AU Troops Struggle Amid Sudan's Fragile Cease-Fire

 

By Raymond Thibodeaux

The African Union's peacekeeping mission in Sudan is one of the organization's largest and most ambitious, with 3,300 troops to be deployed¹ in western Sudan. Still, the mission has been widely criticized for its too-small force and its too-limited mandate². Raymond Thibodeaux accompanied AU monitors on one of their missions to see first-hand the difficulties they face, trying to keep Sudan's fragile peace.

After an hour-long helicopter flight from Al Fasher, passing over dozens of villages, more than half of them abandoned, many of them destroyed, the wheels touch down at the African Union's Sector³ Four base in Kabkabiyah, in one of the most volatile⁴ regions of Darfur.

Sector Four extends from Al Fasher and opens out almost to the Chadian border. It includes Mistiria, the heartland of the Arab militias⁶, known as the Janjaweed, that have carried out a 21-month campaign of terror, killing⁷ as many as 70,000 people and uprooting⁸ nearly two million people from their villages and farms.

Sector Four also covers the rugged⁹ Jebel Mara Mountains, headquarters of Darfur's largest rebel group, the Sudanese Liberation Army. At least two Sudanese army battalions¹⁰ and a reconnaissance brigade are stationed within Sector Four.

Team Golf is one of two African Union monitoring teams operating from here; roaming the region's vast desert in their Land Cruisers, investigating reports of cease-fire violations¹¹ and, when possible, keeping up with troop movements.

Each Team Golf mission includes up to six AU monitors from various African nations and a liaison¹² officer from the United States or Europe, plus representatives from the Darfur conflict's three factions¹³: the SLA, the Justice and Equality Movement rebel group and the Sudanese military. The monitors are protected by a team of eight Rwandan soldiers -- sharpshooters, mainly -- who follow in a flatbed truck at the back of the three-vehicle convoy¹⁴.

On this morning's mission, Team Golf plans to visit Khara Al Zawiyah, an Arab village about 35 kilometers northwest of Kabkabiyah, to see if there has been trouble in recent days.

Less than a half hour after starting out, the JEM representative, a 25-year-old soldier named Ibrahim Hassan, spots something moving slowly on the horizon of bushes and sand. He alerts the driver, US Army Major Patrick Christian¹⁵, a liaison to the AU mission in Sudan. He is from Portland, Oregon.

"Stop them. We have to stop them," Mr. Hassan says, but no one else sees anything.

Moments later the AU monitors the approach a group of men riding camels, 18 in all. Some are wearing green uniforms, some are not.

Before the AU monitors even step from their vehicles to talk to the men, the Rwandan soldiers have already fanned out into a circle around the entire scene, watching for an ambush¹⁶.

The men remain on their camels, with whips hanging from their saddles, as the monitors ask them questions. The two rebel representatives suspect they are Janjaweed fighters.

English is Team Golf's one common language, and so an AU-appointed translator works more like a bilingual stenographer¹⁷, trying to handle the sometimes-confusing barrage¹⁸ of questions and answers in both English and Arabic.

He's asking them, "You said you are policemen and you are going on a mission, you are supposed to dress [in] you're official [clothes] so that we could know you. And, now they are telling them, 'We cannot put [them on] because it is very hot and they can wear it when they reach [Kutum].'

One of the AU monitors, an Egyptian, asks for police identification cards from the group's leader, Abdullah Mohammed Rahman, and at least two others in the group. The Sudanese representative senses Mr. Rahman's hesitation¹⁹ and explains to him that this is the African Union, which Abdullah says he has never heard of.

AU MONITOR: "Do you have your ID card?"
TRANSLATOR: "It was given. He says they have not registered."
AU MONITOR: "I need ID cards from two or three of them."
TRANSLATOR: "He's asking them about the African Union and they say they have never heard about it."

The SLA's Mursal still wants to know if all of them are policemen. He points to a boy on one camel with a knife tied to his left arm. The boy looks to be no more than 12 or 13 years old.

"The question was that whether all of them are now registered policemen," said the translator. "And, he is saying, no they are not all registered policemen. But some of them who are going with them now on this trip are going to be registered. This mission is actually to register them at Kutum."

The SLA representative, Abdullah Musa Mursal, asks them if they are carrying guns. They say no. The JEM representative, Officer Hassan, wants the AU monitors to check their bags for weapons, anyway. The Sudanese Army representative, Lieutenant²⁰ Colonel Abu Asala, is visibly agitated²¹ by officer Hassan's request. Team Golf's leader, Major Jose Manhoco from Mozambique, says it is not in their mandate to check them for weapons. And, if even they had weapons, he says there is nothing the AU monitors can do about it.

The AU monitors explain their mission to the men on camels, thank them for their patience and send them on their way. But, according to the monitors, the encounter reveals what many international observers have suspected, that instead of abiding²² by a United Nations mandate to disarm²³ and disband Arab militias, which include Janjaweed fighters, Sudan's government is still recruiting them into police and civil defense²⁴ forces.

Major Christian, the American liaison, explains the significance of the encounter.

"They admitted that they were existing and new recruits for the police version of the Popular Defense Force," he noted²⁵. "And, even our government minder admitted that. So, with the mandate and the agreement signed in Abuja [peace accord] that they would downsize the defense force and disarm that defense force, now you're seeing at least evidence that they're still upsizing and still training the Popular Defense Force."

The JEM, SLA, and Sudanese Army representatives usually disagree on places to visit. For this particular trip, the SLA representative pushed unsuccessfully for the monitors to see Shoba, a village where Sudanese authorities reportedly removed more than 60 bodies from a mass grave of mostly civilians²⁶ killed during an Arab militia⁵ attack there two months ago.

Not long ago, after an AU security briefing about troop movements and areas of recent conflict, Lieutenant Colonel Asala was caught phoning in rebel positions to his commanders. The incident earned him a serious reprimand from Brigadier General Festus Okonkwo of Nigeria, head of the AU's mission in Sudan.

AU monitors have been ambushed²⁷ on at least two occasions. Most recently, an SLA commander and his four bodyguards²⁸ were killed in an ambush by uniformed Janjaweed fighters, after being escorted by AU monitors to Zalingei, to negotiate the release of 18 Arabs kidnapped by SLA rebels.

Responding to pressure from the international community and the African Union, Sudan's government reluctantly agreed to allow the AU to increase the number of its troops in Darfur. Still, the purpose of the AU mission in Sudan is monitoring, not peacekeeping.

As the conflict in Darfur showed signs of escalating²⁹ in recent weeks, many analysts³⁰ expect the AU to beef up its mandate, possibly to include more AU troops and a go-ahead to protect those displaced by the fighting and aid workers. However, analysts say the likelihood of an AU mandate to pursue and disarm combatants in Darfur's conflict is remote.

Raymond Thibodeaux, for VOA news, Kabkabiyah, Sudan.

注释：
fragile 脆弱的
helicopter 直升机
volatile 不稳定的
uproot 根除
rugged 崎岖的
battalion 军营，军队
reconnaissance 侦察
brigade 队
liaison officer 联络官
flatbed truck 平板载货车
convoy 护送
uniform 制服
fan out 散开
ambush 埋伏，伏兵
bilingual 能说两种语言的
stenographer 速记员
hesitation 犹豫
agitate 煽动
beef up 加强
combatant 战士

1 deployed   

（尤指军事行动）使展开( deploy的过去式和过去分词 )； 施展； 部署； 有效地利用

参考例句：

• Tanks have been deployed all along the front line. 沿整个前线已部署了坦克。
• The artillery was deployed to bear on the fort. 火炮是对着那个碉堡部署的。

2 mandate   

n.托管地；命令，指示

参考例句：

• The President had a clear mandate to end the war.总统得到明确的授权结束那场战争。
• The General Election gave him no such mandate.大选并未授予他这种权力。

3 sector   

n.部门，部分；防御地段，防区；扇形

参考例句：

• The export sector will aid the economic recovery. 出口产业将促进经济复苏。
• The enemy have attacked the British sector.敌人已进攻英国防区。

4 volatile   

adj.反复无常的，挥发性的，稍纵即逝的，脾气火爆的；n.挥发性物质

参考例句：

• With the markets being so volatile,investments are at great risk.由于市场那么变化不定，投资冒着很大的风险。
• His character was weak and volatile.他这个人意志薄弱，喜怒无常。

5 militia   

n.民兵，民兵组织

参考例句：

• First came the PLA men,then the people's militia.人民解放军走在前面，其次是民兵。
• There's a building guarded by the local militia at the corner of the street.街道拐角处有一幢由当地民兵团守卫的大楼。

6 militias   

n.民兵组织，民兵( militia的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The troops will not attempt to disarm the warring militias. 部队并不打算解除战斗中的民兵武装。 来自辞典例句
• The neighborhood was a battleground for Shiite and Sunni militias. 那里曾是什叶派和逊尼派武装分子的战场。 来自互联网

7 killing   

n.巨额利润；突然赚大钱，发大财

参考例句：

• Investors are set to make a killing from the sell-off.投资者准备清仓以便大赚一笔。
• Last week my brother made a killing on Wall Street.上个周我兄弟在华尔街赚了一大笔。

8 uprooting   

n.倒根，挖除伐根v.把（某物）连根拔起( uproot的现在分词 )；根除；赶走；把…赶出家园

参考例句：

• He is hard at work uprooting wild grass in the field. 他正在田里辛苦地芟夷呢。 来自互联网
• A storm raged through the village, uprooting trees and flattening crops. 暴风雨袭击了村庄，拔起了树木，吹倒了庄稼。 来自互联网

9 rugged   

adj.高低不平的，粗糙的，粗壮的，强健的

参考例句：

• Football players must be rugged.足球运动员必须健壮。
• The Rocky Mountains have rugged mountains and roads.落基山脉有崇山峻岭和崎岖不平的道路。

10 battalions   

n.（陆军的）一营（大约有一千兵士）( battalion的名词复数 )；协同作战的部队；军队；（组织在一起工作的）队伍

参考例句：

• God is always on the side of the strongest battalions. 上帝总是帮助强者。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
• Two battalions were disposed for an attack on the air base. 配置两个营的兵力进攻空军基地。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

11 violations   

违反( violation的名词复数 )； 冒犯； 违反（行为、事例）； 强奸

参考例句：

• This is one of the commonest traffic violations. 这是常见的违反交通规则之例。
• These violations of the code must cease forthwith. 这些违犯法规的行为必须立即停止。

12 liaison   

n.联系，（未婚男女间的）暖昧关系，私通

参考例句：

• She acts as a liaison between patients and staff.她在病人与医护人员间充当沟通的桥梁。
• She is responsible for liaison with researchers at other universities.她负责与其他大学的研究人员联系。

13 factions   

组织中的小派别，派系( faction的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The gens also lives on in the "factions." 氏族此外还继续存在于“factions〔“帮”〕中。 来自英汉非文学 - 家庭、私有制和国家的起源
• rival factions within the administration 政府中的对立派别

14 convoy   

vt.护送，护卫，护航；n.护送；护送队

参考例句：

• The convoy was snowed up on the main road.护送队被大雪困在干路上了。
• Warships will accompany the convoy across the Atlantic.战舰将护送该船队过大西洋。

15 Christian   

adj.基督教徒的；n.基督教徒

参考例句：

• They always addressed each other by their Christian name.他们总是以教名互相称呼。
• His mother is a sincere Christian.他母亲是个虔诚的基督教徒。

16 ambush   

n.埋伏(地点)；伏兵；v.埋伏；伏击

参考例句：

• Our soldiers lay in ambush in the jungle for the enemy.我方战士埋伏在丛林中等待敌人。
• Four men led by a sergeant lay in ambush at the crossroads.由一名中士率领的四名士兵埋伏在十字路口。

17 stenographer   

n.速记员

参考例句：

• The police stenographer recorded the man's confession word by word. 警察局速记员逐字记下了那个人的供词。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• A qualified stenographer is not necessarily a competent secretary. 一个合格的速记员不一定就是个称职的秘书。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》

18 barrage   

n.火力网，弹幕

参考例句：

• The attack jumped off under cover of a barrage.进攻在炮火的掩护下开始了。
• The fierce artillery barrage destroyed the most part of the city in a few minutes.猛烈的炮火几分钟内便毁灭了这座城市的大部分地区。

19 hesitation   

n.犹豫，踌躇

参考例句：

• After a long hesitation, he told the truth at last.踌躇了半天，他终于直说了。
• There was a certain hesitation in her manner.她的态度有些犹豫不决。

20 lieutenant   

n.陆军中尉，海军上尉；代理官员，副职官员

参考例句：

• He was promoted to be a lieutenant in the army.他被提升为陆军中尉。
• He prevailed on the lieutenant to send in a short note.他说动那个副官，递上了一张简短的便条进去。

21 agitated   

adj.被鼓动的，不安的

参考例句：

• His answers were all mixed up,so agitated was he.他是那样心神不定，回答全乱了。
• She was agitated because her train was an hour late.她乘坐的火车晚点一个小时，她十分焦虑。

22 abiding   

adj.永久的，持久的，不变的

参考例句：

• He had an abiding love of the English countryside.他永远热爱英国的乡村。
• He has a genuine and abiding love of the craft.他对这门手艺有着真挚持久的热爱。

23 disarm   

v.解除武装，回复平常的编制，缓和

参考例句：

• The world has waited 12 years for Iraq to disarm. 全世界等待伊拉克解除武装已有12年之久。
• He has rejected every peaceful opportunity offered to him to disarm.他已经拒绝了所有能和平缴械的机会。

24 defense   

n.防御，保卫；[pl.]防务工事；辩护，答辩

参考例句：

• The accused has the right to defense.被告人有权获得辩护。
• The war has impacted the area with military and defense workers.战争使那个地区挤满了军队和防御工程人员。

25 noted   

adj.著名的，知名的

参考例句：

• The local hotel is noted for its good table.当地的那家酒店以餐食精美而著称。
• Jim is noted for arriving late for work.吉姆上班迟到出了名。

26 civilians   

平民，百姓( civilian的名词复数 )； 老百姓

参考例句：

• the bloody massacre of innocent civilians 对无辜平民的血腥屠杀
• At least 300 civilians are unaccounted for after the bombing raids. 遭轰炸袭击之后，至少有300名平民下落不明。

27 ambushed   

v.埋伏( ambush的过去式和过去分词 )；埋伏着

参考例句：

• The general ambushed his troops in the dense woods. 将军把部队埋伏在浓密的树林里。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The military vehicles were ambushed. 军车遭到伏击。 来自《简明英汉词典》

28 bodyguards   

n.保镖，卫士，警卫员( bodyguard的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Brooks came to Jim's office accompanied—like always—by his two bodyguards. 和往常一样，在两名保镖的陪同下，布鲁克斯去吉姆的办公室。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Three of his bodyguards were injured in the attack. 在这次袭击事件中，他有3名保镖受了伤。 来自辞典例句

29 escalating   

v.（使）逐步升级( escalate的现在分词 )；（使）逐步扩大；（使）更高；（使）更大

参考例句：

• The cost of living is escalating. 生活费用在迅速上涨。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The cost of living is escalating in the country. 这个国家的生活费用在上涨。 来自辞典例句

30 analysts   

分析家，化验员( analyst的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• City analysts forecast huge profits this year. 伦敦金融分析家预测今年的利润非常丰厚。
• I was impressed by the high calibre of the researchers and analysts. 研究人员和分析人员的高素质给我留下了深刻印象。