THE CRISIS IN DARFUR | WHAT IS GOING ON?

What is going on in Darfur?

By Kyle Bates

Exploration of the Topic

Darfur is slowly becoming a buzzword in news media organizations across the world. Contrary to what many seem to believe, Darfur is not a country or a city, but is actually a small region of western Sudan in which Arabs and Africans have peacefully coexisted since their Moorish ancestors settled there after invading northern Africa in 640 C.E. Now, though, this small section of Western Sudan is in the throes of the most modern example of ethnic cleansing , in which the Janjaweed Arab militia, backed by the Sudanese government, is systematically exterminating the native ethnic Africans from the region.

In 2003, a bloody rebellion ensued against the Sudanese government and the Justice and Equality Movement (JEM) and the Sudanese Liberation Army (SLA) arose. The government enlisted the help of the radical underground militia known as the Janjaweed, literally “armed men on horseback.” Unfortunately, they would have been more aptly named if they called themselves “armed men with air-strikes” or “armed men on armored cavalry units.” Naming errors aside, with the technological edge and support of the ruling government of Sudan, the militant Janjaweed forces had all that they needed to completely wipe out the native Africans from the region, which is exactly what they began to do. Most of the Janjaweed fighters had come from the magarra, or nomadic Arab tribes in the area. Jealous and angry that the Africans had taken their land and natural resources, this was the perfect opportunity to strike out. The Arab tribes in the area adopted a Bedouin lifestyle, living in caves and mastering the desert, while the native Africans not only received government recognition and support, but also physically occupied most of the livable area in the region. Tensions built up, and the call to arms was quietly given throughout westernSudan.

Over time, the Janjaweed militia systematically wiped out over 80,000 people by United Nations (UN) estimates, and an official humanitarian crisis had been declared. Food stockpiles were destroyed; villages were burned and women and children were raped and shot, and then buried in mass graves covered in lime. As the gruesome truth of the situation was slowly exposed to the world, people began to react. Programs sprang up, and with the idea of ethnic cleansing firmly in people ’s minds from the recent success of the movie Hotel Rwanda, people were anxious to help and acutely aware of the true nature of genocide.

According to recent estimates, the African Union has a force of 7,000 soldiers in the region, but they are ill equipped to handle the combined force of the largest country in Africa and the militia forces its government has allied itself with. The Sudanese government continues to block entrance into the country by UN inspection teams, and the UN has stated that it will not be able to move troops into the region until October 1, 2006 at the earliest. Subsequently, the African Union is left to somehow keep the peace in the 6-month interim period.

Related Questions

What is the Reform Jewish Movement’s position on Darfur?
The Religious Action Center (RAC), the social justice arm of the Reform Movement has been a leader in pushing for U.S. resolutions in favor of sending aid to Darfur. The RAC’s full position can be found on its website. The Reform Movement has also taken an active role in today’s Save Darfur Coalition Rally to Stop Genocide, taking place in Washington, DC.

At Veida, the mid-year General Board Meeting for the North American Federation of Temple Youth (NFTY), a resolution was passed regarding the genocide in Darfur, calling upon, “…the United States, Canada, and the United Nations as leaders of the international community to immediately act to stop the killing, the rape, and the destruction of villages, and to assure that humanitarian relief reaches all those in need…”

Why should we do something about this?
It is our responsibility as the youth of not only the Reform Jewish movement, but also of Americato promote the idea that we must look outward and lend a hand to those that otherwise would be alone. Alone that is, in a place that few of us will ever have the misfortune of seeing with our own eyes. This is not a problem for governments or nations. In Darfur are hundreds of thousands of people, and each one of those people has a complicated web of a life, just like each one of us; they are not merely a headline in the news. It is time to stand up and use the resources given to us to undo the work of those that would destroy and oppress an entire other race.