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U.S. Officials Urge Rebel Groups To Sign Darfur Peace Accord

18 May 2006

State's Frazer, USAID's Pierson tell panel food most immediate need

By Susan Ellis
Washington File Staff Writer

Washington -- Pressures are mounting on the Sudanese rebel groups that have not yet signed the Darfur Peace Agreement (DPA), namely the Justice and Equality Movement (JEM) and the Abdel Wahid-led faction of the Sudan Liberation Movement (SLM), to sign.

U.S. Assistant Secretary of State for Africa Jendayi Frazer told the House International Relations Committee May 18 that failure to sign the DPA "will mean they have no voice in the reconstruction and political leadership of Darfur.  We are working steadily to bring these groups back into the process and onto the side of peace," she told the panel.

Frazer said the Sudanese government and the largest military rebel group in Darfur, led by Minni Menawi, signed the Darfur Peace Agreement on May 5.  The agreement "represents an important step forward in this process toward peace and reconciliation” and “marks an historic opportunity to build a peaceful, democratic and secure future for the people of Darfur.” (See related article.)

Lloyd Pierson, assistant administrator of the Bureau for Africa, U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID), agreed with Frazer that much work lies ahead to implement the DPA.

Pierson said the peace agreements in Darfur and southern Sudan "present USAID with the challenge of translating the political settlements of power brokers into improved lives for all Sudanese citizens."  He added that Sudan has been at war for the majority of its 50 years of independence, and is left with a decimated infrastructure "unable to serve its resident populations, much less the millions who hope to return to their homes as peace takes hold."

First among their needs is food.  Food assistance was cut by half recently because many international donors failed to fulfill their commitments.  In response to the halving of the food aid, Pierson said, "USAID is immediately shipping 47,600 metric tons of food, valued at $48 million." (See related article.)

This point also was emphasized by U.S. Deputy Secretary of State Robert B. Zoellick in an interview in London May 18, where he said the U.N. resolution to bolster the African Union (AU) peacekeeping force in Darfur with U.N. forces is a good step, but "we need to get more food into Darfur. …The World Food Program announced, about the time that we were concluding the agreement, that they were going to have to cut rations for people in Darfur.  So you know it was a tragic time [just as we reached a peace accord] and the poor people at the camp see that the food has been cut.  So President Bush announced that even though we have already provided 85 percent of the food, that we will provide more."

Both Frazer and Pierson testified that high-level U.S. officials have made calls to donors that have not come through as well as to other nations' officials, asking for food commitments and other assistance to Darfur.  "The U.S. also urges other donor nations to join in providing: substantial food aid, development and reconstruction assistance, and support for the creation of a robust United Nations peacekeeping operation to protect civilians and create the conditions that will allow displaced persons to return safely to their homes," Frazer said.

During questioning, Representative Christopher Smith made reference to the many reported cases of violence on civilians by the Jingaweit rebels. Numerous reports cite instances of women gathering firewood and seeking water being raped or killed.  He asked if steps would be taken to enhance the AU-U.N. peacekeepers' mandate to protect civilians.  Frazer said she has read their mandate and that "the African Union mandate does provide for protection of civilians in imminent danger.  The problem is one of communication -- not all of the troops on the ground understand their mandate clearly; it's also been a problem in command.  Not all the sector commanders have enforced that mandate aggressively; and most important, it's been a problem in capabilities."

To bolster its capabilities, the AU needs, among other things, air transport to get to the place where atrocities have been committed.  "They come after the fact," Frazer said, adding that she "would expect United States support" in enhancing that mandate with the U.N. peacekeepers and to provide assistance to AMIS (African Union Mission in Sudan) immediately so it can carry out its mandate.

Frazer concluded that despite the "urgent and pressing issue" of Darfur for which the U.S. has rallied its resources and offered a strong response, "it is also important that we not only focus on Darfur, but remain focused on implementation of the Comprehensive Peace Agreement (CPA), which ended the 22-year civil war between the north and south of Sudan.  This is critical to ensuring lasting peace and democracy throughout Sudan."

For more information, see Darfur Humanitarian Emergency.

(The Washington File is a product of the Bureau of International Information Programs, U.S. Department of State. Web site: http://usinfo.state.gov)