UNCLASSIFIED RELEASED IN PART Ramish Timothy B5 - 9 32 From Taft George SBU Sent Monday September 13 2004 4 59 PM To - Harris Robert Brancato Gilda L-HRR do Ramish Timothy Taft 'George SBU Subject FW Request for Talking-points Powell's testimony on Darfur genocide B5 Cheryl Casey Casebeer Deputy Chief of Mission U S Embassy N'Djamena Chad tel 235 5140439 fax 235 51-56-54 email casebeerc@state gov This message with all attachrtients is UNCLASSIFIED under E O 12958 w Driginai From Maurer Marissa Sent Friday September 10 2004 8 12 AM To Wall Marc Casebeer Casey FitzGibbon Kathleen Spera Vincent Mitchel Tim Mcbride LesiieE Subject Powell's testimony on Darfur 09 September 2004 Powell Reports Sudan ReSponsible for Genocide in Darfur UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF STATE 1 REVIEW AUTHORITY HARRY MELONE ID 06 SEP 2006 200502016 UNCLASSIFIED u UNCLASSIFIED Calls for continued pressureJaction from U Ntestimony to the Senate Foreign Relations Committee September 9 US Secretary of State Colin Powell declared the actions of the Sudanese government and its proxies the Jingaweit militias against the people of Earth to be genocide Citing the recently completed State Department investigation that was conducted in the refugee camps in Chad with the assistance of the American Bar Association and the Coalition for International Justice Powell identi ed a consistent and widespread pattern of atrocities killings rapes burning of villages committed by ingaweit and government forces against non Arab villagers from which we concluded that genocide has been committed in Darfur and that the Government of Sudan and the ingaweit bear responsibility -- and genocide may still be occurring - The secretary made copies of the evidence the State Department team compiled available to the committee Powell opened his testimony with a review of recent history of the region and the continuing ghting He also recounted the recent investigative and diplomatic missions and actions that have been undertaken by the United States the United Nations andathe African Union to halt the genocide to bring those responsible to justice and to restore the displaced to their homes Despite strong pressure from the United States including a personal visit by the secretary of state to warn the leadership in Khartoum of potential repercussions and a UN Security Council resolution Resolution - 15 56 that set deadlines for the Sudanese for clearing the Jingaweit from the area providing security and allowing humanitarian aid access the Sudanese government has taken insuf cient steps to avoid threatened sanctions - Powell acknowledged that some progress had been made in allowing A ican Union troops in to monitor the cease- re between the Khartoum government and the rebels and in providing greater access for humanitarian aid But he said Sudan continues to throw obstacles in the way of aid workers and has done little or nothing to rein in the ingaweit The key issue he said is to provide real security in the region so those displaced can return to' their homes -- when their houses and towns are rebuilt What is really needed is for the Jingaweit militias to cease and desist their murderous raids against these people -- and for the government in Khartoum to stop being complicit in such raids Khartoum has made no meaningful progress in substantially improving the overall security environment by disarming the ingaweit militias or arresting its leaders Powell called on the United Nations to bring thher pressure to bear including conducting an investigation on the issue of genocide increasing the African Union peacekeeping force and taking realistic sanctions against the Sudanese government for failure to comply with Resolution 1556 The report cited by the secretary Documenting Atrocities in Darfur was released September 9 by the State Departrnent's Bureau of Democracy Human Rights and Labor and Bureau of Intelligence and Research It may be reviewed at state gov g drl rls 36028htm The secretary s remarks as prepared for delivery follow begin text US DEPARTMENT OF STATE Office of the Spokesman September_9 2004 As Prepared 2 - UNCLASSIFIED SECRETARY or STATE COLINL POWELL - - THE CRISIS IN DARFUR WRITTEN REMARKS SENATE FOREIGN RELATIONS COMMITTEE September 9 2004 Mr Chairman members of the committee thank you for the opportunity to testify on the situation in Dar ir Let me start by reviewing a little history The violence in Darfur has complex roots in traditional con icts between Arab nomadic borders and African farmers The violence intensi ed during 2003 when two groups -- the Sudan Liberation Movement and the Justice and Equality Movement -- declared open rebellion against the Government of Sudan because they feared being on the outside of the power and wealth-sharing agreements in the north-south negotiations Khartoum reacted aggressively intensifying support for Arab militias the so-called jinjaweid The Government of Sudan supported the jinj aweid directly and indirectly as they carried out a scorched-earth policy towards the rebels and the African civilian population - - Mr Chairman the United States exerted strong leadership to focus international attention on this unfolding tragedy We rst took the issue of Sudan to the United Nations UN Security Council last fall President Bush was the rst head-of state to condemn publicly the Government of Sudan and to urge the international community to intensify efforts to end the violence In April of this year the United States brokered a cease re between the Government of Sudan and the rebels and then took the lead to get the African Union AU to monitor that cease re - As- some ofyou are aware I traveled to the Sudan in midsummer and made a point of visiting Darfur It was about the same time that Congressman Wolf and Senator Brownback were there as well as Secretary Generai Ko Arman In fact the Secretary General and were able to meet and exchange notes We made sure that our message to the Sudanese govemrnent was consistent Senator Brownback can back me up when I say that all of us saw the suffering that the people of Dar rr are having to endure And Senator Corzine was just in Darfur and can vouch for the fact that atrocities are still their homes and all their possessions destroyed or con scated before their eyes -- by the terrible violence that isoccurring in Dar ir During my visit humanitarian workers from my own Agency -- USAID and from other Non- Governmental Organizations NGOs told me how they are struggling to bring food shelter and medicines to those so desperately in need -- a population of well over one million In my midsummer meetings with the Government of Sudan we presented them with the stark facts of what we knew about what is happening in Darfur from the destruction of villages to the raping and the killing to the obstacles that impeded relief efforts Secretary General Arman and I obtained from the Government of Sudan what they said would be rm commitments to take steps and to take steps immediately that would remove these obstacles help bring the violence to' an end and do it in a way that we could monitor their performance There have been some positive developments sincemy visit and since the visit of Senator Brownback - Congressman Wolf and the Secretary General The Sudanese have met some of our benchmarks such as engaging in political talks with the rebels and supporting the deployment of observers and troops from the AU to monitor the ceasefire between Khartoum and the rebels Some improvements in humanitarian access have also occurred though the government 3 UNCLASSIFIED UNCLASSIFIED a I - continues to throw obstacles in the way of the fullest provrsron of ass13tance The AU Cease re Commission has also been set up and is working to monitor more effectively what is actually happening in Darfur Thegeneral who is in charge of that mission a Nigerian general by the name of Okonkwo is somebody that we know well He is the same Nigerian general who went into Liberia last i year and helped stabilize the situation there The mission will help to restore suf cient security so that these dislocated starving hounded people can at least avail themselves of the humanitarian assistance that is available But what is really needed is enough security so that they can go home And what is really needed is for the jinjaweid militias to cease and-desist their murderous raids against these people -- and for the Government in Khartoum to stop being complicit in such raids Khartoum has made no meaningful progress in substantially improving the overall security envirOnment by disarming the injaweid militias or arresting its leaders -So we are continuing to press that Government and we continue to monitor them We continue to make sure that we are not just left with promises instead of actual action and performance on the ground Because it is absolutely clear that as we approach the end of the rainy season the situation on the ground must change - and it must change quickly There are too many tens upon tens of thousands of human beings who are at risk Some of them have already beenconsigned to death because of the circumstances they are living in now They will not make it through the end of the year Poor security inadequate capacity and heavy rains which will not diminish until late September continue to hamper the relief effort 2 The UN estimates there are 1 227 000 Internally Displaced Persons IDPs in Dar Jr In July almost 950 000 IDPs received some form of food assistance About 200 000 Sudanese refugees are being assisted by UNHCR and partner organizations in Chad The World Food Program WFP expects two'inillion IDPs Will need food aid by October - - U S Severnment provision of aid to the Darfur crisis in Sudan and Chad totaled $211 3 million as of September 2 2004 This includes $112 9 million in food assistance $50 2 million in non-food assistance and $36 4 million for refugees in Chad $5 million for refugee programs in Dar ir and for the African Union mission - The U S also strongly supports the work of the monitoring mission in Darfur In fact weinitiated the Mission through base camp set-up and logistics support by a private contractor The Missidn is Staffed with 125 AU monitors now deployed in the eld and has completed approximately 20 investigations of cease- re violations The AU monitoring staff is supported by a protection force of '3 05 made up of a Rwandan contingent of 155 they arrived on August 15 and a Nigerian contingent of 150 they arrived on August 30 Recognizing the security problems in Darfur the UN and the U S have begun calling for an expanded AU mission in Darfur through the provision of additional observers and protection forces Khartoum appears to have signaled a willingness to consider an expanded mission I am pleased to announce Mr Chairman that the State Department has identified $20 5 million in FY04 - funds for initial support of this expanded mission We look forward to consulting with the Congress on meeting additional needs As you know as we watched through the month of July we felt more pressure was required 30 we went to the UN and asked for a resolution We got it on July 30 Resolution 1556 demands that the Government of Sudan take action to disarm the jinjaweid militia and bring jinjaweid leaders to justice It warns Khartoum that the Security Council will take further actions and measures - UN-Speak for sanctions if Sudan fails to comply It urges the warring parties to conclude a political agreement without delay and it commits all states to target sanctions against the jinjaweid militias and those who aid and abet them as well as others who may share responsibility for this tragic situation Too many lives have already been lost We Cannot lose any more time We in the international community must 4 UNCLASSIFIED - UNCLASSIFIED intensify our efforts tohelp those imperiled by violence starvation and disease in Darfur But the Government of Sudan bears the greatest responsibility to face up to this catastrophe rein in those who are committing'these atrocities and save the lives of its own citizens At the same time however the- rebels have not fully respected the Cease re We are disturbed at reports of rebel kidnappings of relief workers We have emphasized to the rebels that they must allow unrestricted access of humanitarian relief - workers and supplies and cooperate rlly including with the AU monitoring mission We are pleased that the Government of Sudan and the rebels are currently engaged in talks in Abuja hosted by the AU These talks are aimed'at bringing about a political settlement in Dar rr The two sides have agreed on a protocol to facilitate delivery of much needed humanitarian assistance to rebel held areas and are now engaged in discussions of a protocol on security issues We are urging both sides to intensify negotiations in order to reach a political settlement At midsummer I told President Bashir Vice President Taha Foreign Minister Ismail the Minister of Interior and others that the United States wants to see a united prosperous democratic Sudan I told them that to that end we are fully prepared to work with them I reminded them that we had reached anhistoric agreement on June 5 -- an agreement between the Government of Sudan and the Sudan People's Liberation Movement SPLM That agreement covered all the outstanding issues in the north-south process Since then the parties have been engaged in nal negotiations on remaining details However the parties are stuck on the speci cs of a formal cease re agreement and have not yet begun the nal round of implementation modalities Special Envoy Sumbeiywo met recently with the parties but could not resolve the remaining cease re-related issues Khartoum appears unwilling to resumetalks at the most senior level claiming it must focus on Darfur That would be ne if its focus were the right focus But his not The SPLM is more forward leaning but still focused on negotiating details We believe that a comprehensive agreement would bolster efforts to resolve the cnsis in Darfur by providing a legal basis for a political solution decentralization and by opening up the political process in Khartoum President Bashir has repeatedly pledged to work fer peace and he pledged that again when we met in midsummer But President Bush this Congress Secretary General Annan and the international community want more than promises We want to see dramatic improvements on the ground right now Indeed we - wanted to see them yesterday - In the meantime we are doing all that we can We are working with the international community to make sure that all of those nations who have made pledges of nancial assistance meet those pledges In fact the estimated needs have grown and the donor community needs to dig deeper America has been in the fomfront of providing assistance to the suffering people of Darfur and will remain in the forefront But it is time for the entire international community to increase their assistance The U S has pledged $299 million in humanitarian aid through FY05 and $11 8 million to the AU mission and we are well on the way to exceeding these pledges SYG Arman's August 30 report called for an expanded AU mission in Darfur to monitor commitments of the parties more effectively thereby enhancing security and facilitating the delivery of humanitarian assistance The report also highlighted Khartoum s failure to rein in and disarm the jinjaweid militia and noted that the deanese military continued to take part in attacks on civilians including aerial bombardment and helicopter strikes - We have begun consultation in New York on a new resolution that calls for Khartoum to cooperate fully with an expanded AU force and for cessation of Sudanese military ights over the Dar ir region It also provides for international over ights to monitor the situation in Darfur and requires the Security Council to review the record of Khartoum's compliance to determine if sanctions including on the Sudanese petroleum sector should be imposed The resolirtion also urges the Government of Sudan and the SPLM to conclude 5 UNCLASSIFIED - UNCLASSIFIED negotiations on a comprehensive peace accord And nally there is the matter of whether or not what is happening in Darfur is genocide Since the U S became aware of atrocities occurring in Sudan we have been reviewing the Genocide Convention and the obligations it places on the Governmentof Sudan In July we launched a limited investigation by sending a team to re igee camps in Chad They worked closely with the American Bar Association and the Coalition for International Justice and were able to interview 1 136 of the 2 2 million people the UN estimates have been affected by this horrible violence Those interviews indicated -- A consistent and widespread pattern of atrocities killings rapes burning of villages committed by jinjaweid and government forces against non-Arab villagers -- Three-fourths of those interviewed reported that the Sudanese military forces were involved in the attacks Villages often experienced multiple attacks over a prolonged period'before they were destroyed by burning shelling or bombing making it impossible for villagers to return - When we reviewed the evidence compiled by our team along with other information available to the State Department We concluded that genocide has been committed in Dar ir and that the Government of Sudan and the jinj aweid bear reSponsibility -- and genocide may still be occurring Mr Chairman we are making copies of the evidence our team compiled available to this committee today We believe in order to con rm the true nature scope and totality of the crimes our evidence reveals a full- blown and unfettered investigation needs to occur Sudan is a contracting party to the Genocide Convention and is obliged under the Convention to prevent and to punish acts of genocide To us at this time it appears that Sudan has failed to do so - Article of the Genocide Convention prevides that Contracting Parties may call upon the competent organs of the United Nations to take such action under the Charter of the United Nations as they consider appropriate for the prevention and suppression of acts of genocide or any-of the other acts enumerated in Article 111 - Today the U S is calling on the UN to initiate a full investigation To this end the U S will propose that the next UN Security Council Resolution on Sudan request a UN investigation into all violations of international humanitarian law and human rights law that have occurred in Darfur with a view to ensuring accountability Mr Chairman as I said the evidence leads us to the conclusion that genocide has occurred and may still be occurring in Darfur We believe the evidence corroborates the specific intent of the perpetrators to destroy a group in whole or in part This intent may be inferred from their deliberate conduct We believe other elements of the convention have been met as well Under the 1948 Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide to which both the United States and Sudan are parties genocide occurs when the following three criteria are met speci ed acts are committed a killing b causing serious bodily or mental harm c deliberately in icting conditions of life calculated to bring about physical destruction of a group in whole- 6 UNCLASSIFIED - UNCLASSIFIED or in part d imposing measures to prevent births or e forcibly transferring children to another group these acts are committed against members of a national ethnic racial or religious group and they are committed with intent to destroy in whole or in part the group as such ' The totality of the evidence from the interviews we conducted in July and August and from the other' sources available to us shows that - The jinj aweid and Sudanese military forces have committed large scale acts of violence including murders rape and physical assaults on non-Arab individuals - -- The jinjaweid and sudanese military forces destroyed villages foodstuffs and other means-oilsuryival I -- The Sudan Government and its military forces obstructed food water medicine and other humanitarian aid from reaching affected populations thereby leading to further deaths and suffering and DeSpite having been put on notice multiple times Khartoum has failed to stop the violence _ Mr Chairman some seem to have been waiting for this determination of genocide 'to take action In fact however no new action is dictated by this determination We have been doing everything we can to get the Sudanese government to act responsibly So let us not be preoccupied with this designation of genocide These peeple are in desperate need and we must help them Call it a civil war Call it ethnic cleansing Call - it genocide Call it none of the above The reality is the same there are people in Darfur Who desperately need our help - I expect that the government in Khartoum will reject our conclusion of genocide anyway Moreover at this point genocide is our judgment and not the judgment of the International Community Beforefthe Govemment of Sudan is taken to the barof international justice let me point out that there isia simple way for Khartoum to avoid such wholesale condemnation That way is to take action v - The government in Khartoum should end the attacks ensure its people -- all of its people are secure hold to account those who are responsible for past atrocities and ensure that current negotiations are successfully concluded That is the only way to peace and pmSperity for this war-ravaged land Speci cally Mr Chairman the most practical contribution we can make to the security of Dar ir in the short-term is to increase the number of African Union monitors That will require the c00peration of the Government of Sudan In the intermediate and long term the security of Darfur can be best advanced by a political settlement at Abuja and by the successful conclusion of the peace negotiations between the SPLM and the Government of Sudan end text 7 UNCLASSIFIED                     National Security Archive    Suite 701  Gelman Library  The George Washington University    2130 H Street  NW  Washington  D C  20037    Phone  202 994‐7000  Fax  202 994‐7005  nsarchiv@gwu edu