sanctions are abominations

SINCE early last year, black African rebels in the Darfur region of Sudan have been in revolt against the country's Arab-led government, over many long-standing grievances. To crush the uprising, the government has armed an Arab militia, the janjaweed, and instructed it to kill, rape and terrorise black civilians. As a result, the United Nations says Darfur is now suffering a worse humanitarian crisis than anywhere else in the world. It reckons that 30,000 people have already died and more than 1m have been forced to flee their homes, often ending up in disease-ridden refugee camps. The US Agency for International Development said recently that, without help, 1m people may die, and that 300,000 will probably die whatever is done.

In the past few weeks, the world’s powers have been increasing the pressure on the Sudanese government, threatening sanctions and even talking of sending troops. On Monday July 26th, the European Union’s foreign ministers, meeting in Brussels, demanded that the UN pass a resolution threatening sanctions if Sudan’s government does not immediately take action to stop the conflict. Also on Monday, the 53-country African Union (AU) said it was trying to revive peace talks between the government and rebels, from which the rebels walked out last week. The AU is already sending a group of observers backed by around 300 troops, to monitor an oft-broken ceasefire between Darfur’s rebels and government forces. The UN is considering sending a peacekeeping force and, in the past few days, Britain, Australia and New Zealand have indicated their readiness to contribute troops. -The Economist

Something certainly needs to be done to stop the genocide in Sudan and similar measures need to be taken to protect the people of Zimbabwe in their struggle. However, I am irate that some people push for economic sanctions to get back at tyrants. The sanctions only hurt the people they are allegedly trying help by making the poor people even poorer and not really causing any harm to the oppressors. Just take a look at Iraq or Cuba, who were subject to economic sanctions. The sanctions were simply devastating to an already deprived and mistreated people.