Is the conflict between the Sudanese government and the inhabitants of Darfur an example of ethnic cleansing and modern genocide? If modern-day genocide is taking place in Africa, in the wake of what has happened in Rwanda, does the international community have a duty to respond to the conflict and intervene to put an end to the genocide? According to international law, yes. International norms put a burden on the global community to intervene in the case of extreme human rights abuse leading to genocide.
It precisely for this reason that the Darfur conflict remains hotly contested and mired in controversy.I related most to the International Criminal Court Prosecutor whom I felt provided the most compelling case for action in this trouble region of Sudan. The enlightening movie Darfur Now showed that human rights in Darfur are violated on a daily basis. Looking at the Universal declaration of Human Rights, the following rights have been violated in Darfur: Freedom from Discrimination; Right to Life, Liberty, Personal Security; Right to Equality before the Law; Freedom from Arbitrary Arrest and Exile; Freedom of Belief and Religion.
Darfur, a region in western Sudan, has been plagued by conflict between the central government and Darfur-based militias since 2003. This on-going conflict has turned into a humanitarian catastrophe. Accordingly, since the start of the war between rebellious groups in Darfur and government militias, between 200,000 and 400,000 Darfuris have been killed while up to 3,000,000 have been displaced. This conflict is particularly insidious because the conflict appears to have ethnic overtones as the belligerents are from different ethnic and cultural groups.The government in Sudan, headed by current President and former military strongman Omar al-Bashir, is largely composed of northern Sudanese who are ethnically Arab. The people of Darfur are ethically black African and are distinctively of a different ethnicity of the governing clique in Khartoum.
Accordingly, this conflict has exacerbated the ethnic cleavages within Sudanese society (British Broadcasting Corporation 2009).The main protagonists in the war in Darfur include the ethnically Arab Sudanese government in Khartoum and the Janjaweed militia, a group of loosely affiliated militiamen on horseback, on one side and the ethnically African people of Darfur plus two rebel organizations, the Sudan Liberation Movement and the Justice and Equality Movement. The causes of the present conflict are varied and include access to resources, demands for autonomy, overpopulation and historical tribal animosities.As noted above, the ramifications of the present conflict include the killings of hundreds of thousands, the displacement and a life of squalor in refugee camps for up to 3 million Darfuris. For the government of Sudan, the conflict has been costly from a diplomatic perspective as Sudan remains diplomatically isolated with threats of sanctions hanging over its head. Additionally, Sudanese President al-Bashir may be indicted by the International Criminal Court (ICC) for genocide, crimes against humanity and war crimes for having masterminded the genocide in Darfur.
The response of the international community has been divided thus far on the issue of genocide in Darfur and while an African Union force has been mandated to keep the peace in the region, it has yet to be seen whether or not concerted military action will be taken by the Western powers to end the violent crisis in Darfur. Darfur Now has greatly increased my understanding of the conflict and brought home just how important it is that this conflict be resolved (British Broadcasting Corporation 2009).
