'Now or never' for Darfur
2004-05-24 10:42
Nairobi - The international community must act urgently and be prepared to use force to save hundreds of thousands of civilian lives at risk from Sudanese government-supported militias in its western Darfur region, an influential think tank said on Sunday.
The International Crisis Group called for "immediate, focused action, especially from the UN Security Council, to stop the killings and widespread atrocities, prevent mass starvation, reverse ethnic cleansing, and encourage a peace process."
"There is just enough time to save the hundreds of thousands of lives directly threatened by government-supported Janjawid militias and looming starvation, but only if the world acts very urgently," ICG advisor John Prendergast said in a statement.
"If 'never again' means anything, then it's now or never in Darfur," he said.
It also called on the UN Security Council and key governments to increase pressure in order to finalise a peace deal to end Sudan's main two-decades-old civil war between the government and the Sudan People's Liberation Army (SPLA).
"Khartoum must not be permitted to use that negotiation to obtain a free hand in Darfur," IGC warned.
The conflict in Darfour has left as many as 10 000 people dead and displaced one million people inside Sundan in addition to sending 100 000 refugees into neighbouring Chad since it erupted in February 2003, according to UN estimates.
The government continues to manipulate access for aid workers and supplies, while the displaced remain vulnerable to attacks by the Janjawid militia who had driven them from their homes.
Experts warn that an additional 350 000 people could perish in the next nine months, mainly from famine, disease and malnutrition, while more will die if the Janjaweed, who are provoking clashes with Chad's army by following refugees across the border, are not stopped.