If we are to effectively urge our leaders to move beyond words and take concrete steps to address the crisis in Darfur, our advocacy message must be clear, concise and concrete. Now is the time for us to assume our responsibility to protect the people of Darfur and the region. Here's what we must do to fulfill it: 

International R2P

Peacekeepers and Security
• In August 2006, the United Nations (UN) Security Council passed resolution 1706, which authorized a peacekeeping force for Darfur with a mandate to protect civilians. However, the government in Khartoum has refused to allow its deployment and the underfunded peacekeeping force from the African Union (AU) has not been able to fulfill its mandate and provide adequate protection to innocent civilians and humanitarian aid workers. The government in Khartoum has agreed to a hybrid UN-AU peacekeeping force, but it has become increasingly clear that it has little or no intention to admit an effective international force involving UN troop deployment . The government in Khartoum must allow the immediate and effective deployment of the agreed-upon hybrid force throughout Darfur. The UN, working with the AU, must do all it can to encourage the government in Khartoum to fulfill its obligation to protect its own citizens by allowing the proposed deployment;

• The conflict in Darfur has been regionalized and now engulfs Chad and the Central African Republic.  The UN must deploy peacekeepers to eastern Chad and provide limited assistance to the Central African Republic;

• In March 2005, the UN Security Council approved a military no-fly zone over Darfur to prevent Sudanese military aircraft from indiscriminately bombing villages, but it has yet to be enforced. The UN must take immediate steps to ensure that a no-fly zone is enforced;

•International humanitarian assistance is a thin barrier to potential starvation and death of hundreds of thousands of Darfurians. However, aid workers have increasingly become targets for attack in Darfur and have had to withdraw from areas where large numbers of internally displaced people are continuously attacked by Khartoum-backed militias and left without adequate food, medicine, water and shelter. AU forces present in Darfur must be reinforced, expanded and given a mandate that includes protection of humanitarian workers.

Economic Sanctions
• The UN Security Council has approved economic sanctions against the Khartoum regime, but has yet to enforce them. These sanctions must be enforced and expanded if Khartoum fails to fulfill its obligations to end the genocide and protect its civilians.

Peace Process
• The Darfur Peace Agreement (DPA) signed in May of 2006 has   been largely ignored by the government in Khartoum and the one rebel group that endorsed it. On January 10, 2007, the government in Khartoum agreed to a 60-day ceasefire, but has failed to respect the conditions of this agreement. The UN must work with the AU, US and other actors to restart the peace process and make it more inclusive so that a lasting political solution to the conflict might be found.

National R2P

• The US has tremendous influence within the UN and international community. The US must take a leadership role in efforts to deploy peacekeepers and must remain directly involved in a peace process leading to a political solution favorable to all concerned;

• The US House of Representatives passed a $463.5 billion joint funding resolution, H.J. Res. 20, to fund the government through the end of FY 2007.  H.J. Res. 20 includes $50 million in the Peacekeeping Operations (PKO) account to support peacekeeping operations in Sudan. This funding can be used to provide a crucial boost to the AU peacekeepers in Sudan as implementation of the three-phased plan to transition to a UN-AU hybrid peacekeeping mission continues. The US Congress and the Bush administration must work together to ensure that peacekeeping and humanitarian efforts in Darfur have the necessary funding.

Campus R2P

• As individuals and campus communities, we have the responsibility to unite our voices and let our leaders know that failure to take the steps outlined above to secure peace in Darfur is not acceptable. Welcome to Darfur Week !

• We must ensure that our educational institutions are not inadvertently supporting the genocide in Darfur by investing in companies who do business with the government in Khartoum. We must urge our schools to agree to a targeted divestment from companies who invest in Sudan or do business with the government in Khartoum and therefore help it perpetuate genocide in Darfur;

• We must also urge our local communities to voice their concern about the crisis in Darfur by approving a proclamation or resolution condemning the genocide in Darfur and calling on the United States to take action.

(information in International R2P and National R2P section is adapted from Save Darfur Coalition's Darfur Backgrounder and Policy Talking Points, released January 22, 2007 www.savedarfur.org AND from the Jewish Council for Public Affair's Darfur Report, released on February 2, 2007 www.jewishpublicaffairs.org )

Download the Darfur Week Take Action Packet to find more information about petitions, letters and other ways to urge our leaders and communities to fulfill their R2P in Darfur!