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Current issue: Vol.1, No. 2 May 2001

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Defending the Defenseless in Sudan

By Paul Donohue, mccj

Comboni Missionaries working in southern Sudan broke their silence and declared that the present war in Sudan has become an "immoral and tragic farce." This declaration came out of the January assembly attended by 30 missionaries in Nairobi.

After struggling to put in words their experience of the cruel, fratricidal conflict, the missionaries left the meeting, returning to their posts in the sun-baked savanna of southern Sudan. Their statement has met with varied reactions.

The government of Sudan immediately put its own spin to the declaration. Government supported newspapers reprinted it as evidence that the Catholic Church in the South is keeping the war going though it criticizes the Sudan People's Liberation Army (SPLA). The SPLA is an insurgency of Christians, animists, and sympathetic Muslims who organized in 1983 against government of Khartoum when Shariah (the legal code of Islam) was imposed.

Through a spokesperson in Nairobi the missionaries countered with a follow-up statement to clarify any possible misunderstanding. "We address our passionate and unbiased plea to the Sudan People's Liberation Movement/ Army (SPLM/A), to the Government of Sudan (GOS) and to all warring sides: in the name of God lay down your arms! We categorically state that it is even more insane to continue in what is happening."

They explained their decision to "break the silence," writing: "It [the war] is not any longer a struggle for freedom of the Sudanese people and for the defense of human rights. The war has become a struggle for power, business and greed. Many heartless people are taking advantage of it and enrich themselves at the expense of the poor."

According to the missionaries, Sudan is bleeding to death. Analysts agree that civilians account for the majority of casualties, mainly because the warring parties use them as pawns to achieve their goals. An estimated two million persons have perished in this conflict, but no one knows the exact number and probably never will. Official record keeping is impossible in the chaotic situation.

"We implore the North and the South to ask for not only humanitarian but also political assistance from the international community and for mediation. But first of all, stop the war," said the missionaries.

A permanent emergency

The Clinton administration isolated Sudan from the international community, but this policy has achieved little in terms of ending the war or easing suffering according to a recently published study of the Center for Strategic and International Studies in Washington, D.C. Though the United States spent $1.2 billion on food in the last 10 years to try to abate the suffering of civilians, the study argues that the time has come to work with the warring sides to end the conflict.

International effort in southern Sudan has come to symbolize all that is right and wrong about aid. Ian Fisher, the Nairobi bureau chief of The New York Times wrote recently: "In 11 years, Operation Lifeline Sudan has delivered several billion dollars of food and supplies." It began as emergency aid, and is now known as a "permanent emergency," which Fisher described as "a bit of bureaucratic frankness."

According to Fisher, aid workers now prefer talking about "doing no harm," rather than "doing good." To be charitable in Sudan is not a simple matter. As one scholar described the dynamic, "War attracted mercy, and mercy transformed war." Warring parties try to get as much aid as possible and make sure their enemies get little.

For example, missionaries testified that the attack of the rebel commander Kerubino Kwany Bol on the southern city of Wau two years ago lasted only hours because his group beat a quick retreat. Nevertheless, the GOS kept food-aid organizations out of the region for several weeks. As a result, an estimated 70,000 internally displaced civilians, who fled from Wau, starved to death. The GOS reportedly killed any Dinka who remained in Wau.

The war has also exacerbated the century old problem of slavery in Sudan. The GOS has supported militia raids into Dinka areas to take slaves. Because there are no verifiable records, no one knows the exact number. Some say it is at least 42,000, others say it is as low as 14,000.

Baroness Cox of Queensbury in Greater London has championed the cause of "slave redemption" together with Christian Solidarity International (CSI). They have paid for the redemption of thousands of persons. The Baroness does not claim that what she is doing is a final solution. Her endeavor with CSI, however, has contributed to the "market" value of the slaves they purchase. When she and CSI became involved in this project, they paid $50 per slave. Now the "slave traders" are demanding and getting at least $60 per person.

The arms dealers, the slave dealers, the oil producers, and many other heartless persons are taking advantage of the war to enrich themselves at the expense of the poor. Implicit in the declaration of the Comboni Missionaries working in southern Sudan is the ardent plea far beyond emergency aid and emergency funding. They beckon for constructive engagement that will lead to a just and enduring peace.

Note
For the complete text of the Comboni Missionaries' Declaration go to http://www.ComboniMissionaries.org, section News & Publications, CPN Feature Service. For the complete report of the CSIS Task Force on U.S.-Sudan Policy go to http://www.csis.org

Paul Donohue is a Comboni Missionary from the United States, with a missionary experience in Uganda and Kenya. He is now responsible for his society publications in the U.S.


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