Writing on Saturday, the Secretary General of the United Nations illustrated why the United Nations is no longer taken seriously. Ban Ki-moon said that man-made global warming was to blame in Darfur for the deaths of 200,000 or more people. How exactly did global warming spark the fighting between the government and rebels? The Secretary General would have us believe that a decrease in rain over the last two decades has led to the violence we are witnessing today. Please keep in mind that Sudan has been independent for the last 51 years. In that time, civil war has raged for 40 of those years.
How did war start in Sudan? That is a very complicated question. It also depends on which war you are talking about. After spending some time searching for writings on Darfur and Sudan, it is quickly apparent that war has been with this country for some time. The most recent version seems to have started around 2003 because rebel groups felt the government was neglecting certain areas of the country. Many have accused the government of participating in genocide in Darfur. The rebels have accused the government of using Arab militia’s, referred to as “Janjaweed”. The Janjaweed groups attack villages after the government has softened the targets up with air power. Most agree that there are active Arab militias in the country doing whatever they wish. The UN has launched its own investigation and doesn’t believe there is genocide going on in Darfur, but in an interesting play on words, acknowledges that there are those who have the intent to commit genocide.
If we weren’t talking about the deaths of 200,000 to 400,000 people, this might be a joke. If the UN itself was capable of doing anything in Sudan, one might be concerned about the thoughts of the Secretary General. However, for the Secretary General to say this may be caused by global warming is simply one further illustration that the United Nations should be ignored. Carbon Dioxide levels in the atmosphere aren’t causing Muslims to kill each other in huge quantities. Hummers in America aren’t raping women for walking to far from home at night in search of water or firewood. “Big Oil” isn’t ……actually….there is a problem with “Big Oil” in Sudan. However, this big oil comes in the form of China and Russia.
There is a very limited African Union force in Darfur (7,000 to 9,000). Many want to boast that number. However, two of the veto votes on the Security Council (Russia and China) have blocked those attempts because of their own trade contracts in the Sudan. Perhaps instead of citing climate change Mr. Ki-moon should look at the United Nations and seriously consider that it might be part of the problem in Sudan. Instead of the United Nations conjuring phantoms to blame for it’s own incompetence, perhaps the UN should recognize that some of its own members are helping to continue the problem in Darfur.
