Tuesday, July 31, 2007

Holding our breath, yet again

A unanimous vote today in the United Nations Security Council authorized Resolution 1769, calling for 26,000 troops and police to be sent to Darfur in a joint UN-AU mission. The resolution calls for finalized state force contributions in the next 30 days, asserts that the Mission headquarters are to be set up by October of this year, and claims that the Mission will take over command from AU peacekeeping forces in Darfur on December 31, 2007.

While the resolution invokes chapter 7 of the UN charter on the use of force (meaning peacekeepers can use force to protect themselves from harm and civilians who are under attack), it does not allow force to be used for "seizing and destroying" weapons.

Three years after Congress declared genocide and almost one year since the passage of Resolution 1706, a resolution calling for UN forces that the international community allowed the Sudanese government to repeatedly reject, some activists welcome the renewed rhetoric coming from the UN. The rest of us are having a difficult time overcoming events (or lack thereof) in the last year which lead us to invest little faith that these 30 day/October/December deadlines will be implemented. So, for those who were ready to kick back and praise the efforts of those who got Resolution 1769 passed, I hope we can all realize that this is just the beginning.

This time, we're going to have to be loud enough for world leaders to implement the resolution. This is no time to rest, trust, and talk. This is a time to demand proof. Hold leaders accountable for actions, not resolutions. Measure results on the ground, rather than just on paper.

It's go-time. If we don't get something done now, we run the risk of teaching future generations that big rhetoric followed by empty promises is acceptable.

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