Washington, DC — The conflict in Darfur is an "ominous cloud over the peace process," said Rep. Ed Royce (R-California), chair of the House Subcommittee on Africa, opening a hearing on the Sudan Thursday afternoon. "Responsibility for this calamity lies" with Sudan's government, said Royce.
Rep. Donald Payne (D-New Jersey), the ranking Democrat on the subcommittee, had even harsher words for Sudan's government. Accusing the Sudan government of pursuing a "scorched earth" policy in Darfur, Payne asked rhetorically, "What good is it to sign a peace agreement in the South [if you] engage in ethnic cleansing in Darfur?"
Sudan's long war has so far resulted in nearly two million dead and 4-million displaced -- equivalent to 64-million U.S. dead and 128-million U.S. displaced, according to Payne. But late last year it seemed that Sudan's government and the rebel Sudanese People's Liberation Army/Movement (SPLA/M) were on the verge of signing a peace agreement that would end Sudan's 20-year war. President Bush even telephoned Sudan President Omar al-Beshir and SPLA/M rebel leader John Garang in December, urging them to hurry up and resolve their remaining differences.
But the peace process, largely focused on the North-South conflict, has encouraged political opposition in Darfur, and part of that opposition is an insurgency from the Sudanese Liberation Army (SLA) and the Justice and Equality Movement (JEM), who believe they should also be at the negotiating table. The government has responded with aerial bombardment, torching of villages and the blocking of humanitarian relief. The region is now "arguably, the worst humanitarian crisis in Africa and perhaps in the world," USAID's Roger Winter told the subcommittee. He is assistant administrator and head of the agency's Bureau of Democracy, Conflict and Humanitarian Assistance.
In his testimony, Acting Assistant Secretary of State for African Affairs, Charles Snyder said that the Bush Administration is "pressing" the Sudanese government "at the highest levels" to negotiate a "humanitarian ceasefire" with Darfur's rebels.
Both Snyder and Winter accused the government of allowing the largely Arab Janjaweed militias to engage in what amounts to a pogrom against the Muslim but mainly African population. The militias were created by the government, said Snyder, "and Khartoum bears responsibility for their conduct, whether they say they have control or not."
In an even more accusatory tone, Winter told the subcommittee that while Sudan's government has indeed verbally denounced the Janjaweed, it has only taken action against the rebels. "The GOS claims it does not have control of these militias. We believe that they do."
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In a letter to the editor published in the Washington Post newspaper Thursday, Sudan Ambassador to the United States, Khidir Haroun Ahmed, responded to similar criticism made in an op-ed piece by Smith College professor Eric Reeves, who was also one of Thursday's subcommittee witnesses. It is "banditry that underpins unrest in Darfur," wrote the ambassador. The International Crisis Group, said Khidir, "cited the leader of the armed groups in Darfur as saying the rebels will obstruct the peace process unless they get benefits." As for genocide, said ambassador Khidir, members of Darfur's large Zagawa tribe are prominent in the Sudan government. "Further, President Idriss Deby of Chad--himself a member of the Zagawa tribe--has condemned those fighting in Darfur."
Under the Sudan Peace Act, in April the President will submit a determination to Congress on whether or not both parties are making genuine efforts at reaching a settlement. "We can't be where we are today on April 21st," said Winter, who also declared himself, "a little less hopeful than I have been for the last few months."
Secretary of State Colin Powell and National Security Advisor Condoleezza Rice are now both "directly involved" in Sudan's peace talks, Snyder said.
