Suffering in Sudan brings calls for action

by Elaine Durbach


One question simmered at the center of the conference on Darfur at Kean University in Union last Friday, Feb. 15: Of all the tragic situations calling out for international intervention, why keep focusing on this one seemingly hopeless conflict?

That question was asked by each member of the roster of distinguished speakers at the Wilkins Theatre. It was repeated by many in the audience of almost 1,000 teachers and high school and college students from around the state and by political and community leaders from New Jersey and beyond who gathered for the conference — Darfur: The First Genocide of the 21st Century — hosted by the university’s Center for Human Rights.

Pulitzer Prize-winning New York Times writer Nicolas Kristoff, the keynote speaker, gave the answer in three parts:

• Though elsewhere there have been larger numbers of victims, the cruelty inflicted on the people in the southwestern region of Sudan is extreme.

• The entire region is in danger of descending into warfare, sucking in not only northern and southern Sudan, but also Chad and the Central African Republic.

• Despite all the failed attempts, the aggression in Darfur can be halted if the right pressure is brought to bear on those supporting it.

Kristoff was returning to Africa the following day, planning to visit Darfur for the 10th time. “It’s not the magnitude of the suffering,” he said. “Many more people die each year of malaria and AIDS. I’ve seen awful things in other places, but nothing moves me more than being in Darfur — the degree of suffering there and the degree of evil. The tearing of the moral fabric there demands of us that we assert our humanity by helping others.”

With the Olympics Games drawing nearer, he said there is a rare chance to persuade host country China to reduce its crucial support for the Sudanese government — specifically by halting the supply of spare parts needed to keep its air force flying. Read more >>>>>>>>>