DARFUR GENOCIDE

SUBJECT- History of International Bodies

Mid Semester Assignment-III
SUBMITTED_TO_
AMITY LAW SCHOOL, MUMBAI
FOR THE PART FULLFILMENT
OF
B.A. LLB._(Hons)

By
Gaurav K Choudhary
Enrolment_No._A70611120025
UNDER_THE_GUIDANCE_OF
Dr Mrunmayee Satam

AMITY_LAW_SCHOOL

HOD-_Kushal Vibhute
SEMESTER_IV

ACADEMIC_YEAR:_2021-2022[Even Semester]

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 DECLARATION_BY_THE_STUDENT

I declare that this assignment entitled “Darfur Genocide” is my own work completed
under the supervision of Dr Mrunmayee Satam. This assignment is based on my personal study
and/or research and that I have acknowledged all material and sources used in its preparation,
whether they be books, articles, reports, lecture notes, and any other kind of document,
electronic or personal communication. I also certify that this assignment has not previously
been submitted for assessment in any other unit, except where specific permission has been
granted from all unit coordinators involved, or at any other time in this unit, and that I have not
copied in part or whole or otherwise plagiarized the work of other students and/or persons.

_Date: 28th march 2022

Student_name:_Gaurav_K_Choudhary

_ Enrolment_No.:_A70611120025

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INTRODUCTION

The “Darfur Genocide” refers to the current mass slaughter and rape of Darfuri men,

women, and children in Western Sudan. The killings began in 2003 and became the first

genocide in the 21st century. Unrest and violence persist today.

The genocide is being carried out by a group of government-armed and government-funded

Arab militias known as the Janjaweed (which loosely translates to ‘devils on horseback’) or

Rapid Support Forces (RSF). The Janjaweed systematically destroy Darfuris by burning

villages, looting economic resources, polluting water sources, and murdering, raping, and

torturing civilians. These militias are historic rivals of the main rebel groups, the Sudanese

Liberation Movement (SLM), and the Justice and Equality Movement (JEM). As of spring

2020, over 480,000 people have been killed and more than 2.8 million people are displaced.

Sudan is one of the largest countries in Africa. Located in northeastern Africa, it borders the

Red Sea and falls between Egypt, Chad, Uganda, and six other countries. The capitol,

Khartoum, is in the northeastern part of the country. Darfur is a region in western Sudan that

encompasses an area roughly the size of Spain. The population of Darfur is estimated at

7 million people.

The conflict in Darfur has increased tensions in neighboring Chad and the Central African

Republic as hundreds of thousands of refugees have streamed over the two countries’ borders

to escape violence.

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THE RISE OF CONFLICT

Following independence from Britain in 1956, Sudan became embroiled in two

prolonged civil wars for most of the remainder of the 20th century. These conflicts were rooted

in the north’s domination of the economic, political, and social institutions of largely non-

Muslim, non-Arab, southern Sudanese. Competition for scarce resources played a large role.

As nomads began to compete for grazing land for their herds, disputes arose and traditional

peaceful reconciliation measures were no longer able to settle these disputes, causing the region

to become increasingly militarized. The complexities of desertification, famines, and the civil

war raging between North and South Sudan contributed to a rise in regional tensions during

the 1980s. Similarly, as oil was discovered in western Sudan, the Sudanese government and

international contributors became increasingly interested in the land in Darfur.

The first civil war ended in 1972 but broke out again in 1983. 1 The second war and famine-

related effects resulted in more than 4 million people being displaced and, according to rebel

estimates, more than 2 million deaths occurred over a period of two decades. As the civil war

between the North and the South reached its peak in the 1990’s, the government ignored reports

of rising violence in Darfur.

The Comprehensive Peace Agreement ended the North-South War in 2005, granting additional

political power to South Sudan. However, it failed to take into account the effects of the war

on Darfur. Darfur remained underdeveloped and marginalized at the federal level, lacking

infrastructure and development assistance. This neglect, combined with allegations that the

government was arming Arab tribesmen (Janjaweed) to raid non-Arab villages, was used as

the justification for a rebel attack on a Sudanese Air Force Base at El Fasher, North Darfur in

1
Cbsnews.com. 2022. Country Fast Facts: Sudan. [online] Available at:
<https://www.cbsnews.com/news/country-fast-facts-sudan/> [Accessed 28 March 2022].

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2003. This attack sparked government reprisals on residents of Darfur, contributing to the

large-scale human rights atrocities facing Darfuri civilians today.

2Failed peace talks have allowed for the continuation of the conflict. The most successful talks

thus far took place in Abuja in 2005-2006, leading to the Darfur Peace Agreement (DPA).

Present at these negotiations were the Sudanese government and three main rebel groups: the

Justice and Equality Movement (JEM), Abdel Wahid Mohamed al-Nur’s faction of the Sudan

Liberation Movement (SLM), and Minni Minawi’s faction of the SLM. However, multiple

negotiations have thus far been largely unsuccessful.

In July of 2007, the UN issued a hybrid United Nations-African Union mission (UNAMID) to

maintain peace in Darfur. UNAMID, with a projected strength of 26,000 troops, was authorized

to use force to protect civilians. Despite this mandate, however, only 9,000 troops were sent,

and they lacked the necessary equipment to carry out their mission. At its peak, close to 16,000

forces were deployed in the region, well short of the 26,000 that had been authorized. 2

However, throughout 2007-2020, the Sudanese government blocked and prevented UNAMID

from accessing towns where many of the Janjaweed attacks occurred. Thus, UNAMID has

been, for a large part, greatly ineffective in both providing aid to and protecting civilians.

UNAMID originally was authorized for ten years, but in 2017 a resolution was passed for a

gradual troop phase-out, ending in mid-2020.

On March 4, 2009, the International Criminal Court issued an arrest warrant for Sudanese

President Omar al-Bashir for crimes against humanity and, in July 2010, a warrant for arrest

on charges of genocide. For ten years the government of Sudan had yet to turn him over. Since

the issuance of the warrants, Sudan has seen major protests and increased violence. The

2
The Defense Post. 2022. UN extends Darfur peacekeeping mission UNAMID for one year. [online]
Available at: <https://www.thedefensepost.com/2019/11/01/un-unamid-darfur-extended-march-
2020/> [Accessed 28 March 2022].

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government has also forcefully expelled aid agencies from the country that has further

jeopardized the conditions for thousands of displaced and marginalized civilians.

It was expected that al-Bashir would not face trial at the International Criminal Court in The

Hague until he was apprehended in a nation which accepts the ICC’s jurisdiction. Sudan is not

a state party to the Rome Statute, the international treaty creating the ICC, which it signed but

didn’t ratify. By all accounts, al-Bashir should be a prisoner in his own country. However, in

2011 the Arab League has announced its solidarity with al-Bashir. Since the warrant, al-Bashir

had visited Qatar and Egypt. Both countries refused to arrest him, and the African Union also

condemned the arrest warrant and asked the United Nations Security Council to delay its

enforcement.

The Sudanese government and JEM signed a ceasefire agreement in February 2010, with a

tentative agreement to pursue further peace. However, talks have been disrupted by accusations

that the Sudanese army continues to launch raids and air strikes against Darfur villages.

The Janjaweed have also been accused of incursions and attacks in neighbouring Chad.

Hundreds of aid workers in Chad were evacuated due to increased tension between rebel groups

and military forces. Meanwhile, the Janjaweed have ventured deep into Chad to conduct

assaults, resulting in the flight of nearly 100,000 Chadians.

In July 2011, South Sudan gained independence from Sudan and became its own nation.

During the same month, the Liberation and Justice Movement, an umbrella organization

representing rebel groups, and the Sudanese government signed the Doha Document for Peace

in Darfur (DDPD). This document represents the process of peace in Darfur; however, little

progress has been made after the document was signed because of lack of implementation and

enforcement.

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In 2014 and 2015, government forces backed by the Janjaweed led counterinsurgency

campaigns in Darfur where they repeatedly attacked villages, burned and looted homes, and

beat, raped, and executed villagers. In October of 2014, a mass rape of over 200 women and

girls was organized and executed by Sudanese forces in a north Darfur town over the course of

36 hours. According to defected Janjaweed members, they had been explicitly ordered to “rape

women”.

Violence continued into 2016. Amnesty International alleged that the government used

chemical weapons against civilians, and 190,000 people were displaced due to violence,

according to the UN.3 In 2016, President Omar al-Bashir announced a unilateral ceasefire in

conflict zones. This ceasefire was extended until the end of 2018. However, throughout 2017

and 2018, government forces continued to attack villages throughout Darfur, causing deaths

and massive displacement of citizens. As of late 2018, over 2 million people remain displaced

from the conflict and almost 5 million people in total have been affected.

In April 2019, President Omar al-Bashir was finally ousted. He had been in power for over 30

years and his removal was in response to months of unarmed protests, to which the government

responded with armed retaliation. In Sudan, al-Bashir’s rule was first followed by a military

council and, in August 2019, it was replaced by a transitional government of both military and

civilian members. In February 2020, the Sudanese government officially agreed to hand al-

Bashir over to the ICC to face war crime and genocide charges. 4

3
BBC News. 2022. Omar al-Bashir: Sudan agrees ex-president must face ICC. [online] Available at:
<https://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-51462613> [Accessed 28 March 2022].
4
BBC News. 2022. Omar al-Bashir: Sudan agrees ex-president must face ICC. [online] Available at:
<https://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-51462613> [Accessed 28 March 2022].

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THE WAY THE GENOCIDE TOOK PLACE

Attacks on Darfuri villages commonly begin with Sudanese Air Force attacks using

Russian-supplied Antonov bombers. Air campaigns are often followed by Janjaweed militia

raids. All remaining village men, women, and children are either murdered or forced to flee.

Looting, burning food stocks, enslaving and raping women and children, and stealing livestock

are common. Dead bodies are tossed in wells to contaminate water supplies and entire villages

are burned to the ground.

HOW THE WOLRD REACTED?

The on-going conflict in Darfur, Sudan was declared “genocide” by United States

Secretary of State Colin Powell on September 9, 2004, in testimony before the Senate Foreign

Relations Committee. On February 18, 2006, President George W. Bush called for the number

of international troops in Darfur to be doubled. In addition, the US has imposed economic

sanctions on Sudan since 1997. However, after working and talking with the Sudanese

government for years, the US formally revoked its sanctions on Sudan in 2017. This was largely

in response to the Sudanese government’s “sustained positive actions in reducing hostilities in

conflict areas, improving humanitarian access throughout Sudan, and addressing the threat of

terrorism in cooperation with the US.”

On September 17, 2006, British Prime Minister Tony Blair wrote an open letter to the members

of the European Union calling for a unified response to the crisis. 5 In supporting the United

Nations Security Council Resolution in 2007 to authorize the deployment of up to 26,000

peacekeepers to prevent further violence in Darfur, British Prime Minister Gordon Brown said

in a speech before the United Nations General Assembly that the Darfur crisis was “the greatest

5
the Guardian. 2022. Full text: Tony Blair's speech to the European parliament. [online] Available at:
<https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2005/jun/23/speeches.eu> [Accessed 28 March 2022].

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humanitarian disaster the world faces today.” The British government also endorsed the

International Criminal Court’s indictment of Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir and urged the

Sudanese government to co-operate.

Both China and Russia have blocked many United Nations resolutions on Darfur because of

their support for the Sudanese government, a big trading partner. From its seat on the United

Nations Security Council, China has been Sudan’s chief diplomatic ally. China invests heavily

in Sudanese oil. The country is China’s largest oversees oil provider. Sudan’s military is

supplied by Chinese- and Russian-made helicopters, tanks, fighter planes, bombers, rocket

launch propelled grenades, and machine guns.

Russia and China opposed UN peace keeping troops in Sudan. Russia strongly supports

Sudan’s territorial integrity and opposes the creation of an independent Darfuri state. Also,

Russia is Sudan’s strongest investment partner and political ally in Europe. Russia considers

Sudan as an important global ally in the African continent.

CONCLUSION

Since the ousting of Omar al-Bashir in early 2019, the Sudanese government has

established and retained a transitional government. Although this government recently did

agree to turn to turn over al-Bashir to the ICC, its next steps and transition to a permanent

government remain to be seen. Arbitrary detention, torture, limitations of the freedom of press,

and gender-based violence continue to be seen in both Darfur and Sudan as a whole under this

new government.

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REFERENCE

 Cbsnews.com. 2022. Country Fast Facts: Sudan. [online] Available at:

<https://www.cbsnews.com/news/country-fast-facts-sudan/> [Accessed 28 March
2022].
 The Defense Post. 2022. UN extends Darfur peacekeeping mission UNAMID for one
year. [online] Available at: <https://www.thedefensepost.com/2019/11/01/un-unamid-
darfur-extended-march-2020/> [Accessed 28 March 2022].
 BBC News. 2022. Omar al-Bashir: Sudan agrees ex-president must face ICC. [online]
Available at: <https://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-51462613> [Accessed 28
March 2022].
 BBC News. 2022. Omar al-Bashir: Sudan agrees ex-president must face ICC. [online]
Available at: <https://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-51462613> [Accessed 28
March 2022].
 the Guardian. 2022. Full text: Tony Blair's speech to the European parliament. [online]
Available at: <https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2005/jun/23/speeches.eu>
[Accessed 28 March 2022].

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