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Government of Sudan Blocking Outside Observers from Darfur
April 3, 2006
Sudan is currently attempting to prevent humanitarian observers and aid organizations from visiting or operating in Darfur in order to cover up its campaign of genocide in that region.
Earlier this week, the government in Khartoum denied Jan Egeland, the UN Undersecretary General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief, permission to enter Darfur. Reuters and other sources report that Mr. Egeland attributes this decision to a government cover-up of atrocities, as he stated “I think it is because they don’t want me to see how bad it is in Darfur.” 1
The Mail & Guardian Online separately reports that the Norwegian Refugee Council, an NGO sheltering 100,000 thousand people in Sudan, will soon have to leave Darfur. The Sudanese government refused to extend its mandate, though the organization has been actively assisting refugees in Darfur since July 2004, providing them with food and medicine as well as shelter.2 The Sudanese decision is difficult to understand in light of the fact that the UN now estimates that approximately two million people need humanitarian assistance.3
These actions reflect the Sudanese government’s policy to reduce transparency and enable the killings, rapes, starvation, fear and suffering to continue without international condemnation. The UN must not permit this effort to succeed.
1. “UN’s Egeland says Sudan bars Darfur visit.” Reuters, Monday, April 3, 2006, available at: http://today.reuters.co.uk/news/newsArticle.aspx?type=worldNews&storyID=2006-04-03T154144Z_01_L03182984_RTRUKOC_0_UK-SUDAN-UN-ACCESS.xml&archived=False
2.“Norwegian NGO forced to leave Darfur refugee camp.” Mail & Guardian Online, April 3, 2006, available at: http://www.mg.co.za/articlepage.aspx?area=/breaking_news/breaking_news__africa/&articleid=268489
3. Darfur Humanitarian Profile No. 22-01 January 2006 (Office of UN Deputy Special Representative of the UN Secretary-General for Sudan UN Resident and Humanitarian Co-ordinator), available at: http://www.unsudanig.org/emergencies/darfur/profile/data/2006/january/Januray_dhp_narrative.pdf
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