I have been reading about the genocide in the Darfur region of Sudan for months, but very seldom have seen or heard much about it in popular news sources. So it was with a sense of relief when I saw George and Nick Clooney using the power of their name recognition to capture the attention of the press. After a recent trip to this overlooked part of the world, they have made a short documentary about what they learned of the conditions and conflict within it and are making the rounds of news and talk shows. At the heart of the conflict is the escalating violence in the western region of Sudan against ethnic Africans who have been targeted for elimination by Arab Janijaweed militias in collaboration with Sudan’s central government in Khartoum. An estimated 200,000 to 400,000 have died and forced migrations have displaced about 2.5 million.
I referenced Darfur in my February 25th blog after reading Elie Wiesel’s book, Night. In this blog I noted that he concluded his acceptance speech for the Nobel Peace Prize by saying, “Our lives no longer belong to us alone, they belong to all those who need us desperately.” The people of Darfur need us desparately.
1 comment:
There is no greater indictment of the wrongful invasion of Iraq than our unwillingness to take strong action to stop the horror in Darfur. While I am not advocating military intervention, if ever there was a place and a time for it, the Sudan would certainly qualify. I do not know what the church can do, but I believe we should be actively urging the presence of a significant military force on a peace-keeping - and life-saving - mission.
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