Cablegate: Darfur - Un Usyg Egeland Warns of Worsening Situation
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PP RUEHMA RUEHROV
DE RUEHKH #2709/01 3241441
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
P 201441Z NOV 06
FM AMEMBASSY KHARTOUM
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 5296
INFO RUCNFUR/DARFUR COLLECTIVE
RUEHRN/USMISSION UN ROME
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TAGS: PREL EAID PHUM PREF SOCI PGOV KAWC UN SU
SUBJECT: Darfur - UN USYG Egeland Warns of Worsening Situation
REF: Khartoum 2694
KHARTOUM 00002709 001.2 OF 002
1. (SBU) SUMMARY: Despite the strong efforts of the non-governmental
organization (NGO) community and the commitment of the donor
community, the humanitarian situation in Darfur is poised to
deteriorate, according to Jan Egeland, UN Under Secretary General
for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator. Egeland
briefed the donor community on November 18, at the end of his trip,
which was cut short by restrictions on his travel in Darfur.
Egeland expressed fears over growing insecurity, a lack of civilian
protection, and Sudanese government limits on the activities of
humanitarian organizations. He also briefly discussed the Southern
Sudan leg of his trip (reftel). Egeland characterized the African
Union Mission in Sudan (AMIS) as an impotent force that is seen by
the affected populations in Darfur as a party to the conflict and
not a neutral arbiter. Egeland stated the one breakthrough was the
recent agreement in Addis Ababa. Charge d'Affaires (CDA) Cameron
Hume, however, emphasized that the international community must keep
pushing. Hume explained it is likely the Sudanese government will
step back from at least part of the agreement, will be slow to
implement what it agreed to, and is likely buying time to try to
finish its military solution. End Summary.
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Situation on the Ground
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2. (SBU) Egeland stated that while the indicators are currently good
in the camps for internally displaced persons (IDPs) due to the
extremely effective work of the NGOs and one of the best resourced
responses by the donor community, the security situation is even
worse than in September 2004, with now more than 4 million people
affected. He noted that all the hard work is at risk because of
rising insecurity hampering the delivery of aid, a civilian
population that is almost completely without protection from
attacks, and a government that continues to block the operation of
NGOs. Egeland emphasized that donor support needed to increase in
2007 because the worsening security situation, with 95 percent of
roads declared "no go," would require more aid to be delivered by
helicopter.
3. (SBU) The Government of National Unity's (GNU) Humanitarian
Affairs Minister Kosti Manibe told Egeland during the trip that the
moratorium on NGO restrictions would be extended. However, Egeland
stated that the non-issuance of travel and work permits,
non-application of the UN Status of Forces Agreement (SOFA), and the
new NGO legislation are seriously hindering NGOs. He indicated that
a third of the staff of many NGOs operating in West Darfur is stuck
in Khartoum, while another third is in Darfur illegally. Egeland
also cited the 25-mile restriction placed on Americans as a serious
problem.
4. (U) Sudan's UN Humanitarian Affairs Representative, Manual da
Silva, added that the NGO Norwegian Refugee Council (NRC) was
recently given 72 hours to turn over all its equipment, including
computers and vehicles, to the Sudanese government. Da Silva
requested a strong, joint demarche from the donor community on this
issue.
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Camps Could Become Battleground, AMIS Not Helping
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5. (SBU) Egeland also noted that many IDP camps around El Geneina,
West Darfur, were controlled by armed opposition groups, and camps
throughout Darfur were simultaneously seeing more weapons on the
inside and being surrounded by militia groups. However, Egeland was
not able to see as many camps as he would have liked because the
Sudanese government restricted him from visiting Tawila, Jebel
Marra, and Kabkabiya, citing security concerns. In Kabkabiya,
Egeland had planned to meet Janjaweed leader Musa Hilal.
6. (U) Meanwhile, Egeland stated that AMIS is completely ineffective
and is seen as a party to the conflict. He said that selective
enforcement of patrols and other actions have led Darfurians to
question AMIS' neutrality. Egeland indicated that the AMIS force
was much more effective in 2005, when it had one-half of its current
forces and one-fifth of its present logistics.
7. (SBU) Egeland noted that the attack on Sirba, West Darfur, was
particularly disturbing. The fighting took place only a few hundred
KHARTOUM 00002709 002.2 OF 002
meters from AMIS troops, but the peacekeeping forces did not go to
the battle site until after the situation had calmed and then
refused to stay to protect the remaining civilian population.
Meanwhile, the Sudanese government indicated it was only conducting
military operations against rebel fighters and not civilians,
although eyewitness accounts contradicted this.
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CDA: Addis Ababa Agreement Only the Beginning
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8. (SBU) Egeland indicated that the sole bright spot on the trip was
the agreement reached in Addis Ababa to bolster AMIS forces with UN
support. CDA Hume underlined that the international community needs
to keep pushing and not assume that anything has yet been resolved.
He pointed out that President Bashir had agreed to an initial "lite"
package two months ago and nothing had happened yet. Hume stated he
expected the Sudanese government to back away from parts of the
agreement and be extremely slow in implementing what it had agreed
to do. Once the government does accept a heavier package, it will
likely not be the 17,000 troops called for in UNSCR 1706, Hume
explained. And even then, it will take several months to actually
deploy the troops.
9. (SBU) Hume pointed out that over the past six months President
Bashir has been determined to complete his military solution in
Darfur. During that time, the Sudanese government has been
frustrating all political attempts at resolving the crisis. This
includes stalling efforts to organize a non-signatory commander's
conference in Darfur. Hume noted that there is also evidence that
Bashir has given Musa Hilal the "go ahead" to start attacking IDP
camps.
HUME