The modern cartography of Sudan was drawn arbitrarily at the Berlin Conference of 1884, when it was colonised by the British. These borders encompassed many tribes, ethnic groups and religions. Geographically, it is the largest state in Africa. In 2003, the eastern Darfur region erupted into civil war and by 2008 it was estimated that 400, 000 people have died and between 2.5 to 4 million people internally displaced or forced to seek asylum in neighbouring states. The current, Omar al-Bashir lead state is highly centralised in Khartoum, in the north of the country. The economy is defined by the oil industry, which is now a 490 million barrel a day trade and commands 94% of the state’s export revenues - 70% of oil is purchased by China (The Economist). Large oil reservoirs in Darfur leave the government in a permissible situation to remain unaccountable to the citizenry and commit human rights atrocities. Darfur sees little economic return from oil extraction.
It is thought there are three drivers of the conflict: oil, ethnicity and desertification. Oil has exacted government and international interests in the region. The social structure of the region is divided between nomadic herdsmen and settler-agriculture where there was tacit agreement between nomads and settlers that grazing rights for nomads cut through settler fields. However, desertification has lead to pressures on land which has created tension between different modes of agrarian production (which have taken on an ethnic character). Farmers no longer possess enough arable land to sustain these old accords. The Sudan Liberation Army came to represent their interests (Fur, Zaghawa and Masalit - three largest ethnic groups in Darfur) and in 2003 rebelled against the government. The government responded with military skirmishes on civilian villages, through a policy of draining the sea (civilians) to the get the fish (rebels). They have been aided by the infamous Janjaweed militia (largely impoverished Arab nomads) who are financially supported by the state and able to act as a proxy for human rights violations, slaughtering villages and raping women (Amnesty International). There have been many ‘acts with genocidal intent’ (United Nations). The European Parliament described the atrocities in Sudan as ‘tantamount to genocide’. UNAMID state that the war in Darfur ‘is over’, however human rights atrocities continue.
The prosecutor at the ICC argued that the government had actively tried to exterminate three ethnic groups – the Fur, Masalit and Zaghawa (largely rural pastoralists). The government have attacked villages at night with ill-equipped Antonov aircraft, without the capacity to aim with precision and therefore in violation international humanitarian law (Human Rights Watch). Moreover, the Geneva Convention prohibits the destruction or removal of objects “indispensable to the survival of the civilian population” such as livestock and water supplies which have been destroyed by government skirmishes. The Janjaweed, are reported burning village foodstores with petrol.
The African Union were the first to provide peace-keeping to the Darfur region in 2004, with around 9, 000 troops. However, by December 2007, and as part of the Darfur Peace Agreement, it had completely merged with UNAMID (African Union-United Nations Hybrid Operation in Darfur). Currently there are some 21,800 uniformed personnel stationed in the Darfur region with a budget of US$1,598.94 million. Their mandate currently runs until July 2010. In early 2009, the ICC issued an indictment president Omar al-Bashir, for crimes against humanity. Humanitarian aid to combat malnutrition has also been initiated, lead by the World Food Programme. However, attacks on aid convoys in 2008 reduced food aid by half. Humanitarian aid workers have also been targeted by rebels. Eleven were killed between January and October 2009.
The government have inhibited the work of UNAMID on a number of occasions, using roadblocks, delaying the provision of land for bases and attempts to restrict night-time flights of UNAMID aircraft. In March 2009 the Sudanese government shut down organization providing over 40 percent of the aid to North Sudan, limiting the work of humanitarian organisation. The British charity Oxfam said its removal could affect more than 600, 000 people; Doctors Without Borders have been ordered to leave camps.
There have been some attempts by the broader international community such as the United Nations’ resolution 1591 (2005) which enforced a blanket arms embargo on Sudan and incurred a travel ban and froze the assets of four military and rebel leaders. Resolution 1591 also banned government flights over the Darfur region, but this has not been honoured by the government. The United States followed by banning petroleum dealings with the Sudanese state and imports from non-specified locations in Sudan and third party locations.
The international response to the Darfur has been slow and protracted with few lessons learned from Rwanda. The first intervention by the African Union came somewhat late in 2004, some time after atrocities began. By early 2009, UNAMID had become under-resourced and have failed to provide civilians with protection. For example, on the 25th August 2009, the NISS (Sudanese National Intelligence and Security Services) attempted to enter Kalma camp in South Darfur - they were denied entry. The NISS then surrounded it and opened fire denying access in and out to the wounded and humanitarian agencies. More than 47 civilians were killed. Contrary to their mandate, UNAMID did not intervene. Sexual violence remains in the camps.
‘While it's good to see the Security Council recognizes that people...need greater protection from violence, words alone will never make people safer - actions are needed’ (Oxfam). The UN’s arms embargo has failed to be enforced effectively. Sudan has purchased an estimated $100 million worth of arms from China recently. In 2008 China sent troops to Sudan, their intent is questionable considering vested state oil interest in the region. Moreover, in an effort to overcome embargoes and the possibility of further conflict in the 2011 ‘southern’ referendum, Sudan has begun domestic arms production. Moreover, China with its UN power of veto has been able to dilute some policy measures. While the situation described by the UN human rights report is correct in its description of human rights atrocities, it does not really go beyond the external appearance, the reality of which is infinitely more complex, where land dispossession can be seen in terms of ‘asset transfer’ and primitive accumulation. The measures put in place by UNAMID are short-term and treat the symptoms of conflict rather than its roots.
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