Straw pressed on Darfur
Both the Conservatives and the Liberal Democrats are calling for answers about Britain’s role in tackling the crisis in Darfur.
The Liberal Democrats are demanding to know why the full component of African Union peacekeepers has not been deployed in Darfur.
And the Conservatives have launched a challenge under the Freedom of Information Act asking why the British government has decided not to classify the atrocities as ‘genocide’.
If a country is classed as engaging in genocide, all UN members are legally obliged to act.
Last year the US declared that genocide was occurring in Darfur, but earlier this week a UN report concluded that the Sudanese government as a whole had not pursued a policy of genocide. But, it said that some individuals had acted with genocidal intent.
The UN report recommended that those individuals should be brought before the International Criminal Court.
Shadow Foreign Secretary Michael Ancram has written to Mr Straw asking what advice the Government had received on the situation, and why it has not labelled the events ‘genocide’.
Mr Ancram said: “I can only think that you must have received advice suggesting that genocide was/is indeed taking place in Darfur but have chosen deliberately to ignore it.
“If it is the case that you have ignored advice on the scale of atrocities being committed by the Janjaweed militia, and supported by the Sudanese Government, then you now need to explain yourself. If you have not then you will have no problems with releasing the information I seek.
“I hope that you will not use the Freedom of Information Act as a shield or smokescreen. It is only right that the British public learn what sort of decision-making processes you undertake. After all is not the Act designed to hold Ministers to account regarding the decisions that they have made?”
Liberal Democrat foreign affairs spokesman Sir Menzies Campbell demanded answers on reports that only 1,400 African Union peacekeepers have been deployed to the region.
He said: “There are still fewer than 1,500 monitors in Darfur – a region the size of France – less than half the number mandated by the African Union in October last year.
“Why are troop numbers so low? Has the Sudanese Government been obstructive and if so what is being done about it? As a matter of urgency UN Security Council must institute sanctions, establish a no-fly zone for the protection of Darfur and provide logistical support for the deployment of the full force of military observers.”
Over 70,000 people are believed to have died in Darfur since February 2003, with two million others forced to flee their homes. Most of those who have died have been black Africans, with the pro-Arab Janjaweed militias responsible for most of the deaths.
The Sudanese government has been accused of arming the militias. It denies this and insists that rebel forces started the conflict.
On Wednesday the Foreign Secretary said that Britain expected “the perpetrators of these terrible crimes to be brought to justice. There should be no impunity for those involved in these heinous acts.”
Commenting on the UN report, Mr Straw said: “The Commission’s findings are appalling. It is clear that violations of international human rights and grave crimes against humanity have occurred.”
The report concluded that mass killings in Darfur were perpetrated by the government forces and Arab militia, and were deliberately and indiscriminately directed against civilians.
The report also found that the rebels were responsible for grave attacks which violated human rights and international humanitarian law, and which might amount to war crimes.
“These actions are utterly reprehensible and must stop immediately,” Mr Straw continued.
“The UN will be discussing Darfur over the coming days and the UK will take an active role in those discussions. We hope that the Security Council will be able to come to a swift and collective conclusion on this issue to ensure there the suffering in Darfur is stopped.”
He added that the decision to refer the Darfur situation to the International Criminal Court is one which should be taken by the whole Security Council, though it remained Britain’s “first preference”.
