"For a long time I completely wiped the death masks of raped and sexually mutilated girls and women from my mind as if what had been done to them was the last thing that would send me over the edge . . But if you looked, you could see the evidence, even in the whitened skeletons. The legs bent and apart. A broken bottle, a rough branch, even a knife between them. Where the bodies were fresh, we saw what must have been semen pooled on and near the dead women and girls. There was always a lot of blood. Some male corpses had their genitals cut off, but many women and young girls had their breasts chopped off and their genitals crudely cut apart. They died in a position of total vulnerability, flat on their backs, with their legs bent and knees wide apart. It was the expressions on their dead faces that assaulted me the most, a frieze of shock, pain and humiliation. For many years after I came home, I banished the memories of those faces from my mind, they they have come back, all too clearly."

- Romeo Daillaire, Force Commander for the UNAMIR 1993-4

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The Darfur Crisis

The above quote comes from Romeo Daillaire's book, 'Shake Hands with the Devil'. In his book Daillaire recounts the trials of his role as force commander for the United Nations Aid Mission for Rwanda (UNAMIR), suffering massive under funding and an insufficient mandate in the wake of an unfolding genocide. With the United Nations Aid Mission for Darfur (UNAMID) launching at the close of 2007, the terrible memories that scar humankind after Rwanda seem to becoming all to real once again.

Since conflict in Darfur broke out in 2003, 400,000 civilians have died, 150,000 of which have been massacred. 2.8 million have been displaced and estimates of up to 250,000 have fled to Chad where they face further violence. 3.6 million are dependant on international aid. The worst thing about these figures is that every day they increase. The Darfur Crisis is seen as "one of the worst nightmares in recent history".

In brief, the conflict in Darfur arose (long term colonial and ethnic factors aside) in 2003 when rebels decided to take up arms against the Sudanese government. The Government responded with its own troops and by sponsoring the Answered, known as the 'Devils on horseback' they are recruited from nomadic arab tribes and have rampaged through Darfur. Human Rights groups estimate that the Janjaweed militias and Governemnt forces have been responsible for 97% of the killing. All this echoes of Rwanda when the government seemingly backed the genocide whilst under pressure from a rebel army. To make matters worse, Chad is descending into conflict, causing further destabilisation in the region and potentially being the dawn of a terrible era for humanity in North East Africa.

Sources from BBC and New Internationalist no. 401

How to Act

You can help the people of Darfur, primarily through pressuring the government to boost its support for United Nationas Aid Mission for Darfur (UNAMID). A properly funded UN force can stop the killing and move towards restabilising the region and move towards a new period of peace and development for the people of North East Africa. Pressure must also be put to support the International Criminal Court in bringing the architects of the murders in Darfur to justice. Write to your MP and urge them to carry the message to Parliament. Also look out for demonstrations such as the 'Day for Darfur' actions.

You can also support Darfur Asylum Seekers, and prevent them from being returned to almost certain death in Sudan. The Beijing Olympics are also an opportunity to challenge China for its role in Sudan and its support for the regime.

Follow the links below, the BBC Sudan link provides news and information about Sudan and Darfur. UNAMID is the site for the United Nations Aid Mission for Darfur. Protect Darfur is a UK organisation campaigning for Darfur and Darfur Consortium is an African campaign group. There is also a link to the Amnesty website page on Darfur and to the forum where you can discuss actions, campaigns and information about the crisis.