Darfur: "A humanitarian problem that will not go away quickly"
By Chris Herlinger* Church World Service
NYALA (West Darfur), Sudan -- The on-the-ground humanitarian situation in the conflict-ridden Darfur region of western Sudan has steadily deteriorate d in recent months, prompting increased anxiety by those affected by the ongoing crisis, as well as by those responding to the emergency, soon to enter its fifth year.
Representatives of Church World Service (churchworldservice.org) and several other U.S. and European church-based humanitarian agencies supporting the joint Action by Churches Together (ACT)-Caritas Darfur Emergency Response Operation (DERO) recently confirmed warnings made by the United Nations that Darfur is experiencing a fresh cycle of violence and increased insecurity. These trends are making it increasingly difficult for humanitarian agencies to adequately respond in Darfur.
From June until 21 August, the United Nations reported, 55,000 new persons had been displaced in the region -- bringing the total number of those uprooted this year to some 250,000. In all, the UN estimates, 2.2 million of Darfur's 6.4 million people have been displaced, and four million are now dependent on some form of humanitarian assistance.
Patched together, discussions with those recently displaced, with those who have been in established camps for some time, and with Sudanese and non-Sudanese humanitarian responders combine to produce an often unsettling snapshot of a region undergoing rapid and potentially troubling changes.
"We have a humanitarian problem that will not go away quickly," said John Distefano, ACT-Caritas Darfur Emergency Response Operation (DERO) director.
Among the worries are increasing armed clashes between and among armed groups representing differing tribal, ethnic and political groupings, which are prompting the new cycle of displacements; acts of banditry and ambushes that are making it increasingly difficult for humanitarian groups to access certain areas; and increased tensions within camps for the displaced, as those who have lived there for some time become increasingly politicized and anxious that the political situation within Darfur be settled.
Adding to anxiety within the camps are long-standing fears of attacks and rape by outside militias; idleness and boredom within the camps, particular ly by youths with little to do; questions about the critical issue of civilian "protection" and when -- and even if -- it will be safe for the displaced to return to their home villages.
Another dynamic at play: potentially unrealistic hopes that these problems will be quickly ameliorated by the presence of so-called "hybrid" United Nations and African Union forces that are expected to deploy by the beginning of next year if not sooner.
Despite general caution by humanitarian workers about the role of the UN forces, there is a desire that a comprehensive political settlement to Darfur's problems could engender much-needed "humanitarian space" for those who have borne the brunt of the conflict in Darfur -- civilians, and in the main, women and children.
Without such a comprehensive settlement, said one UN official, "there will continue to be an increase in the numbers of those displaced."
In recent months, their ranks have included Mariam, a 40-year-old mother and grandmother who has been living at one of the camps at the edge of Zalingei in West Darfur. The camp is among the sites where the CWS-supporte d DERO is working.
Speaking under a plastic tarp just as one of the all-too-common morning drizzles of Darfur's rainy season began, Mariam said she was displaced eight months ago by attacks in which husband and son-in-law were killed, forcing her to support a household of six children - five of her own and a grandchild.
She said she would not currently opt to return to her village 93 miles (150 kilometers) away, given continued insecurity in her home region, the free schooling her daughter is now receiving in the camp -- schooling in her village involved school fees that were difficult to pay -- and the need to eke out a living without a male bread-winner.
Mariam's dilemma is all-too common in Darfur, shedding a small glimpse on the ways the conflict has changed the "cosmos" of those displaced, particularly women who, often by necessity, are now challenging the one-time domain of men in local leadership roles.
"Things keep changing," ACT-Caritas' Katherine Ireri says of the fluid social and humanitarian situation in Darfur. As a field coordinator in Nyala, Ireri observes, "Next year we might be talking about something entirely different."
More about CWS response to the crisis in Sudan at http://churchworldservice .org/news/Sudan/
Chris Herlinger is a communication officer with the Emergency Response Program of Church World Service.
Media Contact: Lesley Crosson, CWS/New York, 212-870-2676; lcrosson@churchworldservice.org Jan Dragin, 781-925-1526; jdragin@gis.net