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3.7.1: case study – the Darfur genocide

the Darfur genocide (Sudan)

  • Sudan is very diverse

    • main ethnic groups are Arab, African, and Indigenous peoples

    • main religious groups are Sunni (Islam), Indigenous religious beliefs, and Christianity

  • faces great difficulty with political cooperation

    • many conflicts over ethnicity, religion

    • CPA (2005) ends civil war, unrest remains

    • many refugees leaving Sudan

  • civil war has led to

    • lack of economic and political development

    • heavy internal displacement

    • huge refugee crisis

  • the Darfur region is located in Western Sudan, occupied primarily by marginalized communities

    • majority in the area are ethnic muslims

    • African and Arab communities are often at conflict with each other

      • different religions and ways of life; Africans are generally farmers where as Arabs are generally herders

    • intermarriage between ethnic groups makes it harder to distinguish members of one from another

      • based on ancestry, so most identity through appearance or political ideology

    • notion exists that Arabs are “superior” or more advanced, which creates many conflicts on the local level

  • roots of recent conflict

    • competition over dwindling natural resources

    • erosion of traditional tribal leadership structures (political turmoil)

    • Arab resentment of land-owning African communities

    • emergence of armed Darfurian rebel groups

    • flood of arms and weapons into the Darfur region from other countries with (primarily economic) interests in the area

  • Sudanese government moved to act due to

    • mounting rebel attacks

    • long-term sentiment against Darfur based on its large non-Arab population

    • desire to control oil reserves in Darfur

    • local food sources and the economy declined following the Northern Darfurian drought in the 1980’s

      • Arabs and Africans competed for land, food, and water control

      • this led Arabs to join the Janjaweed in the 1990’s when it focused on small-scale local raids

  • Darfur genocide

    • the mass training of the Sudanese government of Arabs to wipe out non-Arab inhabitants of the Darfur region

    • took place from 2003-present

    • Janjaweed raid villages, beginning with bombings before soldiers are moved in

    • slavery, rape, and looting are also commonly used

    • bodies are thrown in local water sources to contaminate them for survivors and villages are burned

    • the US and UN have tried to prevent it, but to little avail thus far

      • in the UN’s efforts to help, many UN workers have been killed/attacked

      • disarming the Janjaweed is necessary for peace, but it is unclear how this could be accomplished

    • China and Russia have sided with the Sudanese government, mainly for economic reasons (coal = $); roughly 5,000 people are killed every month in the conflict (as of 2020)

      • China’s president has spent millions in aiding Sudan

      • Sudan also regularly steals or ignores the UN’s policies after initially agreeing to them

R

3.7.1: case study – the Darfur genocide

the Darfur genocide (Sudan)

  • Sudan is very diverse

    • main ethnic groups are Arab, African, and Indigenous peoples

    • main religious groups are Sunni (Islam), Indigenous religious beliefs, and Christianity

  • faces great difficulty with political cooperation

    • many conflicts over ethnicity, religion

    • CPA (2005) ends civil war, unrest remains

    • many refugees leaving Sudan

  • civil war has led to

    • lack of economic and political development

    • heavy internal displacement

    • huge refugee crisis

  • the Darfur region is located in Western Sudan, occupied primarily by marginalized communities

    • majority in the area are ethnic muslims

    • African and Arab communities are often at conflict with each other

      • different religions and ways of life; Africans are generally farmers where as Arabs are generally herders

    • intermarriage between ethnic groups makes it harder to distinguish members of one from another

      • based on ancestry, so most identity through appearance or political ideology

    • notion exists that Arabs are “superior” or more advanced, which creates many conflicts on the local level

  • roots of recent conflict

    • competition over dwindling natural resources

    • erosion of traditional tribal leadership structures (political turmoil)

    • Arab resentment of land-owning African communities

    • emergence of armed Darfurian rebel groups

    • flood of arms and weapons into the Darfur region from other countries with (primarily economic) interests in the area

  • Sudanese government moved to act due to

    • mounting rebel attacks

    • long-term sentiment against Darfur based on its large non-Arab population

    • desire to control oil reserves in Darfur

    • local food sources and the economy declined following the Northern Darfurian drought in the 1980’s

      • Arabs and Africans competed for land, food, and water control

      • this led Arabs to join the Janjaweed in the 1990’s when it focused on small-scale local raids

  • Darfur genocide

    • the mass training of the Sudanese government of Arabs to wipe out non-Arab inhabitants of the Darfur region

    • took place from 2003-present

    • Janjaweed raid villages, beginning with bombings before soldiers are moved in

    • slavery, rape, and looting are also commonly used

    • bodies are thrown in local water sources to contaminate them for survivors and villages are burned

    • the US and UN have tried to prevent it, but to little avail thus far

      • in the UN’s efforts to help, many UN workers have been killed/attacked

      • disarming the Janjaweed is necessary for peace, but it is unclear how this could be accomplished

    • China and Russia have sided with the Sudanese government, mainly for economic reasons (coal = $); roughly 5,000 people are killed every month in the conflict (as of 2020)

      • China’s president has spent millions in aiding Sudan

      • Sudan also regularly steals or ignores the UN’s policies after initially agreeing to them