Sudan told to disarm militias

2005-06-03 22:31

El Fasher - United States deputy secretary of state Robert Zoellick issued a stern warning to Sudan on Friday to disarm Arab militias accused of human rights abuses in Darfur, as he visited the shattered Sudanese province.

He said: "We are certainly sending a very strong message to the government of Sudan that we want them to stop the militias.

"They have a responsibility ... and we also want them to move to disarm the militias."

Government troops fighting rebels in Darfur had been backed by militias - known as Janjaweed - who had been accused of murder, torture, widespread rape and other human rights abuses against the civilian population.

Zoellick, who was speaking after talks with visiting African Union (AU) peace and security commissioner, Said Djinnit, also called for the deployment of additional troops to help secure peace in Darfur.

Donors pledge $292m

He said: "The message we have is that where we have AU forces, conflict doesn't occur ...and that's one reason why a key element of the strategy is to expand the AU force presence."

The AU team was monitoring a shaky ceasefire between Khartoum and Darfur's ethnic minority rebels and last week international donors pledged almost $292m in further aid for the AU peace mission in Sudan.

But, the pan-Arab body was looking for more than $460m in cash, military equipment and logistical support to boost its current 2 700-strong truce monitoring operation to more than 7 700 by September.

Zoellick also suggested that AU troops be deployed in camps housing more than two million people that were displaced by the conflict in Darfur, saying AU patrols had brought down the number of reported rapes and attacks on camps' residents.

He said: "The key is to get the police forces operating within the camps and so that is being expanded and we talked about 30 additional posts in the camps."

Conflict kills 300 000 people

While AU troops occasionally patrol Darfur camps, they were physically present in one camp - Kalma home to 110 000 people - and only since May after bloody clashes between residents and local police.

Besides leaving many people homeless, the conflict had also killed between 180 000 and 300 000 people - mostly ethnic African civilians.

A United Nations resolution last March asked that alleged perpetrators of war crimes in Darfur, among them government officials, be tried by the international court of justice - a prospect that Khartoum squarely opposed.

Both Zoellick and Djinnit underscored the need for a political solution to the conflict.

The US diplomat said: "It's not enough to provide humanitarian support and food and security here - we need to press forward the peaceful reconciliation process."

Djinnit said: "There have been incidents of violence, banditry and rape, but at the same time the security situation remains unacceptable to us because of these isolated acts."

- SAPA