Intervention To Protect Civilians In Darfur

This study argues that the human rights violations in Darfur meet the legal threshold of genocide, war crimes and crimes against humanity and, therefore, justifies forcible humanitarian intervention by any grouping of states whether in or outside the context of the UN or the AU.

Killing of the innocent, forced displacement of civilian population, large-scale sexual violence, torture, and destroying of civilian property have been going on since the dawn of civilization. Efforts to protect people against grave crimes of such atrocities more effectively, both in peace and war, gradually evolved over the centuries, and then rapidly accelerated after the Second World War. But, for the most part, those horrors were met with indifference, cynicism, or deep disagreement about how to respond to them. As the twenty-first century began, there was still no universally accepted and effective response mechanism in place to protect civilian population. And this is especially true in the case of Darfur.

This book analyzes the Responsibility to Protect (R2P) in the context of the conflict in Darfur, using detailed empirical evidence. The volume traces Darfur’s evolution from forgotten conflict to a major global cause and back to obscurity. The emergence of a far-reaching international response to the war in Darfur began in 2004 and included the most influential international advocacy movement since the anti-apartheid campaign and one of the world’s largest peacekeeping missions. The book analyzes how Darfur slid back into international obscurity after 2011, despite ongoing violence against civilians and the continued risk of conflict escalation following Omar al-Bashir’s ousting in April 2019. Based on an analysis of more than 100 interviews and over 1,000 media reports, the book examines one of the most pressing questions related to the R2P: why do some situations of mass atrocities cause an international outcry, while others are met with complacency and silence? It argues that the presence or absence of a compelling narrative, which frames a situation in moral terms and unambiguously conveys who is responsible, who suffers, and what should be done, facilitates whether or not sufficient traction will be gained to beget a robust R2P response. This book will be of much interest to students of the Responsibility to Protect, human rights, peacekeeping, conflict resolution, African politics and International Relations in general.

Long-simmering conflict in the Sudanese region of Darfur came to a boil in the spring of 2003 and became a focus of American media attention in September 2004. After the genocide in Rwanda the international community developed a new way to deal with genocide-the 'Responsibility to Protect' doctrine which legitimized intervention in case of egregious loss of human life. Despite this new doctrine, it took over five years of conflict in Darfur before the U. N. began intervening. The Responsibility to Protect in Darfur: The Role of Mass Media, traces the development of international intervention in domestic conflict, culminating in the concept of 'Responsibility to Protect' in 2001. The authors explain the background and complexity of the crisis besetting Darfur, and document U.S. media coverage of the crisis in terms of framing that would mobilize public opinion behind international intervention. The book traces evolution in international norms regarding state sovereignty and human rights that led to the articulation of 'Responsibility to Protect' and its subsequent adoption by the international community in 2005. It provides an understanding of the complex nature of the Darfur crises, in a way that was seriously lacking in media coverage. The authors also analyze the affects media coverage of the crisis had on the world's reaction, particularly in the U.S. Specifically it looks at television coverage of the crisis, and the newspaper coverage, particularly through The New York Times. Finally, the authors ask if 'Responsibility to Protect' was helpful in Darfur, and if it will be in the future for other countries.

Examines the Darfur crisis to address wider debates within IR theory including: the "responsibility to protect", humanitarian intervention, sovereignty, peacekeeping, relationships between the world’s great powers, and international mediation.

In 2003 and 2004, Darfur became the epicentre of an international crisis. The three Darfur states, the size of Texas, lie in the largest African state - Sudan. Darfur itself has a complex tribal, ethnic and linguistic composition, and the complexities of the conflict have been magnified by international and regional events. But this is no excuse for the disinformation and confusion about Darfur. This book analyses the causes and course of the war as well as the obstacles to peace. In so doing, it challenges accusations of genocide and racism made against the government of Sudan. It is also critical of much of the simplistic and often inaccurate media coverage of the war. Most important of all, the book examines the road map to peace in Darfur.

Responsibility to Protect: Research, bibliography, background. Supplementary volume to the Report of the International Commission on Intervention and State Sovereignty