The path to peace in Darfur

KHARTOUM, SUDAN-It is pretty clear that the raging war will never bring peace to Darfurians at all, no matter the might used or the type of weapons. It is also true that Sudanese as well as the regional and international communities are fed up with the Darfur war that has claimed over 500,000 lives and 2.5 million displaced or forced to flee their homes into exile. Can we say enough is enough now and the current steps taken by the Arab and African leaders to try and broker a peace deal to end the five years bloody war in Darfur must be the best initiative so far since the war erupted? Although most of the opposition parties rejected the initiative and some of the rebel groups call it a Khartoum trick to gain international attention, it is really good to start from a point somewhere and follows the steps till success is achieved. What must be done is an immediate ceasefire, disarmament of the Janjaweed and all those militia involved in killing Darfurians. An acknowledgement that Darfurians are really mistreated may also change events, as those who are directly and indirectly affected by the war would be convinced that the government and its allies really mean to bring peace. Racial discrimination must be stopped at once; burning of villages, raping of women and inhuman behaviour in general should be brought to an end; all deadly weapons should be laid down; the indigenous people must be given a chance to settle and rebuild their ruined homes, for the burden of the current war has affected the land severely and must this time be allowed time enough to rejuvenate with the return of peace. The rest of the country will never be at peace at all if Darfur remains in pain. Blood has flowed more than enough in the Fur-land, and those who deny this are the real enemies of this country as well the enemies of peace. Instead of letting the war to continue, an agreement should be reached to remedy the situation. And the current peace initiative should be blessed by all if the war in Darfur is to end! We should gladly welcome each other, and it is time for the marginalised areas from the north to south and from the east to the west, to be given chance to develop and increase their rate of progress. Those who claim to love Darfur should face realities and put down their arms and return to the fold without killing innocent civilians; they must cease hostilities and evil intentions, for it will lead them no where other than to be isolated one day in the long run, if not now. It is always regrettable for many involved in bloody wars to appreciate peaceful settlements through negotiations. But however difficult it is for soldiers, this is the best and courageous step to take; and it will be great relief for the affected civilians which will ensure future stability in the country’s political development. It would be logical for the government representatives and the fighting groups to readily respond to all the peace moves. The path to peace should genuinely be in their interest to seeing the return of peace and lasting solutions to all the political problems, so that life returns to normality and other changes may return rapidly. The indigenous inhabitants of Darfur have had enough; they deserve a better life free from sectarianism, racial and selfish politics. Sudan has mistreated some of its citizens for so long, may the current peace talks mark the end to that. As can be seen, the Government of National Unity ‘GONU’ is aiming at immediate political stability by the on-going efforts and so are some of the rebel groups with the help of regional and international communities; thus they (Sudan Government and the rebel groups) need to understand each other and come to an honest agreement such that both take a lead in the new task of building a greater and happier Darfur. With some of these points in focus, we can at least claim that Darfur is today on the path to peaceful settlement. Ends