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Darfur : The land and people at crossroads Darfur is one of the richest – in unexploited natural wealth – yet severely underdeveloped regions of Sudan. It is the second largest region of the country and stretches over a large area with a land mass estimated at about 160,000 sq. miles between longitudes 22°E - 27°E and latitudes 10°N - 16°N. Darfur is about the size of France or Iraq. The region is located in the extreme west of the country, adjacent to Sudan’s international borders with Chad, Central African Republic and Libya. Darfur is underdeveloped economically and subsistence agriculture and animal husbandry represent the backbone of its economy. The region lacks the necessary infrastructure such as all-season roads, electricity and energy sources as well as modern agricultural and industrial projects. Darfur’s industry is mainly based on small-scale cottage industry run by individuals and families. Origin of the armed conflicts in Darfur The present armed conflict in Darfur dates back to the 1980s when low profile yet protracted violent tribal disputes started rearing their ugly heads in the region. These disputes and atrocities have continued unabated since then without being “heeded nationally” or “noticed internationally” despite the massive human suffering and destruction of lives and livelihoods that they had caused. A number of factors have contributed to the build-up of the present armed conflict. The Janjaweed and their ideology The Janjaweed is a coined Arabic word used by the local people in Darfur to refer to gangs of outlaws and robbers. These groups are usually composed of criminal elements from various nomad tribes of Darfur. Some Janjaweed leaders were indicted criminals who had been serving prison sentences when the conflict in Darfur erupted in February 2003. They were released from prison by the government of Sudan and asked to organise themselves and take part in the scorched-earth campaign in Darfur. Uneducated and barely civilised, the Janjaweed are victims, par excellence, of the government Arab-centric cultural programme. They were manipulated and politicised around self-centered and racist ideas of the Arab Congregation. The Janjaweed exclusively identify themselves as Arabs. It can, therefore, be argued that all the Janjaweed are Arabs, yet it should be noted that not all the Arabs of Darfur are Janjaweed. |
President T. Mbeki
“The roots of Darfur’s crisis lie in a history of neglect of the Sudanese peripheries, dating from colonial times and continuing during the years of Sudan’s independence. The crisis in Darfur is a manifestation of Sudan’s inequitable distribution of wealth and power”
Ms Mandela-Machel
“The government doesn’t have an understanding of what it means when women say repeatedly to different people: ‘We are being raped. We are being beaten. We are being brutalized. We are fearful.’ I do not think the people we talked to tonight understand. Ms. Graça Mandela-Machel, Concluding Press Conference, Khartoum, 4”th October 2007
Prof Jody Williams
“Many of the people that we met with in Chad are giving up hope in the belief that the responsibility to protect doesn’t seem to have any meaning or relevance in their lives and in addressing the situation in Darfur.” Professor Jody Williams, 1997 Nobel Peace Prize Laureate, comments on her Mission Report on Darfur,16 March 2007
Mr. Kofi Annan
“This report demonstrates, beyond all doubt, that the last two years have been little short of hell on earth for our fellow human beings in Darfur. And despite the attention the Council has paid to this crisis, that hell continues today.”
Dr Mukesh Kapila
"This is ethnic cleansing, this is the world's greatest humanitarian crisis, and I don't know why the world isn't doing more about it."
Landmark Reports on Darfur
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