#SudanRevolts

Read More #SudanRevolts

If the international community won’t bring him to justice, perhaps his own citizens will.  Throughout his 23 year-long stranglehold on Sudan, Omar al-Bashir has seen insurrections in the country’s South, East, and West, responding to each with criminal levels of violence.  Now the North is taking its chances, walking the fine line between disobedience and disarray.  Those occupying the streets of Khartoum have witnessed the monstrous capabilities of their government in the face of insurrection.  From Sudan’s rebellious fringe states, scores of these protestors’ dead countrymen indicate just how high a price a regime change could be.  Coupled with the ongoing carnage in Syria, it would appear that any form of sustained disobedience will warrant bleak consequences.

Needless to say, Khartoum’s populous is well aware of the humbling stakes.  And yet the anti-government demonstrations have only intensified over the course of this week.  Granted, these activists don’t speak for a marginalized ethnic minority and are not demanding secession.  Relative to the SPLM, austerity protests are not quite the enemy Bashir has crushed in years past.   And so far, police crackdowns have predominantly comprised of rubber bullets and tear gas.  Yet the movement shows no signs of abating.  And a criminal government like Bashir’s will certainly escalate its response in the coming days.  The question on observers’ minds: is Sudan joining the Arab Spring?

If so, there are several different precedents from 2011 that the Sudan revolts could emulate.  This early on, the limited participation offers little indication of which it might be.  ICC warrants aside, Bashir resembles Gaddafi more than any other Arab leader, incumbent or deposed.  However, the mild nature and mixed demands of the protests hints at an outcome similar to that of Algeria’s.  What separates Sudan, is that armed rebellion has occurred numerous times over its recent history, with consistent and costly Northern victories.  If there is to be internal strife in the North, past results indicate it could be the bloodiest of the Arab Spring’s conflicts to date.  However, the nascent uprising has much more ground to cover before talk of revolution.  If it goes forward, a Sudan without Bashir may not be a complete fantasy.

Follow live updates here.

United States protecting criminals

Read More United States protecting criminals

It is no secret that the Kagame administration in Rwanda has a vested interest in the Congolese rebellion across its border.  There is no concern that the fighting will spill over into Rwandan territory, but rather, the success of Bosco “the Terminator” Ntaganda’s renegade forces against DR Congo’s government troops guarantees Tutsi hegemony in the region, punishing the Hutu power militias leftover from the days of genocide.

What is surprising, however, is just how far the United States is willing to go to protect one of its staunchest African allies from international scrutiny.  The UN Group of Experts, a panel comprising of security experts for the Congo, have released findings which implicate the Rwandan defense minister and two of his top military officials of aiding the M23 rebellion.  This faction has been deemed the gravest human rights violator in the Congo, and perhaps the world.  Wishing no repercussions upon such a pro-Western government, the United States is alleged to have pressured the panel into delaying its findings long enough for Rwanda to formulate a response.

The observers’ report, now released, lists several Congolese whom it implicates as complicit in the M23’s atrocities.  Notably absent from this document are the Rwandan military commanders who have helped orchestrate this calamity.  They are just the most recent culprits in a long line of Rwandan foul play in the Congo.  President Paul Kagame may have brought peace within his borders, but outside, his regime’s deeds tell an entirely different story, consistently passing on blame to “rogue” or “renegade” officers like Nkunda and Ntaganda.

The developments of the M23 have not been investigated thoroughly enough, and for a valuable truth to surface, the U.S. must stop asserting diplomatic pressure against UN fact finders.

Support for Malawi is support for the ICC

Read More Support for Malawi is support for the ICC

The tiny nation of Malawi won’t be hosting this year’s African Union summit, and doesn’t plan on doing so as long as Omar al-Bashir remains a free man.  Malawi’s first female president, Joyce Banda, will also be among the continent’s first to take a firm stand against this criminal.  In the weeks leading up to the gathering, Banda announced that Sudan’s president was not welcome in her country, a gesture of respect and recognition to his pursuers in the ICC.  AU rules admonish exclusion like this, and the confederation consequently insisted Malawi extend Bashir an invitation or risk losing its status as a host country.  Joyce Banda admirably maintained her position, and now may or may not travel to Ethiopia to attend the relocated summit.

Her presidency has been described as a derivation from Africa’s norm, with a credible promise of reforms for Malawi, and its neighbors, have not seen before.  Her decision to repeal the criminalization of homosexuality has placed her among the continent’s most progressive, joining the ranks of Liberia’s Ellen Johnson Sirleaf.  Many speculate that continued aid and donations from the West is the driving motive behind her deviation.  Insistence on government reforms as a condition for U.S. development assistance has not been the standard, nor successful, everywhere.  However, Malawi demonstrates the potential of effective foreign policy, provided we insist on a pro-human rights agenda.

Banda faces alienation for a decision that was less than popular among AU member states.  The United States is ubiquitously influential on the continent, and should scale up support for her stance against Bashir and set a precedent that other African nations may soon follow.  Aid to Malawi could very well mean the end to Bashir’s impunity.

Same story, different faces

Read More Same story, different faces

The remnants of Bosco Ntaganda’s crumbling CNDP rebel group are very much alive and well.  Some have opted for the protection of joining the Congolese government forces while other lingering factions continue to pursue their cause, under the new moniker of M23.  These Tutsi fighters echo the grievances of Rwanda and former rebel leaders, accusing DR Congo president, Joseph Kabila, of arming various Hutu power militias throughout the region.  With renewed intensity, the M23 is accumulating allies in a bold attempt to rid their nation of its incumbent regime.  No longer under the alienating auspices of the ruthless Bosco, the troops that abandoned him are creating partnerships that will only broaden their path of destruction and terror.

There has been a battle of allegations and slander between government and rebels, each accusing the other of conspiring with the FDLR – a notorious Hutu power group that constitutes the legacy of the Rwanda’s genocidaires.    War crimes had become the modus operandi of indicted generals Nkunda and Ntaganda, and despite allegiances to them now severed, successor groups are maintaining tradition.

As it is hard to separate Kabila’s propaganda from accurate accounts, not much is really known about the nascent M23.  However, its spokesperson, Col. Vianney Kazarama, has been quite vocal in recent weeks regarding the faction’s goals.  It should come as no surprise, for his men are gaining allies and developing into a significant threat.  They may no longer be the cronies of Bosco “The Terminator,” but M23 could escalate their offensive, waging war as their criminal predecessors had, if a truce is not struck with Kinshasa soon.  This requires Kabila to extend concessions and compromises.

Where in the world is Joseph Kony?

Read More Where in the world is Joseph Kony?

Back in April, the Ugandan army captured yet another member of the Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA).  While this is not an uncommon occurrence, the military’s newfound prisoner was a notable exception.  Dressed in a Sudanese uniform and equipped with its arms and ammunition, this LRA fighter is strong evidence of a growing link between two of the ICC’s most wanted.

A group of 100 U.S. military advisors was deployed last fall to locations in the Central African Republic, the DR Congo, South Sudan, and Uganda.  Kony had been traveling in and out of northern Uganda for quite some time, and any attempt to detain him could very likely take place in any one of its neighbors.  However, it would appear that none of the American contingents will find their man without crossing into Sudanese territory.

Minni Minawi’s faction of the Sudan Liberation Movement, which withdrew from the Darfur peace agreement early last year, asserts that Kony’s forces have moved from the Western Bahr el Ghazal province of South Sudan into the North’s territory within Darfur.  This larger area converges with the eastern border of the Central African Republic, the commander’s longtime rumored hideout.  Testimony from escaped LRA victims and mounting intelligence received by the Ugandan People’s Defense Force (UPDF) indicate that Joseph Kony and his senior command are moving freely from country to country, and moving their operations ever further north.

Sudan has a history of supplying and supporting the insurgency in northern Uganda, dating back to its decades-old conflict with the SPLM.  A strengthened LRA wreaking havoc in Salva Kiir’s backyard is exactly the kind of destabilizer that put the odds in favor of Khartoum.  Bashir and his administration firmly deny any renewed ties with the indicted warlord, fully understanding the diplomatic headache this news could spawn.  With the two Sudans on the brink of war with one another, discretion is Khartoum’s best bet of avoiding further entanglements.  Bashir has conceded to talks with the Ugandan government and, despite Yoweri Museveni’s insistence that the UPDF will triumph Kony’s Sudanese support, such dialogue could be promising.

Fabricating an Emergency

Read More Fabricating an Emergency

This past weekend, Sudan detained a South Sudanese national and three other foreigners under a false accusation of espionage.  This incident and a growing list of skirmishes along the border have culminated in Omar al-Bashir declaring a state of emergency for his country’s frontier regions.  Such a decree will suspend the constitution throughout the states of Sennar, South Kordofan, and White Nile.

They are not the first to experience such a political lockdown.  Darfur has been under a state of emergency for the last decade, which became the ridiculous justification for its genocide in 2003.  Blue Nile state became the next in line last year in response to reignited ethnic conflict.  Bashir’s decree has also cemented the trade embargo across the border and granted him the mandate to establish special courts in the area.

Since its initial capture of Heglig, South Sudan has withdrawn its forces from the site, restoring the original truce.  After claiming victory, Sudan responded with a counter-attack miles deep into the South’s territory, ensnaring the two in further conflict through this unnecessary provocation.  The North has continued its aerial bombardments, which not only target existing oil structures, but have made isolated villages fair game.  There is absolutely no reason to suggest Sudanese territory is in jeopardy of its neighbor’s aggression, or lack thereof.  Bashir has been nothing but belligerent, orchestrating violence which has led to far greater losses for his enemies than among his own forces.  The state of emergency is a farce, and could be a dangerous tactic for perpetrating further war crimes.

Insects and liberation

Read More Insects and liberation

Not even a year since its birth, South Sudan is now inching ever closer towards war with the North.   Since last weekend’s confrontation at the Heglig oil fields, the African Union has been scrambling to assemble any negotiation or peace deal it can muster.  South Sudanese president and SPLM chairman, Salva Kiir, has cancelled a visit to China on the grounds that his neighbors have effectively “declared war” against the nascent country.  Omar al-Bashir has stepped up aerial bombardments along the contended, oil-rich border states, all but destroying the fragile relationship with his southern neighbors.  Wednesday brought good news in the form of an Egyptian-brokered arrangement to release 14 Sudanese soldiers, in the hopes of easing the animosity.

Bashir refuses, on a matter of principle, to engage in any dialogue with Juba, further enabling all-out war.  His willfulness is rationalized by, what he claims, is the South’s inability to understand any diplomacy beside that of the gun.  Most disconcerting is the language the indicted president has used when speaking of his rivals.  He prefers the term “insects” for the governing body of South Sudan, insisting that the nation needs to be “liberated” from its current ruling class.

These words may not be subtle, but could easily be overlooked if we don’t consider the past uses of dehumanizing labels such as this.  A little over 18 years ago, the word inyenzi, or “cockroach” was spoken profusely throughout Rwanda in the build-up to its genocide, stripping the Tutsi of their humanity.  The simultaneous ethnic cleansing in Bosnia was fueled by the notion of liberation, a key weapon in Slobodan Milosevic’s arsenal for extricating Bosnian Serbs from the incumbent Muslim administration.

The SPLM and the rest of South Sudan’s government are dominated by ethnic Dinka, which could potentially serve as the rationale for a more widespread campaign of violence against the population.  Bashir has consistently categorized political belligerents together with the ethnic groups whom they claim to represent.  Such assumptions were responsible for the genocide in Darfur, and could prove to be hazardous for the south if violence were to escalate.  The AU needs to be aware of the ethnic implications of this impending, yet not inevitable, war.


Hiding in plain sight

Read More Hiding in plain sight

Bosco “the Terminator” Ntaganda is a renegade military commander running the Congolese city of Goma like a mob boss, and his days in power are numbered.  In an amazing policy turnaround, president of the DR Congo, Joseph Kabila, called for Ntaganda’s arrest during a visit to the affected North Kivu province earlier this week.  Responding to a recent series of defections from the Congolese army orchestrated by Ntaganda, Kabila has now stepped away from his conciliatory tactics, declaring, “I want to arrest Bosco Ntaganda because the whole population wants peace.”

The International Criminal Court (ICC) may have just found an unlikely ally in the president, as they’ve been seeking Bosco’s capture since May of 2008.  He faces charges of war crimes for his use of child soldiers during the 2002-03 conflict in Ituri, but continues to shamelessly boast his impunity through luxury living and ordered killings in Goma.

Bosco Ntaganda began his career in the Rwandan Patriotic Army fighting alongside current president Paul Kagame and fellow Tutsis in a campaign to regain Rwanda from the Hutu-led regime of Juvénal Habyarimana.  The post-genocide exodus of Rwandan Hutus into neighboring Congolese provinces sparked years of conflict, perpetrated by ethnically-aligned militia and international actors.  In 2006, Ntaganda joined the ranks of now-captured General Laurent Nkunda’s National Congress for the Defence of the People (CNDP), a Congolese pro-Tutsi militia with ties to the Kagame administration across the border.

His tenure with the CNDP has been marked by exploitation and violence against civilians.  Rwanda has asserted time and time again that Bosco furthers Rwanda’s goals of peace and stability in Kivu, and should only be the concern of Kabila’s government.  Outside his military operations, the general has a hand in the lucrative and controversial mining industry in the region.  He owns restaurants and nightclubs throughout Goma, ignoring his indictment through an open, public lifestyle.  However, assassinations and disappearances have accumulated throughout his territory, and his fighting force is quickly losing loyalty.  With smaller ranks and the Congolese government after him, Ntaganda is more vulnerable than ever.  As long as he doesn’t seek shelter in Rwanda, hiding in plain sight might finally earn him a trip to the International Criminal Court.

Free Clooney, Arrest Bashir.

Recently, Sudan activist and actor, George Clooney, was arrested at the Sudanese Embassy in Washington D.C. for trespassing on what is officially Sudanese territory.  He was, with other activists and Congressman McGovern, protesting the Government of Sudan’s attacks on innocent civilians by bombing, shooting, raping, and starving them — in Sudanese territory, the Nuba Mountains of Southern Kordofan.

Clooney had just arrived from crossing into Sudan from Southern Sudan, risking his life, so that he could be a witness and bring attention to the horrors and the looming humanitarian catastrophe in the Nuba Mountains.  The man that is ultimately responsible for these attacks, and for what the U.S. has declared genocide in Darfur, is the President of Sudan, Omar al-Bashir, who is indicted by the International Criminal Court for war crimes, crimes against humanity, and genocide.

Clooney was handcuffed and arrested — for trespassing.  Omar al-Bashir is living in a mansion and travels with full honors to other countries as the President of Sudan — for the worst crimes that can be committed against other human beings.

ICC Issues Another Warrant in Darfur Conflict

Read More ICC Issues Another Warrant in Darfur Conflict

Add another to the tally board.

As we anticipated in an earlier post, the hot ticket out of ICC this week is for none other than one Abdel Rahim Muhammed Hussein (no relation to that other Hussein) of Sudan. Hussein is charged on counts of war crimes and crimes against humanity for his work in the Darfur conflict.

The arrest warrant, issued on March 1, 2012 reads:

Mr. Hussein made essential contributions to the formulation and implementation of the common plan, inter alia, through his overall coordination of national, state and local security entities and through the recruitment, arming and funding of the police forces and the Militia/Janjaweed in Darfur

(Read the full announcement.)

At the time the alleged crimes were committed, Hussein held the title ‘Minister of the Interior of the Government of the Republic of Sudan’ in addition to being the “President’s Special Representative in Darfur.” Today he is the Minister of National Defense.

The warrant for Hussein comes almost three years to the day of the initial indictment of sitting Sudanese president Omar al-Bashir, for his role in the same conflict. Bashir remains in office today.

Sign up for updates



About Us

Welcome to End Impunity. A campaign to stop mass atrocities going unpunished, seek prosecution of the perpetrators, restore dignity to the victims, and provide healing to the affected communities.