Prominent Women Urge African Leaders on Darfur

Nicholas Benequista and Jeffrey Allen, OneWorld US Wed Jul 30, 4:43 PM ET

ADDIS ABABA, Jul 29 (OneWorld) - Two Nobel Laureate women and actress and activist Mia Farrow are urging African leaders to increase political pressure on Sudan, saying the continent's leaders have not done enough to end the violence in the Darfur region.

Jody Williams and Wangari Maathai, both Nobel Peace Laureates, and Farrow, the star of Rosemary's Baby and many other Hollywood blockbusters, met with African Union Chairman Jean Ping Monday in Addis Ababa, where the African Union is headquartered. The women represent the Nobel Women's Initiative, an organization established by six Nobel Laureate women to cooperate on global advocacy.

"The silence of the African Union in the face of this is something I would like to learn more about," Farrow said at a press conference here. "It is a very loud silence of acceptance of these unacceptable matters, as we are well into the fifth year of atrocities that have been called genocide."

Sudan's western Darfur region has been racked by violence since a rebellion against the federal government began in 2003. At least 200,000 people have since died, trapped on the battlefield between the insurgents and militias allegedly backed by the government.

The chief prosecutor of the International Criminal Court (ICC), Luis Moreno-Ocampo, earlier this month filed charges of genocide and crimes against humanity against Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir for his alleged role in the violence targeting civilians.

Following the announcement of the charges, leaders of the African Union came together in a show of support for al-Bashir by calling on the Court to delay an indictment while efforts to negotiate a peace settlement continue. Williams, however, disputes the African Union's argument.

"There is no peace process right now about Darfur," she said. "There is nothing to disrupt."

Several U.S.-based groups working on behalf of the civilians caught up in the conflict have welcomed the charges against al-Bashir.

The New York-based watchdog group Human Rights Watch and Washington, DC-based lobby groups Citizens for Global Solutions and Africa Action are among those urging the ICC to accept the indictment and issue an arrest warrant for al-Bashir.

Africa Action executive director Gerald LeMelle agreed with Williams' assessment of the current situation, saying: "There is no political peace process for the region to speak of."

"The people of Darfur are strongly supportive of holding those responsible for genocide and crimes against humanity accountable," LeMelle added.

Don Kraus of Citizens for Global Solutions called on U.S. President George W. Bush and other officials to follow up the ICC indictment of al-Bashir with "concrete action."

"Now is time for our administration to cooperate completely with the ICC's prosecution," said Kraus, who also urged Congressional lawmakers to change policies that limit the United States' ability to cooperate with the Court.

While over 100 countries have ratified the treaty establishing the ICC, the United States has not.

Habiba Mejri-Cheikh, spokesperson for the African Union Commission, was not available for comment.

Williams, Maathai, and Farrow are traveling to Sudan and Chad later this week to meet with women's groups and victims of the conflict.