Raping Africa: Sudan

The Sudan is beset with civil war which came serendipitously after the discovery of massive oil deposits. This is a scenario that plays out across the African continent, as we saw in both Nigeria and the Democratic Republic of Congo. In the case of Sudan, the Christian south sought independence from the Muslim north for religious reasons. A partial independence was granted in 1972, but after the discovery of oil in 1978, hostilities broke out.

It was not until many years later that the south of Sudan gained independence. An uneasy peace followed mostly for economic reasons. The oil was in the south, but the refineries were in the north. The unrest was also exacerbated by tribal animosities. This is going on in the south until today. In the late 1990's oil was discovered in Darfur, the westernmost part of Sudan. Predictably, religious and ethnic violence followed. Darfur wanted independence and self-determination, basically the same concessions given the south. It was on the heels of this that ethnic cleansing began.

The UN was, of course, silent. Fear of offending Muslims fueled inaction. American oil giant Chevron fled Darfur only to be replaced by a Chinese oil company. Every time a vote to intercede in the violence came up in the UN Security Council, it was immediately voted down by the Chinese.

Islamic soldiers have been targeting the citizens of Darfur causing many of those not slaughtered to flee into neighboring Chad where over 300,000 Sudanese live in constant fear. The refugees aren't even safe there as the border in many places is just an imaginary line through the desert. The SPLA (Sudanese People's Liberation Army), a misnomer, typically crosses on raiding parties, striking terror into the people seeking refuge in Chad. The government of Chad is unable to provide proper protection and the UN is unwilling. Recently, peace negotiations at the UN supposedly provided protection, but the Sudanese government has insisted that only African soldiers be allowed to participate. Most of these are the same Rwandan soldiers that have been terrorizing the inhabitants of the Congo. There is no freedom in Darfur or Sudan for that matter. My new friend on Steemit, @araki laments his inability to go home. He says that the government forbids free speech and that he had to leave because he dared to speak out against the cruelty.

In the oil rich south, a civil war rages that is supposed to be about corruption. The vice president, Riek Machar has accused the president Salva Kiir of embezzling and has begun hostilities that have continued for several years. Under the guise of "democratizing" the south, Machar's army (dubbed the "White Army") is wiping out entire villages as they march northward toward the oil-rich northern part of the province. This amounts to just more ethnic cleansing. In this video, Vice President Machar is interviewed along with his wife. What's going on is blatantly transparent. There are no plans for democracy, only murder. The White Army is just a band of disorganized thugs, some 30,000 strong. They loot, murder and burn.

Once again, the UN has proven themselves to be an incompetent, corrupt organization. As long as there is a dollar to be made from raping Africa of her natural resources we can expect silence.