United Nations Secretary General Kofi Annan urged the UN Security Council to immediately strengthen the 6 200-strong African Union force in Darfur and more than double it if the Sudanese government gives a green light for the UN to take over peacekeeping in the conflict-wracked western region.
In a 30-page report to the council circulated on Tuesday, Annan laid out three options for a much more muscular UN operation ”to establish a stable and secure environment to protect civilians” and support implementation of a peace agreement signed by the government and one rebel group in May.
The three options envision a UN force of between 15 300 and 18 600 troops, depending on the number of aircraft, helicopters and rapid reaction troops. Annan also proposed more than tripling the 1 560-strong AU police contingent to about 5 300 UN officers.
If approved by the council, the UN peacekeeping mission in Darfur would become the UN’s largest, surpassing the 17 500-strong UN force in the Democratic Republic of Congo.
But Sudan’s president, Omar al-Bashir, has vowed to never allow UN peacekeepers into Darfur and Annan said the UN cannot take over without the government’s consent and cooperation.
”Securing the consent of the government of Sudan will require continued intensive discussions with Khartoum by council members, by key member states and regional organisations, as well as by the UN,” Annan said.
”No effort should be spared to send the simple, powerful message: International involvement will increase the chances of peace taking root in Darfur, will strengthen the credibility of the peace process and the protection of the suffering populations of Darfur,” he said.
Answering Sudanese opponents of a UN force, Annan again stressed that ”the UN has no hidden agenda”, that troops for a UN force would primarily come from African and Asian countries, and that its primary goal would be to help implement the May peace agreement, ”not to occupy the country”.
The conflict in Darfur began when members of ethnic African tribes rose in revolt against the Arab-led Khartoum government in early 2003. Over 200 000 civilians have died, more than two million have fled their homes, and millions more have had their livelihoods destroyed, Annan said.
More than 2,5-million people affected by the war are receiving food, health care, shelter and other essentials from over 13 000 humanitarian workers from over 80 organisations, the Red Cross and 13 UN agencies, he said.
Annan warned that ”the window of opportunity” provided by the Darfur peace agreement to stabilise the region ”could close if there is no extra effort to implement it effectively”. If the ongoing violence isn’t addressed, he said, the overall situation could deteriorate.
”Alternatively, there may be an attempt to implement the agreement through force, including the forced return of internally displaced persons,” Annan said. ”If this should be allowed to happen, Darfur could descend into an even bloodier round of conflict that would be catastrophic for the people of the region.”
With the Sudanese government blocking a UN force, the Secretary General called for the urgent strengthening of the AU force, which could demonstrate the massive international effort aimed at reaching a lasting settlement to the conflict.
The AU force faces government restrictions, active hostility by some rebel groups, command and control difficulties, unpredictable financing and insufficient mobility, communications and public information capabilities, Annan said.
In the short-term, he said, the UN could provide significant support in some of these priority areas and with other international help it could also add armoured-personnel carriers, heavy duty vehicles and additional aircraft to significantly enhance the AU’s rapid-response capability.
But the AU has said it does not have the resources for a long-term peacekeeping mission and wants the UN to take over to help bring peace to Darfur.
The immediate strengthening of the AU force ”and subsequent transition to a UN operation could reverse dangerous threats inherent to peace in Darfur and the region”, Annan said. — Sapa-AP