Narration: Sudan is a country in Africa. Daily life in Sudan is hard. There is almost no water and people have to fight to survive. There are regular dust storms and the country is very poor. The poorest of all parts is Darfur. It is home to what is considered the world’s most severe humanitarian crisis. A militia called the Janjaweed are fighting local rebels. They are committing mass genocide against the black Christian Africans in Darfur.
Opening: Title: The Janjaweed (play music found by partner)
Narration on Janjaweed:
The name Janjaweed comes from Arabic. The most common translation in English is ‘Devils on Horseback’. The Janjaweed used to be nomadic tribes. In the past the Janjaweed used to be nomadic tribes. They weren’t aggressive, and were only involved in skirmishes with the non-nomadic population of Darfur. These skirmishes grew in number as the amount of water and rainfall dwindled and as there no longer was enough space to provide for both natural grazing grounds for the nomads and for farmland for the villagers. But even though these skirmishes grew a bit in number, they were nothing compared to what the Janjaweed are doing now.
Nowadays the Janjaweed are armed militiamen in Darfur. They consist primarily out of Arab tribes. They have become more and more aggressive and their small skirmishes have turned into mass killing. They started attacking after the 2003 revolution.
This revolution, started by the Sudan Liberation Movement (original name: Darfur Liberation Front) and the Justice and Equality Movement, has as goal to improve the living conditions for the non-Arabic and poor people of Sudan and primarily Darfur.
During the war against the rebels the Janjaweed have made a reputation of being brutal, cruel, and fearsome. During the war they have committed dozens of crimes and violations to the Human Rights. These include burning villages, raping woman and committing mass genocide against the non-Arabic people of Darfur, killing entire villages at a time.
Because of these atrocities, since the war started 2 million people have been forced to relocate inside Sudan and thousands of villages have been destroyed or severely damaged. Burned and sometimes still smoking villages are a common sight in Darfur. (Google Earth and video clip footage)
The war has even gone over the border into Chad. Currently there are over 250,000 Darfur refugees in UN refugee camps in Chad. The Janjaweed don’t stop at the border either. They regularly cross the border to attack to destroy refugee camps and villages in Chad, displacing over 170,000 Chadians. The UN has stationed a small protection force on the border between Chad and Sudan, but this force is way too small to protect all camps.
The Janjaweed also recruit child soldiers. These kids usually come from Sudanese refugee camps. They are not the only ones. The Sudan People’s Liberation Army (SPLA) and the other rebel groups have also recruited child soldiers, however, the SPLA has acknowledged the fact and has made efforts to stop the recruitment/deployment of child soldiers.
That the Janjaweed commit mass genocide is one thing. The fact that they are ordered to do all this by the Sudanese government. The government provides the weapons, gives the orders and acts innocent. They support the Janjaweed, using them against the rebellion. They support the militia by providing weapons, safe training camps and other utilities. Their support sometimes goes as far as delivering direct air support for the militia. (show BBC interviews with the Janjaweed defector). After this fact came to light, the UN has put a trade embargo on Sudan. However, China is known to have broken this embargo, shipping weapons, ammunition and even jet fighters to Sudan. The UN and the Human Rights Watch have confirmed both of these facts.
(APC footage) The UN and the UN Security Council have made several attempts at getting the Sudanese government to stop supporting and start disarming the militia. These attempts have been to no avail. The Sudanese government is effectively frustrating the UN by not cooperating and counteracting the measurements taken. The government still denies any link to the militia, but continues to provide the UN forces with difficulties and excuses. The conflict has reached a stalemate, as in that the UN can't do anything and Sudan doesn't want to do anything. The UN has stationed a small peacekeeping force on the border with Chad, but the force is way too small to protect all camps. The fighting will continue with no end in sight. The Red Cross (flash to compound footage) and other humanitarian aid organizations try to help the victims of the violence, but this is made difficult, as danger risk is just too high.
Conclusion:
Sudan is a very troubled country, and one in need of a great deal of help as well. Humanitarian aid is being refused and millions are dying. The UN has tried a lot to help. Sadly, most of their attempts have failed and the Janjaweed will continue to kill people for as long as the government orders them to.
