Violence, famine and disease combine in the Darfur region of Sudan

resulting in over an estimated four-hundred thousand dead and one and a

half million displaced, all in the past five years. The victims of these numbers
are the people of Darfur, and the reason is the ongoing conflicted between
the Arab majority against the Africans. Underprivileged Africans initiated a
rebellion against the government that, they feel, “neglected” the Darfur
region as well as favored Arabs over non-Arabs. Conflict ensued and the
current situation is being called, by some, genocide.

After the rebel attacks in the Arab controlled Sudan areas of Golo and
al-Fashir, the Sudanese government adopted a new strategy and enlisted the
help of the Janjaweed to work as a counter-insurgency unit In the Darfur
region. The Janjaweed, thought to mean “devil on horseback,” are an armed,
nomadic, Arabic tribe of northern Sudan who are being given resources by
the Sudanese government. They are believed to be responsible for the
killings and displacement in Darfur and Janjaweed leaders such as Musa Hilal
are suspected Genocide criminals by the United States State Department.

Aside from the killings and other forms of violence causing the Darfur
people to relocate, there are reports of the Janjaweed tribes raping the
women and pillaging the villages--sealing from homes and burning buildings.
These actions dehumanize the Darfur people, allowing further violence to
continue. That’s where the biggest problem in the Darfur conflict arises, the
unforeseeable end to the fighting on both sides.

What the Janjaweed have been said to do to the people of Darfur are
now being considered crimes against humanity. A Darfur woman, who did not
release her name in fear of her family being discovered and punished by the
Sudanese government, reported to media outlets that she had been raped
and beaten by Janjaweed militia men, and then forced to watch her son be
murdered.

Another woman, Zahara Abdulkarim, recalls waking up one morning to

the sound of war planes, bombs, gun shots and screams. She, herself, was
confronted by members of the Janjaweed militia. One held a whip, the other
a rifle. Her husband was on the ground being whipped by one of the men and
she was later forced down and raped repeatedly. She was called a “dog” and
a “donkey.” One of the men told her “we are your god now.” She was then
slashed with a knife above her thigh, marking her as one of their slaves.

Besides the threat of the Janjaweed and Sudanese government, the

people of Darfur face a problem that predates the conflict—Desertification.
The land of the Darfur region in Sudan suffers from drought brought on by
what is believed by many as climate change. In some areas of Darfur years
pass without rainfall. These factors have lead to famine amongst the
majority of the Darfur people. With the lack of government aid and the
ongoing climate change, rebel groups grow out of anger and desperation,
continuing the war with the Sudanese Government.

Because of drought and the ongoing conflict between the people of the
Darfur and the Sudanese government, crops have not been planted for the
last two years. Because of this, the people of Darfur rely solely on aid groups.
Recently, it has been reported that over half of the population have sufficient
food and water and that sixty percent of the those in Darfur are
malnourished.

When relocating to avoid the ongoing killing and pillaging happening in

villages in the region, the Darfur people often head for the closest place they
can, the neighboring country of Chad. Here there are thousands of refugee
camps along the border between Chad and Sudan, housing over four-
hundred thousand people from the Darfur area. Some flee to northern Darfur,
where the capital resides, in hopes for finding some safety.

A thirty year old Darfur woman named Hamilia fled north to a camp
outside the capitol after the village she and her family had lived their whole
life was attacked by Janjaweed forces. It took three weeks to reach the camp
and at that time Hamilia weighed only sixteen pounds. She refuses to go
back until “there is peace for everyone.” Something she doubts she’ll see
anytime soon.

Many of those trying to flee don’t reach their destination. One family
reported losing two sons and a daughter to exhaustion during their traveling
to the border. Some are intercepted by the Janjaweed and killed without any
thought. And with greater numbers traveling all the time, the Janjaweed and
government forces can easily determine where they can find the Darfur
people on their journey out of sudan.

Even if one makes it out of the Darfur there is no promise of safety.

Currently Chad is facing its own struggle between and unpopular
government and rebel forces. For most of the people of Darfur, there is no
escape from the bloodshed. But while there is conflict and continued famine,
the refugee camps do what they can to help and have made a difference in
the conflict.

There is no easy answer for the people of Darfur. Most of the victims
are those without any agenda, caught in the crossfire of rebel groups versus
the Janjaweed and Sudanese government. All they can try to do is survive.
The responsibility of ending the conflict relies on the government of Sudan
and the world community. Once the slaughtering stops then the government
can then begin to restore human rights to the victimized people of Darfur.
What needs to happen on the part of the world community is a joined
understanding on what is happening in this mostly unknown area of the
world, and pressure towards the Sudanese to stop the violence that has
ruined the nation over the last five years.