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Sudan

Field Reports  In-Depth Reports  Letters & Testimonies


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Overview
The signing of the Comprehensive Peace Agreement (CPA) in January 2005 brought an end to the 21-year civil war between north and south Sudan. Over two million refugees and internally displaced people (IDPs) have returned to the south, but basic infrastructure and services remain poor. Conflict began escalating again in the south in 2009, causing a rising death toll. In Darfur, the peace process remains stalled, humanitarian access remains restricted, and the peacekeeping presence remains limited.

Current Humanitarian Situation in South Sudan
About 2 million of more than 4 million people displaced by the north-south conflict have returned home. However, the scale of need in south Sudan is immense, and communities will remain vulnerable to a new humanitarian crisis and outbreaks of conflict if gaps in basic services and professional policing go unaddressed. Returning Sudanese, as well as recipient communities, must gain greater access to water, medical assistance, education, and sustainable livelihoods. Local women’s groups must be assisted to enable their participation in the reintegration of returnees.

Current Humanitarian Situation in Darfur
Civilian protection in Darfur remains a serious concern. More than 2.6 million internally displaced people are in Darfur and over 250,000 are living in refugee camps in Chad. Insecurity continues and many displaced people are still not able to return home. The UN peacekeeping mission, UNAMID, lacks adequate resources and troops, and humanitarian workers are unable to access the most vulnerable due to insecurity and to government impediments. Refugees International is particularly concerned about sexual violence against women in Darfur and about the difficulties faced by civil society organizations who try to assist survivors.

Action Needed

  • The US must support the full implementation of the CPA and the resumption of a Darfur peace process.
  • The Government of Southern Sudan must make community recovery and return assistance a much higher priority while donor governments should provide funding to improve basic services, access to livelihoods, and provide professional policing.
  • The international community must ensure that peacekeeping forces are fully deployed and equipped, and focused on civilian protection, particularly for women.
  • The international community must insist on humanitarian access to people in need of assistance, and on protection for local human rights defenders.
Field Reports
  • South Sudan: Urgent Action Needed To Avert Collapse
    03/26/2009

    International engagement is urgently needed to rescue south Sudan from the brink of an unfolding crisis. The perilous situation is being ignored amid the focus on the indictment of President Al-Bashir by the International Criminal Court.

  • Sudan: UNMIS Must be More Proactive in Protecting Civilians
    01/07/2009
    Sudan is entering a volatile period in the implementation of the Comprehensive Peace Agreement. The risk of violent outbreaks is acute. The UN Mission in Sudan (UNMIS) was deployed with a mandate to observe and monitor CPA implementation, and is therefore both ill-equipped and ill-disposed to engage in civilian protection efforts.
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In Depth Reports
  • Last Line of Defense: How Peacekeepers Can Better Protect Civilians
    02/24/2010

    When violent conflict breaks out, the United States and other United Nations member states often call for the deployment of UN peacekeeping forces to create stability and protect people from harm. The UN Security Council has explicitly instructed peacekeepers to protect civilians under “imminent threat of violence” in most UN peacekeeping mandates since 1999. But there is no clarity as to what “protection” means in practice. Which circumstances require action and what level of force should be used? This has resulted in a lack of proper training, guidance and resources for peacekeepers to accomplish protection activities.
  • Ending Sexual Violence in Darfur: An Advocacy Agenda
    12/03/2007

    Sexual violence defines the conflict in Darfur, but international efforts to prevent and respond to the issue have been insufficient. While this report critiques the international response, the primary obstacles to preventing rape and assisting survivors are the perpetrators and the Sudanese government officials who actively block the work of international agencies.

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Advocacy Letters
Congressional Testimony
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Successes

In 2009, Congress appropriated $296 million to Sudan and directed the State Department to prioritize funding for projects in south Sudan in support of the Comprehensive Peace Agreement.