July 20, 2005
Tension In Rice Visit To Sudan
Condoleezza Rice Visits Darfur, Where 2 Million Are In Refugee Camps
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Play CBS Video Video Scuffling Incidents In Sudan Condoleezza Rice went to Sudan to express U.S. concern over the refugee crisis in the Darfur region. But her mission was overshadowed by some ugly moments in Sudan's capital, David Hawkins reports.
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Women at the Abu Shouk refugee camp, in North Darfur, Sudan. (AP)
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Condoleezza Rice (AP)
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Photo Essay Fleeing Sudan Ethnic violence has killed thousands of Sudanese and sent many others into exile
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Fast Facts Sudan Learn about the people, economy and history.
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Briefing reporters aboard Rice’s plane, Natsios said the humanitarian and security situation in the region has "stabilized." Child mortality rates are dramatically lower and violence has decreased in the region’s villages, in part because, he said, 2,000 villages in the area has been either completely or partially destroyed by the Jinjaweed militia during fighting in 2003 and 2004. One disturbing sign noted by both Natsios and Rice is that there is still a "disturbingly high level of violence against women."
According to Natsios, the Abu Shouk camp is the second largest in Darfur. Two weeks ago, it had an estimated 71,000 residents but the Sudanese government has since moved some of them to a new camp nearby.
To grasp the continuing severity of the humanitarian crisis, Natsios says out of a total population of 5 million in Darfur, there are two million people in such camps, including 1.8 million inside Darfur and about 200,000 just across the border in Chad. The Abu Shouk camp had about 40,000 residents a year ago when Secretary of State Colin Powell visited.
How many died in the fighting? "Nobody knows," said Natsios. He estimates the number in the "hundreds of thousands."
During her three-hour long stop in Darfur Thursday, Rice will meet with officers who lead the African Union peacekeeping force and representatives of aid organizations who work in the camps. Rice will also have a private meeting with a small group of women who live in the camp.
What's your opinion? Charles Wolfson welcomes comments from readers of Diplomatic Dispatch and can be reached at cwp@cbsnews.com.
By Charles Wolfson
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