Stop the Bombardment of Innocent Civilians in Darfur, Nuba Mountains/South Kordofan and Blue Nile

“We must always take sides. Neutrality helps the oppressor, never the victim. Silence encourages the tormentor, never the tormented.” (Elie Wiesel)
8 September 2014
Expressing our alarm and concern with the ongoing bombardment, loss of innocent lives and destruction of properties and livelihood in Darfur, and Nuba Mountains/South Kordofan and Blue Nile, where the government of Sudan has dropped over 3,000 bombs since April 2012,
Offering our deepest sympathies to those who lost their lives, those displaced and the millions of people in need of humanitarian assistance,
Remembering that the Sudanese government has a history of genocide in the Darfur region,
We concerned Sudanese and international civil society organizations working for Sudan, hereby issue the following statement:
The Government of Sudan is continuously committing major atrocities in avoidable wars in Nuba Mountains/South Kordofan, Blue Nile and Darfur. These conflicts have now affected over six million people. The violence that the government is inflicting on the people of Nuba Mountains/South Kordofan, Blue Nile and Darfur will undermine any serious attempt for genuine national reconciliation and threaten the unity of Sudan. The government has primary responsibility for the well-being of its citizens and any violence conducted by rebel/opposition forces is in no way comparable in scale or design.
According to UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (UNOCHA), 2.6 million people either are refugees or internally displaced because of the ongoing violence.
We the undersigned civil society organizations call upon all Sudanese citizens, and national regional and international actors to put pressure on the government of Sudan to:
1. Stop the indiscriminate aerial bombardment in Nuba Mountains/South Kordofan, Blue Nile and the Darfur regions.
2. Protect civilians, and respect international human rights and humanitarian law in particular the principles of proportionality and distinction between military and civilian targets. Remove all restrictions on humanitarian access and allow immediate delivery of humanitarian relief to the people trapped by war in Nuba Mountains/South Kordofan and Blue Nile
3. Allow an international independent investigation into the commission of war crimes and crimes against humanity, including the systematic bombing of civilians, in Nuba Mountains/South Kordofan and Blue Nile.
4. Encourage the promotion of truth, justice and reconciliation. If Sudan is to come to terms with its violent past, space must be provided for an independent and inclusive process of truth, justice and reconciliation.
5. Put an immediate end to the recruitment of children and others along tribal lines for induction in militias and paramilitary forces, such as the Rapid Support Forces.
We are committed to stand together against these atrocities and call upon organisations and institutions, national, regional and international, governmental and non-governmental, and individuals to join us.
For more information, please visit SDFG’s website here.
SIGNED:
African Centre for Justice Peace and Studies (ACJPS)
Blue Nile Centre for Human Rights and Peace (BNC)
Darfur Bar Association
Darfur Refugee Association in Uganda (DRAU)
Funj Youth Development Association (FYDA)
Human Rights and Development Organization (HUDO)
Human Rights Court South Kordofan and Blue Nile
International Refugee Rights Initiative (IRRI)
Nuba Mountain Association in Uganda
Sudan Consortium
Sudan Democracy First Group (SDFG)
Sudan Relief and Rehabilitation Agency (SRRA)