Ten years ago, Raouda was among 2 million refugees who fled Darfur after attacks on her village by the government-sponsored Janjaweed militia. Since that time, the now 16-year-old young woman has lived her life in a refugee camp in eastern Chad, longing for a return to a more peaceful version of home.
“We don’t even have a mat to sit on; instead, we use a tarp,” she told Darfur10, an organization aimed at bringing peace to the region. “We sleep in one little room, where we also cook and store everything we own. I fetch the water and food rations. When we need firewood, I go with a group and collect all that I can carry. Sometimes it takes me the whole day.”
World leaders gathered in Qatar this month to address necessary steps to move toward peace in Sudan’s Western Darfur region, with the Qatar government pledging $500 million to help rebuild the region ravaged by a decade of civil war and displacement. Yet human rights groups are questioning the motives of the Qatar government — and the effectiveness of rebuilding an area still plagued by violence.
Human Rights Watch (HRW) is cautioning that money isn’t the only solution to the problem, citing systematic government efforts to quell rebellions through violence and unjust detentions. A new infrastructure, without peace, will not provide an atmosphere for those like Raouda eager to return to a more stable home.
“Long-suffering Darfuris deserve the international solidarity and generosity, but there are real concerns that funds will not improve human rights,” HRW said in an April 5 statement. “Money can’t buy the reforms needed to make the strategy’s vision of respect for human rights and the rule of law come true.”
In January, 13,000 Darfurians were forced to flee due to violence that killed 200 — a sign that the region is not on the road to peace.
Ali Alyami of the Center for Human Rights In Saudi Arabia sees the monetary move by Qatar as one that’s rooted in establishing a presence in Sudan, rather than one focused on improving the human rights of those living under Darfur’s Khartoum government.
“It’s not in the interest of the people in the region, and we should be very, very concerned,” Alyami said in an interview with Mint Press News.
Funding is expected to be used for the purpose of rebuilding infrastructure, including providing agricultural training for Darfurians and improved roads, water facilities and other key infrastructure. Yet Alyami approaches the announcement with caution about Qatar’s motives.
“Any money they are spending in Darfur is not going to help the poor people, it is going to go to the people in power. They are buying the power,” he said.
While Britain also vowed to commit $16 million to rebuilding Darfur, the U.S. has remained silent, focusing attention instead to the conflict over the Khartoum government and South Sudan — one that is rooted in oil. While South Sudan is home to the region’s oil reserves, pipelines necessary to reach the outside market are rooted in the North, creating a partnership that requires teamwork between Sudan and the new South Sudan.
An ongoing conflict
Attention largely veered away from Sudan’s Darfur in 2011, after the Doha Peace Accord was signed by the Khartoum government and the Liberation and Justice Movement. It was seen as a success at the time, yet it hasn’t stood the test of time.
Just years before, in 2009, Sudanese President Omar al Bashir was indicted by the International Criminal Court (ICC) for leading a government-sponsored campaigns of killing, rape and pillaging. Despite this, Bashir remains in power.
Since 2003, more than 300,000 people have been killed and 2 million displaced in Darfur conflicts — and according to human rights organizations, including HRW, the conflict is far from over. Government-fueled conflicts in January killed hundreds and displaced more than 13,000.
January violence erupted between Bani Hussein and Rizeigat, two Arab tribes, over access to gold in North Darfur, according to reports from the United Nations. While a ceasefire between the two tribes was negotiated, it failed to create peace — days after it was signed, violence broke out, killing 21 and wounding 31, according to a Reuters report.
A Sudan Radio report revealed the number of dead to be around 200, with 250 wounded.
“Clashes lasted for eight hours after some Rizeigat troops attacked the area yesterday morning,” a Bani Hussein leader told Reuters.
The head of the Darfur Regional Authority, Tijani Sisi, indicated weapons used in that conflict — by both sides — were government-sponsored.
“It is true that the weapons that were used belonged to the government and therefore, tough measures to curb such actions should be taken so that they don’t happen again,” Sisi told the radio station. “We can say that the government should organize the operations in the gold mines and put enough security to protect the people who are in the gold mines in Jebel Amir (North Darfur).”
HRW notes the Sudanese government continues to use its military forces, including the janjaweed militia, responsible for atrocities committed in the ethnic cleansing that killed 300,000, of engaging in counter-insurgency attacks against rebel groups and communities alleged to support such efforts.
“Lawlessness and the proliferation of arms have made communal conflicts, in which government forces often participate, more lethal,” HRW said in an April statement. “These have resulted in hundreds of deaths and displaced more than 100,000 people this year alone.
HRW also notes continued use of oppressive tactics at the hand of the Khartoum government, including detention of those suspected of government opposition.
“The government uses national security laws to harass and detain suspected rebels and their presumed supporters, including students, for long periods without judicial review or charge,” HRW said in a recent report.
Despite peace agreements signed between the government and rebel forces in 2011, the government’s actions continue. The 2011 Doha Document for Peace in Darfur, which was finalized at the All Darfur Stakeholders 2011 Conference in Qatar.
The U.S. focus
The U.S. has remained silent on the ongoing Darfur conflict, choosing instead to focus on the conflict between Sudan’s Khartoum government and South Sudan — one that directly impacts U.S. access to the South’s oil reserves.
While South Sudan has the oil reserves, its ticket for export remains in the North, where necessary pipelines are already in place.
On April 8, days after delegates met in Qatar to discuss Darfur rebuilding efforts, the U.S. Embassy in Khartoum released a statement, not related to violence in Sudan, but relating instead to the oil-inspired split between Sudan and South Sudan.
“We welcome the spirit of cooperation between Sudan and South Sudan and urge the leadership of both countries to continue the full and immediate implementation of the agreements,” the statement read.
Before South Sudan’s independence, the U.S. provided $270 million worth of aid to the south, establishing its presence in the oil-rich region of Sudan.