Monday, June 21, 2004

The humanitarian crisis in the Darfur Province of Sudan gives President Bush a chance to begin a reversal of his negative image in the United Nations and around the world. The Administration should be congratulated for brokering a peace framework agreement between the Khartoum government in northern Sudan and the black Sudanese in the South, ending a 21-year civil war that has taken 2 million lives. The agreement could not have been reached had the Bush Administration not used its political and economic leverage.

But now it must do more - and immediately! Many of the arguments that President Bush wrongly used to engage in a war of choice in Iraq should now affirmatively be used, of necessity, to end genocide in the Sudan. Bush should say: "If the rest of the world will not lead to end genocide in the Sudan, America will. If the UN is to remain relevant in the world, now is the time for it to mobilize the world community and come to the rescue of the millions of Sudanese who are starving, being ravaged with disease, raped and killed - and the U.S. will be a leading player in that effort. And if the UN will not do it, America will! And yes, the U.S. will use all means at its disposal to stop genocide - moral persuasion, and its economic, political and military power!"

After Hitler and the Nazis exterminated six million Jews in Germany and Eastern Europe, that community vowed, "Never again!"

Half a century later, however, it did happen again - in Rwanda, in a war between the Tutsis and the Hutus. In 1994, this country, along with the rest of the world, stood by and watched as 800,000 men, women and children were slaughtered. Two months ago, the world community marked the 10th anniversary of Rwanda's modern-day genocide, vowing once more, "Never again!"

Let's hope that the U.S., the world community and media will not again stand by and watch as millions of men, women and children are at-risk of death in the Sudan's western province of Darfur at the hands of an Arab-run Khartoum government, as its military and paramilitary Janjaweed forces exterminate black Sudanese.

By conservative estimates, in the last year, 10,000 Darfurians were killed. The U.S. government estimates that the number could reach 350,000 by December. Between 160,000 and 200,000 Darfurians are refugees in Chad, more than one million Sudanese have been forced from their homes by the Sudanese military and the government-backed militias, and as many as 2.2 million Darfurians are at risk.

Conditions are harsh and bleak in Darfur, and the lack of food and water during the rainy season will surely wreak havoc on the lives of these people. Even as $95 million have been appropriated by the U.S. House for relief in the Sudan, in addition to the $285 million already available for disbursement from the Administration, the U.S. has little detailed information on the exact scope of the problem and the resources needed to solve it.

What should the U.S. do?

First, Sudan must command the attention of the President and the Secretaries of State and Defense. It cannot be left to well-meaning and motivated deputy policy makers and administrators.

Second, we should be willing to propose a UN Security Council Resolution sanctioning a multinational interventionist and peacekeeping military presence - U.S-led if necessary - in Sudan. The UN, the U.S. and Americans must join together to lead the world in not allowing another genocide to take place in Sudan.

Third, the Administration should also encourage the Arab League and its member governments to explicitly chastise the actions of Khartoum and be willing to join in the intervention.

Fourth, the U.S. must bring its full power to bear on Sudan, working with the UN to draft a resolution condemning the Sudanese government and proposing an investigation of war crimes.

Finally, once there's a peace in effect, we must move immediately to solve the underlying political causes of the crisis in Sudan. Humanitarian actions, while desperately needed, are only a temporary solution to the more difficult problems. Only by dealing, longer-term, with the underlying political injustices can a just and lasting peace be established and another genocide prevented.