March (Web-only) 2009

ARTICLE TOOLS

Find similar articles Print this article E-mail this page Bookmark this article

Sudan's life-saving relief work and fragile peace process are at much greater risk if President Omar al-Bashir follows through on his threat this week to rid the country of all international aid groups within 12 months.

In a passionate speech delivered to a military rally in Khartoum's Green Square, Bashir said he wants all relief distribution efforts turned over to Sudanese groups in order to "clear our country of any spies," wire services reported early this week.

Earlier this month, Bashir expelled 13 aid groups from the western region of Darfur, following the International Criminal Court's (ICC) decision to issue a warrant for his arrest on charges of crimes against humanity and war crimes in Darfur. He has accused international aid agencies of secretly collaborating with the ICC. The agencies reject the allegation.

"We have ordered the Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs to completely 'Sudanize' the voluntary work in Sudan within one year, and after that we don't want international organizations to deal with Sudanese citizens on relief," Bashir told the rally, according to press reports. Bashir said groups that want to continue to provide aid "can just leave it at the airport and Sudanese NGOs can distribute the relief."

Confused by reports of Bashir's order yesterday, relief groups said they will continue to operate until they receive confirmation that they have been ordered to leave.

"World Vision has not received any such communication from the authorities," the nonprofit said in a statement. "We are continuing to implement our programs, which are reaching some 500,000 people in Darfur alone." World Vision also provides services to close to three million people in southern Sudan, and also has projects in northern Sudan.

Darfur activists and relief workers critical of the ICC's arrest warrant say its move gives Bashir the excuse he's been looking for to kick out aid agencies helping the vulnerable victims of his radical Islamist government's genocide against native Darfurians and southern Sudanese Christians.

"Of course, to 'Sudanize' the work is the goal for any indigenous-based ministry in Sudan, which is what we are, so conceptually, that is the perfect stance," said Kimberly Smith, president of Make Way Partners, which finances the only indigenous orphan-care network in the countryand rescues Sudanese women and children from slavery.

"The problem is, Bashir has learned exactly what to say. He wants these groups out, and unless the world does not want them out and is willing to take action, he will be successful in doing that."

Nina Shea, director of the Center for Religious Freedom of the Hudson Institute, and a commissioner on the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom, said the ICC's "naïve" move and Bashir's response "may prove catastrophic for millions of beleaguered Darfurians and South Sudanese."

"[The ICC] has essentially made an empty threat that gives Bashir the excuse he's been looking for to block international aid to war-ravaged Darfur and, quite likely, to end compliance with the Comprehensive Peace Agreement (CPA) in the South," said Shea.

"Bashir has in effect already carried out two genocides — in Darfur and in the South. He is a remorseless tyrant," said Shea. "His long-term goal has been to annihilate and drive out these non-Arab and/or peacekeepers, humanitarian agencies, and governments."

Samaritan's Purse is one of about 70 remaining foreign organizations working in Darfur, the Nuba Mountains, and areas in southern Sudan, where millions of suffering war victims are dependant upon them for survival.

"[T]he ICC has made the situation go from bad to worse," said Samaritan's Purse president and CEO Franklin Graham. "This is the sad thing about the ICC. They may be right. I'm not disputing that. But it's made life a whole lot harder for people who are trying to help." Graham, who personally met with Bashir March 4 just hours before the ICC issued its arrest warrant, said he had spoken with Bashir about church-related issues that day.

Some Christian leaders doubt any sincere desire by Bashir to uphold the 2005 Comprehensive Peace Agreement, which has not yet been fully implemented. "I don't think he ever intended on upholding the CPA," said Smith of Make Way. "As much as Graham calls this a window of opportunity to stand with the Sudanese people and rebuild what we can, Bashir has considered it a window to gain infrastructure into the South so that he can gain control over the oil there and succeed in his jihad against the indigenous Sudanese." Many relief workers now fear the worst for those who will be left to fend for themselves without aid. They say the CPA could be doomed if the U.S. government does not act immediately to try to stabilize the current crisis.

"The Obama administration has a moral responsibility to take effective action to help the targeted populations," said Shea. "This could be airlifts of humanitarian aid, and finding sanctuaries for the displaced people of Darfur, and smart sanction to keep the CPA on track."

Shea said that the administration failing to take action "consistent with Sudan being treated as a foreign policy priority will raise the question of whether the President and Secretary Clinton — who attested Sudan and the CPA were a priority at her confirmation hearing — were merely exploiting Sudan as a campaign strategy."

On Wednesday, President Obama named retired Major General Scott Gration to be the special presidential envoy to Sudan. Advocacy groups have pressed hard for this diplomatic post to be named right away to bring fresh energy into the peace process in Sudan.

During the presidential campaign, Obama that said ending the crisis in Sudan would be a priority. "We can't say 'never again,' and then allow it to happen again," Obama said in April 2008 in a video address to the Save Darfur Coalition, "and as President of the United Sates, I don't intend to abandon people or turn a blind eye to slaughter."

The next five months are particularly critical for the CPA's success, since under the agreement, national elections are scheduled to take place by July 2009, with a referendum on secession for the South to occur in 2011. The secession would be impossible if the humanitarian crisis worsens as even more genocide victims begin facing death from disease and starvation.

Smith said she hopes the Obama administration will put pressure on Bashir by reaching out to "many in the Islamic world who are embarrassed at what Bashir is doing," as well as make Sudan a top issue in U.S. trade negotiations with China. "We have to put peoples' lives in Sudan above the economy," said Smith.

Copyright © 2009 Christianity Today. Click for reprint information.

Christianity Today also interviewed Franklin Graham about Sudan.

				Try 3 Issues of Christianity Today RISK-FREE! Name Street Address City/State/Zip E-mail Address No credit card required. Please allow 4-6 weeks for delivery. Offer valid in U.S. only. Click here for International orders. If you decide you want to keep Christianity Today coming, honor your invoice for just $19.95 and receive nine more issues, a full year in all. If not, simply write "cancel" across the invoice and return it. The trial issue is yours to keep, regardless. Buy 1 gift subscription, get 1 FREE!

Subscribe to the FREE CT Newsletters Get CT headlines direct to your mailbox! CTDirect (daily) CTWeekly    RSS Feed   RSS Help