On June 22, the House Committee on International Relations held a hearing entitled, “Sudan: Consolidating Peace While Confronting Genocide.”
Chair Henry Hyde (R-IL) stated, “The challenges we face today in Sudan are perhaps among the most difficult of our time. On the one hand, the peaceful resolution of a decades-long civil war between North and South is critical an opening that could provide untold opportunities for peace, economic development and democratic aspirations. On the other hand, a genocidal conflict rages in the Darfur region of western Sudan a conflict which claims up to 10,000 lives per month. Finally, the odious regime responsible for atrocities in both of those wars has offered the United States valuable support in the global war on terrorism.” Pointing out that in the 1990s, President Clinton refused Sudan’s offer to turn over Osama Bin Laden because of “concerns about Khartoum’s atrocious conduct” in their civil war, Rep. Hyde cautioned the committee against short-sightedness, arguing that it would be a mistake to “focus solely on the crisis in Darfur at the expense of solidifying the historic North-South peace accord.”
Ranking Member and Holocaust survivor Tom Lantos (D-CA) argued that “we should not let Khartoum cover a multitude of sins just because it reluctantly and belatedly reached an accord with South Sudan.” He described civilian protection in Darfur as “pitifully poor” and highlighted weaknesses in the current African Union (AU) deployment: “African Union troops responsible for monitoring the ceasefire in Darfur were given neither the mandate nor the capacity to enforce it. And, even more sickening, the African Union deployment required the consent of the sponsors of the genocide sitting in Khartoum.” Rep. Lantos urged “NATO and the European Union to step into the breach and to implement a robust protection mission until the AU troops can fully deploy.”
Deputy Secretary of State Robert Zoellick described the current needs of Darfur: food and basic necessities for the 2 million people who have been forced off their land and are now in camps, improved security, and “political reconciliation among the government, rebel groups, and various tribes.” Mr. Zoellick said that food is reaching Darfur but warned that the government of Sudan and the rebels “must halt NGO harassment.” Regarding the security situation, he emphasized that support for the Naivasha (North-South) Comprehensive Peace Agreement (CPA) is critical: “The CPA creates a political and constitutional framework for sharing authority and wealth within which to end the conflicts in Darfur and other regions.”
Responding to Rep. Lantos’ suggestion that there be an immediate deployment of a NATO contingent supplemented by non-NATO forces to stop the genocide, Mr. Zoellick said, “I think it would be a big challenge to get NATO to agree.” He argued that NATO forces should not become directly involved in Darfur, but should restrict their role to transport, logistics, and planning support. Mr. Zoellick expressed his confidence in the AU security forces, stating that where they have been deployed, “it has had a major effect on the violence.” He said that the “AU has agreed to expand its security forces from 2,700 to 7,700” by September and asked Congress to allocate $50 million to support this deployment.
