Daily Darfur: The Sound of a Diplomatic Broken Record

Talks are underway in Doha intent on easing tensions between the Chadian and Sudanese government.  According to Xinhua, the Chinese news agency:

"During the Doha talks, started Thursday under sponsorship of Qatar and Libya, Sudan and Chad are expected to hammer out a lasting solution to end their tension, reports said."

Methinks those reports are a bit optimistic, though I admire their noble aspirations. As Thabo Mbeki said last week (the first thing the former South African president has said that I agree with in quite some time), relations between Chad and Sudan must be normalized --- i.e. they each need to stop supporting the other's rebel groups --- before peace can be reached in Darfur.

But both governments are past masters of feigning good diplomatic intentions in front of mediators and media attention while continuing with their war-mongering unabated. In fact, similar talks where held last year, after the countries cut diplomatic ties completely following a rebel attack near Khartoum that the government of Sudan accused of being sponsored by Chad. It's deceit at its finest, in that neither government is particular adept at --- or perhaps, just not even concerned with --- subterfuge, yet they continue to get away with their devastating proxy war against one another sans consequences. It's the broken record of Sudanese politics once more, and it will take a lot more than signatures on an agreement in Doha to change this course.

What makes me so cynical, you ask? Maybe this time will be different? Well, troops are currently building up on both sides of the Chadian-Sudanese border.

Spot on.

Fouad Hikmat and Donald Steinberg of the International Crisis Group pinned a hard-hitting op-ed that pointedly argues that, with the expulsion of 13 foreign aid groups from Darfur in March, Khartoum "changed the terms of the debate" on Darfur from one focused on Khartoum's failure to make meaningful steps towards peace:

"Instead, the Khartoum clique has turned the international community into supplicants pleading for the right to return and help save the lives of Sudanese people. Even more impressive, Khartoum has put foreign governments and respected relief agencies on the defensive, having to prove that their internal reporting on the massive rapes, human rights abuses by the government, and continuing attacks by the state-sponsored proxy militia -- the Janjaweed -- do not represent ‘spying' on behalf of the International Criminal Court."

In addition, Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir has successfully used his ICC arrest warrant to fragment the international community:

"Meanwhile, President al-Bashir parades around his region, posing as an Islamic David standing up to the Western Goliath, and the expulsion of the relief agencies as the slingshot he is using to bring down his tormentors. Despite the fact that the victims in Darfur are all Muslims, this strategy has proven effective with many fellow leaders in the Arab League and African Union, causing unhelpful rifts in international efforts to bring peace to Darfur and the rest of Sudan."

The analysts view the Obama Administration's approach as promising, but argue that Special Envoy Scott Gration cannot deal with the humanitarian situation alone:

"The fate of the people of Darfur and the rest of Sudan depends upon whether the international community can avoid falling for Bashir's latest act of legerdemain, and keep its eyes on the true prize: a just and lasting peace in Sudan."

Quickies

Refugees in Chad urged Thabo Mbeki and the AU to support the ICC arrest warrant for Bashir.

The Dallas Morning News writes about Darfuris resettled to North Texas, and about awareness of the conflict in Texas:

"These are wounds," said 30-year-old Mohammed, pointing to crusted scars on his feet, then to his heart.

The Darfur Radio Project put together its "Best of Spring 2009" list.

The Sudanese News Agency reports that the Sudanese Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs signed 40 technical agreements with "number of foreign organizations and government institutions toward providing the displaced peoples' camps with all aspects of humanitarian and relief support" in Darfur. No further details were given.

A Canadian group organized a series of "Art Attacks" through its Facebook page, "Make Canada recognize Darfur as a genocide."

[Photo: Chadian rebels advance towards N'djamena (2008).]