Exclusion from Chad Meeting on Crisis in Western Sudan (3/29/04)

The RMCE appreciates the efforts of the USA, European Union, Chad, African Union, UNHCR, Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch and others to arrange a meeting in Chad on Tuesday, 30 March 2004 to bring together the various organizations concerned with the situation in Western Sudan. However, we wish to express our dismay at not having been invited to this meeting.

The RMCE has been publicising details of the genocide in western Sudan since 1995. Had the international community paid more attention to our reports, the scale of the current crisis might have been averted. We have frequently emphasized the importance of including civil society organizations in the search for a durable solution to the suffering of the people of Western Sudan. Unlike political parties which are often driven by their leaders' political ambitions , civil society organizations represent the interests of the vulnerable groups in society and are committed to promoting their welfare.

We believe that all Darfurian civil society organizations should be allowed to participate in the search for a durable peace in our troubled land. Moreover, we consider that the different ethnic groups, political parties and key individuals should be involved in the process of reconciliation to represent a broad spectrum of opinions.

We call on the sponsors of the meeting to explain:

Why has the Massaleit Community in Exile not been invited to attend this meeting?

Who will be representing the Massaleit tomorrow?

We wish to stress our appreciation for this initiative to address the current crisis, but reiterate our call for all civil society groups to be included in the search for a solution to the problems in Western Sudan, and in Sudan as a whole.