USA: U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice makes appeal for the end of violence in the war-torn region of Darfur in Sudan

Story: US Secretary Condoleezza Rice met with foreign ministers twice in New York City on Friday (September 22), first with ministers from the European Union and then with officials from other countries to talk about the Darfur crisis and the international community's response. At the second meeting, held at the Waldorf-Astoria Hotel, Rice, who made opening remarks at the meeting, was clear in the commitment of her government to helping the people of the beleaguered region of Sudan. Attending the meeting were more than 20 foreign ministers, some from countries closely allied with Sudan. "We meet here today united in our commitment, firm in our resolution, and mindful of our obligations to help end the suffering of the people of Darfur," she said. "The violence in Darfur must end and it must end now. The Darfur Peace Agreement, signed in May, provides a political framework to end the conflict and to open a path to peace, freedom and opportunity to the people of Darfur. The future of this agreement, however, is now at risk. The government of Sudan has launched a military offensive and the security situation in Darfur is deteriorating." "We've pledged to help end the suffering of the people of Darfur and we have committed to a course of action that would achieve these goals. Now we must match the strength of our convictions with the will to realize them. If the notion of the responsibility to protect which we all agreed to last year, if the notion of the responsibility to protect the weakest and most powerless among us is ever to be more than an empty promise, then we must take action in Darfur. This is a profound test for the international community and we must show that we are equal to it," she added. The meeting, hosted by Denmark and the United States, was aimed specifically at winning support from Arab countries that have either been silent or backed Sudan's refusal to accept about 20,000 U.N. peacekeepers in Sudan. "It is the responsibility of each individual state to protect its own citizens," said Per Stig Moeller, Denmark's Minister of Foreign Affairs. "It is the responsibility of the international community to assist in exercising this responsibility and if necessary to act. What we would like to see today is a uniform message to the top decision-makers in Sudan: 'Work with us, not against us." One objective of the meeting was to get countries to make early commitments to the anticipated UN peacekeeping mission to the region. The United States and its allies have been unsuccessful so far in getting the Sudanese government to agree to a U.N. force in Darfur and invited allies of Sudan such as Egypt and Algeria to attend a meeting on Darfur. U.N. human rights monitors on Friday accused Sudan's army of bombing villages in North Darfur, killing and wounding civilians, and forcing hundreds of people to flee their homes. The rights monitors also reported that sexual violence, which has been a horrific feature of the conflict, continued in South Darfur, particularly near camps for internally displaced people near the town of Gereida.

ITN Source | September 23, 2006

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