Daily Independent Online.
*
Monday,July 19, 2004.
Those at risk in Darfur are lost unless situation changes quickly
By Colin L. Powell
The current conflict in western Sudan
puts the lives of more than a million human beings in jeopardy. Marauding
Jingaweit militias are destroying villages, raping and killing, and aid to the
area is being impeded. The situation must change quickly, before those who are
imperiled are lost.
While we in the international community must
intensify our efforts to help, the Government of Sudan bears the greatest
responsibility -- to face up to this catastrophe and save the lives of its own
citizens.
Before I departed Sudan, I gave the Government of
Sudan a list of actions that needed to be taken in order to turn around the
situation in Darfur. Over the last several days since I visited Darfur, the
Government of Sudan has made some announcements with respect to getting the
Jingaweit militias under control, allowing humanitarian aid to flow more
freely, ending the problem of getting visas for aid workers, and stopping
support to those who are intent on violence in Darfur. We are closely
monitoring the Government's response to the actions we requested. While the
Government has taken some positive steps, violence is continuing, and we have
not yet seen a dramatic turn around of the situation.
The United States has drafted a U.N. Security Council
resolution that is now being discussed with members of the Council, calling
upon the Government of Sudan to immediately fulfill all of the commitments it
has made to end the violence and give access to aid workers and international
monitors. The resolution urges the warring parties to conclude a political
agreement without delay. It commits all states to target sanctions against the
Jingaweit and those who aid and abet them, as well as others who may have
responsibility for this tragic situation.
The United States will continue to work with our
African friends and with the world community to help end conflicts like this
one and to bring relief to those who are in such desperate need. Sudan's
President, Omar Hassan A. Al-Bashir, has repeatedly pledged to work for peace,
and he did so again when we met. But President Bush, the United States
Congress, Secretary General Kofi Annan and the international community want
more than promises -- we want to see dramatic improvements on the ground right
now.
The United States has been in the forefront of
providing emergency humanitarian assistance to the suffering people of Darfur
and will remain in the forefront. We have provided $139 million in this year
alone, with another $161 million identified for next year. But it's time for
the entire international community to meet the pledges that they have made. We
will also work with the international community to make sure that all of those
nations who have made pledges of financial assistance meet those pledges.
The United States will continue to work with our
African friends and with the world community to help end conflicts like this
one and to bring relief to those who are in such desperate need. Conflict and
chaos of the kind that we see in Sudan rob Africans of the future they want,
the future they deserve. The goal of an Africa at peace is not an impossible
one. It is one that is achievable if we work at it.
Through continuing programs and bold new initiatives,
President Bush and his Administration are working in partnership with Africans
to help them move toward greater democracy, greater opportunity, greater
security, and greater hope for a peaceful future for their children.
We will not rest. We will continue to apply pressure.
Only actions, not words, can win the race against death in Darfur.
• Powell is U.S. Secretary of State
