America Urges U.N. to Corral Sudan Crisis
by Bill Fancher
May 11, 2004
(AgapePress) - The United States is pressuring the United Nations Security Council to take action to end the horrible atrocities taking place in the Sudan.American Deputy Ambassador to the U.N. Stuart Holliday says the Sudan situation is the worst humanitarian crisis in the entire world at present. In addition to the tens of thousands killed, many more have been displaced within Sudan's borders, while a massive refugee exodus is taking place at every border.
"There are over a million internally displaced persons. We've had massive refugee flow -- over 100,000 in Chad. The situation is particularly grave because of the rainy season approaching," Holliday says.
Through American efforts, the U.N. is calling on the warring factions in Sudan to allow immediate humanitarian aid access to all displaced people of the country, for a cessation of militia fighting, and for monitors to be allowed on the ground to keep an eye on the situation.
One element of the struggle is tension between Sudanese Christians and the Islamic government. The ambassador notes that the conflict between the government and the various groups within the country is an off-shoot of racial strife that began there years ago between Muslims and Christians.
"There's an ethnic dimension to it -- the groups that have been the victims of some of these atrocities tend to be ethnically African folks and some of the perpetrators tend to be more Arab and of the Muslim faith," he says.
Nevertheless, Holliday believes conditions in Sudan will stabilize soon, and that a cease-fire, freedom of movement for humanitarian efforts, and the requested observers on the ground are imminent.
