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Take Action to End “genocide” in Darfur, Sudan: Christian Leaders to AU, IGAD

Flag of Sudan on soldier's arm. Credit: Bumble Dee/Shutterstock

By Magdalene Kahiu

Darfur, 30 June, 2023 / 9:45 pm (ACI Africa).

Various associations of Christian leaders in Africa and their global partners are calling on the African Union (AU) and the Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD) to act immediately and stop the “genocide” in Sudan’s Darfur region. 

In a statement shared with ACI Africa Friday, June 30, members of the Association Member Episcopal Conferences of Eastern Africa (AMECEA), the Fellowship of Christian Councils and Churches in the Great Lakes and Horn of Africa (FECCLAHA), All Africa Conference of Churches (AACC), ACT Church of Sweden (CoS), Bread for the World (BfW), and the World Council of Churches (WCC) say they are “deeply concerned” about reports from Darfur.

The Rapid Support Forces (RSF) has been accused of waging war in the Darfur region, alongside the ongoing conflict with the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF), the latter having started on April 15. 

On June 15, the United Nations (UN) Emergency Relief Coordinator, Martin Griffiths, warned about increasing inter-communal violence that is likely to reignite the “deadly violence” that took place in the Darfur region 20 years ago. 

In the four-page document that was issued June 24, the representatives of the various bodies say, “We, members of the different ecumenical organizations based in Africa and international partners … having participated in a virtual meeting on 25 May 2023 … strongly condemn all forms and acts of violence by all parties, because such acts are against the fullness of life of God’s people.”

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“Take immediate action to stop repetition of genocide in Darfur and other war crimes and crimes against humanity,” they further say. 

The members add that they are “deeply concerned” that the war between the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) led by General Abdel Fattah Abdelrahman, and the General Mohammed Hamdan Daglo-led RAF “seems to have no immediate prospect of ending.”

They call on the AU and IGAD to work with African governments “to fast track the peace process and push for a return to democratic civilian rule.”

IGAD and the AU need to “apply all the existing mechanisms for peace interventions to facilitate constructive intra-Sudanese engagements for the purpose of finding local solutions,” they say in the statement that was co-signed by representatives of AMECEA, AACC, FECCLAHA, and WCC.

The ecumenical representatives say that officials of the regional bodies need “to define and apply appropriate diplomatic pressure including selected sanctions and membership suspension of Sudan.”

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They also urge the Sudanese people “to stand up and collectively and peacefully demand sustainable solutions to end the current violence.”

Nearly 2.5 million people have been displaced by the ongoing violence with at least 550,000 Sudanese crossing into neighboring countries according to the International Organization for Migration (IOM).

IOM further says that at least half of the Sudanese population needs humanitarian aid and protection. 

In their collective statement shared with ACI Africa, the Christian leaders call on “Sudanese citizens … (to) continuously extend the hand of mercy and love to all, and especially to those who have gravely suffered the consequences of violence, irrespective of their social, ethnic, religious and political identity and affiliation.”

They also ask Sudan's neighbors "to facilitate unrestricted movement of and support to the refugees."

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Magdalene Kahiu

Magdalene Kahiu is a Kenyan journalist with passion in Church communication. She holds a Degree in Social Communications from the Catholic University of Eastern Africa (CUEA). Currently, she works as a journalist for ACI Africa.

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