
"We simply don't know" says Dr Eric Reeves
This follows on from the previous post here below.
What is the population of Darfur in Sudan? "We simply don't know", writes Professor Eric Reeves in an email reply to me, received this morning.
Yesterday I emailed Prof Reeves eight sets of conflicting population figures on Darfur that I'd collated from various websites - including the UN, Darfur Information Center and government of Sudan - and asked which were the most accurate that I could use as a basis for my postings here. There are so many varying reports on the numbers of refugees, I wonder how many people the UN's World Food Programme knows to cater for. By getting the figures, it might help explain WFP shortfalls and failures to meet the needs of the refugees. Yesterday, over at my other blog, I logged a report of a WFP failure to deliver all of the babyfood that is needed: WFP delivered less than one third of that required by the children of Darfur.
Prof Reeves says USAID use the figure of 6.5 million, that he knows many of the people there working on Darfur who by and large are very good. For this reason, he uses the same figure, but knows that it is probably somewhere between 6 and 7 million - and quite possibly lower. He says there are a host of complicating demographic factors and a lack of detailed knowledge and that there is no reliable census number.
I've noticed too in the recent UN Investigator's report, the Darfur population figure of "approximately 6.5 million" was used.
In the absence of certainty, Prof Reeves suggests I use a single figure (6 million, 6.5 million, or 6-7 million) and stick with it, explaining as necessary.
So, I've decided to use the figure of 6.5 million - and stick to it - as it will help me to become familiar with figures from the UN, USAID and Prof Reeves' writings. He kindly offered to put me on his email list, so as and when I receive copy of his latest reports, I shall share them here.
Eric Reeves is an English Professor at Smith College, Northamptom, Mass., and a recognised expert on Sudan and Darfur. He has provided testimony to Congressional Committees, been widely published in the US and International Press, and frequently provides expert analysis for Non-Governmental Organisations addressing the crisis in Sudan.
For a full biography/bibliography of his work on Sudan and Darfur, click here.
"We simply don't know" says Dr Eric Reeves
This follows on from the previous post here below.
What is the population of Darfur in Sudan? "We simply don't know", writes Professor Eric Reeves in an email reply to me, received this morning.
Yesterday I emailed Prof Reeves eight sets of conflicting population figures on Darfur that I'd collated from various websites - including the UN, Darfur Information Center and government of Sudan - and asked which were the most accurate that I could use as a basis for my postings here. There are so many varying reports on the numbers of refugees, I wonder how many people the UN's World Food Programme knows to cater for. By getting the figures, it might help explain WFP shortfalls and failures to meet the needs of the refugees. Yesterday, over at my other blog, I logged a report of a WFP failure to deliver all of the babyfood that is needed: WFP delivered less than one third of that required by the children of Darfur.
Prof Reeves says USAID use the figure of 6.5 million, that he knows many of the people there working on Darfur who by and large are very good. For this reason, he uses the same figure, but knows that it is probably somewhere between 6 and 7 million - and quite possibly lower. He says there are a host of complicating demographic factors and a lack of detailed knowledge and that there is no reliable census number.
I've noticed too in the recent UN Investigator's report, the Darfur population figure of "approximately 6.5 million" was used.
In the absence of certainty, Prof Reeves suggests I use a single figure (6 million, 6.5 million, or 6-7 million) and stick with it, explaining as necessary.
So, I've decided to use the figure of 6.5 million - and stick to it - as it will help me to become familiar with figures from the UN, USAID and Prof Reeves' writings. He kindly offered to put me on his email list, so as and when I receive copy of his latest reports, I shall share them here.
Eric Reeves is an English Professor at Smith College, Northamptom, Mass., and a recognised expert on Sudan and Darfur. He has provided testimony to Congressional Committees, been widely published in the US and International Press, and frequently provides expert analysis for Non-Governmental Organisations addressing the crisis in Sudan.
For a full biography/bibliography of his work on Sudan and Darfur, click here.
# posted by Ingrid J. Jones @ 8/19/2004
0 comments
- - -
DARFUR IN SUDAN DEATH TOLL UPDATE:
Estimates 185,000 - 2,500 dying a day
In Prof Reeves' latest report on mortality figures for Darfur, he estimates the death toll over the past 18 months of conflict in Darfur is 180,000 - and that 2,500 people a day are dying.
Today, the Darfur Genocide site clocks the death toll at 185,000.
Note the Darfur Genocide site states "no one knows for sure how many people have died in Darfur, or how many are at risk. Good, first hand information is extremely hard to come by. Figures used on this site are based on the best calculations that we are aware of. The number displayed on their counter uses Professor Reeves' analysis and conclusion that, as of August 13th, approximately 180,000 people had been killed.
The site adds 1,000 people every day, reflecting the daily mortality rate estimate by the United States Agency for International Development and several humanitarian organisations working on the ground."
DARFUR IN SUDAN DEATH TOLL UPDATE:
Estimates 185,000 - 2,500 dying a day
In Prof Reeves' latest report on mortality figures for Darfur, he estimates the death toll over the past 18 months of conflict in Darfur is 180,000 - and that 2,500 people a day are dying.
Today, the Darfur Genocide site clocks the death toll at 185,000.
Note the Darfur Genocide site states "no one knows for sure how many people have died in Darfur, or how many are at risk. Good, first hand information is extremely hard to come by. Figures used on this site are based on the best calculations that we are aware of. The number displayed on their counter uses Professor Reeves' analysis and conclusion that, as of August 13th, approximately 180,000 people had been killed.
The site adds 1,000 people every day, reflecting the daily mortality rate estimate by the United States Agency for International Development and several humanitarian organisations working on the ground."
# posted by Ingrid J. Jones @ 8/19/2004
0 comments
- - -
GOVERNMENT OF SUDAN USED CHEMICAL WEAPONS?
Villagers in Sudan describe poisoning
On August 17, 2004, the Washington Times published a report by Levon Sevunts. Here is an excerpt:
SHEGEK KARO, Sudan — Inhabitants of this picturesque village in the Darfur region of western Sudan said the Sudanese air force sprayed them with a strange powder in an attack in May that killed two villagers and dozens of cattle.
Another bomb, dropped by a jet fighter on the same day, produced a poisonous smoke that injured about 50 villagers on the other side of the village, the villagers said.
A Sudanese air force Antonov plane dropped several rectangular plastic sacks containing a white, flourlike powder on a wadi — a dry riverbed — in the lower part of the village, they said.
"This is the first time I'm hearing about this," a spokeswoman for Ambassador Khidir Haroun Ahmed said. She promised the embassy would look into the matter.
[Thanks to Rajan's great Sudan Genocide Roundup - and for highlighting my post on British MP John Bercow's eyewitness account]
- - -
MSF DOCTOR IN DARFUR
Has many rivers to cross
Blogging doctor Nick at Blogborygmi who has a buddy, Dr Jonathan Spector working with MSF in Darfur, will be interested in this post.
On August 16, the Guardian published a strangely upbeat report apparently authored by Dr Dean Harris, an aid worker, with Médecins Sans Frontières in Garsila, Darfur.
The report shows an MSF photo of Dr Harris treating a sick baby, so it could be genuine. Maybe it needed to sound upbeat so as not to break rules on reporting out of Sudan. Seems there is a news black out when it comes to hard news out of Darfur. Even so, the report gives the impression that everything is happy, clappy fun and smiley faces and challenging fun and games over there - a few patients here and there who have ailments not connected with genocide or ethnic cleansing or starvation.
Beware of any information coming out of Khartoum: they are barefaced shamless liars - and that is putting it mildly. They will do and say anything to save their own skins. Surely their days must be numbered? If not, in time to come, when the West's back is turned, it will start genocide and ethnic cleansing all over again: when oil is discovered in new locations, requiring more infrastructure and oil pipelines to be laid. The victims of Darfur ought to be compensated for all their grief.
[Thanks to "The View From Above" - a neat blog featuring posts on the Sudan. The author kindly picked up on my recent post about British MP John Bercow's eyewitness account on Darfur. Sorry, can't find the blogger's name or why the blog contains "7000feet" - maybe it's authored from the top of a mountain. Whatever, a warm hello and thank you for the links whoever you are, wherever you are]
- - -
DOCTORS WITHOUT BORDERS IN SUDAN
Dr Rowan Gillies, President of MSF
Update Aug 19: Here's another one for Nick: Fresh Air Audio interview with Dr Rowan Gillies, President of MSF. Sorry I can't get the audio file to open on my Mac. I'll check the Apple software updates and try again later. Excerpt:
"Dr. Rowan Gillies is the International President of Medecins Sans Frontiers (Doctors Without Borders). He is a medical doctor and surgeon from Sydney, Australia. Dr. Gillies began working with Doctors Without Borders in 1998 as a field doctor in Afghanistan. Since then he has worked with the organisation in Sierra Leone, South Sudan and Liberia. He recently returned from Sudan."
- - -
PULP'S COMMON PEOPLE
Memories of Rocky Horror Show's Opening Night and...
Loved the tune, lyrics and arrangement of Pulp's song "Common People" that Nick linked to in his Wax Ecstatic post.
No wonder Nick had a quasi religious experience listening to it at 4am - it's still spinning around in my head and brought back memories of the mesmerising theatrics of Richard O'Brien's Rocky Horror Show. Let's Do The Time Warp, and other songs from the show, seemed way ahead of their time when I attended the first night launch - at a small venue, somewhere in London, I can't recall the name of because it was thirty something years ago. But I clearly recall, a decade later, working on a deal to book them at the Silver Slipper (no longer exists) and other venues in Las Vegas - and how the Vegas Entertainment Directors of the day felt the show was too "far out" for Vegas audiences...
Can understand why the Common People song caused a quasi-religious experience for Nick at 4am - Rocky Horror had that effect on us at 8pm ;)
- - -
TIME FOR SOME CATBLOGGING
Here's a laugh
Thanks to H at Quadrophrenia for sending me a neat new squirrel playing the sax - and for this link below, - out of the blue.... Heh. :-))
You'll need the sound switched on for this one:
http://www.media.ebaumsworld.com/cat.swf
GOVERNMENT OF SUDAN USED CHEMICAL WEAPONS?
Villagers in Sudan describe poisoning
On August 17, 2004, the Washington Times published a report by Levon Sevunts. Here is an excerpt:
SHEGEK KARO, Sudan — Inhabitants of this picturesque village in the Darfur region of western Sudan said the Sudanese air force sprayed them with a strange powder in an attack in May that killed two villagers and dozens of cattle.
Another bomb, dropped by a jet fighter on the same day, produced a poisonous smoke that injured about 50 villagers on the other side of the village, the villagers said.
A Sudanese air force Antonov plane dropped several rectangular plastic sacks containing a white, flourlike powder on a wadi — a dry riverbed — in the lower part of the village, they said.
"This is the first time I'm hearing about this," a spokeswoman for Ambassador Khidir Haroun Ahmed said. She promised the embassy would look into the matter.
[Thanks to Rajan's great Sudan Genocide Roundup - and for highlighting my post on British MP John Bercow's eyewitness account]
- - -
MSF DOCTOR IN DARFUR
Has many rivers to cross
Blogging doctor Nick at Blogborygmi who has a buddy, Dr Jonathan Spector working with MSF in Darfur, will be interested in this post.
On August 16, the Guardian published a strangely upbeat report apparently authored by Dr Dean Harris, an aid worker, with Médecins Sans Frontières in Garsila, Darfur.
The report shows an MSF photo of Dr Harris treating a sick baby, so it could be genuine. Maybe it needed to sound upbeat so as not to break rules on reporting out of Sudan. Seems there is a news black out when it comes to hard news out of Darfur. Even so, the report gives the impression that everything is happy, clappy fun and smiley faces and challenging fun and games over there - a few patients here and there who have ailments not connected with genocide or ethnic cleansing or starvation.
Beware of any information coming out of Khartoum: they are barefaced shamless liars - and that is putting it mildly. They will do and say anything to save their own skins. Surely their days must be numbered? If not, in time to come, when the West's back is turned, it will start genocide and ethnic cleansing all over again: when oil is discovered in new locations, requiring more infrastructure and oil pipelines to be laid. The victims of Darfur ought to be compensated for all their grief.
[Thanks to "The View From Above" - a neat blog featuring posts on the Sudan. The author kindly picked up on my recent post about British MP John Bercow's eyewitness account on Darfur. Sorry, can't find the blogger's name or why the blog contains "7000feet" - maybe it's authored from the top of a mountain. Whatever, a warm hello and thank you for the links whoever you are, wherever you are]
- - -
DOCTORS WITHOUT BORDERS IN SUDAN
Dr Rowan Gillies, President of MSF
Update Aug 19: Here's another one for Nick: Fresh Air Audio interview with Dr Rowan Gillies, President of MSF. Sorry I can't get the audio file to open on my Mac. I'll check the Apple software updates and try again later. Excerpt:
"Dr. Rowan Gillies is the International President of Medecins Sans Frontiers (Doctors Without Borders). He is a medical doctor and surgeon from Sydney, Australia. Dr. Gillies began working with Doctors Without Borders in 1998 as a field doctor in Afghanistan. Since then he has worked with the organisation in Sierra Leone, South Sudan and Liberia. He recently returned from Sudan."
- - -
PULP'S COMMON PEOPLE
Memories of Rocky Horror Show's Opening Night and...
Loved the tune, lyrics and arrangement of Pulp's song "Common People" that Nick linked to in his Wax Ecstatic post.
No wonder Nick had a quasi religious experience listening to it at 4am - it's still spinning around in my head and brought back memories of the mesmerising theatrics of Richard O'Brien's Rocky Horror Show. Let's Do The Time Warp, and other songs from the show, seemed way ahead of their time when I attended the first night launch - at a small venue, somewhere in London, I can't recall the name of because it was thirty something years ago. But I clearly recall, a decade later, working on a deal to book them at the Silver Slipper (no longer exists) and other venues in Las Vegas - and how the Vegas Entertainment Directors of the day felt the show was too "far out" for Vegas audiences...
Can understand why the Common People song caused a quasi-religious experience for Nick at 4am - Rocky Horror had that effect on us at 8pm ;)
- - -
TIME FOR SOME CATBLOGGING
Here's a laugh
Thanks to H at Quadrophrenia for sending me a neat new squirrel playing the sax - and for this link below, - out of the blue.... Heh. :-))
You'll need the sound switched on for this one:
http://www.media.ebaumsworld.com/cat.swf
# posted by Ingrid J. Jones @ 8/19/2004
0 comments
- - -
AVOIDING GENOCIDE
The right to bear arms could have saved Sudan
Here is an unusual report on Sudan, Human Rights & Gun Control in National Review Online dated August 18, 2004.
The report, entitled "Avoiding Genocide" is authored by Dave Kopel, Paul Gallant and Joanne Eisen. It raises some important points - especially on gun control laws in Sudan - and says the right to bear arms could have saved Sudan. Note the opening paragraph:
[T]he sovereign territorial state claims, as an integral part of its sovereignty, the right to commit genocide, or engage in genocidal massacres, against peoples under its rule, and...the United Nations, for all practical purposes, defends this right. To be sure, no state explicitly claims the right to commit genocide — this would not be morally acceptable even in international circles — but the right is exercised under other more acceptable rubrics.... — Leo Kuper, Genocide: Its Political Use in the Twentieth Century.
AVOIDING GENOCIDE
The right to bear arms could have saved Sudan
Here is an unusual report on Sudan, Human Rights & Gun Control in National Review Online dated August 18, 2004.
The report, entitled "Avoiding Genocide" is authored by Dave Kopel, Paul Gallant and Joanne Eisen. It raises some important points - especially on gun control laws in Sudan - and says the right to bear arms could have saved Sudan. Note the opening paragraph:
[T]he sovereign territorial state claims, as an integral part of its sovereignty, the right to commit genocide, or engage in genocidal massacres, against peoples under its rule, and...the United Nations, for all practical purposes, defends this right. To be sure, no state explicitly claims the right to commit genocide — this would not be morally acceptable even in international circles — but the right is exercised under other more acceptable rubrics.... — Leo Kuper, Genocide: Its Political Use in the Twentieth Century.
# posted by Ingrid J. Jones @ 8/19/2004
0 comments
- - -
NIGERIA APPROVES 1,500 TROOPS TO SUDAN
To serve with African Union protection force in Darfur
Yesterday, it was reported that Nigerian President Olusegun Obasanjo wrote a letter to the Nigerian Senate for permission to deploy Nigerian troops to Darfur. In the letter, President Obasanjo wrote: "I am requesting for approval to meet the request of the African Union to deploy one company of Nigerian troops as part of the protection force in Darfur. This approval should equally make allowance for the Nigerian contribution to be expanded as may be necessary to one battalion but not more than two battalions at the utmost."
“Given our pre-eminent place in the continent, the seriousness of the situation in Darfur, our historical contribution to peacemaking, peace building and reconciliation processes in Africa, this is one more chance for us to show leadership and provide hope to millions of our brothers and sisters in the Sudan,” he added.
Over the past 15 years, Nigerian troops have played a prominent role in peacekeeping efforts in Liberia and Sierra Leone. Now the country appears keen to intervene in Darfur on a major scale. The proposed two battalions of troops for Darfur would constitute three quarters of the planned 2,000-strong AU peacekeeping force for the troubled region.
A Nigerian army spokesman said the first company of troops was ready to leave for Darfur at short notice, but it would take longer to mobilise two full battalions of around 770 men each..
“We were ordered to prepare a company strength of soldiers, which is 120 troops for deployment to Sudan,” Colonel Emeka Onwuamaegbu, spokesman of the Nigerian Army Headquarters told IRIN. “At the moment, a company is ready to deploy as soon as we receive the order to move.”
Note, around the same time, the Sudanese External Minister, Dr Mustafa Ismail was in Nigeria to brief President Obasanjo, as the African Union (AU) Chairman, on the situation in his country and to assure Nigeria of his country's readiness to participate in the coming peace talks. Sudanese Foreign Minister, Dr. Mustafa Osman led a Sudanese delegation to Abuja Tuesday to firm up arrangements for the deployment of Nigerian troops in Darfur and prepare for next week's round of peace talks in the Nigerian capital. “We wish to assure you that we do not oppose the AU’s intervention, but we want a chance to put our views across”, Osman told reporters after a meeting with Obasanjo.
Today, the Nigerian Senate approved the request to send up to 1,500 Nigerian troops to Darfur to serve with an African Union (AU) protection force. Yay for Nigeria!
It was reported the Senate had approved Obasanjo’s request, based “on the need to arrest the ugly situation in Sudan which we find absolutely unacceptable.” Nigerian Senator stressed that only one company of about 120 Nigerian troops would be deployed initially to Darfur to serve alongside 155 Rwandan troops who are already there to protect AU ceasefire monitors. “But the president also made it clear that it might be necessary to increase the number of troops later and the Senate agreed with him,” he added.
Next Monday, August 23, Obasanjo, in his capacity as chairman of the AU, will host a fresh round of peace talks in the Nigerian capital Abuja between the Sudanese government and the two rebel movements in Darfur.
NIGERIA APPROVES 1,500 TROOPS TO SUDAN
To serve with African Union protection force in Darfur
Yesterday, it was reported that Nigerian President Olusegun Obasanjo wrote a letter to the Nigerian Senate for permission to deploy Nigerian troops to Darfur. In the letter, President Obasanjo wrote: "I am requesting for approval to meet the request of the African Union to deploy one company of Nigerian troops as part of the protection force in Darfur. This approval should equally make allowance for the Nigerian contribution to be expanded as may be necessary to one battalion but not more than two battalions at the utmost."
“Given our pre-eminent place in the continent, the seriousness of the situation in Darfur, our historical contribution to peacemaking, peace building and reconciliation processes in Africa, this is one more chance for us to show leadership and provide hope to millions of our brothers and sisters in the Sudan,” he added.
Over the past 15 years, Nigerian troops have played a prominent role in peacekeeping efforts in Liberia and Sierra Leone. Now the country appears keen to intervene in Darfur on a major scale. The proposed two battalions of troops for Darfur would constitute three quarters of the planned 2,000-strong AU peacekeeping force for the troubled region.
A Nigerian army spokesman said the first company of troops was ready to leave for Darfur at short notice, but it would take longer to mobilise two full battalions of around 770 men each..
“We were ordered to prepare a company strength of soldiers, which is 120 troops for deployment to Sudan,” Colonel Emeka Onwuamaegbu, spokesman of the Nigerian Army Headquarters told IRIN. “At the moment, a company is ready to deploy as soon as we receive the order to move.”
Note, around the same time, the Sudanese External Minister, Dr Mustafa Ismail was in Nigeria to brief President Obasanjo, as the African Union (AU) Chairman, on the situation in his country and to assure Nigeria of his country's readiness to participate in the coming peace talks. Sudanese Foreign Minister, Dr. Mustafa Osman led a Sudanese delegation to Abuja Tuesday to firm up arrangements for the deployment of Nigerian troops in Darfur and prepare for next week's round of peace talks in the Nigerian capital. “We wish to assure you that we do not oppose the AU’s intervention, but we want a chance to put our views across”, Osman told reporters after a meeting with Obasanjo.
Today, the Nigerian Senate approved the request to send up to 1,500 Nigerian troops to Darfur to serve with an African Union (AU) protection force. Yay for Nigeria!
It was reported the Senate had approved Obasanjo’s request, based “on the need to arrest the ugly situation in Sudan which we find absolutely unacceptable.” Nigerian Senator stressed that only one company of about 120 Nigerian troops would be deployed initially to Darfur to serve alongside 155 Rwandan troops who are already there to protect AU ceasefire monitors. “But the president also made it clear that it might be necessary to increase the number of troops later and the Senate agreed with him,” he added.
Next Monday, August 23, Obasanjo, in his capacity as chairman of the AU, will host a fresh round of peace talks in the Nigerian capital Abuja between the Sudanese government and the two rebel movements in Darfur.
# posted by Ingrid J. Jones @ 8/19/2004
0 comments
Wednesday, August 18, 2004
INDIA TO SEND TROOPS TO SUDAN:
On UN Peacekeeping Mission - China to deploy 4,000 troops
Yesterday there were reports (see previous post here below) that China was deploying 4,000 of its troops to Sudan - not to provide humanitarian assistance but to guard its oil located adjacent to Darfur. If the report is true, it would be great of China to help the victims of Darfur, but seeing as the report made no mention of the U.N., it's probably just wishful thinking.
Here's a great surprise: today there is news that India proposes to send troops to Sudan under the UN Peacekeeping Mission. India has huge oil interests in Sudan and recently signed lucrative contracts to lay oil pipelines in Sudan. This week it was reported that India contributed aid, for the first time I believe. Wonder what took them so long. Better late than never. Yay for India! Hope the report is true. Sounds a lot different than what China is reportedly doing.
The news re India says that in response to a UN request, India has made a commitment to the UN to provide an infantry battalion group with support elements, an Air Force unit comprising of six utility helicopters and a Special Police Unit and individual police officers, Minister of State for External Affairs E Ahamed said in a written reply.
He said troops are currently deployed in UN Peacekeeping missions in Lebanon, Ethiopia-Eritrea and Democratic Republic of Congo -- and Indian police personnel are serving in the UN mission in Kosovo.
http://www.hindustantimes.com/news/181_955500,0008.htm
- - -
UK OXFAM SENDS VITAL AID TO DARFUR:
Sixth Oxfam flight leaves Britain with more flights in coming weeks
OXFAM sends vital aid to Darfur. This is the sixth Oxfam flight to leave Britain to help the people of Sudan and refugees in Chad and additional flights will be made over the coming weeks.
http://www.alertnet.org/thenews/fromthefield/109282582461.htm
- - -
NORWAY CONTRIBUTES EVEN MORE FOR DARFUR:
More support and NOK 100 million so far
Norway is doing real good and helping a lot behind the scenes. Apart from all the help and support it has provided, it has also contributed more than NOK 100 million to humanitarian efforts to assist the victims of Darfur.
The support has been provided through the UN, the Red Cross system and NGOs and includes cash, personnel and goods such as lorries, field hospitals, communications equipment and high-energy biscuits for malnourished and undernourished children.
- - -
UN HUMAN RIGHTS OBSERVERS:
In place August 15 alongside AU ceasefire observers
In June Norway provided support for the deployment of observers from the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights. They will be in place on 15 August and will co-operate closely with African Union observers.
“It is important to find an African solution. The African Union’s leadership role in the Darfur process enjoys broad international support and is set out in UN Security Council resolution 1556 of 30 July 2004. The Norwegian Government is therefore determined to help ensure that the AU gets the resources it needs to carry out its mission,” said the Foreign Minister.
On UN Peacekeeping Mission - China to deploy 4,000 troops
Yesterday there were reports (see previous post here below) that China was deploying 4,000 of its troops to Sudan - not to provide humanitarian assistance but to guard its oil located adjacent to Darfur. If the report is true, it would be great of China to help the victims of Darfur, but seeing as the report made no mention of the U.N., it's probably just wishful thinking.
Here's a great surprise: today there is news that India proposes to send troops to Sudan under the UN Peacekeeping Mission. India has huge oil interests in Sudan and recently signed lucrative contracts to lay oil pipelines in Sudan. This week it was reported that India contributed aid, for the first time I believe. Wonder what took them so long. Better late than never. Yay for India! Hope the report is true. Sounds a lot different than what China is reportedly doing.
The news re India says that in response to a UN request, India has made a commitment to the UN to provide an infantry battalion group with support elements, an Air Force unit comprising of six utility helicopters and a Special Police Unit and individual police officers, Minister of State for External Affairs E Ahamed said in a written reply.
He said troops are currently deployed in UN Peacekeeping missions in Lebanon, Ethiopia-Eritrea and Democratic Republic of Congo -- and Indian police personnel are serving in the UN mission in Kosovo.
http://www.hindustantimes.com/news/181_955500,0008.htm
- - -
UK OXFAM SENDS VITAL AID TO DARFUR:
Sixth Oxfam flight leaves Britain with more flights in coming weeks
OXFAM sends vital aid to Darfur. This is the sixth Oxfam flight to leave Britain to help the people of Sudan and refugees in Chad and additional flights will be made over the coming weeks.
http://www.alertnet.org/thenews/fromthefield/109282582461.htm
- - -
NORWAY CONTRIBUTES EVEN MORE FOR DARFUR:
More support and NOK 100 million so far
Norway is doing real good and helping a lot behind the scenes. Apart from all the help and support it has provided, it has also contributed more than NOK 100 million to humanitarian efforts to assist the victims of Darfur.
The support has been provided through the UN, the Red Cross system and NGOs and includes cash, personnel and goods such as lorries, field hospitals, communications equipment and high-energy biscuits for malnourished and undernourished children.
- - -
UN HUMAN RIGHTS OBSERVERS:
In place August 15 alongside AU ceasefire observers
In June Norway provided support for the deployment of observers from the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights. They will be in place on 15 August and will co-operate closely with African Union observers.
“It is important to find an African solution. The African Union’s leadership role in the Darfur process enjoys broad international support and is set out in UN Security Council resolution 1556 of 30 July 2004. The Norwegian Government is therefore determined to help ensure that the AU gets the resources it needs to carry out its mission,” said the Foreign Minister.
# posted by Ingrid J. Jones @ 8/18/2004
0 comments
- - -
OIL, CHINA AND GENOCIDE IN SUDAN AND SOUTH DARFUR:
USA and Sudan Peace Act -- And where are 4 million Darfuris?
Forthcoming posts I am working on, over the next week or so, relate to three of my previous posts:
(1) July 21, 2004: "THE ORIGINAL SUDAN PEACE ACT - A powerful tool for coercing Khartoum into stopping genocide? The more oil that's found, the worse the violence will become?"
(2) August 02, 2004: "OIL AND MINERAL RICHES IN DARFUR, Uranium discovered in Hofrat Al Nihas: France is interested in Uranium and has drilling rights in Sudan"
(3) August 03, 2004: "SUDAN UPDATE: RAISING THE STAKES - Oil and conflict in Sudan".
Sorry, there is a problem publishing links in posts here at the moment - for a copy of above posts please click into July and August archive in right hand sidebar here.
Today, I found a map I'd been searching for that shows Hofrat En Nahas in South Darfur. Also, I found some stats on the population of Darfur that I'd been looking for because I haven't been able to work out where the people of Darfur are living right now.
Four months ago, when I started posting on the Sudan, I'd read somewhere the population of Darfur was estimated at 6 or 7 million. Since then, I've puzzled over UN and USAID statistics -- along with refugee numbers used in news reports. For instance, roughly speaking: 200,000 have fled from Darfur into Chad; 50,000 - 80,000 have been killed; and a total of 2.2 million have been "war-affected". What about the rest? Maybe they are still in Darfur? Or in the mountains and other areas? If that is the case, how are they managing for food and water? If the UN World Food Programme (WFP) says it managed to feed 1 million in July -- what about the other 1.2 million the UN refer to?
According to the UN website, the population numbers - in the year 2003 - for north, south and west Darfur - add up to a total of 6,360,000. But the Sudanese Embassy website puts the figure very much lower -- for the year 2004. In fact the numbers are so low (around one million) one can't be sure they've missed out some areas. Most odd that they'd updated the population numbers on their website for the year 2004. How did they arrive at those numbers? Is anyone questioning them?
It bothers me that that UN and news agencies keep reporting "200,000 displaced people from Darfur in Chad" because this figure seems to remain static on UN website and in news reports -- but in reality it should be ever changing (and increasing or decreasing) by the day. UN must know much more what is going on than they let on -- why, I wonder.
The UN World Food Programme (WFP) say they have fed 1 million in July -- new figures coming out seem to put the "disaffected" at 2.2 million -- so where are the other 1.2 million people they are talking about? How does the UN arrive at its figures, and how does it know to separate 2.2 million from the total population of 6-7 million?
In other words, what is going on with the other 3-4 million people that are not mentioned in any news reports? Are they all in Darfur and making a living from the land? The figures the UN, USAID and other aid agencies use - which are perpetuated in news reports - are very unclear. I'm in the middle of reading an updated report by Dr Eric Reeves, who estimates 2,500 people a day are dying from the Darfur conflict and death toll over the past 18 months is 180,000 - and 2.3 to 2.5 million are "war affected" More on this in later post with links to Dr Reeves' report entitled "Darfur mortality update III", dated August 14, 2004.
- - -
Here are some excerpts from Dr Reeves' report (llinks to the report should be at passionofthepresent.org or darfurgenocide site:
-- the mid-July 2004 UN figure of 30,000-50,000 total deaths offered by Jan Egeland, Undersecretary for Humanitarian Affairs, is untenably low, even as the previous figure of 10,000 deaths (the only UN number offered for mortality from March 2004 to July 2004) was also clearly untenably low.
--no explanation of methodology or the nature of the data has ever been offered by the UN in conjunction with these mortality estimates; deaths are not even generally categorized as a function of violence or disease and malnutrition.
--all this follows a pattern of both underestimation and belatedness that has marked UN efforts in the World Food Program, the World Health Organization, and the UN High Commission for Refugees.
--US Agency for International Development's "Projected Mortality Rates in Darfur, 2004-2005" suggests that over 2,500 people are now dying daily---mainly invisibly.
-- current "war-affected" population may reasonably be estimated at over 2.3 million.
--figure offered in a June 3, 2004 joint communiqué from the UN, the European Union, and the US was 2.2 million "war affected".
-- in the intervening 10 weeks, the rains have greatly intensified, logistical resources and transport capacity have proven ever more inadequate, and fewer than 1 million people received food from the World Food Program in July, though this represented a significant increase from June.
-- the most troubling part of any calculation of mortality and morbidity in Darfur is the unknown number of people who are neither in the camps, nor accessible by UN or humanitarian organizations. The World Food Program internal working figure for this population was 300,000 in July (confidential source), a number that is deliberately obscured in a World Food Program statement of August 11, 2004 indicating that access to insurgency-controlled areas of Darfur would increase by "tens of thousands" the number of people who might benefit (UN Integrated Regional Information Networks, August 12, 2004). The number is hundreds of thousands, as the World Food Program well knows---indeed, some on the ground in Darfur, or who have recently returned from Darfur, suggest that the number may be greater than 1 million. This deliberate "low-balling" (directly and indirectly) of numbers on the part of the World Food Program continues a disturbing pattern, and it is immensely dangerous.
--the "war-affected" population in Darfur: there can be little doubt that this figure is well over 2 million; it is very likely over 2.5 million.
--the figure of 2.2 million "war-affected persons" used in the joint communiqué of the UN, US, and the EU on June 3, 2004. (Significantly, the UN World Food Program [in the June 28, 2004 "90-Day Humanitarian Action Plan for Darfur"] commits to a figure of 2 million for food aid only in October 2004; this implies a highly dramatic shortfall in current response by the WFP.
-- there is growing evidence that the UN Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator report considerably understates the number of people in critical need in areas to which there is no humanitarian access.
--it has seemed most reasonable to use an estimate, very likely conservative, of 2.3 million to 2.5 million, in determining the population that must figure in any calculation of mortality on the basis of US AID's "Projected Mortality Rates in Darfur, 2004-2005." This decision is justified in the views of several senior aid officials. [end of extract]
- - -
What is going on inside Darfur? How many people are still there? Surely the UN and intelligence agencies know what is going on: 50,000 or 180,000 deaths or more is a lot of bodies. Where are all the bodies? Why are there no photographs? Who is digging the graves?
From what I can gather, by reading various news reports, it would appear the rebels were holed up in Darfur all along -- and that Sudanese forces were either blocking them from getting out - or blocking the Janjaweed from getting in -- not sure which. During the past week, there were news reports that WFP negotiated with the Darfur rebels to get aid into Darfur (who was stopping it getting through in the first place?)
And, I've read a stray news report from last week that says 3,000 Sudanese forces have gathered along the border of Sudan (and Chad I believe) to patrol the area. What are they doing: blocking refugees, or Janjaweed, getting from Sudan into Chad?
Today, a Daily Star report says China has deployed 4,000 of its troops to guard its oil interests in Sudan.
http://www.dailystar.com.lb/article.asp?edition_id=10&categ_id=3&article_id=7398
http://www.newsday.com/news/opinion/ny-vpts0815,0,3892931.story?coll=ny-opinion-headlines
If you look at the oil map (previous post above) and see Block 6, the Chinese concession: it looks like it extends into South Darfur. Will the Chinese troops be within South Darfur?
What a coincidence that Sudan - the largest country in the African continent - with land as far as the eye can see without a twig in sight - is having a whole load of trouble and 4,000 Chinese troops concentrated within one area involving Block 6 on the map of South Darfur (the same area I refer to above re Uranium discovery in Hofrat Al Nihas).
Note the Daily Star report about the 4,000 Chinese troops was not via a top news agency: it was authored by Gerald Butt, Gulf Editor of the Cyprus-based Middle East Economic Survey, who writes a regular economic analysis for The Daily Star. The report says it is from Nicosia in Cyprus (the Turks occupy half of Cyprus). The French are flying their Mirage jets around the Chad border, checking their 200 troops are OK. The West has all sorts of observers, monitors, aid workers, satellite surveillance, intelligence reports.... but why is there no real news out of Darfur? It is a very perplexing and deeply disturbing story. Yesterday, I was shocked to read the following, about the Sudan Peace Act:
Genocide in Sudan 1983 to present (...as of 2004) - excerpt:
"The US government's Sudan Peace Act of October 21, 2002 accused Sudan of genocide for killing more than 2 million civilians in the south during an ongoing civil war since 1983. Organised campaign by Janjaweed militias (nomadic Arab shepherds with the support of Sudanese government and troops) to rid 80 black African tribes from the Darfur region of western Sudan. Mukesh Kapila (United Nations humanitarian coordinator) is quoted as saying: "The vicious war in Darfur has led to violations on a scale comparable in character with Rwanda in 1994. All the warning signs are there."
Sudan Peace Act - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia - excerpt:
"The Sudan Peace Act is a US law condemning Sudan for genocide. It was signed into law October 21, 2002 by President George W. Bush.
According to Nat Hentoff:
More than 2 million black, non-Muslim civilians in the South have died from an ongoing civil war since 1983 in that country. The United States now declares in a law that "the acts of the government of Sudan . . . constitute genocide as defined by the [1948 United Nations] Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide."
The northern National Islamic Front government in Khartoum has enslaved women and children in the south of Sudan; engaged in ethnic cleansing; bombed churches and schools; and prevented food from humanitarian agencies from reaching the black Christians and animists trying to withstand the armed "jihad" forces of the north."
- - -
CHINA offers more aid for Darfur:
Aug 17 - The Chinese government will offer another 5 million yuan (610,000 US dollars) worth of humanitarian aid Darfur.
NIGERIA plans mission to Darfur:
Aug 17 - Olusegun Obasanjo called for lawmakers to approve the deployment of up to 1,500 peacekeeping troops to Darfur.
SUDAN asks Libyan leader for help in Darfur:
Ismail gave Libyan leader Gadhafi a letter from al-Bashir in which the Sudanese president detailed the situation in Darfur.
Middle East Online - UK - Sudan asks Kadhafi to interfere in Darfur crisis - TRIPOLI - Sudan asked Libyan leader Moamer Kadhafi Tuesday to "intervene personally" in the escalating crisis in Darfur, Libya's official JANA news agency.
SUDAN Says More Police to Shield Darfur Refugees:
Aug 17 - Sudan plans to double the number of police in Darfur to 20,000, the country's foreign minister said on Tuesday.
Aug 17 - China News says the Sudanese government said on Tuesday that it has deployed another 2,000 policemen in Darfur to secure the situation in the area under an agreement with the United Nations.
http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2004-08/18/content_1811761.htm
OM chief visits Sudan on Darfur crisis:
Aug 17 - The International Organization for Migration (IOM) said Tuesday that its director general is traveling to Khartoum.
Algeria, Egypt and Libya tell Arab League they're ready to send armed troops to Darfur:
Aug 15 - Algeria, Egypt and Libya "informed the committee of Arab foreign ministers gathered in Cairo on August 8 to discuss Darfur that they would dispatch troops as part of the Africa Union contingent," said Samir Hosni, in charge of the Darfur issue at the League said.
Algeria's charge d'affaires in Cairo Menawer Rabiai told AFP he could not confirm this information.
During that meeting, the foreign ministers had called on countries belonging both to the African Union (AU) and the Arab League to contribute troops to the force tasked with protecting observers monitoring a ceasefire in Darfur.
http://www.sudantribune.com/article.php3?id_article=4745
OIL, CHINA AND GENOCIDE IN SUDAN AND SOUTH DARFUR:
USA and Sudan Peace Act -- And where are 4 million Darfuris?
Forthcoming posts I am working on, over the next week or so, relate to three of my previous posts:
(1) July 21, 2004: "THE ORIGINAL SUDAN PEACE ACT - A powerful tool for coercing Khartoum into stopping genocide? The more oil that's found, the worse the violence will become?"
(2) August 02, 2004: "OIL AND MINERAL RICHES IN DARFUR, Uranium discovered in Hofrat Al Nihas: France is interested in Uranium and has drilling rights in Sudan"
(3) August 03, 2004: "SUDAN UPDATE: RAISING THE STAKES - Oil and conflict in Sudan".
Sorry, there is a problem publishing links in posts here at the moment - for a copy of above posts please click into July and August archive in right hand sidebar here.
Today, I found a map I'd been searching for that shows Hofrat En Nahas in South Darfur. Also, I found some stats on the population of Darfur that I'd been looking for because I haven't been able to work out where the people of Darfur are living right now.
Four months ago, when I started posting on the Sudan, I'd read somewhere the population of Darfur was estimated at 6 or 7 million. Since then, I've puzzled over UN and USAID statistics -- along with refugee numbers used in news reports. For instance, roughly speaking: 200,000 have fled from Darfur into Chad; 50,000 - 80,000 have been killed; and a total of 2.2 million have been "war-affected". What about the rest? Maybe they are still in Darfur? Or in the mountains and other areas? If that is the case, how are they managing for food and water? If the UN World Food Programme (WFP) says it managed to feed 1 million in July -- what about the other 1.2 million the UN refer to?
According to the UN website, the population numbers - in the year 2003 - for north, south and west Darfur - add up to a total of 6,360,000. But the Sudanese Embassy website puts the figure very much lower -- for the year 2004. In fact the numbers are so low (around one million) one can't be sure they've missed out some areas. Most odd that they'd updated the population numbers on their website for the year 2004. How did they arrive at those numbers? Is anyone questioning them?
It bothers me that that UN and news agencies keep reporting "200,000 displaced people from Darfur in Chad" because this figure seems to remain static on UN website and in news reports -- but in reality it should be ever changing (and increasing or decreasing) by the day. UN must know much more what is going on than they let on -- why, I wonder.
The UN World Food Programme (WFP) say they have fed 1 million in July -- new figures coming out seem to put the "disaffected" at 2.2 million -- so where are the other 1.2 million people they are talking about? How does the UN arrive at its figures, and how does it know to separate 2.2 million from the total population of 6-7 million?
In other words, what is going on with the other 3-4 million people that are not mentioned in any news reports? Are they all in Darfur and making a living from the land? The figures the UN, USAID and other aid agencies use - which are perpetuated in news reports - are very unclear. I'm in the middle of reading an updated report by Dr Eric Reeves, who estimates 2,500 people a day are dying from the Darfur conflict and death toll over the past 18 months is 180,000 - and 2.3 to 2.5 million are "war affected" More on this in later post with links to Dr Reeves' report entitled "Darfur mortality update III", dated August 14, 2004.
- - -
Here are some excerpts from Dr Reeves' report (llinks to the report should be at passionofthepresent.org or darfurgenocide site:
-- the mid-July 2004 UN figure of 30,000-50,000 total deaths offered by Jan Egeland, Undersecretary for Humanitarian Affairs, is untenably low, even as the previous figure of 10,000 deaths (the only UN number offered for mortality from March 2004 to July 2004) was also clearly untenably low.
--no explanation of methodology or the nature of the data has ever been offered by the UN in conjunction with these mortality estimates; deaths are not even generally categorized as a function of violence or disease and malnutrition.
--all this follows a pattern of both underestimation and belatedness that has marked UN efforts in the World Food Program, the World Health Organization, and the UN High Commission for Refugees.
--US Agency for International Development's "Projected Mortality Rates in Darfur, 2004-2005" suggests that over 2,500 people are now dying daily---mainly invisibly.
-- current "war-affected" population may reasonably be estimated at over 2.3 million.
--figure offered in a June 3, 2004 joint communiqué from the UN, the European Union, and the US was 2.2 million "war affected".
-- in the intervening 10 weeks, the rains have greatly intensified, logistical resources and transport capacity have proven ever more inadequate, and fewer than 1 million people received food from the World Food Program in July, though this represented a significant increase from June.
-- the most troubling part of any calculation of mortality and morbidity in Darfur is the unknown number of people who are neither in the camps, nor accessible by UN or humanitarian organizations. The World Food Program internal working figure for this population was 300,000 in July (confidential source), a number that is deliberately obscured in a World Food Program statement of August 11, 2004 indicating that access to insurgency-controlled areas of Darfur would increase by "tens of thousands" the number of people who might benefit (UN Integrated Regional Information Networks, August 12, 2004). The number is hundreds of thousands, as the World Food Program well knows---indeed, some on the ground in Darfur, or who have recently returned from Darfur, suggest that the number may be greater than 1 million. This deliberate "low-balling" (directly and indirectly) of numbers on the part of the World Food Program continues a disturbing pattern, and it is immensely dangerous.
--the "war-affected" population in Darfur: there can be little doubt that this figure is well over 2 million; it is very likely over 2.5 million.
--the figure of 2.2 million "war-affected persons" used in the joint communiqué of the UN, US, and the EU on June 3, 2004. (Significantly, the UN World Food Program [in the June 28, 2004 "90-Day Humanitarian Action Plan for Darfur"] commits to a figure of 2 million for food aid only in October 2004; this implies a highly dramatic shortfall in current response by the WFP.
-- there is growing evidence that the UN Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator report considerably understates the number of people in critical need in areas to which there is no humanitarian access.
--it has seemed most reasonable to use an estimate, very likely conservative, of 2.3 million to 2.5 million, in determining the population that must figure in any calculation of mortality on the basis of US AID's "Projected Mortality Rates in Darfur, 2004-2005." This decision is justified in the views of several senior aid officials. [end of extract]
- - -
What is going on inside Darfur? How many people are still there? Surely the UN and intelligence agencies know what is going on: 50,000 or 180,000 deaths or more is a lot of bodies. Where are all the bodies? Why are there no photographs? Who is digging the graves?
From what I can gather, by reading various news reports, it would appear the rebels were holed up in Darfur all along -- and that Sudanese forces were either blocking them from getting out - or blocking the Janjaweed from getting in -- not sure which. During the past week, there were news reports that WFP negotiated with the Darfur rebels to get aid into Darfur (who was stopping it getting through in the first place?)
And, I've read a stray news report from last week that says 3,000 Sudanese forces have gathered along the border of Sudan (and Chad I believe) to patrol the area. What are they doing: blocking refugees, or Janjaweed, getting from Sudan into Chad?
Today, a Daily Star report says China has deployed 4,000 of its troops to guard its oil interests in Sudan.
http://www.dailystar.com.lb/article.asp?edition_id=10&categ_id=3&article_id=7398
http://www.newsday.com/news/opinion/ny-vpts0815,0,3892931.story?coll=ny-opinion-headlines
If you look at the oil map (previous post above) and see Block 6, the Chinese concession: it looks like it extends into South Darfur. Will the Chinese troops be within South Darfur?
What a coincidence that Sudan - the largest country in the African continent - with land as far as the eye can see without a twig in sight - is having a whole load of trouble and 4,000 Chinese troops concentrated within one area involving Block 6 on the map of South Darfur (the same area I refer to above re Uranium discovery in Hofrat Al Nihas).
Note the Daily Star report about the 4,000 Chinese troops was not via a top news agency: it was authored by Gerald Butt, Gulf Editor of the Cyprus-based Middle East Economic Survey, who writes a regular economic analysis for The Daily Star. The report says it is from Nicosia in Cyprus (the Turks occupy half of Cyprus). The French are flying their Mirage jets around the Chad border, checking their 200 troops are OK. The West has all sorts of observers, monitors, aid workers, satellite surveillance, intelligence reports.... but why is there no real news out of Darfur? It is a very perplexing and deeply disturbing story. Yesterday, I was shocked to read the following, about the Sudan Peace Act:
Genocide in Sudan 1983 to present (...as of 2004) - excerpt:
"The US government's Sudan Peace Act of October 21, 2002 accused Sudan of genocide for killing more than 2 million civilians in the south during an ongoing civil war since 1983. Organised campaign by Janjaweed militias (nomadic Arab shepherds with the support of Sudanese government and troops) to rid 80 black African tribes from the Darfur region of western Sudan. Mukesh Kapila (United Nations humanitarian coordinator) is quoted as saying: "The vicious war in Darfur has led to violations on a scale comparable in character with Rwanda in 1994. All the warning signs are there."
Sudan Peace Act - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia - excerpt:
"The Sudan Peace Act is a US law condemning Sudan for genocide. It was signed into law October 21, 2002 by President George W. Bush.
According to Nat Hentoff:
More than 2 million black, non-Muslim civilians in the South have died from an ongoing civil war since 1983 in that country. The United States now declares in a law that "the acts of the government of Sudan . . . constitute genocide as defined by the [1948 United Nations] Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide."
The northern National Islamic Front government in Khartoum has enslaved women and children in the south of Sudan; engaged in ethnic cleansing; bombed churches and schools; and prevented food from humanitarian agencies from reaching the black Christians and animists trying to withstand the armed "jihad" forces of the north."
- - -
CHINA offers more aid for Darfur:
Aug 17 - The Chinese government will offer another 5 million yuan (610,000 US dollars) worth of humanitarian aid Darfur.
NIGERIA plans mission to Darfur:
Aug 17 - Olusegun Obasanjo called for lawmakers to approve the deployment of up to 1,500 peacekeeping troops to Darfur.
SUDAN asks Libyan leader for help in Darfur:
Ismail gave Libyan leader Gadhafi a letter from al-Bashir in which the Sudanese president detailed the situation in Darfur.
Middle East Online - UK - Sudan asks Kadhafi to interfere in Darfur crisis - TRIPOLI - Sudan asked Libyan leader Moamer Kadhafi Tuesday to "intervene personally" in the escalating crisis in Darfur, Libya's official JANA news agency.
SUDAN Says More Police to Shield Darfur Refugees:
Aug 17 - Sudan plans to double the number of police in Darfur to 20,000, the country's foreign minister said on Tuesday.
Aug 17 - China News says the Sudanese government said on Tuesday that it has deployed another 2,000 policemen in Darfur to secure the situation in the area under an agreement with the United Nations.
http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2004-08/18/content_1811761.htm
OM chief visits Sudan on Darfur crisis:
Aug 17 - The International Organization for Migration (IOM) said Tuesday that its director general is traveling to Khartoum.
Algeria, Egypt and Libya tell Arab League they're ready to send armed troops to Darfur:
Aug 15 - Algeria, Egypt and Libya "informed the committee of Arab foreign ministers gathered in Cairo on August 8 to discuss Darfur that they would dispatch troops as part of the Africa Union contingent," said Samir Hosni, in charge of the Darfur issue at the League said.
Algeria's charge d'affaires in Cairo Menawer Rabiai told AFP he could not confirm this information.
During that meeting, the foreign ministers had called on countries belonging both to the African Union (AU) and the Arab League to contribute troops to the force tasked with protecting observers monitoring a ceasefire in Darfur.
http://www.sudantribune.com/article.php3?id_article=4745
# posted by Ingrid J. Jones @ 8/18/2004
0 comments
Tuesday, August 17, 2004
MAC SAFARI BROWSER PROBLEM? BUG OR VIRUS?
Having trouble capturing site URLs for linking here
Today, when I capture the URL from a site, for linking within a post here, I get a whole string of 20% characters inbetween the name - for instance the link to BBC news homepage turns out looking like this:
http%3A//news.bbc.co.uk %0A%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20BBC%20NEWS%20%7C%20News%20Front%20Page
I'm pasting the full link to the BBC news homepage here below so I can see how it looks when I publish. I use a PowerBook G4 and have emptied my Safari browser cache - reset it - cleared history but it is still happening. Apple tech support is closed until tomorrow morning. Does anyone have any idea what is wrong? Is it a bug or a virus? I've been digging around some iffy sites in Sudan today and wouldn't be surprised if they have something to do with it. Sudan News Agency made a blogmates computer crash - and made mine go haywire last week. Comments or email would be most appreciated. Thanks.
%0A%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20BBC%20NEWS%20%7C%20News%20Front%20Page
Update:
Well, as you can see - the link is live but does not lead to the BBC news homepage - it leads to a Blogger page. I use "Bog this!" tool to capture the links - could it be something wrong with the Blogger tool? Does anyone have any ideas - should I email Blogger? I can't publish any links here until it's sorted -- curiously, I am writing a story that looks into my question about the millions of people that seem to be missing in the stats on Darfur -- along with another story about China/oil/minerals in South Darfur... but I can't post the links to share with you what I've found. Spooky ;-)
Having trouble capturing site URLs for linking here
Today, when I capture the URL from a site, for linking within a post here, I get a whole string of 20% characters inbetween the name - for instance the link to BBC news homepage turns out looking like this:
http%3A//news.bbc.co.uk %0A%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20BBC%20NEWS%20%7C%20News%20Front%20Page
I'm pasting the full link to the BBC news homepage here below so I can see how it looks when I publish. I use a PowerBook G4 and have emptied my Safari browser cache - reset it - cleared history but it is still happening. Apple tech support is closed until tomorrow morning. Does anyone have any idea what is wrong? Is it a bug or a virus? I've been digging around some iffy sites in Sudan today and wouldn't be surprised if they have something to do with it. Sudan News Agency made a blogmates computer crash - and made mine go haywire last week. Comments or email would be most appreciated. Thanks.
%0A%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20BBC%20NEWS%20%7C%20News%20Front%20Page
Update:
Well, as you can see - the link is live but does not lead to the BBC news homepage - it leads to a Blogger page. I use "Bog this!" tool to capture the links - could it be something wrong with the Blogger tool? Does anyone have any ideas - should I email Blogger? I can't publish any links here until it's sorted -- curiously, I am writing a story that looks into my question about the millions of people that seem to be missing in the stats on Darfur -- along with another story about China/oil/minerals in South Darfur... but I can't post the links to share with you what I've found. Spooky ;-)
# posted by Ingrid J. Jones @ 8/17/2004
0 comments
Sunday, August 15, 2004
MUST-READ REPORT ON SUDAN BY BRITISH MP
John Bercow, international development spokesman for the Conservatives
Here is a must-read report by John Bercow, international development spokesman for the Conservatives. The report entitled "Ministers are on holiday - Murderers are not" is dated August 15, 2004, and should be compulsory reading for all.
Not only does it give us something to hang on to and quote from but it also helps the UK government's cause - bearing in mind that many politicians and voters (mainly from within Labour) villified Tony Blair instead of Saddam Hussein. And, considering how the media went into apopletic overdrive on Iraq, it's only natural the Government is not making a show of flying the Union flag while helping the victims of genocide and ethnic cleansing in Sudan.
Seems the UK is carrying out a lot of work and diplomacy behind the scenes, involving its own military intelligence, the EU, UN and aid agencies. I wouldn't be surprised if it is taking a leading role because of its expertise in that region. France and Germany are working hard to help. Norway and Netherlands are very helpful. So too are Libya, Yemen and South Africa. Big Commonwealth countries will provide back up if needed. And news today (see below in previous post) of the 30-strong British military team, back from 10 days in the Sudan, proves the UK is doing everything it can to help. British donors have been fantastic in raising tens of millions of pounds, relief agencies have delivered several plane loads of aid and carried out a huge amount of work in the field. The UK is the second largest cash donor of aid for Darfur.
As one cannot disagree with a single word of Mr Bercow's report, because it is so accurate, I would implore any blogger, no matter what their political persuasion, to please read the report and pass it on.
Note the poignant closing lines: "It would be the most shaming scandal in modern times if controversy about the basis of war in Iraq stopped the free world doing its humanitarian duty to protect the people of Darfur. They need our protection. There is not a moment to lose."
Here is the report, in full:
The former United Nations co-ordinator on humanitarian affairs for Sudan described the situation in Darfur as the "worst humanitarian and human rights catastrophe in the world". From the mass of television pictures and newspaper column inches over the past few weeks, people can now see why.
Visiting the refugee camps last month was one of the most miserable experiences of my adult life. Over one million people, forced out of their homes, struggle to exist in conditions that range from grim to desperate. A feeble hut, held together by pieces of string, or plastic sheets, was typically home to eight or more people. Aid from the World Food Programme, when it gets through, is the lifeline for the destitute people of Darfur. Yet I met many people who had been in their camp for a fortnight, but had not yet been registered. As a result, they had received no food. Part of the problem was the sheer demand created by the doubling of camp numbers in only four weeks. Primary healthcare was at best patchy and at worst next to non-existent. With the onset of the rainy season, there is a danger that cholera, typhoid and other diseases will spread like wildfire, killing hundreds of thousands of civilians.
This human tragedy is not an accident. It is the result of a systematic and evil campaign cooked up by the government of Sudan and the Janjaweed militia. Aerial bombing, mass shooting, widespread rape, theft of livestock, destruction of crops and poisoning of water supplies are all part of the cocktail of barbarity that has stunned the world. Perhaps most sickening of all are reports of people being chained together and burned alive. So despicable and horrifying have been the atrocities, that they have provoked the ire of the African Union - a body that saw no evil during the last elections in Zimbabwe.
Among Conservatives, I have been more outspoken than most in paying tribute to the courage and statesmanship that Tony Blair displayed over Iraq. I admire his doctrine of humanitarian intervention. What is more, I had every reason to hope that he would apply it to Darfur. After all, he said in 2001 that if ever a repeat of Rwanda was threatened, Britain would have a moral duty to react. It is, and we have. Yet what has happened?
On 21 July the Prime Minister told the House of Commons that the situation in Darfur had his full attention and that he was "in contact with other ministers on it literally every day". Yet earlier this week The Independent quoted the Prime Minister's spokesman say-ing that Darfur "is an issue which is being discussed, but I am not aware of any meetings". As opposition spokesman on international development, I wrote to the Prime Minister about this crisis on 22 July and I was promised a reply from the Foreign Office. Three weeks later, none has arrived. The silence is deafening. Ministers are entitled to their holidays, but the victims of wanton savagery in Darfur cannot wait for them to return. It is time that the Government got a grip and set out what it thinks should happen if the situation does not dramatically improve in Darfur in days.
After months of shameful procrastination and dithering, the UN Security Council passed Resolution 1556 on 30 July. Despite the squeals of protest from the Sudanese government, the text was hardly a ringing declaration of robust intent. It left many representatives of non-governmental organisations who have witnessed the unspeakable barbarity on the ground and the intensifying crisis from shortages of food, medicine and shelter, less than sanguine. They saw it as the lowest common denominator between countries wanting to do a lot, others little and many nothing at all to stop the death toll. The resolution urges the Khartoum government to disarm the Janjaweed within 30 days, allow an independent investigation into human rights violations and establish peace with rebel forces in Darfur. It does not specify sanctions if these conditions are not met, but coyly expresses the intention of the Security Council "to consider further actions". Moreover, it does not deliver a 30-day ultimatum to the regime but merely mandates the Secretary-General to report back on progress, or the lack of it, on a monthly basis.
How many people will perish while this diplomatic rain dance takes place is any-body's guess. With up to a thousand people a day dying at present, every month without effective action means that the descent into genocide will be as rapid as it is disgraceful.
I do not have the slightest expectation that the situation in Darfur will be better on 29 August than it was on 30 July. After all, the Sudanese government is in denial about the fact of the atrocities, the scale of the atrocities and its collaboration with the Janjaweed in the commission of the atrocities. Its claim to be restoring normality, and merely needing a little more time to do so, is nonsense on stilts and a cynical delaying tactic by those content to see ethnic cleansing well advanced before an international finger is lifted to stop it.
What is to be done? If my worst fears are confirmed, the UN should agree to send an international peace-keeping force. If it is to be an African Union operation, Western nations must provide funding, logistics and electronic communications. The alternative would be to send either an EU or a UN force. Its purpose? To allow unimpeded access to humanitarian aid, provide security for those in refugee camps and to enforce a ceasefire.
It would be the most shaming scandal in modern times if controversy about the basis of war in Iraq stopped the free world doing its humanitarian duty to protect the people of Darfur. They need our protection. There is not a moment to lose. [end]
- - -
Note, I am pinging here - via Technorati - as many British MPs who are bloggers that I can find, along with British bloggers who are interested in and active in British politics and journalism. (It is late at night now and I have managed only three links so far but will add the rest here tomorrow).
Clive Soley MP
Tom Watson MP
Richard Allan MP
John Bercow, international development spokesman for the Conservatives
Here is a must-read report by John Bercow, international development spokesman for the Conservatives. The report entitled "Ministers are on holiday - Murderers are not" is dated August 15, 2004, and should be compulsory reading for all.
Not only does it give us something to hang on to and quote from but it also helps the UK government's cause - bearing in mind that many politicians and voters (mainly from within Labour) villified Tony Blair instead of Saddam Hussein. And, considering how the media went into apopletic overdrive on Iraq, it's only natural the Government is not making a show of flying the Union flag while helping the victims of genocide and ethnic cleansing in Sudan.
Seems the UK is carrying out a lot of work and diplomacy behind the scenes, involving its own military intelligence, the EU, UN and aid agencies. I wouldn't be surprised if it is taking a leading role because of its expertise in that region. France and Germany are working hard to help. Norway and Netherlands are very helpful. So too are Libya, Yemen and South Africa. Big Commonwealth countries will provide back up if needed. And news today (see below in previous post) of the 30-strong British military team, back from 10 days in the Sudan, proves the UK is doing everything it can to help. British donors have been fantastic in raising tens of millions of pounds, relief agencies have delivered several plane loads of aid and carried out a huge amount of work in the field. The UK is the second largest cash donor of aid for Darfur.
As one cannot disagree with a single word of Mr Bercow's report, because it is so accurate, I would implore any blogger, no matter what their political persuasion, to please read the report and pass it on.
Note the poignant closing lines: "It would be the most shaming scandal in modern times if controversy about the basis of war in Iraq stopped the free world doing its humanitarian duty to protect the people of Darfur. They need our protection. There is not a moment to lose."
Here is the report, in full:
The former United Nations co-ordinator on humanitarian affairs for Sudan described the situation in Darfur as the "worst humanitarian and human rights catastrophe in the world". From the mass of television pictures and newspaper column inches over the past few weeks, people can now see why.
Visiting the refugee camps last month was one of the most miserable experiences of my adult life. Over one million people, forced out of their homes, struggle to exist in conditions that range from grim to desperate. A feeble hut, held together by pieces of string, or plastic sheets, was typically home to eight or more people. Aid from the World Food Programme, when it gets through, is the lifeline for the destitute people of Darfur. Yet I met many people who had been in their camp for a fortnight, but had not yet been registered. As a result, they had received no food. Part of the problem was the sheer demand created by the doubling of camp numbers in only four weeks. Primary healthcare was at best patchy and at worst next to non-existent. With the onset of the rainy season, there is a danger that cholera, typhoid and other diseases will spread like wildfire, killing hundreds of thousands of civilians.
This human tragedy is not an accident. It is the result of a systematic and evil campaign cooked up by the government of Sudan and the Janjaweed militia. Aerial bombing, mass shooting, widespread rape, theft of livestock, destruction of crops and poisoning of water supplies are all part of the cocktail of barbarity that has stunned the world. Perhaps most sickening of all are reports of people being chained together and burned alive. So despicable and horrifying have been the atrocities, that they have provoked the ire of the African Union - a body that saw no evil during the last elections in Zimbabwe.
Among Conservatives, I have been more outspoken than most in paying tribute to the courage and statesmanship that Tony Blair displayed over Iraq. I admire his doctrine of humanitarian intervention. What is more, I had every reason to hope that he would apply it to Darfur. After all, he said in 2001 that if ever a repeat of Rwanda was threatened, Britain would have a moral duty to react. It is, and we have. Yet what has happened?
On 21 July the Prime Minister told the House of Commons that the situation in Darfur had his full attention and that he was "in contact with other ministers on it literally every day". Yet earlier this week The Independent quoted the Prime Minister's spokesman say-ing that Darfur "is an issue which is being discussed, but I am not aware of any meetings". As opposition spokesman on international development, I wrote to the Prime Minister about this crisis on 22 July and I was promised a reply from the Foreign Office. Three weeks later, none has arrived. The silence is deafening. Ministers are entitled to their holidays, but the victims of wanton savagery in Darfur cannot wait for them to return. It is time that the Government got a grip and set out what it thinks should happen if the situation does not dramatically improve in Darfur in days.
After months of shameful procrastination and dithering, the UN Security Council passed Resolution 1556 on 30 July. Despite the squeals of protest from the Sudanese government, the text was hardly a ringing declaration of robust intent. It left many representatives of non-governmental organisations who have witnessed the unspeakable barbarity on the ground and the intensifying crisis from shortages of food, medicine and shelter, less than sanguine. They saw it as the lowest common denominator between countries wanting to do a lot, others little and many nothing at all to stop the death toll. The resolution urges the Khartoum government to disarm the Janjaweed within 30 days, allow an independent investigation into human rights violations and establish peace with rebel forces in Darfur. It does not specify sanctions if these conditions are not met, but coyly expresses the intention of the Security Council "to consider further actions". Moreover, it does not deliver a 30-day ultimatum to the regime but merely mandates the Secretary-General to report back on progress, or the lack of it, on a monthly basis.
How many people will perish while this diplomatic rain dance takes place is any-body's guess. With up to a thousand people a day dying at present, every month without effective action means that the descent into genocide will be as rapid as it is disgraceful.
I do not have the slightest expectation that the situation in Darfur will be better on 29 August than it was on 30 July. After all, the Sudanese government is in denial about the fact of the atrocities, the scale of the atrocities and its collaboration with the Janjaweed in the commission of the atrocities. Its claim to be restoring normality, and merely needing a little more time to do so, is nonsense on stilts and a cynical delaying tactic by those content to see ethnic cleansing well advanced before an international finger is lifted to stop it.
What is to be done? If my worst fears are confirmed, the UN should agree to send an international peace-keeping force. If it is to be an African Union operation, Western nations must provide funding, logistics and electronic communications. The alternative would be to send either an EU or a UN force. Its purpose? To allow unimpeded access to humanitarian aid, provide security for those in refugee camps and to enforce a ceasefire.
It would be the most shaming scandal in modern times if controversy about the basis of war in Iraq stopped the free world doing its humanitarian duty to protect the people of Darfur. They need our protection. There is not a moment to lose. [end]
- - -
Note, I am pinging here - via Technorati - as many British MPs who are bloggers that I can find, along with British bloggers who are interested in and active in British politics and journalism. (It is late at night now and I have managed only three links so far but will add the rest here tomorrow).
Clive Soley MP
Tom Watson MP
Richard Allan MP
# posted by Ingrid J. Jones @ 8/15/2004
0 comments
Saturday, August 14, 2004
FIRST AU TROOPS HEAD TO DARFUR
Rwandan troops sing and dance in Camp Kanombe in Kigali prior to flying to Darfur
Report from Kigali - The first dozen Rwandan soldiers of a 300-strong African Union protection force left Kigali on Saturday for Sudan's troubled region of Darfur, a Rwandan army spokesman said.
"Twelve soldiers have already left with the equipment. We are expecting the others to leave tomorrow (Sunday) morning," Colonel Patrick Karegeya told reporters.
The troops left with armoured vehicles, he said.
Doesn't this picture bring a lump to your throat? It's of Rwandan troops singing and dancing in Camp Kanombe in Kigali prior to flying to Sudan's Darfur. It made me cry. God bless them. Especially because they are from Rwanda. It's just so fitting. The soldiers in the picture must have been just teenagers when 800,000 were slaughtered in Rwanda - just ten years ago - while the world looked on.
- - -
U.N. report via Reuters today: Sudanese police officers sent to restore security in Darfur are sexually exploiting displaced women. "IDPs (Internally Displaced People) report increasing incidents of sexual abuse and exploitation in Abu Shouk Camp near el-Fasher committed by police officers," said the U.N. humanitarian situation report received by Reuters Saturday. The report also said some of the police officers had threatened women looking for firewood with violence if they did not comply with their demands.
- - -
Update BBC Aug 14 report excerpt re Rwandan troops heading to Sudan over the weekend to protect African Union (AU) ceasefire monitors in Darfur:
"President Paul Kagame of Rwanda said the 150 troops would use force if necessary to protect Sudanese civilians. UN special envoy Jan Pronk said the deployment of 2,500 AU peacekeepers is being considered.
"If it was established that the civilians are in danger then our forces will certainly intervene and use force to protect civilians," Mr Kagame is quoted as saying by the Associated Press. He said Rwandan forces would not stand by and watch innocent civilians being hacked to death, referring to the UN troops unable to intervene as the 1994 genocide unfolded in the country. "In my view it does not make sense to give security to peace observers while the local population is left to die," he told reporters at a military base.
Mr Pronk welcomed the forthcoming arrival of the monitoring team in Darfur and said he wanted many more African observers. "The more people we have on the ground the greater the possibility to build the confidence of the local population," he told the BBC. He said that progress had been made in talks with the Sudanese government about the establishment of 20km wide safe areas around giant refugee camps in Darfur.
Under the proposal, which is expected to be finalised in the coming days, neither soldiers nor the pro-government Janjaweed militia would be able to carry weapons of any kind in these areas. Despite the progress in Khartoum, Mr Pronk acknowledged that fighting was continuing in Darfur, with Janjaweed fighters ignoring official instructions to end attacks.
Peace talks due to take place in Abuja on 23 August between all parties in the conflict - the Sudanese government and the two rebel groups - will go ahead, Mr Pronk said, despite uncertainty about whether the rebel groups will attend."
Rwandan troops sing and dance in Camp Kanombe in Kigali prior to flying to Darfur
Report from Kigali - The first dozen Rwandan soldiers of a 300-strong African Union protection force left Kigali on Saturday for Sudan's troubled region of Darfur, a Rwandan army spokesman said.
"Twelve soldiers have already left with the equipment. We are expecting the others to leave tomorrow (Sunday) morning," Colonel Patrick Karegeya told reporters.
The troops left with armoured vehicles, he said.
Doesn't this picture bring a lump to your throat? It's of Rwandan troops singing and dancing in Camp Kanombe in Kigali prior to flying to Sudan's Darfur. It made me cry. God bless them. Especially because they are from Rwanda. It's just so fitting. The soldiers in the picture must have been just teenagers when 800,000 were slaughtered in Rwanda - just ten years ago - while the world looked on.
- - -
U.N. report via Reuters today: Sudanese police officers sent to restore security in Darfur are sexually exploiting displaced women. "IDPs (Internally Displaced People) report increasing incidents of sexual abuse and exploitation in Abu Shouk Camp near el-Fasher committed by police officers," said the U.N. humanitarian situation report received by Reuters Saturday. The report also said some of the police officers had threatened women looking for firewood with violence if they did not comply with their demands.
- - -
Update BBC Aug 14 report excerpt re Rwandan troops heading to Sudan over the weekend to protect African Union (AU) ceasefire monitors in Darfur:
"President Paul Kagame of Rwanda said the 150 troops would use force if necessary to protect Sudanese civilians. UN special envoy Jan Pronk said the deployment of 2,500 AU peacekeepers is being considered.
"If it was established that the civilians are in danger then our forces will certainly intervene and use force to protect civilians," Mr Kagame is quoted as saying by the Associated Press. He said Rwandan forces would not stand by and watch innocent civilians being hacked to death, referring to the UN troops unable to intervene as the 1994 genocide unfolded in the country. "In my view it does not make sense to give security to peace observers while the local population is left to die," he told reporters at a military base.
Mr Pronk welcomed the forthcoming arrival of the monitoring team in Darfur and said he wanted many more African observers. "The more people we have on the ground the greater the possibility to build the confidence of the local population," he told the BBC. He said that progress had been made in talks with the Sudanese government about the establishment of 20km wide safe areas around giant refugee camps in Darfur.
Under the proposal, which is expected to be finalised in the coming days, neither soldiers nor the pro-government Janjaweed militia would be able to carry weapons of any kind in these areas. Despite the progress in Khartoum, Mr Pronk acknowledged that fighting was continuing in Darfur, with Janjaweed fighters ignoring official instructions to end attacks.
Peace talks due to take place in Abuja on 23 August between all parties in the conflict - the Sudanese government and the two rebel groups - will go ahead, Mr Pronk said, despite uncertainty about whether the rebel groups will attend."
# posted by Ingrid J. Jones @ 8/14/2004
0 comments
- - -
STATES THAT FAIL TO PROTECT THE HUMAN RIGHTS OF THEIR OWN CITIZENS SHOULD FORFEIT THE SOVEREIGN RIGHT TO NON-INTERFERENCE IN THEIR INTERNAL AFFAIRS - Only a transfer of power to the U.N. General Assembly will end this misery
This morning, I felt uplifted to read David Clark's report, entitled "In Darfur, the UN veto is proving as deadly as the gun", in today's Guardian because he so brilliantly puts into words what I was trying to articulate in my last few posts here -- about the Obligations and The Universal Declaration of Human Rights.
I've not read of such ideas anywhere else -- so I am relieved to see that I am not alone in my thinking. Clive Soley MP seems to be the only blogger in Britain (that I can find) with political influence who cares to write about the Sudan and failing states and write important papers on the subject.
Having said that though, I must credit Labour MP Tom Watson for responding positively to a comment I left at his blog on June 26, in support of no fly zones over Darfur. Tom is the first British MP to get blogging, he posts almost daily at his award winning blog that covers all sorts of local, national and global issues. Here's hoping Tom will use his talents to focus attention on the problems of a toothless U.N.
The U.N. is a hugely costly organisation that renders its 191 members impotent when it comes to any of them wanting to intervene with humanitarian assistance in countries where genocide and ethnic cleansing are happening. After Rwanda, the West said, never again. Here we are again, ten years later, and all world can do is use its techology to watch and talk about genocide and ethnic cleansing unfolding in slow motion like a horrofic movie. The fact that an unelected dictatorship in Sudan can preside for 15 years over the slaughter of two million Sudanese while rejecting offers of help to provide a safe corridor for humanitarian assistance is, in itself, a crime against humanity.
Please read David Clark's report in full -- it's like he has read my mind and is writing what I am thinking a thousand times more better than I can articulate. He says:
"States that fail to protect the human rights of their own citizens forfeit the sovereign right to non-interference in their internal affairs. Without that principle, the universal declaration of human rights isn't worth the paper it's written on."
PLUS he confirms what can be done about it:
"Only a transfer of power to the general assembly will end this misery"
Here is the report, copied in full:
Today marks the halfway point in the UN security council's 30-day ultimatum to the government of Sudan to disarm the Janjaweed militias, responsible for what is commonly described as the world's worst humanitarian disaster. Already it is apparent that the response of the Islamist regime will be to continue bluffing it out with protests of injured innocence in the hope that the international community eventually gives up and loses interest.
Daily reports of attacks against civilians continue to come in from across Darfur; 30,000 people are said to have fled in the latest round of violence. But far from restraining the militias, the government is providing continued military support for their campaign of ethnic terror. In the past week the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs reported that helicopter gunships had again been used in attacks; and the traumatised victims of earlier atrocities, crammed into refugee camps, continue to suffer violent assaults by the Janjaweed, often under the nose of Sudanese troops supposed to protect them. This is not a little local difficulty; it is a war waged by the government against its people.
To the extent that the authorities have acted at all, it has been to cover up evidence of what is happening. Instead of being disarmed and disbanded, the militias are being integrated into the security forces where they will be less conspicuous. Refugees are being pressured to return to their villages with threats of violence or offers of desperately needed food, only to become victims once again. Those who speak to international observers are being rounded up and imprisoned, according to Amnesty International. And aid workers attempting to get supplies to those most at risk from malnutrition and disease are reporting new government-imposed restrictions on their operations. Everything that is being done is a calculated play for time.
The reaction of the Khartoum regime is scarcely surprising. Little of what the international community has done suggests that the political will exists for any meaningful intervention. The watering down of security council resolution 1556, as a result of pressure from several states, will not have been lost on Sudan's rulers. While the original draft contained an explicit threat of sanctions, the final version did little more than vaguely promise to "consider further actions" in the event of non-compliance. This will have been interpreted, correctly, as a sign of weakness and an indication that little is likely to be done when the UN deadline expires.
Those of the "nothing must be done" persuasion dismiss outside intervention as irresponsible or malevolent, and probably both. Not one of them has suggested a credible way for this hopelessly one-sided conflict to be resolved except for it to run its bloody course. They are entitled to their position, but they are not entitled to deny its human consequences.
Splitting hairs over the definition of genocide or quibbling over how many thousands have been killed doesn't alter the fact that serious crimes against humanity are being committed with every passing day. Nor does the argument that the militias are beyond Khartoum's control. Disputes about whether the regime is orchestrating the violence or has simply lost control of events are unimportant when set against the suffering in Darfur. States that fail to protect the human rights of their own citizens forfeit the sovereign right to non-interference in their internal affairs. Without that principle, the universal declaration of human rights isn't worth the paper it's written on.
Unfortunately, as Darfur illustrates, the UN system is singularly ill-suited to upholding its own stated values. Four of the countries that forced the threat of sanctions to be removed from the security council resolution - Russia, China, Pakistan and Algeria - have extremely poor human rights records. Two are permanent members with the power of veto, commercial ties to the Sudanese government and a strong interest in defending the inviolability of state sovereignty against the humanitarian imperative. Why do they enjoy this privilege? Because almost 60 years ago they happened to be on the winning side in a war.
The veto power of the other permanent members is no less anomalous and no less hypocritical in the uses to which it has been put. America has exercised its veto on 79 occasions, most frequently to shield Israel from international criticism. It has also used the veto to avoid censure for its aggression against Nicaragua, the invasion of Grenada and other misdeeds. Britain and America, with occasional French support, performed the same service for apartheid South Africa throughout the 70s and 80s. With these rules, the aspiration for global justice will always lose out to the reality that there is one law for the "great powers" and their client states, and another law for the rest.
Tony Blair's ambition to establish a new "doctrine of international community" with human rights as its central focus is struggling to make progress in the face of widespread international scepticism. Not all this is due to the fallout over Iraq. Some of it is also prompted by the fact that Blair's apparent enthusiasm for reform does not extend to asking whether it is still legitimate for Britain or any other country to insist that its own interests should take precedence over international law.
If he really wanted to push a radical agenda, he could do worse than propose that the power to impose sanctions and authorise the use of military force should be exercised by the UN membership as a whole. The general assembly has its problems, but is a far more representative body than the security council and is becoming more so with the passage of time. The days when its membership consisted largely of the representatives of military juntas and one-party states are long gone. The remarkable progress of democratic ideas in Latin America, eastern Europe and parts of Asia and sub-Saharan Africa over the past two decades means that two-thirds of UN members now have elected governments. There is every reason to believe that this figure will continue to rise. Isn't it time for the world body to shake off the colonial assumptions on which it was founded?
When the security council meets at the end of the month to consider Sudan's compliance with resolution 1556, the result is likely to be more paralysis and inaction. If Blair's reaction is to bemoan the unreasonable and unprincipled resort to the politics of the veto, someone should remind him that it's his system too. [end of item]
- - -
Note Friday Aug 13 report from China News: Sudan rejects foreign interference. Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir said in an interview with CNN that his government will not accept foreign interference in Darfur in any case.
STATES THAT FAIL TO PROTECT THE HUMAN RIGHTS OF THEIR OWN CITIZENS SHOULD FORFEIT THE SOVEREIGN RIGHT TO NON-INTERFERENCE IN THEIR INTERNAL AFFAIRS - Only a transfer of power to the U.N. General Assembly will end this misery
This morning, I felt uplifted to read David Clark's report, entitled "In Darfur, the UN veto is proving as deadly as the gun", in today's Guardian because he so brilliantly puts into words what I was trying to articulate in my last few posts here -- about the Obligations and The Universal Declaration of Human Rights.
I've not read of such ideas anywhere else -- so I am relieved to see that I am not alone in my thinking. Clive Soley MP seems to be the only blogger in Britain (that I can find) with political influence who cares to write about the Sudan and failing states and write important papers on the subject.
Having said that though, I must credit Labour MP Tom Watson for responding positively to a comment I left at his blog on June 26, in support of no fly zones over Darfur. Tom is the first British MP to get blogging, he posts almost daily at his award winning blog that covers all sorts of local, national and global issues. Here's hoping Tom will use his talents to focus attention on the problems of a toothless U.N.
The U.N. is a hugely costly organisation that renders its 191 members impotent when it comes to any of them wanting to intervene with humanitarian assistance in countries where genocide and ethnic cleansing are happening. After Rwanda, the West said, never again. Here we are again, ten years later, and all world can do is use its techology to watch and talk about genocide and ethnic cleansing unfolding in slow motion like a horrofic movie. The fact that an unelected dictatorship in Sudan can preside for 15 years over the slaughter of two million Sudanese while rejecting offers of help to provide a safe corridor for humanitarian assistance is, in itself, a crime against humanity.
Please read David Clark's report in full -- it's like he has read my mind and is writing what I am thinking a thousand times more better than I can articulate. He says:
"States that fail to protect the human rights of their own citizens forfeit the sovereign right to non-interference in their internal affairs. Without that principle, the universal declaration of human rights isn't worth the paper it's written on."
PLUS he confirms what can be done about it:
"Only a transfer of power to the general assembly will end this misery"
Here is the report, copied in full:
Today marks the halfway point in the UN security council's 30-day ultimatum to the government of Sudan to disarm the Janjaweed militias, responsible for what is commonly described as the world's worst humanitarian disaster. Already it is apparent that the response of the Islamist regime will be to continue bluffing it out with protests of injured innocence in the hope that the international community eventually gives up and loses interest.
Daily reports of attacks against civilians continue to come in from across Darfur; 30,000 people are said to have fled in the latest round of violence. But far from restraining the militias, the government is providing continued military support for their campaign of ethnic terror. In the past week the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs reported that helicopter gunships had again been used in attacks; and the traumatised victims of earlier atrocities, crammed into refugee camps, continue to suffer violent assaults by the Janjaweed, often under the nose of Sudanese troops supposed to protect them. This is not a little local difficulty; it is a war waged by the government against its people.
To the extent that the authorities have acted at all, it has been to cover up evidence of what is happening. Instead of being disarmed and disbanded, the militias are being integrated into the security forces where they will be less conspicuous. Refugees are being pressured to return to their villages with threats of violence or offers of desperately needed food, only to become victims once again. Those who speak to international observers are being rounded up and imprisoned, according to Amnesty International. And aid workers attempting to get supplies to those most at risk from malnutrition and disease are reporting new government-imposed restrictions on their operations. Everything that is being done is a calculated play for time.
The reaction of the Khartoum regime is scarcely surprising. Little of what the international community has done suggests that the political will exists for any meaningful intervention. The watering down of security council resolution 1556, as a result of pressure from several states, will not have been lost on Sudan's rulers. While the original draft contained an explicit threat of sanctions, the final version did little more than vaguely promise to "consider further actions" in the event of non-compliance. This will have been interpreted, correctly, as a sign of weakness and an indication that little is likely to be done when the UN deadline expires.
Those of the "nothing must be done" persuasion dismiss outside intervention as irresponsible or malevolent, and probably both. Not one of them has suggested a credible way for this hopelessly one-sided conflict to be resolved except for it to run its bloody course. They are entitled to their position, but they are not entitled to deny its human consequences.
Splitting hairs over the definition of genocide or quibbling over how many thousands have been killed doesn't alter the fact that serious crimes against humanity are being committed with every passing day. Nor does the argument that the militias are beyond Khartoum's control. Disputes about whether the regime is orchestrating the violence or has simply lost control of events are unimportant when set against the suffering in Darfur. States that fail to protect the human rights of their own citizens forfeit the sovereign right to non-interference in their internal affairs. Without that principle, the universal declaration of human rights isn't worth the paper it's written on.
Unfortunately, as Darfur illustrates, the UN system is singularly ill-suited to upholding its own stated values. Four of the countries that forced the threat of sanctions to be removed from the security council resolution - Russia, China, Pakistan and Algeria - have extremely poor human rights records. Two are permanent members with the power of veto, commercial ties to the Sudanese government and a strong interest in defending the inviolability of state sovereignty against the humanitarian imperative. Why do they enjoy this privilege? Because almost 60 years ago they happened to be on the winning side in a war.
The veto power of the other permanent members is no less anomalous and no less hypocritical in the uses to which it has been put. America has exercised its veto on 79 occasions, most frequently to shield Israel from international criticism. It has also used the veto to avoid censure for its aggression against Nicaragua, the invasion of Grenada and other misdeeds. Britain and America, with occasional French support, performed the same service for apartheid South Africa throughout the 70s and 80s. With these rules, the aspiration for global justice will always lose out to the reality that there is one law for the "great powers" and their client states, and another law for the rest.
Tony Blair's ambition to establish a new "doctrine of international community" with human rights as its central focus is struggling to make progress in the face of widespread international scepticism. Not all this is due to the fallout over Iraq. Some of it is also prompted by the fact that Blair's apparent enthusiasm for reform does not extend to asking whether it is still legitimate for Britain or any other country to insist that its own interests should take precedence over international law.
If he really wanted to push a radical agenda, he could do worse than propose that the power to impose sanctions and authorise the use of military force should be exercised by the UN membership as a whole. The general assembly has its problems, but is a far more representative body than the security council and is becoming more so with the passage of time. The days when its membership consisted largely of the representatives of military juntas and one-party states are long gone. The remarkable progress of democratic ideas in Latin America, eastern Europe and parts of Asia and sub-Saharan Africa over the past two decades means that two-thirds of UN members now have elected governments. There is every reason to believe that this figure will continue to rise. Isn't it time for the world body to shake off the colonial assumptions on which it was founded?
When the security council meets at the end of the month to consider Sudan's compliance with resolution 1556, the result is likely to be more paralysis and inaction. If Blair's reaction is to bemoan the unreasonable and unprincipled resort to the politics of the veto, someone should remind him that it's his system too. [end of item]
- - -
Note Friday Aug 13 report from China News: Sudan rejects foreign interference. Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir said in an interview with CNN that his government will not accept foreign interference in Darfur in any case.
# posted by Ingrid J. Jones @ 8/14/2004
0 comments
HOMEPAGE
July 2003
August 2003
September 2003
October 2003
November 2003
December 2003
January 2004
February 2004
March 2004
April 2004
May 2004
June 2004
July 2004
August 2004
September 2004
October 2004
November 2004
December 2004
January 2005
February 2005
March 2005
April 2005
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June 2005
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November 2005
December 2005
January 2006
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March 2006
April 2006
May 2006
June 2006
July 2006
September 2006
October 2006
November 2006
January 2007
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Thank you to Blogger for this weblog - you can start yours for free now at:
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Email: Ingrid Jones
- - -
SUDAN: BRITISH MILITARY ASSIST U.N. AID OPERATION IN DARFUR -
Current planning based around 1,800 soldiers that could deploy next month
The following report in Britain's Telegraph, filed on August 14, 2004, was authored by Michael Smith, Defence Correspondent, and David Blair in Khartoum:
A British military reconnaissance team has visited Sudan to investigate the possibility of sending medics and logistical personnel to assist in any United Nations operation to provide aid to the people of Darfur.
The 30-strong team from the Permanent Joint Headquarters, led by a colonel, included medics, logistics staff and communications experts.
It spent 10 days investigating the possibility of mounting an aid and assistance operation. The team is understood to have reported back this week to Air Marshal Glenn Torpy, Chief of Joint Operations, on the problems any force would face.
Its report said that medical aid was the priority rather than food, but that the terrain was difficult and any medical and logistics staff would need strong defences.
Gen Sir Mike Jackson, Chief of General Staff, has raised the possibility of sending a 5,000-strong force, but defence sources said current planning was based around a battle group formation of 1,800 soldiers that could deploy next month.
It would include a medical transport unit, logistical and communications experts and an infantry battalion to provide force protection.
A senior defence source said the situation was very complex and was not just about providing aid. "We need to look at protecting ourselves and the displaced persons; it is a massive problem. Our planning allows us to look at the problems of dealing with thousands of people. There are currently 850,000 homeless and we need to review how we are going to prevent the Janjaweed [the notorious pro-government militia] from mounting further attacks.
"In addition we need to take into account the terrain and the hostile environment. Sudan has a reputation next to the Ivory Coast as the white man's graveyard. It is packed with disease.
"Humanitarian agencies are already in Sudan, but they will be reluctant to take aid from us or work alongside us for fear that their impartiality will be compromised. It is very complex."
There was also a potential threat from al-Qa'eda, the source said. The United States has teams of special forces in Sudan hunting down al-Qa'eda units allegedly training in the mountains.
The key objective for any British troops in Darfur would be to create enough security for the refugees to go home.
At present, the region's terrified people live in squalid camps, unable to return to their villages for fear of attack. Rebels from the Sudan Liberation Army and the Janjaweed have both destroyed countless villages.
The Khartoum regime has promised to restore order in Darfur and has deployed thousands of extra police for the task. Yet the government's links to the Janjaweed mean that few of the refugees, 158,000 of whom have fled to neighbouring Chad, trust its pledges. Hardly any are willing to return at the moment. A British force might be able to reassure them. But Darfur is the size of France and a force even of the size mooted by Gen Jackson would be nowhere near sufficient to restore security in the area.
Aid workers say that the key threats to the refugees are the outbreak of hepatitis E in the camps, with 480 cases recorded so far, and the possibility that Sudan's regime might impose restrictions on humanitarian work.
The UN Security Council is due to debate Sudan at the end of this month and decide whether the regime has complied with last month's resolution demanding the Janjaweed's disarmament. If the Security Council decides to punish Sudan, the Khartoum regime could retaliate by re-imposing visa restrictions on aid workers and placing more bureaucratic obstacles in their path. This would cripple the flow of humanitarian aid to the camps.
Aid workers in Darfur point out that the deployment of British troops would not address either of these key dangers.
- - -
Aug 14 BBC UK report: Oxfam worker reveals Sudan plight. Scale of this crisis is almost beyond imagination.
- - -
AU led Rwandan troops ready to arrive in Sudan today Aug 14
A force of 150 Rwandan troops is due in Darfur today to protect African Union ceasefire monitors. Report below. Note to
Jim: does anyone connected with the Passion know how we can get word to the African Union to show our support for these 150 brave souls? It'd be great to send them and the African Union messages of support, wishing them best of luck, letting them know our thoughts are with them - and that we'll be following and spreading the news of their great work.
The following is an excerpt from a report that says there will be an official ceremony for the troop's departure from Kigali.
They will be the first half of a 300-strong African Union (AU) protection force set to be airlifted into Darfur region today, Saturday, to help observe a ceasefire between the government and rebel groups.
"The African Union and the Rwandan government, with the support of the Netherlands, are ready to deploy the AU force in El-Fashir (capital of North Darfur state), directly from Kigali, on August 14 as planned," said an official at AU headquarters in Addis Ababa.
"Everything is going as planned," the official, who requested anonymity, told AFP.
A spokesperson for the Rwandan army, Patrick Karegeya, said there would be an official ceremony for the troops' departure from Kigali.
The pan-African force, consisting of 150 Rwandan and 150 Nigerian soldiers, is tasked only with protecting an AU team of observers monitoring the April 8 ceasefire between the Khartoum government and Darfur rebels, which both sides have accused each other of violating.
The Rwandan troops are to be airlifted by the Netherlands to the war-torn region on Saturday, to be followed by the Nigerian soldiers no later than August 25.
Karegeya said the Rwandan troops included a number of Arabic-speaking officers.
The Sudanese government has welcomed the small peacekeeping force. But it voiced opposition this week to plans by the 53-member AU to expand the contingent into a 2 000-strong peacekeeping force.
Further report from BBC: Rwandan Foreign Minister Charles Murigande said their mandate did not include the protection of civilians. But the deployment of 2,500 AU peacekeepers is being considered, UN special envoy Jan Pronk said. According to Mr Pronk, the topic has been discussed between the AU chairman, Nigerian President Olusegun Obasanjo, and his Sudanese counterpart, Omar al-Bashir.
French news agency AFP quotes Remi Oyo, a spokesman for President Obasanjo, as saying: "If Sudan will not yield to gentle and African pressure, it will have to succumb to extra-African pressure that might not be so gentle."
Mr Pronk welcomed the forthcoming arrival of the monitoring team in Darfur and said he wanted many more African observers. "The more people we have on the ground the greater the possibility to build the confidence of the local population," he told the BBC. He said that progress had been made in talks with the Sudanese government about the establishment of 20km wide safe areas around giant refugee camps in Darfur.
- - -
If Sudan rebuffs African troops it faces outside action: Nigeria
Friday Aug 12 -- Nigeria warned Sudan on Thursday that if it does not allow African Union peacekeepers and diplomats to resolve the Darfur crisis it will end up facing less friendly pressure from outside the continent.
The AU's current chair, Nigeria, warned Sudan on Thursday that unless it allowed AU peacekeepers and diplomats to resolve the conflict it would face pressure from outside the continent.
Sudanese State Foreign Minister Naguib al-Khair Abdel Wahab responded on Friday by saying the only decisions the AU had taken on Darfur confined the pan-African body's role to monitoring and verifying respect of April 8 ceasefire agreement, which was brokered by the government in neighbouring Chad.
"We believe that the task of keeping peace and protecting civilians is exclusively a Sudanese responsibility," he added.
- - -
Text: UN Darfur agreement
BBC news online provides the text of an agreement between the Sudanese government and the United Nations on a "Plan of Action" for Darfur, as carried by Reuters news agency.
Under the proposal, which is expected to be finalised in the coming days, neither soldiers nor the pro-government Janjaweed militia would be able to carry weapons of any kind in these areas.
Despite the progress in Khartoum, UN special envoy Jan Pronk acknowledged that fighting was continuing in Darfur, with Janjaweed fighters ignoring official instructions to end attacks. He said the number of displaced civilians arriving in the refugee camps was rising every day.
The International Organisation from Migration (IOM) says it estimates there are now over 1.2m displaced people within Darfur. In their survey, released on Friday, they say that makeshift camps are not managed or organised and clean water, sanitation and deteriorating health are major causes for concern.
Peace talks due to take place in Abuja on 23 August between all parties in the conflict - the Sudanese government and the two rebel groups - will go ahead, Mr Pronk said, despite uncertainty about whether the rebel groups will attend. "So far we have the impression that they are willing to go, there is a lot of pressure coming from the AU," he said.
SUDAN: BRITISH MILITARY ASSIST U.N. AID OPERATION IN DARFUR -
Current planning based around 1,800 soldiers that could deploy next month
The following report in Britain's Telegraph, filed on August 14, 2004, was authored by Michael Smith, Defence Correspondent, and David Blair in Khartoum:
A British military reconnaissance team has visited Sudan to investigate the possibility of sending medics and logistical personnel to assist in any United Nations operation to provide aid to the people of Darfur.
The 30-strong team from the Permanent Joint Headquarters, led by a colonel, included medics, logistics staff and communications experts.
It spent 10 days investigating the possibility of mounting an aid and assistance operation. The team is understood to have reported back this week to Air Marshal Glenn Torpy, Chief of Joint Operations, on the problems any force would face.
Its report said that medical aid was the priority rather than food, but that the terrain was difficult and any medical and logistics staff would need strong defences.
Gen Sir Mike Jackson, Chief of General Staff, has raised the possibility of sending a 5,000-strong force, but defence sources said current planning was based around a battle group formation of 1,800 soldiers that could deploy next month.
It would include a medical transport unit, logistical and communications experts and an infantry battalion to provide force protection.
A senior defence source said the situation was very complex and was not just about providing aid. "We need to look at protecting ourselves and the displaced persons; it is a massive problem. Our planning allows us to look at the problems of dealing with thousands of people. There are currently 850,000 homeless and we need to review how we are going to prevent the Janjaweed [the notorious pro-government militia] from mounting further attacks.
"In addition we need to take into account the terrain and the hostile environment. Sudan has a reputation next to the Ivory Coast as the white man's graveyard. It is packed with disease.
"Humanitarian agencies are already in Sudan, but they will be reluctant to take aid from us or work alongside us for fear that their impartiality will be compromised. It is very complex."
There was also a potential threat from al-Qa'eda, the source said. The United States has teams of special forces in Sudan hunting down al-Qa'eda units allegedly training in the mountains.
The key objective for any British troops in Darfur would be to create enough security for the refugees to go home.
At present, the region's terrified people live in squalid camps, unable to return to their villages for fear of attack. Rebels from the Sudan Liberation Army and the Janjaweed have both destroyed countless villages.
The Khartoum regime has promised to restore order in Darfur and has deployed thousands of extra police for the task. Yet the government's links to the Janjaweed mean that few of the refugees, 158,000 of whom have fled to neighbouring Chad, trust its pledges. Hardly any are willing to return at the moment. A British force might be able to reassure them. But Darfur is the size of France and a force even of the size mooted by Gen Jackson would be nowhere near sufficient to restore security in the area.
Aid workers say that the key threats to the refugees are the outbreak of hepatitis E in the camps, with 480 cases recorded so far, and the possibility that Sudan's regime might impose restrictions on humanitarian work.
The UN Security Council is due to debate Sudan at the end of this month and decide whether the regime has complied with last month's resolution demanding the Janjaweed's disarmament. If the Security Council decides to punish Sudan, the Khartoum regime could retaliate by re-imposing visa restrictions on aid workers and placing more bureaucratic obstacles in their path. This would cripple the flow of humanitarian aid to the camps.
Aid workers in Darfur point out that the deployment of British troops would not address either of these key dangers.
- - -
Aug 14 BBC UK report: Oxfam worker reveals Sudan plight. Scale of this crisis is almost beyond imagination.
- - -
AU led Rwandan troops ready to arrive in Sudan today Aug 14
A force of 150 Rwandan troops is due in Darfur today to protect African Union ceasefire monitors. Report below. Note to
Jim: does anyone connected with the Passion know how we can get word to the African Union to show our support for these 150 brave souls? It'd be great to send them and the African Union messages of support, wishing them best of luck, letting them know our thoughts are with them - and that we'll be following and spreading the news of their great work.
The following is an excerpt from a report that says there will be an official ceremony for the troop's departure from Kigali.
They will be the first half of a 300-strong African Union (AU) protection force set to be airlifted into Darfur region today, Saturday, to help observe a ceasefire between the government and rebel groups.
"The African Union and the Rwandan government, with the support of the Netherlands, are ready to deploy the AU force in El-Fashir (capital of North Darfur state), directly from Kigali, on August 14 as planned," said an official at AU headquarters in Addis Ababa.
"Everything is going as planned," the official, who requested anonymity, told AFP.
A spokesperson for the Rwandan army, Patrick Karegeya, said there would be an official ceremony for the troops' departure from Kigali.
The pan-African force, consisting of 150 Rwandan and 150 Nigerian soldiers, is tasked only with protecting an AU team of observers monitoring the April 8 ceasefire between the Khartoum government and Darfur rebels, which both sides have accused each other of violating.
The Rwandan troops are to be airlifted by the Netherlands to the war-torn region on Saturday, to be followed by the Nigerian soldiers no later than August 25.
Karegeya said the Rwandan troops included a number of Arabic-speaking officers.
The Sudanese government has welcomed the small peacekeeping force. But it voiced opposition this week to plans by the 53-member AU to expand the contingent into a 2 000-strong peacekeeping force.
Further report from BBC: Rwandan Foreign Minister Charles Murigande said their mandate did not include the protection of civilians. But the deployment of 2,500 AU peacekeepers is being considered, UN special envoy Jan Pronk said. According to Mr Pronk, the topic has been discussed between the AU chairman, Nigerian President Olusegun Obasanjo, and his Sudanese counterpart, Omar al-Bashir.
French news agency AFP quotes Remi Oyo, a spokesman for President Obasanjo, as saying: "If Sudan will not yield to gentle and African pressure, it will have to succumb to extra-African pressure that might not be so gentle."
Mr Pronk welcomed the forthcoming arrival of the monitoring team in Darfur and said he wanted many more African observers. "The more people we have on the ground the greater the possibility to build the confidence of the local population," he told the BBC. He said that progress had been made in talks with the Sudanese government about the establishment of 20km wide safe areas around giant refugee camps in Darfur.
- - -
If Sudan rebuffs African troops it faces outside action: Nigeria
Friday Aug 12 -- Nigeria warned Sudan on Thursday that if it does not allow African Union peacekeepers and diplomats to resolve the Darfur crisis it will end up facing less friendly pressure from outside the continent.
The AU's current chair, Nigeria, warned Sudan on Thursday that unless it allowed AU peacekeepers and diplomats to resolve the conflict it would face pressure from outside the continent.
Sudanese State Foreign Minister Naguib al-Khair Abdel Wahab responded on Friday by saying the only decisions the AU had taken on Darfur confined the pan-African body's role to monitoring and verifying respect of April 8 ceasefire agreement, which was brokered by the government in neighbouring Chad.
"We believe that the task of keeping peace and protecting civilians is exclusively a Sudanese responsibility," he added.
- - -
Text: UN Darfur agreement
BBC news online provides the text of an agreement between the Sudanese government and the United Nations on a "Plan of Action" for Darfur, as carried by Reuters news agency.
Under the proposal, which is expected to be finalised in the coming days, neither soldiers nor the pro-government Janjaweed militia would be able to carry weapons of any kind in these areas.
Despite the progress in Khartoum, UN special envoy Jan Pronk acknowledged that fighting was continuing in Darfur, with Janjaweed fighters ignoring official instructions to end attacks. He said the number of displaced civilians arriving in the refugee camps was rising every day.
The International Organisation from Migration (IOM) says it estimates there are now over 1.2m displaced people within Darfur. In their survey, released on Friday, they say that makeshift camps are not managed or organised and clean water, sanitation and deteriorating health are major causes for concern.
Peace talks due to take place in Abuja on 23 August between all parties in the conflict - the Sudanese government and the two rebel groups - will go ahead, Mr Pronk said, despite uncertainty about whether the rebel groups will attend. "So far we have the impression that they are willing to go, there is a lot of pressure coming from the AU," he said.
ME and Ophelia
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