Armed groups, the 'Sudan Liberation Army' (SLA) and 'Justice and Equality Movement' (JEM), began the war. Reasons are cited as lack of economic development which demands a greater share of country’s resources and exclusion from the political administration of Khartoum. Attacks on towns, government establishments and civilians in Darfur resulted in the deaths of hundreds of policemen and civilians and the breakdown of law and order in Darfur. An area where inhabitants depend on natural resources the severe impact of the continuing climatic changes and droughts on accessibility to land and water has a detrimental effect on the livelihood in Darfur as well as the rest of Sudan.

1. Conflict in
Sudan - Darfur
By Arundathie Abeysinghe
Lecturer
International Aviation Academy
SriLankan Airlines

2. Introduction
• Armed groups, the 'Sudan Liberation Army' (SLA)
and 'Justice and Equality Movement' (JEM), began
the war
• Reasons are cited as lack of economic development
which demands a greater share of country’s
resources and exclusion from the political
administration of Khartoum

3. Introduction….
• Attacks on towns, government establishments and
civilians in Darfur resulted in the deaths of hundreds of
policemen and civilians and the breakdown of law and
order in Darfur
• An area where inhabitants depend on natural resources
the severe impact of the continuing climatic changes
and droughts on accessibility to land and water has a
detrimental effect on the livelihood in Darfur as well as
the rest of Sudan

4. Introduction….
• First, colonizers drew the boundaries of present-day
Sudan without heed to the different religious and ethnic
groups that already inhabited the territory, which was
under joint Anglo-Egyptian control until 1956
• This set the stage for showdowns between the north,
populated predominantly by Arab Muslims, and the
south, populated largely by animists and Christians of
African origin

5. Introduction….
• The regime of President Omar al- Bashir who came
to power after a military coup in 1989 promotes
Islamist and Arab-centric policies adding an ethnic
element to his administration
• Decision making power is centralized with the GOS

6. Introduction….
• Regional governance has low capacity due to
centralization of political power in Khartoum
• Dividing of Darfur into 3 states by the GOS has
severely weakened the political power in Darfur
• Darfur has been re-districted by GOS and appointed
their own governors thereby increasing the influence
over the region

8. Conflict Analysis Model
Context
C.R. - SIPABIO
Sources
Parties
Issues
Relationship
Power
Bond
Patterns
Outcomes
Intervention
Behaviors
Attitudes /Feelings

9. •
Socio –economic/political setting
•2-3% rate in population increase
• Widespread poverty and underdevelopment
• Most of the economic growth from increased petroleum
exports
•Economic growth concentrated in the states surrounding
Khartoum and revenue of the oil industry remaining with
central government thus depriving people of development
and alternative employment

10. Socio –economic & political ….
• Main professions are agriculture and pastoral
activities resulting in competition for land in Darfur
which is 7% of Sudan
• There are around 80 tribes and ethnic groups
predominantly Muslims, divided between nomadic
and sedentary communities in Darfur

11. Socio –economic & political ….
• African agriculturalists consisting of Fur (dominant
tribe), Masaalit, Tama,Tunjur etc. while pastoralists
mainly includes tribes of Arab descent
• Over decades of civil wars have resulted in approx. 5
million internally displaced persons or international
refugees ranking Sudan first in the world for
displaced persons

12. Primary
Parties to the conflict
• The Government of Sudan – GOS
•Government security forces
•GOS sponsored Black, nomadic , Arab speaking proxy
militia group “Janjaweed” formed to subdue the
rebellion
•The Sudan Liberation Army (SLA) headed by Minni
Minawai
•Justice and Equality Movement (JEM)

13. Parties to the conflict…
Secondary
• Internally displaced persons in Darfur,
refugees & civilians
• Opposition Parties, Arab Tribes

14. Parties to the conflict…
Tertiary
•
•
•
•
UN
African Union (AU)
USA
Donors & other international organizations

17. Culture
• Many of the racist attitudes, traditionally directed toward
slaves have been redirected to the sedentary non-Arab
racist ideology
• This ideology plays an important part of the genocide, the
sharp distinctions between Arabs and Africans in the
racially mixed Darfur region had not been drawn until the
ideology of pan-Arabism that came out of Libya made
itself felt

18. Culture….
• They foisted a racial label on a farming people
whose way of life they simultaneously disdained and
felt threatened by
• Blacks in Sudan are seen as inferior to the Arabs, the
racism, racial sentiments against non-Arabs have
been used & manipulated by the central government

19. Geography
• Darfur is located in the western region of Sudan
bordering Libya from northwest and Chad on the
west and is susceptible to political events in Chad
•Inhabitants are heavily dependent on natural
resource base and access to land and water are
crucial for sustainable livelihoods
•Majority live on agriculture, farming or pastoralist

20. Geography….
• Continuous climatic change resulting in severe
droughts has remained a backburner issue
• In 2007 UN Secretary General Ban ki Moon released
an editorial in the Washington Post mentions that
the ‘’ Darfur conflict began as an ecological crisis’’

21. Geography….
• 20 year Sahelian drought resulted in increased
desertification and decrease rainfall in northern
and central Darfur declining the availability of
fresh water , deteriorating farmland and grazing
areas
• Discovery of oil in Darfur in 2005 increased land
grabbing and village burning by Janjaweeds

22. Gender
• Rape is a common weapon used in Darfur, an
unknown number of women and girls have been
abducted, raped, and abused
• In Darfur sexual violence is being broadly used as a
systematic weapon of war against girls and women
• 82% of women were raped while pursuing their
normal daily activities and 4% of women reported
that the rape occurred while fleeing their home
village

23. Gender….
• Rape is typically accompanied by further violence:
28% of the victims testified that they were raped
numerous times, by either single or multiple
perpetrators 50% of the victims reported being
beaten with sticks, whips, or axes, or inflicted with
other physical violence

24. Gender….
• Women who become pregnant after being raped are
often treated as criminals and are often subjected to
brutal treatment by police
• Rape in Darfur is considered to be genocidal due to
the racial nature of the sexual attacks to impregnate
women to produce Arabic children

25. Issues
• Racism is at the root of Sudan's Darfur crisis
• "Arab militia is the racist, fundamentalist and
undemocratic Sudanese state those who call
themselves Arabs point to Arab ancestors who arrived
as traders both before and after the arrival of Islam and
gradually converted local Sudanese to the Islamic faith
• Devastated by the drought of early 80s
• - Christian Science Monitor

26. Issues….
• Affected by the spillover of wars between Chad &
Libya
• Neglect of the region by the desponded central
government
• Conflicting land management policies of GOS
resulted in land grabbing, marginalization, favoritism
for politically connected, becoming the norm

27. ABC Triangle – Rebel Groups
Behaviour
• Attack s against government forces
•bombing, killing, destruction, looting
•Refusal to sign peace accords
Needs
• Recognition & political
autonomy
•Development & economic
stability
•Wealth sharing
•Security
Attitudes
•Hatred
•Mistrust
•Anger
•Frustration
•Insecurity
Context
•Geopolitical struggle
between Chad,libiya & sudan
•Economic marginalization
•restriction on resources &
movement
•drought
•Ethnic discriminations
•Forced conversions
•Forced displacement
•Ethnic polarization

28. ABC Triangle – Government of Sudan
Behaviour
• Suppression on rebels using force
•Ethnic mobilization & extensive use of proxy militias
called “Janajweeds” for mass killings in tribal villages
•Genocide, mass rape
•Manipulation of ethnic & tribal animosities
•Destruction of economic livelihood, forced relocations
Needs
• Political stability
•Security/ Survival
•Divide & rule
•Centralized control of
political power &
economic resources
Attitudes
•Mistrust
•Anger
•Insecurity
•Use of force as the solution
Context
•Terrorist attacks & restriction on
movement
• Ethnic polarization
•Arab bureaucracy over non
Arabs

29. 2003 - Crisis
Stages of Conflict
Escalation of Conflict
Janjaweed attacks
Attacks by SLA /JEM
DPA
2009 -Capture of Darfur
by Sudan Army
Confrontation
2002
2003
2004
2005
2006
2007
2008
2009
2010

30. Darfur Rebel Groups
Time Line
Sudan Liberation Army (SLA) & Justice & Equality
Movement attack several towns
•Violence by rebels continues
•United States describes atrocities being committed in
Darfur as "genocide”
•Fighting between govt troops and rebels continue and
UN Secretary General reports on 1.6 Million displaced
and 200,000 refugees in Chad. Report asserts on
widespread war crimes and crimes against humanity by
the GOS and Janjaweeds
•
•The two key rebel groups refuse to sign the Darfur Peace
Agreement
•Violence spreads to Chad
•Widespread violence and insecurity persists in the
conflict region
•Ten members of the African Union force are killed in one
of the deadliest attacks to date.
•Islamist Darfur rebel JEM kidnaps two expatriate workers
from a strategic Darfur oilfield four days before the
October 27 Sirte talks
Government of Sudan
2003
2004
•Government of Sudan (GOS) sends troops and pro-government
militia known as Janjaweeds to counter
•UN seeks urgent AID to refugees crossing to Chad
•Govt. of Sudan signs a ceasefire agreement in April
•African Force send the first troop of protection force in August
but Janjaweed attacks continue
2005
•Khartoum administration seeking to head off international
action, sets up its own tribunal when UN security council says
that persons committing crimes in Darfur could be sent to ICC
2006
•Signing of the Darfur Peace Agreement DPA between GOS and
main faction of the Sudanese Liberation Movement
•Sudan President rejects the deployment of UN peacekeeping
forces but compromise for a joint UN-African Union
peacekeeping mission -UNAMID
2007
• Khartoum refuses the issue of International Criminal Court s
first arrest warrants over Darfur, for a Sudanese minister and a
Janjaweed militia leader.
•UN and the African Union prepare to open new peace talks in
Sirte, Libya

31. Time Line – contd…
Darfur Rebel Groups
•In May Darfur rebels attack the capital of Khartoum and
the Un reports a death toll of 300,000 and 2.6 million fled
their homes in the 5 years
•JEM rejects Bashir’s ceasefire
•Qatar holds peace talks between GOS and JEM after 2
years
•JEM the main Darfur rebel movement signs a peace
accord with GOS in Feb- March prompting President
Bashir to declare the Darfur war over
2008
2009
2010
Government of Sudan
•GOS continues indiscriminate areal and ground attacks
•In the light of a possible warrant by ICC to arrest President
Bashir, he pledges cooperation with UNAMID and announces
a ceasefire in the region
•GOS sends more troops to Darfur as a preventive measure
Sudan Army declares a capture of a town in Darfur after a 3 week
clash with the JEM rebels
ICC issues the final decision on the arrest warrant against
President Bashir
•President Bashir says he would accept referendum results even
if south opted for independence
•ICC issues second arrest warrant on President Bashir for charges
of genocide.

32. Conflict Mapping
UN –UNHCR,
UNICEF,UNDAC
UNSC
WFP
WHO
ICC
China
GOS
Demand for political
representation and
greater share of
National wealth
AU
SLA &
JEM
Chad – West
Chad – West
Libya – North
Libya – North
West
West
Janjaweeds

33. Rebels
Grievance over economic &
Grievance over economic &
political marginalization
political marginalization
The Onion
Positions
Positions
Interests
Interests
GOS
Rebels should be
Rebels should be
suppressed for violating
suppressed for violating
agreements with the GOS
agreements with the GOS
Needs
Needs
Inclusion in Khartoum
Inclusion in Khartoum
political admin. & greater
political admin. & greater
share of resources
share of resources
Security, Land, Shelter ,,
Security, Land, Shelter
livelihoods
livelihoods
Greater power & centralized
Greater power & centralized
control over politics &
control over politics &
resources
resources
Good Administrative system
& clear control over
resources

34. Conflict Tree
Violence
Mistrust
Ethnic conflicts
Increased
population
Political marginalization
Lack of livelihood
k
Violation of human rights
- genocide
Land grabbing
Mass disruption to
natural resources
Rape
Starvation
Despotic & centralized political system Government & denial of
access to natural resources
Drought
Inequitable access to
natural resources
Ethnic divisions
Unequal resource
distribution

35. The Conflict at a glance
People who have dies as a direct results of the conflict
Over 300,000
People displace from Darfur
Over 2 million
People displaced from Darfur to Chad
260,000
Displaced Chadians
160,000
People displace from Central African Republic
155,000

36. Present situation
• Omar al-Bashir will not face trial in the Hague till
he is apprehended in a country accepting the
International Criminal Court's jurisdiction
• Sudan is not a state party to the Rome Statute
(signed but didn't ratify)

37. Present situation….
• “He may not go to trial but he will effectively be
in prison within the Sudan itself” - Payam
Akhavan, Professor of International Law at McGill
University in Montreal and a former War Crimes
Prosecutor
• Al-Bashir cannot leave Sudan without facing
arrest if he enters international airspace

38. Present situation….
• The Sudanese Government has announced the
Presidential plane will be accompanied by jet
fighters
• Arab League has announced its solidarity with alBashir
• Since the warrant, he has visited Qatar and Egypt
• Both countries have refused to arrest him

39. Conclusion
• State bureaucracy of Sudan which led to
consolidation of power and government while
repressing the social movements in the south
primarily led to the Darfur conflict
•Ethnic and tribal animosities have been manipulated
and promoted by GOS to maintain their power base
intact and to eliminate competing elements

40. Conclusion….
• Due to the complexity of the conflict maintaining the
peace initiatives into the future remains a tough
challenge
• A wider span of stake holders must be included in the
process towards peace
• Land - a prime cause of the conflict, special emphasis to
issues relating to environmental change impact over
desertification, water access and drought