Bush Urges World Action To Stop Bloodshed in Africa
This article is from the archive of The New York Sun before the launch of its new website in 2022. The Sun has neither altered nor updated such articles but will seek to correct any errors, mis-categorizations or other problems introduced during transfer.
KIGALI, Rwanda — On ground haunted by one of the worst atrocities of modern times, President Bush pleaded with the global community yesterday for decisive action to stop grisly ethnic violence now plaguing other African nations like Kenya and Sudan.
“There is evil in the world, and evil must be confronted,” Mr. Bush said, shaken by his visit to a museum that tells the story of Rwanda’s 1994 genocide in which more than 800,000 Tutsis and moderate Hutus were slaughtered in just 100 days by extremist Hutu militias. Mr. Bush, who once wrote “not on my watch” in the margin of a report on the Rwanda massacre, has responded to the atrocities that have raged in Sudan’s western Darfur region by imposing sanctions, applying diplomatic pressure, and training and transporting other nations’ soldiers for peacekeeping.
But he decided not to send American troops into Sudan, and it took three years after the crisis began in 2003 to announce sanctions against a few of people, prompting renewed criticism that his actions don’t match his impassioned rhetoric on the topic.
That hasn’t stopped Mr. Bush from expressing frustration at what he sees as sluggish efforts by the United Nations and other countries in Darfur.
“If you’re a problem solver, you put yourself at the mercy of the decisions of others, in this case, the United Nations,” Mr. Bush said. “It is — seems very bureaucratic to me, particularly with people suffering.”
At least 200,000 have been killed in the five-year campaign by militias supported by Sudan’s Arab-dominated government against black African communities in Darfur for suspected rebel support. Four cease-fires have gone unheeded. And only about 9,000 of an expected 26,000-troop peacekeeping force, a joint effort by the United Nations and the African Union, have been deployed. The Sudanese government has still not agreed to non-African troops and the United Nations has not persuaded governments to supply helicopters.
“My message to other nations is: ‘Join with the president and help us get this problem solved once and for all,'” Mr. Bush said after meetings with President Kagame. America has spent $600 million on peacekeeping operations in Darfur. Yesterday, Mr. Bush announced that $100 million would be made available for additional training and equipment.
