Susan Rice, the new US Ambassador to the United Nations, spoke out loud and clear over a year ago about the Bush Administration's stance and inactivity to stop the genocide occurring in Darfur. She minced no words, as seen in the video below of her opening statement to the Senate Foreign Relations Committee hearing on Darfur. At that time, Dr. Rice was a Senior Fellow on Foreign Affairs with the notable think tank known as the Brooking Institute.
Yesterday, January 26, 2009 and armed with the directive of President Obama, Dr. Rice told U.N. Secretary General Ban Ki-moon and top U.N. ambassadors that the Obama administration would collaborate more intensively with its international partners. And regarding the ongoing genocide in Darfur, Ambassador Rice said the U.S. priority for the moment is reinforcing a U.N.-backed peacekeeping mission to protect civilians. She further expressed concern that Sudan's government may retaliate against international peacekeepers and aid workers if the International Criminal Court issues an arrest warrant on genocide charges for Sudanese President Omar Hassan al-Bashir.
Although European diplomats are said to have expressed concerns that the Obama administration might abandon that diplomatic effort in favor of direct negotiations with the Iran, I remain concerned about what seems to be the maintenance of the status quo when it comes to Darfur. Just hours ago, UN peacekeepers reported a second day air strikes and artillery attacks waged by Sudanese armed forces in two keep areas of Darfur.
"Ground and aerial bombings by the government continued this morning approximately nine kilometres (five miles) from El-Fasher in an attempt to clear the area of armed movements who had advanced towards the outskirts of the city yesterday," the peacekeepers said in a statement.According to the United Nations, up to 300,000 people in Darfur have died and more than 2.2 million have been displaced since the uprising against Sudan's Arab-dominated government started in February 2003. The conflict has deteriorated with the emergence of a multiplying array of rebel groups, breakaway militias and bandits.
I understand the concern of retaliation against the peacekeepers and aid workers, but where is the concern over the continued acts of violence against the people of Darfur. Is it not time that something more than diplomatic banter to end and something tangible be done to stop these senseless acts of murder, rape, and genocide in Darfur? People are dying...are they not human?
Photo Credit: In this photo released by China's Xinhua News Agency, Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir, right, meets with Liu Guijin, left, special representative of the Chinese government for Darfur, in Khartoum, capital of Sudan, on Thursday, Jan. 8, 2009. China and Sudan signed here on Thursday a certificate of handing over ten wells drilled by Chinese companies in the arid western Sudanese region of Darfur, Xinhua said. (AP Photo/Xinhua, Shao Jie)
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Sojourner's Place joins with other bloggers on the 27th day of each month in denunciation of human rights violations across the world, and particularly Darfur. As part of the Am I Not Human? campaign, information and tools are provided throughout the blogosphere to bring to the forefront the atrocities that continue to occur in our world.This Campaign continues until such time that measurable, sustained, and progression changes occur. Please go to Roots of Humanity, this Campaign's Virtual Headquarters for more information or you may email organizers at: Virtual Campaign headquarters can be found at: RootsofHumanity@gmail.com.Obliged to you for hearing me,
and now old SjP ain't got nothin' more to say...
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