File picture made available by Albany Associates shows fighters from the Justice and Equality Movement (JEM) riding in the back of an armoured vehicle in Sudan's western Darfur region. Sudan's President Omar al-Beshir called an immediate ceasefire in Darfur and a campaign to disarm feared militias in a speech dismissed by rebels as a propaganda stunt for the West.(AFP/Albany Associates/File/Stuart Price)
Sudan Cease-Fire Call Gets Wary Reception In
Darfur -- Christian Science Monitor
Darfur -- Christian Science Monitor
Previous cease-fire attempts have failed to prevent violence. Many say the Sudanese president is trying to prevent a war-crimes indictment.
Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir has proposed a unilateral cease-fire in the troubled Darfur region, including the disarming of progovernment militia blamed for five years of bloodshed that has displaced millions of villagers and drawn in foreign peacekeepers. Some rebel groups in the area immediately dismissed the proposal as an empty gesture. Several previous cease-fire proposals have failed to stem the fighting in Darfur.
Mr. Bashir faces a possible war-crimes indictment in the International Criminal Court (ICC). Wednesday's proposal appears aimed at persuading the United Nations not to pursue the indictment, as it could jeopardize any peace initiatives. The cease-fire in Darfur is part of a package of measures from a Qatari-backed initiative that rebel groups in Darfur have refused to join.
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My Comment: It is very hard to listen to Sudan's call for a ceasefire. Like Mugabe and his followers in Zimbabwe, the Sudanese leaders have no credibility when it comes to peace and tolerance with their opponents. The best way for them to be believable, is to disarm their militia's and to withdraw their troops .... none of which is happening.