Mission leaders call for international peacekeeping in Sudan April 29, 2004 By Elliott Wright*  | A UMNS photo by Mike DuBose. Rev. R. Randy Day addresses a session of General Conference in Pittsburgh. |
PITTSBURGH
(UMNS) ––The top mission executive of the 10-million member United
Methodist Church is calling for an international peacekeeping effort in
the Sudan, where government-supported militia have caused the death and
displacement of millions of people. The
Rev. R. Randy Day, top staff executive of the United Methodist Board of
Global Ministries, made the appeal April 28 from the site of the
denomination’s General Conference, a quadrennial legislative meeting. In
a related move, Bishop Joseph Humper of Sierra Leone, a director of the
New York-based mission agency, sent a letter to United Nations
Secretary General Kofi Annan, urging quick U.N. action to ward off a
human catastrophe in the Sudan. The bishop is chair of the Sierra Leone
Commission on Truth and Reconciliation, which is trying to repair
disruptions caused by civil conflicts in his country. “Christians,
including United Methodists, cannot stand idly by as the shadow of what
may become genocide spreads,” Day said, appealing to church members to
join their voices to call for international action to stop the carnage
in Sudan. He also asked United Methodists to contribute to the
denomination’s effort to care for refugees, many of whom are finding
their way into the neighboring country of Chad. The
Sudan Council of Churches and Norwegian Church Aid issued an April 27
emergency appeal for refugee assistance. The United Methodist Committee
on Relief is responding to that appeal by working with other agencies
now ministering to refugees who have moved into Chad.  | | Bishop Joseph Humper |
“We
must engage in all productive efforts for peace, and we must reach out
to victims in the name of Jesus Christ and to be agents of the Prince of
Peace for combatants on all sides,” Day said.The
conflict is focused in the Darfur area of southern Sudan, where Islamic
militants, which have backing from the government, continue to harass
other populations despite a formal ceasefire. Bishop
Humper compared what is happening in Darfur to what happened a decade
ago in Rwanda, when a government-backed, ethnically based campaign
killed 800,000 people. He asked the U.N. secretary general to use the
“strengths of your office to promote peace, stability and fair treatment
of all ethnic groups in Sudan.” The
Pittsburgh statement was the second in a month from the head of the
United Methodist mission agency. Day noted that the conflict shows no
signs of abating. The United Nations continues to report the
displacement of large numbers of people. Day
asked United Methodists in the United States to join in a campaign
sponsored by Church World Service to win public support for
congressional measures aimed at stepped up U.N. investigation of the
situation. Noting that the U.N. High Commission on Human Rights is
organizing a fact-finding mission, Day said that increased messages to
Congress will strengthen the cause of peace and show support for the
international solution in Sudan. “The
suffering of the people of Sudan is enormous.” Day said. “The U.N.
states that 2 million Sudanese have died and 4 million out of a
population of 29 million are internally displaced. The root causes ...
include disputes over resources, power, the role of religion in the
state and self-determination.”  | | Kofi Annan |
The
fact-finding mission from the U.N. High Commissioner’s Office has spent
time in Chad and noted that in the past year at least 110,000 people
have fled from Darfur. Other U.N. sources say that 700,000 people are
internally displaced in Darfur. Atrocities have been reported, including
killings and the destruction of towns, villages, schools, wells and
food supplies.An
official of the U.S. Agency for International Development on April 27
said that black Africans in Sudan were victims of “ethnic cleansing.” Day
appealed to United Methodists worldwide to directly contact U.N.
officials on behalf of greater peace efforts in Sudan. He expressed hope
that the African Union, an umbrella organization, would move swiftly to
set up a regional peacekeeping force. The
United Methodist Committee on Relief has set up a Sudan Emergency fund
to respond to the needs of refugees entering Chad. The United Methodist
relief arm is working with partner agencies, including Actions by
Churches Together, an alliance of many denominations. Contributions may
be sent to Sudan Emergency, UMCOR, 475 Riverside Drive, New York, NY
10115 (Advance No. 184385). *Wright is a correspondent for United Methodist News Service News media contact: (412) 325-6080 during General Conference, April 27-May 7. After May 10: (615) 742-5470.
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