The Governor of New Mexico has been traveling in Sudan, visiting Darfur, and meeting with a number of people and groups including the Sudanese President, rebel leaders, UN representatives and others. Governor Richardson and Sudanese President Bashir have sent out a joint statement about the future of the Darfur region.
The statement discussing such ideas as a 60 day ceasefire, an international peace summit by March 15, access for humanitarian organizations, and a UN/African Union "hybrid" peacekeeping force.
If implemented, this statement could hold the possibility for positive change. Do you think this is possible? What are the chances of this actually succeeding?
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
2 comments:
I think Richardson understands the urgency of the genocide and the importance of diplomacy in resolving the conflict. I wonder, however, whether this will backfire. Even if the governor is able to negotiate effectively and the negotiations are actually implemented (an occurance which Sudan regularly thwarts), does this put the legitimacy of the US in further jeopardy? It is possible that international actors and the Sudanese government will receive Richardson's visit as a symbol of the federal government's lack of commitment to the issue. They may claim that if the US government were truly invested in ending the genocide, the President and the Bush administration would be in Sudan leading the negotiations. If this is the case, the diplomatic reception of Richardson's visit may counteract any progress Richardson is able to make.
I agree. However, the world has long said hat they would not stand for genocide and this promise has never yet been fulfilled. Perhaps an end to violence even temporally is worth the negative effects towards the federal government.
Post a Comment