The third African Union Summit is meeting this week in Ethiopia. Kofi Annan spoke yesterday and urged the Union to address the crisis in Darfur Sudan.
Unfortunately, the Union played into the hands of the Sudan government. What is most significant is what the African leaders did not do, rather than what they did.
1. The African Union did not consider an adequate peacekeeping force.
The AU is considering, but has not approved, sending 300 troops to an area--Darfur--the size of Texas. This is not adequate to protect more than a million refugees scattered across the land, who in turn are being terrorized by militias and by Sudanese aircraft gunships and bombers.
2. The African Union did not censor the Sudanese government, nor even note its responsibility.
3. The African Union explicitly rejected the labels "genocide" and "ethnic cleansing."
African leaders under pressure to intervene in Darfur urged Khartoum on Wednesday urgently to "neutralize" the Janjaweed militia but said the bloodshed was not a genocide, a term used by some rights groups.The African Union's ruling was immediately proclaimed as a victory by the Sudanese government, which has long denied that the Arab militia's attacks on black African civilians are part of a government-backed extermination campaign.
"The decision showed quite clearly that there is no genocide. We are happy about it, although we admit that there is a desperate humanitarian need," Foreign Minister Mustafa Osman Ismail told Reuters at an AU summit in Ethiopia.
..The Council statement made no mention of ethnic cleansing, a term used by some U.S. officials.
Meanwhile the Sudan government continues an internal crackdown on dissidents, announced yesterday formal charges against opposition party members who had supported Darfur. IS ANYONE LOOKING AT THIS WHOLE PICTURE!!
Sudan charges 36 from opposition party over coup 07 Jul 2004 11:20:19 GMT By Nima ElbagirKHARTOUM, July 7 (Reuters) - Sudan has charged 36 members of an opposition party accused of involvement in a coup attempt, the head of the investigating committee said late on Tuesday.
Dozens of members of the Popular Congress party were detained earlier this year and the party leader was accused of funding rebels in the Darfur area, scene of what the United Nations has said is the world's worst humanitarian crisis.
"We have levelled charges against 36 civilians and military personnel from the Popular Congress," said the head of the investigating committee, Esam Abdelgadir Elzein.
Elzein said the charges included conspiracy to overthrow the government and incitement to rebellion and war against the state. Some of the charges are punishable by death.
The Scotsman has a story with the right lede: Killing goes on as Sudan lies to world and defies UN
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