The UN and Darfur: R2P in practice?

In Darfur, the violence is escalating and the humanitarian crisis deepening. The African Union Mission in Sudan (AMIS), which comprises nearly 7,000 African peacekeepers, has been commended for its role in promoting security in the region under extremely difficult conditions and severe resource constraints. However, the African Union (AU) does not have the capacity address the scale of the crisis, leading to mounting appeals for the Security Council to act on the 'responsibility to protect' (R2P) principle and to deploy a UN operation in the region [see Box 1].

The African Union Mission in Sudan

In a 9 March 2006 report to the Security Council, the Secretary-General highlighted the escalation in Darfur of armed clashes, in which rebel movements and Sudanese government forces repeatedly violated their agreed ceasefire, with Janjaweed militia groups fueling the violence. The report noted that this conflict has resulted in many deaths and has inflated the number of displaced civilians beyond a total of 3 million, while causing the destruction of property and livelihoods.

Darfur presents a tough environment for AMIS. The region is roughly the size of France and MIS has encountered serious logistical problems. Acute financial difficulties further undermine the AU's capacity to plan for the long term, while the effectiveness of external support is diminished by poor coordination and competing agendas among the various donors. A 3 February 2006 statement by then President of the Security Council, US Ambassador John Bolton, announced the Council's request that the Secretary-General initiate contingency planning on a range of options for a possible transition from AMIS to a UN operation. On 17 February 2006, President George W. Bush, following private talks with the Secretary-General earlier in the month, called for an additional 7,000 troops to be placed under UN command to support AMIS in Darfur.

On 10 March this year, the AU Peace and Security Council decided to support 'in principle' the transition of AMIS to a UN operation [see Box 2].

Transition to a UN operation

African peacekeepers serving with AMIS lack the necessary equipment and mandate to protect vulnerable citizens in Darfur, and to enforce the ceasefire routinely broken by the rebels, militia and government forces. The Secretary-General's 9 March report noted the establishment of a UN operation planning team to report to the Security Council on options for a possible transition. The report highlighted the achievements of AMIS and stressed that the transition to a UN mission in Darfur should not be characterised as the substitution of an 'African' force by an 'international' force, as a UN-led operation would depend greatly on African contributions and support.

However, the report added that a possible successor operation would have to be qualitatively different from AMIS, particularly with regard to force mobility. In his March 2005 In Larger Freedom report, the Secretary-General lamented developed countries' increasing reluctance to contribute troops to UN peacekeeping missions in Africa. It remains to be seen what sort of contribution the UK and other western states will make to a UN mission in Darfur.