damanga opposes normalizinf relations with sudan

May 01, 2008

        Last month the United States conducted talks with Sudanese government representatives in Rome to discuss normalizing relations with the Khartoum regime. As a result, the United States will press Sudan to end the conflict in Darfur, provide humanitarian relief to Darfur, and implement various provisions of the 2005 Comprehensive Peace Agreement. Additionally, the U.S. is demanding that Khartoum accept the deployment of Thai and Nepalese peacekeepers to Darfur. Sudan hopes the United States will lift the economic sanctions which have been in place since 1997. Although the U.S. remains committed to aiding the people of Darfur, human rights activists fear that the Darfur crisis will worsen if ties between the U.S. and Sudan are normalized. Moreover, Damanga is concerned about U.S. support for the 2008 census in Sudan; the census will not fully represent the Darfuri population, many of whom have fled the country or are living in refugee camps.

The Damanga Coalition for Freedom and Democracy says the U.S. should not normalize ties with Sudan or lift economic sanctions until the Darfur conflict is resolved and native Darfuris are allowed to return home. The United States must use its international leverage to ensure the full implementation of the UNAMID force under a Chapter 7 mandate. Because of the Sudanese government’s failure to cooperate, only 9,000 of the 26,000 peacekeepers have been deployed in the region. Normalizing ties, especially if the initiative comes from the U.S. government, will disappoint Darfuris and all those working to end the genocide. The United States must assist the international community in ending the conflict, ensure human rights for the Darfuri people, and hold the Sudanese government accountable for war crimes before any U.S.-Sudanese relationship is reestablished.