Ten stories from over the course of the past day (updated originally to add the one from Al Jazeera; updated further, on Tuesday, to add the one from Panapress):
(See also CARE's official statement.)
From the AP...
Sudan expelled the CARE International country director on Monday, the aid organization's chief reported, in what is the third foreign official ordered to leave Khartoum in recent days.
"We are deeply disappointed by the decision of the government of Sudan to expel Paul Barker, who has directed CARE's programs in Sudan for more than a year, and has worked with CARE for 23 years," CARE's Chief Executive Officer Helene Gayle told The Associated Press by telephone.
It was not immediately clear what was behind the recent spate of expulsions, but many Western countries and international organizations have sharply criticized the Sudanese government's role in the country's Darfur region. CARE, as an aid organization, has not publicly expressed such criticism.
Gayle said [that] the organization's concern was compounded by the fact that CARE has been working in Sudan for 27 years.
"We hope to resolve this issue so that CARE can continue its long-term role in delivering humanitarian assistance to the people of Sudan," she added.
Gayle said [that] the organization was "not sure" what had prompted Khartoum to make such a move, and that no explanation was given to Barker, who was ordered out within 72 hours and who was expected to leave by Tuesday.
Barker "has not said or done anything that would be inappropriate," Gayle added.
"We are concerned that Paul may have been asked to leave because of the governments interpretation of internal communications that are standard within non-governmental organizations regarding safety procedures for staff," said Gayle.
She did not specify what kind of "internal communication" on the part of the organization in Sudan may have displeased the authorities.
In Khartoum, government officials did not respond to calls placed by The AP for queries on Barker's expulsion.
Sudan last week expelled the top Canadian diplomat and the European Commission envoy from the country for what was described as "meddling in its affairs", but did not explain further. Later, in the case of the EU official, Kent Degerfelt, Khartoum said [that] he could serve out the remaining three weeks of his mandate, as long as he was replaced by someone new.
In New York, U.N. spokeswoman Michele Montas expressed concern about the Sudanese government's treatment of Barker.
"Throughout Sudan, the critical humanitarian work of NGOs, including CARE, along with all U.N. humanitarian agencies and partners, needs the active support and facilitation of the Sudanese government," she said at U.N. headquarters.
With a staff of 600 in the country, CARE has been present for 27 years and spent US$184 million on aid projects in Sudan, said Gayle. Over the past three years, the organization has spent US$60 million, mostly in the war-torn Darfur region, she added.
More than 200,000 people have died in Sudan's embattled Darfur since ethnic African rebels took up arms against the Arab-dominated central government in 2003, accusing it of discrimination.
Khartoum is accused of retaliating by unleashing janjaweed militias, which are blamed for the worst atrocities against civilians in a conflict that has displaced more than 2.5 million people.
An interview feature by VOA's Joe De Capua...
The top official in Sudan for the international aid agency CARE has been ordered to leave the country. CARE’s country director, Paul Barker, received a letter [on] Saturday from Sudan’s Humanitarian Assistance Commission, telling him [that] he had 72 hours to leave.
Barker was the third foreigner expelled from Sudan last week. The others were European Commission envoy Kent Degerfelt of Sweden, and Canadian diplomat Nuala Lawlor.
CARE President and CEO Dr. Helene Gayle spoke from Atlanta, Georgia, with VOA English to Africa reporter Joe De Capua about Barker’s expulsion from Sudan.
“We’re very disappointed in the expulsion. Paul [Barker] is a long-time CARE employee with incredible experience. And we think [that] he’s provided incredible leadership in a very difficult situation. And so we’re very, very disappointed and concerned, not only about what it means for CARE, but what it means for the humanitarian community in Sudan overall,” she says.
Asked whether Sudanese authorities gave an official reason for the expulsion, Dr. Gayle says, “No, we were given no reasons. Paul was given no reason. He just said that he was persona non grata and was asked to leave in 72 hours.”
She says [that] she spoke with Barker after he received the expulsion order. “I think [that] he wonders whether communications in the past might have been a concern. As part of his role as the country director, he has to pass on information to staff both here in Atlanta, as well as there in the country offices. It’s easy in a situation that’s as tense as that to have internal communication misinterpreted. So, it may be communication leaks that might have caused this, but we’re really not sure,” she says.
Will this affect CARE’s operations in Sudan? Gayle says, “We’ll have to look at that. First and foremost we have about 600 staff in Sudan. We have provided considerable resources. Over $184 million since we’ve been operating there, $60 million to the Darfur region just in the last three years. So, we feel like we do make a difference in the lives of people there, who are really struggling and suffering in many situations. So, our concern is to our staff…to people whose lives we’re trying to touch. And that’s going to be first and foremost. Our concern is how can we maintain a response that makes a difference in people’s lives. But we also have to look at the fact that this is really a breach in the relationship between ourselves and the government of Sudan. And I think [that] we have to look at what does that mean for our long-term presence there.”
Sudan has given the country director for the U.S.-based aid agency CARE 72 hours to leave the country, the latest in a series of expulsions of western envoys. As Nick Wadhams reports from Nairobi, it is also seen as part of a systematic clampdown on humanitarian agencies working in the Darfur region.
The Sudanese government delivered the expulsion letter to Paul Barker on Saturday. No reason for the expulsion was given, but Barker says [that] it may have to do with an internal e-mail he wrote a year ago about safety precautions that CARE staff should take in the Darfur region.
CARE's Nairobi-based spokeswoman, Bea Spadacini, says [that] the group had been given no warning about Barker's expulsion, but [that] CARE would not stop working in Sudan. She says [that] CARE employs 550 people in Sudan, and [that] the memos like the one [that] Barker wrote are routine.
"According to Paul, this was leaked and the government was irritated by this, and it is surprising because we are one of the few organizations that has been able to operate all along," said Spadacini. "It does not mean that, all of a sudden, CARE has stopped working there. It does not mean like everyone has to evacuate. So I do not know what the implications are, but it is a clear signal of discontent, if you are kicking out the country director. It is a signal to the organization."
Sudanese Foreign Ministry spokesman Ali Sadiq Ali refused to comment on the expulsion, and Sudan's Humanitarian Aid Commission could not be reached for comment. CARE, which is based in Atlanta, has been working in Sudan for 27 years, and estimates [that] it has spent $60 million in Sudan during the past three years.
Spadacini refused to comment on the conditions that CARE works under in Sudan, but numerous aid groups in the past have reported that the Sudanese government monitors them closely, often limits their movement, and in some cases even must approve their news releases.
The expulsion was only the latest ordered by the Sudanese government. The lead Canadian and European Union envoys were ordered out last week, though the E.U. envoy will be allowed to return [in order] to finish his term.
And most famously Sudan expelled top U.N. envoy for Sudan Jan Pronk, after he posted a blog entry about the difficult humanitarian situation in Sudan.
The United States has suggested that Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir's government may be using the expulsions to stall international efforts to quell the ongoing crisis in Darfur, where about 200-thousand people have been killed in four years of conflict between local rebels and government-backed militias.
Late last month, the U.N. Security Council overcame Sudan's long-standing objections, and approved a 26,000-member peacekeeping force for Darfur. But some of the rebel groups say [that] they are reconsidering whether to join future peace talks, because of ongoing raids by government forces and the militias.
From the BBC...
The director of international aid agency Care in Sudan, Paul Barker, says [that] he has been expelled from the country.
Mr Barker says [that] he was not given a specific reason, but was told [that] the decision had been taken at the highest level of national security.
He said [that] his agency had faced problems with the government since an internal e-mail about the future of Darfur was leaked to the Sudanese media.
A string of international workers have been forced to leave Sudan recently.
Last week, the Canadian and European Union envoys were told to leave, after being accused of meddling in Sudanese affairs.
Although, the EU diplomat was allowed to stay for three weeks [in order] to finish his term.
Last year, Sudan expelled the head of the United Nations mission, Jan Pronk.
The Sudanese government gave Mr Barker 72 hours to leave on Saturday. He said [that] he was disappointed and surprised at the move.
Mr Barker said [that] the government believed [that] the leaked email contained a political analysis that was inappropriate for an NGO.
"The e-mail [that] I wrote almost a year ago in October [was] talking about the different scenarios that could unfold in Darfur, and what the implications would be for our staff. [...] To me that's a responsible thing to do, in terms of ensuring the ongoing safety and well-being of our staff. The people in HAC [Humanitarian Aid Commission] chose to interpret that as political reporting, and inappropriate for NGOs."
At least 200,000 people are believed to have died and more than two million [have been] displaced in Darfur since fighting broke out in 2003 between rebels and pro-government militias.
Sudan's government accuses the west of exaggerating the crisis for political [...] reasons, and says [that] just 9,000 have died.
A 26,000-strong UN and African Union peacekeeping force is to be deployed to the region by the end of the year [in order] to help the 7,000-strong AU force that has failed to stem the violence in the region.
CARE's top official in Sudan, Paul Barker, said [that] the government has ordered his expulsion.
The U.S. charity's Sudan director said today [Monday] the head of Sudan's Humanitarian Assistance Commission handed him a letter on Aug. 25 giving him 72 hours to leave the country. The document didn't give a reason for the expulsion order, he said.
``He said [that] it had to do with security issues, and [that] the decision was made `at the highest level','' Barker said from Khartoum in an e-mailed response to questions. The reason for his expulsion, he said, may be linked to a report [that] he wrote last year about the security situation in the western region of Darfur and [about] the safety of CARE staff there.
Barker is the third foreigner who has been told to leave Sudan in the past week. President Umar al-Bashir's government ordered the expulsion of European Commission envoy Kent Degerfelt of Sweden and Canadian charge d'affaires Nuala Lawlor on Aug. 23.
Sudan rescinded the expulsion of Degerfelt on Aug. 25, following a telephone conversation between Bashir and Louis Michel, the European Union commissioner for development and humanitarian aid.
Barker, a 53-year-old native of Oregon, said [that] he will leave Sudan today or tomorrow, after the government issues him an exit permit. He's been in Sudan with the Atlanta-based CARE for the past year, and has worked for the organization for 23 years.
A four-year war between the government and rebels in Darfur has killed 200,000 people and left more than 4 million dependent on international aid.
``Someone leaked a copy of this to National Security, and they chose to interpret it as political reporting,'' Barker said of his report. ``Similar reporting is done by the heads of all agencies to their HQs, because staff safety is something that we need to take very seriously.''
From Reuters (also here)...
(An earlier version is also still available on both AlertNet and Reuters Africa.)
Sudan has expelled the country director of the U.S.-based aid group CARE for an undisclosed reason related to state security, a government official said on Monday.
Country director Paul Barker earlier told Reuters [that] the Sudanese government's Humanitarian Aid Commission had given him 72 hours to leave the country, without giving reasons for the decision.
Bakheit Yousef, deputy commissioner of the Humanitarian Aid Commission, told Reuters [that] Barker's expulsion was not connected to his aid work.
"He was doing something related to intelligence or state security, not his humanitarian work. That was the main reason [that] he has been ordered to leave," he said.
"This decision has been taken against an individual. CARE can continue its work as normal. CARE's headquarters can just send out someone else," he added.
Barker was the third prominent foreigner expelled from Sudan in less than a week. On Thursday, Sudan told diplomats from Canada and the European Union to leave, but it later allowed the EU ambassador to stay until his term expires next month.
Barker, a U.S. citizen, denied [that] he had been carrying out any inappropriate work, and said [that] he was hopeful [that] the government would hear his appeal.
"This has come as a huge surprise to us. I am very disappointed with the government's decision, which I believe was based on information that was taken out of context," Barker said.
Barker said [that] the director of the Humanitarian Aid Commission called him in on Saturday. "He told me [that] he had a letter from the highest levels of government saying that they could not renew my work permit, and that I had to leave in 72 hours. He told me [that] it was somebody in security, but would not be more specific."
Barker said [that] the only explanation [that] he could think of was that the government was unhappy with an internal e-mail [that] he had written to CARE staff in October and which was leaked to the Sudanese press earlier this year.
"It was an e-mail about the security of CARE staff, setting out various scenarios for what might happen in (the western region of) Darfur," said Barker, 53, who comes from Oregon.
"It was a totally appropriate email for a country director to write. But the government saw it as political analysis that was inappropriate for an aid organisation to make," he added.
Aid workers from other aid agencies who did not want to be named said [that] the expulsion came at a time of growing tension between humanitarian officials and the government of Sudan.
In the cases of the two diplomats last week, state radio quoted the Sudanese Foreign Ministry as saying [that] they had interfered in the internal affairs of the country.
Barker said [that] CARE had spent more than $184 million on aid projects in Sudan since it arrived in the country in 1979. It has spent more than $60 million in the last three years, he added, mostly in the troubled Darfur region.
"We have been in Sudan through thick and thin, through some very difficult times. It is very important that this doesn't impact on our work in Sudan," he added.
Barker said [that] he would be leaving for the Kenyan capital, Nairobi, with his wife as soon as he received an exit visa.
The United Nations humanitarian arm voiced serious concern today [Monday] at reports that the Sudanese Government has ordered the Country Director of CARE, a large non-governmental organization (NGO), to leave the country within 72 hours.
Emergency Relief Coordinator [Sir] John Holmes said in a statement that the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) is in touch with all sides to try to resolve “any misunderstandings or miscommunication” about the activities of NGO workers in Sudan, especially the case of CARE’s [Paul] Barker.
There are currently about 12,300 aid workers in the war-torn western Sudanese region of Darfur, including almost 900 international staff. They provide assistance to an estimated 4.2 million people, including 2.1 million internally displaced persons (IDPs), suffering since 2003 from the deadly conflict between rebel groups, Government forces, and allied Janjaweed militias.
Mr. Holmes, who is also Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs, said [that] CARE has operated in Sudan for 27 years, and has provided food, health care, and other relief items to some four million people in the last three years alone.
“Given that CARE is a significant provider of humanitarian assistance to a large number of people in Sudan, the ambiguity of Mr. Barker’s current status is all the more distressing,” he said.
In May, the UN and Khartoum signed a joint communiqué to improve the administration of the humanitarian effort in Sudan, including by helping to secure visas and work permits for aid workers, and by making it easier for relief goods to clear customs.
“We hope to build on the positive steps undertaken in recent months to advance the spirit of the Joint Communiqué,” Mr. Holmes said. “However, much more needs to be done, in letter as well as [in] spirit, to ensure [that] the Communiqué is implemented fully, to the benefit of all civilians throughout Sudan.”
From AFP...
The head of the international aid agency CARE in Sudan said on Monday [that] he had been expelled "for security reasons," making him the third Westerner to receive an expulsion order in the past four days.
Paul Barker, who on Saturday was given 72 hours to leave the country, said [that] he was not given a specific reason for his expulsion.
"Authorities just said [that] it had something to do with security," he told AFP by telephone. "I think [that] they kept it intentionally vague."
"We're trying to be polite. We are hoping [that] the decision will be reversed," he added.
Barker is the third Westerner to be kicked out of Sudan since Thursday, when European Commission envoy Kent Degerfelt and Canadian charge d'affaires Nuala Lawlor were declared persona non grata.
Degerfelt was invited to return on Saturday, following an apology by European development commissioner Louis Michel to Sudanese President Omar al-Beshir.
But Canada has condemned Lawlor's expulsion, and said on Sunday [that] it has no intention of apologising.
Degerfelt and Lawlor were ordered out after Khartoum accused them of having what it called unacceptable contacts with opposition leaders.
Sudan has often had strained relations with Western diplomats.
In October 2006, it expelled UN envoy Jan Pronk for criticising it over the more-than-four-year-long conflict in Darfur.
Sudan's decision to expel the diplomats drew sharp criticism from Washington, which said [that] it hoped [that] Khartoum was not trying to sidetrack international efforts to end the violence in war-torn Darfur.
On July 31, the Security Council approved deployment of a joint UN-African Union peacekeeping force to Darfur, after the Khartoum government finally relented on months of opposition to the involvement of UN troops and police.
The United Nations estimates that at least 200,000 people have died, and more than two million have fled their homes, since the conflict erupted in February 2003.
The Arab-dominated regime in Khartoum responded with a scorched-earth campaign against ethnic minority villages in Darfur, after the rebels took up arms against its rule.
The Sudanese government has given the director of a US-based aid group 72 hours to leave the country, without telling him why he is being expelled.
Paul Barker of Care is the third prominent official from a Western nation to be ordered to leave the country in less than a week.
On Thursday, Sudan told diplomats from Canada and the European Union to leave, but later allowed the EU ambassador to stay until his term expires next month.
Barker, a US citizen, said on Monday: "This has come as a huge surprise to us[.]"
"I am very disappointed with the government's decision, which I believe was based on information that was taken out of context. I am still hopeful though, as there are appeals being made."
Officials at the Humanitarian Aid Commission, the government body that oversees aid work, were not available to comment on the expulsion order.
Barker said [that] the only explanation [that] he could think of was that the government was unhappy with an internal e-mail which he had written to Care staff in October and which was leaked to the Sudanese press earlier this year.
"It was an e-mail about the security of Care staff, setting out various scenarios for what might happen in Darfur," he said.
"It was a totally appropriate e-mail for a country director to write. But the government saw it as political analysis that was inappropriate for an aid organisation to make."
Growing tensions
Aid workers from other agencies told Reuters news agency that the expulsion came at a time of growing tension between humanitarian officials and the government of Sudan.
Meanwhile, on [Sunday], the Canadian government condemned the expulsion of Ottawa's charge d'affaires, and said [that] it had no intention of apologising for her.
Nuala Lawlor was instructed to leave Khartoum after Maxime Bernier, Canada's foreign minister, tried without success to persuade his Sudanese counterpart to rescind the expulsion.
Lawlor was expelled along with Kent Degerfelt, the EU representative, for "interfering" in domestic affairs.
They were accused of having unacceptable contacts with opposition leaders.
The UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) has expressed dissatisfaction with Sudan over the expulsion of the Country Director of American-based aid group CARE, Paul Barker.
The Pan African News Agency (PANA) correspondent at the UN learnt that Barker was given 72 hours by the Khartoum to leave the country.
"CARE is a significant provider of vitally needed humanitarian assistance to some four million people across Sudan, and is a vital NGO partner for the UN humanitarian community," a statement by OCHA said [on] Monday at the UN.
It stated: "Mr. Barker's ambiguous status in Sudan is all the more distressing given the positive cooperation that has characterised recent implementation of the Joint communiqué, signed by the Government of Sudan in May".
OCHA therefore hoped that "this spirit of constructive cooperation will continue to prevail, and will assist in resolving any misunderstandings that may apply to Mr. Barker's case".
It also said that UN humanitarian agency was carefully following the situation, and was in touch with all relevant parties on the matter.
CARE had spent more than $184 million on aid projects in Sudan since it arrived in the country in 1979.
It has also spent more than $10 million in the past three years, in the troubled Darfur region.
Barker was the third prominent foreigner expelled from Sudan in less than a week.
Last Thursday, Sudan told diplomats from Canada and the European Union (EU) to leave, but it later allowed the EU ambassador to stay until his term expires next month.
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