Darfur, democracy and rampant factional divisions continue to dog US-Sudanese relations, writes Gamal Nkrumah The shaky truce and humanitarian crisis in Darfur should not cloud the pressing need for more sweeping Sudanese political reform. But the biggest frustration for Sudan is Washington. In terms of political noise in Washington, the most consequential topics are the war on terror, democracy and economic deregulation. Last Thursday, the United States extended sanctions against Sudan for sponsoring terrorism. Washington's decision dashed any real sense of Sudanese political integration into the international community after the Comprehensive Peace Agreement (CPA) signed on 9 January between the Sudanese government and the Sudan People's Liberation Army (SPLA). The US is clearly scrutinising Sudanese affairs. It is a challenge that other US-branded "rogue states" have had to face. As far as the Sudanese authorities are concerned, unbridled American imperialism offers Sudan unpalatable choices: adapt or disintegrate. The Sudanese government is deeply suspicious of what it sees as the disruptive power of Washington's Sudan policy. Sudan "continues to pose an unusual and extraordinary threat to the national security and foreign policy of the US," read a recent White House statement on Sudan. The White House announcement was broadcast shortly before the visit to Washington of Sudanese First Vice-President Salva Kiir. This was Kiir's first US visit in his capacity as Sudanese vice-president since the death of SPLA leader John Garang in an air crash on 30 July. In Washington, Kiir lobbied senators and congressmen for the lifting of sanctions imposed against Sudan for its alleged support of international terrorism. Kiir met US Vice-President Dick Cheney, Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and Deputy Secretary of State for African Affairs Robert Zoellick. With characteristic Washingtonian focus, Zoellick embarked on a fact-finding mission to Sudan shortly after Kiir's visit to Washington. This was the fourth visit by Zoellick to Sudan this year. Zoellick's visit was a salutary reminder to the Sudanese authorities that the US is acutely interested in Sudanese affairs. "We don't need Zoellick to resolve our internal problems," Sudanese President Omar Hassan Al-Bashir told supporters in Khartoum this week. Zoellick's visit spotlighted the political impasse in Darfur. The seventh round of Darfur peace talks in the Nigerian capital Abuja was scheduled to begin on Monday, 21 November. The sixth round ended inconclusively in October. The deteriorating security situation in Darfur has attracted deserved international attention this week. UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan warned on Monday that there is an imminent threat of a complete breakdown of law and order in Darfur, and that it was crucial for the Sudanese government and Darfur's armed opposition groups to conclude a peace treaty by the end of the year. Indeed, the 6,700-strong African Union (AU) peace-keeping force has proved to be hopelessly inadequate in stemming the terrifying tide of lawlessness and anarchy currently engulfing the war-torn Sudanese province. The UN, the AU, the European Union and humanitarian agencies warn that the AU mission doesn't receive sufficient international financial and logistical support. "A political solution is paramount," insisted Annan. "This round [of Abuja talks] should be final," he said. "It is crucial that a framework peace agreement be concluded." A report issued by the UN warned that both the Sudanese government and armed opposition groups in Darfur continued to "show disregard for both the letter and the spirit of the ceasefire agreements they signed." "The fragile ceasefire in Darfur has been failing," Zoellick told students at Khartoum University. Sudan is a country at war with itself, he implied. "There are a number of items that we want to see progressing and that's one reason why I am going to Sudan; it is to try to make sure that the policies that are represented under the CPA are on track and all the parties are participating," Zoelick had said at a press conference in Washington with Kiir. Talks between Kiir and top-level Bush administration officials covered the implementation of the 9 January north-south peace accord, or CPA. But the biggest perils facing Darfur at the moment are the current infighting among the different armed opposition factions. Ironically, one of the main armed groups in Darfur is the Justice and Equality Movement (JEM). Khartoum has warned that JEM troops were involved in the fighting in eastern Sudan. The Sudan Liberation Army (SLA) -- the secularist Darfur armed opposition group and not to be confused with the southern-based SPLA -- is facing a ruinous power struggle over leadership. The ongoing power struggle inside the SLA further dimmed the prospect of successful peace talks with the Sudanese government in Abuja. SLA Secretary-General Mani Arko Minawi is challenging the authority of SLA Chairman Abdul-Wahid Mohamed Nur. There is also a tribal dimension to the split. Nur is fast losing popularity among the rank and file who met in what was described as a "general congress" boycotted by Nur, the SLA founder, in the South Darfur town of Haskanitah. The differences between Nur and Minawi threaten to rip apart the SLA. Nur's supporters dismissed Minawi's group as a breakaway faction. The credibility of the SLA is at stake. The government of national unity in Khartoum, however, is split over the issue. Indeed, the Sudanese government has not yet reached a common platform for the next round of Darfur peace talks in Abuja. Sudan must find a solution to the Darfur crisis. Otherwise, the term "Comprehensive Peace Agreement" is more than just a euphemism; it is a misnomer.
