Darfur: Death Comes from Neglect

For more than three years, this region of Sudan, as big as France, has racked up dismaying statistics: Tens of thousands have died, 1.8 million have been displaced into camps and towns in the west, north, and south of Darfur, and 200,000 have taken refuge to the east in Chad.

A More Complex Crisis Than It Might Seem

The international press has often characterized the war in Darfur as an "ethnic" conflict between black and Arabic populations, or even as a struggle against the marginalization of this region in western Sudan. Bérengère de Penanster, leader of Action Against Hunger's mission in Sudan, explains that in fact the situation is much more complex: “This conflict is the result of a series of conflicts that have taken place over the past 30 years, often linked to the question of land access for nomadic populations. The nomadic peoples lay claim to routes of migration and grazing land that sometimes encroach on the land of sedentary farmers, and visa versa. This is one of the causes of the conflict sparked in 2003.”

An Entrenched Humanitarian Crisis

Now that a peace process has been initiated by the signing of an accord in May (an accord that was signed only by some of the warring parties, the Sudanese government, and certain rebels), the crisis in Darfur seems to have become entrenched. Bérengère explains: "You could say that the humanitarian situation has stabilized, but only an a very fragile level. The need for access to water, food, nutrition, etc. for the displaced and for the populations that still remain in their towns are immense.”

Bérengère adds: "Darfur has been one of the greatest failures but also one of the greatest successes for humanitarians because despite everything we have succeeded in avoiding a tremendous disaster." Unfortunately, all the situation's observers fear that nothing will improve markedly in the coming months without a real change in the political and security situation.

The People Are Afraid

One chief current problem is continuing insecurity throughout the three regions of Darfur. The schism of one of the rebel factions following the recent peace accord—the SLA (Sudanese Liberation Army)—has led to violent conflict within the rebellion.

The first victims of this conflict and extortion remain civil populations. Those who are, for example, in the camps of displaced people at Abu Shok, Kalma, and Gereida, or in towns like Nyala—where Action Against Hunger’s teams are working—can’t return to their homes because they’re afraid: “They have absolutely no hope for the future as long as their security is not assured in their place of origin," Aude Staine explains. Staine is the head of a nutrition program in the Abu Shok camp that shelters close to 50,000 displaced persons near the city of El Fasher.

"The people would like to return home, they say so, they’re attached to their land, and life in a camp is very difficult. But they fear suffering again what they’ve lived through, the violence of a night raid and the flight afterwards," Bérengère says. What's more, the attacked towns were often partially destroyed, so returns must be planned, not improvised.

Treating Malnutrition, Providing Food

The first mission of Action Against Hunger in the areas where it intervenes is to treat acute malnutrition: to save lives. The organization’s programs take place in camps of displaced persons and the city of Nyala as well as in villages surrounding these population centers. In addition to therapeutic nutritional centers (where severely malnourished children are restored to health on a 30-day regimen), there are mobile and stationary programs for treatment of moderate malnutrition. In these locations, Action Against Hunger distributes nutritional products that are consumed at home.

These programs are complemented by a major effort to raise consciousness. As the assistant to the coordinator of medical and nutritional programs in Darfur, Céline Lessavre, explains: “In Darfur, malnutrition and hunger are slightly taboo. It’s necessary to raise the consciousness of the people so that mothers correctly follow the treatment given to their child. The idea is to get the message spread by communities, groups of women, religious leaders.”

At the same time, Action Against Hunger continues to distribute food to displaced populations. This has been ongoing for two years in the area of Shangil Tobay to the south of El Fasher, and began this past summer in the Gereida camp where Action Against Hunger recently set up a base and will provide for 100,000 people.

Giving Back Autonomy to the People

Simultaneously, Action Against Hunger is attempting to help the Sudanese become nutritionally self-sustaining. "In the villages that haven’t been deserted, in the regions of Nyala and El Fasher, our teams have begun distributing tools and seeds and set in place a program for the treatment of livestock in order to revive agriculture and give the remaining and returning population the means to start again," explains Bérengère.

An equal problem is the challenge of access to potable water in the camps and towns. "The problem is the depth you have to go to find water. Sometimes, as at Gereida, you have to dig down 200 meters. This type of drilling requires colossal technical means. Concerning water access, we hold the users of our wells accountable. We’ve put in place a system of payment for water, which is managed by the community. This permits the restoration or the strengthening of traditional community functions."

In fact, Action Against Hunger's teams try as fully as possible to restore the autonomy of populations. "We should help the people of Darfur find solutions for themselves. But all of this should be done while remaining ever vigilant against eventual emergencies such as the problems of malnutrition. The team's role is to 'oversee' the alimentary situation through regular nutritional surveys."

In the final analysis, if the military and social situations stabilize, the fear of numerous people on the ground is that this crisis will little by little become the victim of international indifference and that funds will begin to run out. And then, will humanitarian organizations--including Action Against Hunger—still be able to guarantee the survival of hundreds of thousands of people?