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 North-South Agreement Within Grasp in Sudan, Crocker Says
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North-South Agreement Within Grasp in Sudan, Crocker Says
Former assistant secretary speaks at Georgetown University conference
By Emily Harter
US State Department
26 October 2004
Washington -- A North-South peace agreement in Sudan is now "within our grasp" as a result of U.S.-facilitated peace talks in Kenya, former U.S. Assistant Secretary of State for African Affairs Chester Crocker told faculty and students at Georgetown University October 21.
Speaking at the conference "Sudan in Crisis: Conflict and Possibilities for Resolution," sponsored by the university's Center for Contemporary Arab Studies and the African Studies Department, Crocker cited landmark compromises made between Sudanese Vice President Ali Osman Taha and the Sudan People's Liberation Movement (SPLM) leader John Garang as key steps to a final agreement being worked on in Naivasha, Kenya.
Crocker explained that the peace talks, begun in July 2002, have hammered out a series of protocols on power-sharing, revenue allocation, security (a unified army), and transitional arrangements between the government of Sudan and the SPLM.
Both parties have since agreed to six of the protocols in the Naivasha Accords, but work continues on two annexes of the framework agreement having to do with cease-fire and security arrangements.
Based on his close observations of recent meetings as these details were being worked out, the former State Department official said: "Most of the pieces are in place for a North-South deal. It is ready for the two key leaders to sign."
However, Crocker warned, if either leader chose not sign the paper, a great deal could be put at risk. "They may lose their best chance in a long, long time," he said.
In the case of the Khartoum government, if they made "the mistake of walking away from the North-South process that they have done a good deal to shape, I think they could be history," he said.
The United States has played a major role in the peace talks, Crocker said, helping to facilitate the process. "The current administration of George W. Bush is probably the most focused of any administration in American history on getting peace to come to Sudan," he declared.
Although past administrations have focused mainly on terrorism or on the regional dynamics of Sudan, he said, the current administration has also paid a great deal of attention to humanitarian concerns, with the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) providing more than $300 million in assistance to Darfur, as well as funding other food and medical aid in the South.
The thrust of U.S. policy toward Sudan is basically dedicated to bringing long-term changes to the region, Crocker emphasized. This means that on top of contributing refugee assistance and logistical backing, U.S. policy must focus on "giving the South a chance [as well as] giving the Sudan a chance to survive as a single entity."
Crocker also gave credit to various nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) for lobbying policymakers to take action in Africa's largest country. "Activists from the humanitarian community -- among African-Americans, from the church communities -- have all come together on a single page and have said this should stop," he said.
The 20-year-long civil war in Sudan has resulted in more than 2 million deaths and the creation of millions of refugees. Currently in Darfur a genocidal campaign waged by Arab militias has been responsible for the displacement of a further 1 million refugees and the deaths of 70,000 people as the result of disease and malnutrition, according to the United Nations.
Crocker told his audience that other important issues in the crisis, such as regional stability and the war on terror, are of concern to the United States. Sudan's physical and political proximity to the Middle East, he said, makes it an important "bridge between the Arab world and Africa."
Peace in Sudan also has powerful implications for Egypt, a strategic partner of the United States, he said. The Nile Valley, so critical to the Egyptian economy, is located downstream from Sudan, putting this crucial waterway in a vulnerable position at times of crisis.
As a failed state, Sudan could also be very detrimental to the current fight against terrorism as "we saw happened in Afghanistan. Terrorists have made the acquaintance of Sudan for some decades," he reminded the audience, alluding to a period in the 1990s when Osama bin Laden lived in the country.
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