Dispelling alarm

In and on the fringe of the Arab summit, Egypt, Sudan and Libya made their voices heard on a number of issues ranging from human rights violations to the worth of the summit and the particularities of Arab identity. Dina Ezzat followed the debate

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On the fringes of the Arab summit, Sudan promised to facilitate human relief operations in Darfur. The statement was made by Sudanese Foreign Minister Mustafa Othman Ismail in a press conference aimed to respond to allegations of gross human rights violations in Darfur.

Discussions relating to Sudan, as reflected by the Arab leaders' resolutions and final communiqué, referred most to peace talks now in the offing between the Sudanese government and the Sudan People's Liberation Army (SPLA), the southern rebel militia. They also addressed Arab attempts to encourage development in Sudan.

However, it was Darfur that captured special attention in Tunis. Indeed, the emphasis was such that Ismail dedicated a one-hour press conference to discuss the devastated province.

A press release issued by the secretariat of the Arab League on 19 May was what kick-started the debate over developments in Darfur at the Arab summit. Highlighting information included in a report compiled by a fact-finding Arab League mission that visited Darfur earlier in May, the press release referred to "gross human rights violations committed in this part of Sudan as part of the inter- tribal conflict" and the absence of adequate security measures. The statement also quoted the report as suggesting the need for the establishment of "an independent fact-finding mission to look into the inhumane practices [committed]", and to provide necessary security measures to prevent further human rights violations.

"This press release is just full of inaccurate information and it misses the whole point about the situation in Darfur," Ismail told the press conference he called for immediately after the opening session of the Arab summit had concluded.

The Sudanese permanent representative to the Arab League has already complained to the secretariat of the Arab League about this press release. And, according to some Sudanese sources, it also angered Sudanese President Omar Al-Bashir, who absented himself altogether from the summit.

"The president could not come to the summit since the two vice-presidents are out of the country, but obviously he was not at all impressed by this release that reflects a Western point of view," said one source.

The human tragedy of Darfur has been scant in the news over the past few months. Meanwhile, reports issued by several human rights organisations spoke not only of gross human rights violations -- as indicated by the Arab League report and press release -- but worse still, of ethnic cleansing committed by the state military. "These stories are totally fabricated and have no element of truth whatsoever. There is a military conflict, and there is an attempt by some foreign forces who are financing and supporting rebels to undermine Sudan's territorial unity, and this is what any government would refuse to succumb to," Ismail said.

Speaking in an uncharacteristically angry tone, Ismail told reporters that it was expected of some Western organisations to "make such unfounded allegations", but that he had thought the Arab League would behave differently.

Ismail denied that he was being ultra-sensitive about criticism that cannot be deemed unfounded in view of photographic evidence coming out of Darfur. He also denied that his country wanted to avoid making a real, transparent commitment to improving its human rights record. He also refuted accusations that his government was putting pressure on the Arab League -- of which Sudan is a member -- to spin the facts.

To get his point across, Ismail went through the press release line by line and highlighted several "errors". He argued that the release reflected "a misleading analysis of the situation". In an attempt to support his argument, Ismail circulated a new press release issued by the secretariat of the Arab League on the fringes of the Arab summit, to acknowledge inaccuracies included in the original release. In its second release the Arab League promised commitment to help relieve the human suffering in Darfur.

"The fact of the matter is that there is a military conflict in this part of the country. And as in all military conflicts, there are refugees and displaced people who need immediate human assistance to overcome the difficulties they have been faced with," Ismail explained.

He denied that his government had taken sides with the Arab tribes against the non-Arab tribes, and that it has been clearing out entire villages of African Zaghawa, Masaalit and Fur communities in Darfur. According to Ismail, "as is the case in military conflicts, there are always mutual violations of human rights among the warring factions. But the government is doing everything possible to hold the wrong-doers accountable and to prevent any such practices from being further perpetrated."

Ismail also announced his government was planning to introduce a set of measures to help relieve the suffering in Darfur. According to Ismail, the Sudanese government will facilitate access to Darfur for humanitarian aid organisations, while intensifying efforts to make peace with the Sudanese rebels.

According to Ismail the Arab League and the African Union are now expected to extend maximum help to Sudan in order to try to improve the situation in Darfur, both on the humanitarian and political fronts.