Will More Troops Save Darfur?

Several comments to Hotwire have suggested that there is a contradiction between our insistence that more troops is not the solution in Iraq, even as we call for a larger military force to protect civilians in Darfur.

Obviously, there is no simple comparison to be made between these two very different situations. Even so, many of our allies in the Save Darfur movement also wonder whether or not more troops can protect civilians unless there is a durable peace agreement in Darfur.

Jimmy Carter, founder of The Carter Center, has risen considerably in the eyes of Hotwire since the publication of his book, Palestine: Peace Not Apartheid. That courageous book speaks much painful truth in staking out a position on human rights in the Middle East that is well outside of the U.S. bipartisan consensus on the issue.

Now Jimmy is in Africa, preparing to meet with Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir about the conflict in Darfur. In an interview from Ghana, Carter says that more troops in Darfur won't solve the problem without a prior peace agreement supported by all parties.

"The U.N., the EU and the U.S. need to harness all their tremendous influence to force all of the conflicting parties to negotiate a peace agreement and accept it," he said. "We need to emphasise a negotiated settlement. Then you should use military influence to enforce the agreement. That is what I will be discussing with Bashir."

As of this moment, the only outlet to pick up this story is a Sudanese PR group with close ties to the Sudanese government. That said, the comments are consistent with others made by Pres. Carter and others.

We certainly support a durable peace agreement in Darfur, but also note that the government has entered into and broken a long string of agreements, even as the death toll in Darfur has mounted. Rebel groups have, likewise, continued violent actions in violation of agreements. Last year's Darfur Peace Agreement is in shambles.

We support Jimmy Carter's efforts to promote a peace agreement in Darfur, and wish him luck in his conversations with Bashir. We also continue to wonder whether or not those dying in Darfur as we scribble can await a durable peace agreement before they get protection. Genocide offers no good choices.