Wednesday, February 13, 2008

Chad and the Darfuri Refugees: a complex scenario

Will Chad uphold its international legal obligations not to expel the rising numbers of Darfuri refugees crossing the border into Chad, whilst internal conflict between armed rebels and presidential troops threatens its very stability?

Sudan has accused Chad of using refugees from Darfur as bargaining chips in the growing dispute between the two countries.

In an effort to stabilise its border with Darfur, Chad's President Idriss Deby has appealed to the European Union to deploy a military force (EUFOR) along the border: the force of almost 4,000 troops expects to be operational by the end of the month.

It has a UN mandate to protect civilians and refugees from violence in the Darfur region of Sudan, and to provide security for humanitarian agencies.

An opposition leader from Chad interviewed this morning on the BBC World News said that while they do not oppose the presence of the EU force on the ground, they would opt for an internal diplomatic solution first centred on dialogue, a mediation which the opposition is allegedly keen and able to offer.

Further articles can be found at http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/africa/7241390.stm

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/africa/7239287.stm

2 comments:

Anonymous said...
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William said...

Troubling times Serena. Did you see the note about Gordon Brown hosting a Darfur conference? Will put up a post about it. Where are you at the moment?