Sudanese President (and wanted war criminal) Omer al-Bashir’s days are numbered, but recent stories of his arrival in Saudi Arabia for a pilgrimage to Mecca caused me to grimace. It is appalling—and incredibly frustrating—that President Bashir continues to flout international law and flaunt his status as a head of state who can ignore the International Criminal Court arrest warrant hanging over his head.
Although the humanitarian situation in Darfur is deteriorating quickly thanks to President Bashir’s expulsion of the humanitarian organizations providing lifesaving assistance to millions of displaced Darfuris, the situation is not hopeless.
Why? Because President Obama has sent his special envoy to Sudan, Major General Scott Gration, to the country to begin a full-court diplomatic press on Khartoum to get aid restored to Darfur and to begin to build a framework for peace in Sudan. Gration will be doing a great deal of quiet diplomacy with the Arab world and with key players on Sudan such as China. The road will be long, and no one is saying it will be easy. But it’s important to know that President Bashir’s days are numbered. Because of the hard work of activists throughout this country, the Obama administration is taking the Sudan issue very seriously. Now more than ever, your sustained pressure is needed, so that our leaders will continue to take a hard line with Khartoum and encourage our allies to do the same.
Stay tuned, as Enough is working right now with our partners in the movement to develop new tactics to keep the pressure on. We’re not letting up, and we’ll keep working with you to make your voices heard at the highest levels of our government. Contact us at info (at) enoughproject.org with your questions and ideas. Thank you for all that you are doing.