GENOCIDE
Lesgarcia
Module5.pptxModule 5: International Monitoring in Sudan and its Consequences
JUST 356
Dr. Arnaud Kurze
Historical Context
Since its independence in 1956, Sudan has been a fertile ground for sectarian pathologies
Dominated by North/South civil wars for most of its independent past (1955-1972) and (1983-2005)
Dafur crisis 2003 (genocide)
North consists of majority of Muslims
South is made up mostly Black African and more recently, as Christian
Competing economic interest across the region that only fuels conflict potential
The CPMT Founding Mandate
CPMT: Civilian Protection Monitoring Team created during peace negotiation process and phased out after the singing of the Comprehensive Peace Agreement in 2005
CPMT originally hailed as tremendous step forward
Through the CPMT the Sudanese government, NGOs and civilians in the South could voice their concerns
Authority of CPMT is undercut by two agreements that forced warring parties in Sudan to refrain from any offensive aggressive acts. Because there was no mapping of any armed forces and the CPMT was stopped from investigating, warring parties could claim self-defense as practice to further conduct offensive acts against civilians and opponents.
Overarching and Competing Political Agendas
US Department of State (DoS) also undercut the CPMT’s mandate
While DoS hoped to shield southern civilians from violence, it also wanted to avoid any further political fallouts that could potentially stymie the talks
The government in Khartoum, Sudan’s capital, saw CPMT’s mission as a direct intrusion into its state sovereignty
Wild cards in this context were regional militias that, while allied with the government, could not directly be controlled.
A Selection of Key Investigative Reports
CPMT first investigative report confirming government bombing in 2002 of civilians. Report, however, justified the intervention as militarily necessary (Mundri/Lui report)
Second CPMT report, major advance, as it documented long, and intense series of government troops and allied militia attacks. Main weakness: report overlooked that military advances occurred after the signing of the cease-fire in 2002
Third report modified by leading US official in the consulate in Khartoum.
