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Murder from Darfur to Cairo
At a Sudanese refugee camp, I witnessed the desperation behind the protests -- and eventual slaughter -- of African refugees in Egypt.
By David Morse [2006-01-13]

  • The complexity of Sudan

    Thanks for publishing this article, Salon. I've been wondering for some time why the Sudan/Darfur situation doesn't get more coverage... it's not like the situation is "going away" just because I haven't read anything about it in the last month or two.

    I wonder if part of the reason the story doesn't have more "legs" is that the situation is so complex and ambiguous. It's not something that can be summed up on World News This Hour in 30 seconds, or even a couple minutes. Who are these people? Why are they fighting? Who are the "good guys" and "bad guys"? The story doesn't break down along US political lines at all... put yourself in inside the head of your average Repug talking points functionary running affairs in Washington these days and imagine what they're thinking:

    "Do I support the Sudanese rebels because they're Christians fighting Muslims? But that causes more violence in the area which is bad for oil exploration and pisses off our "ally" Egypt. So instead, I'll do nothing and let the UN try to "solve" the situation... aha see? They can't handle it either! Now you know why we nominated John Bolton to clean up the UN!"

    Of course the other reason this story is ignored in the US is what I call the "Hotel Rwanda" Hypothesis. Remember the scene where the UN peacekeeping leader (Nick Nolte) tells the Rwandan hotelier (Don Cheadle) who naively thinks US help is on the way: "You're not black. You're not even a n----r. You're AFRICAN."

    -- Krasnaya Zvezda
    [Read Krasnaya Zvezda's other letters]
    Friday, January 13, 2006 06:30 AM
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