November 12,2008:
Sudan has successfully called on its Arab and other foreign allies to
pressure the UN to get war crimes charges dropped against the Sudanese
president Omar al-Bashir. Charges have not been officially dropped, but
prosecutors are stymied by pro-Arab and pro-Sudan UN bureaucrats. The
government has successfully waged a propaganda war against the International
Criminal Court, threatening violence against nearly 10,000 UN peacekeepers and relief
personnel in Darfur, if an arrest warrant is issued for Bashir (who openly
boasts, in speeches throughout Sudan, that he has crushed Western attempts to officially
accuse him of war crimes) is ever issued.
November 11,
2008: Since the beginning of the African Union (AU) peacekeeping mission in
Darfur, the US Air Force has helped transport troop contingents from
participating nations. The same goes for supporting UNAMID, the AU-UN "hybrid"
peacekeeping force. In the next few weeks the USAF will help move deliver both
new Ethiopian and Egyptian peacekeepers into Darfur. Actually, the US provides
a great deal of logistical support to UN missions. No other air force has the
USAF's transport capacity.
November 10,
2008: Kenya has agreed to help train civil service personnel working for the
Government of South Sudan (GOSS). The Kenyan statement emphasized "training in
management skills" and said the training program was in part the fulfillment of
a pledge made in 2005 after the Comprehensive Peace Agreement was signed
between northern (national government) and south Sudan. That's well and good,
but the GOSS acts increasingly as a separate government which regards Kenya as
an ally. Recall the Somali pirates who hijacked a Ukraine freighter loaded with
tanks and other weapons. The bill of lading said Kenya. The likely destination?
Juba, the capital of the GOSS. At least one spokesman for the GOSS has asked
for a US-led peacekeeping force in southern Sudan, to insure that the CPA is
enforced. The UN already has a peacekeeping force in southern Sudan. Why ask?
Could be "Obama politics." Kenya looks at Barack Obama's election with great
pride. Kenya and GOSS may assume they will have a great deal of influence on US
policy in the region.
November 8,
2008: The Justice and Equality Movement (JEM) has said that it is interested in
Qatar's Darfur peace proposal. The Qataris have offered to serve as mediators
and though the peace plan lacks specifics, Qatari diplomats have visited Sudan
and made presentations to both the government and some of the rebel factions.
JEM said in early November that it was considering sending an official
delegation to Qatar. Qatar has offered to mediate in other regional conflicts,
including Lebanon. Qatar has had some success, and there are several reasons.
Qatar has oil money. It is also the home of Al-Jazeera, the Arabic news
service. The Qataris are also Moslems, and the fighting in Darfur often pits
"Arabized" Moslem tribes against "African" Moslem tribes. The "Arabized,"
however, is something the Qataris have to watch. Many Darfuris distrust Arab
peace initiatives because they suspect they will favor the "Islamist" national
government.
November 7,
2008: The national government and the GOSS continue to grapple over the
national census. Since April 2008, when the first stage of the census was
conducted, several tens of thousands of refugees have returned to southern
Sudan.
November 2,
2008: The national government stated that it would improve security for Chinese
workers. The kidnapping and murder of Chinese oil workers is a huge political
problem for the government, since it relies on China for "political protection"
in the UN Security Council. Five Chinese oil workers were murdered in late
October after being kidnapped on October 18. Four other were rescued.