Arms sales from China and Russia are fueling serious human rights violations in Darfur, Amnesty International said on Wednesday.
These arms transfers highlight the urgent need to strengthen the existing ineffectual U.N. arms embargo and for governments to agree an effective Arms Trade Treaty, the London based human rights watchdog said in a briefing titled "Sudan: No end to the conflict in Darfur." It documents how China, Russia, and Belarus continue to supply weapons and munitions to Sudan despite compelling evidence that the arms will be used against civilians in Darfur. Exports include supplying significant quantities of ammunition, helicopter gunships, attack aircraft, air-to-ground rockets and armored vehicles.
An estimated 70,000 people were displaced from eastern Darfur in 2011 in a wave of ethnically targeted attacks against the Zaghawa community by Sudanese government forces and militias.
"China and Russia are selling arms to the Government of Sudan in the full knowledge that many of them are likely to end up being used to commit human rights violations in Darfur," said Brian Wood, an expert on military and policing for Amnesty International.
"The Darfur conflict is sustained by the constant flow of weapons from abroad," Wood said and called for the immediate suspension of all international arms transfers to Sudan and extension of the U.N. arms embargo to the whole country to help prevent further serious violations of human rights.
Next week, the U.N. Security Council will again consider the existing Sudan sanctions. Governments will also resume crucial talks on a future Arms Trade Treaty. An effective treaty would compel governments to stop transfers where there is a substantial risk the arms will be used to commit or facilitate serious human rights violations or war crimes.
"Until governments agree a strong Arms Trade Treaty with specific rules to respect human rights, UN arms embargoes will continue to be flouted and millions of people will continue to suffer the consequences of irresponsible arms transfers, as they do in Darfur," Wood said.
Arms supplied to the Sudanese government are used in Darfur both directly by the Sudan Armed Forces (SAF); and government-backed militia including the Popular Defense Force (PDF). The PDF formally commanded and equipped by SAF operate alongside them, including by being deployed on SAF vehicles.
Chinese-manufactured small arms ammunition is being used in Darfur by SAF, other Sudanese security agencies and SAF-backed militia groups.
One man was shot dead and six others were seriously injured when Sudanese security forces carried out a looting raid at the Zam Zam refugee camp on December 1.
Witnesses reported finding ammunition following the raid bearing Chinese '41' and '71' manufacture codes, and (20)06 and (20)08 manufacture dates indicating that it was transferred to Darfur after the imposition of the U.N. arms embargo.
Amnesty has discovered that 2010-manufactured ammunition with Chinese manufacturing codes in Southern Kordofan during 2011.
Fighting in eastern Darfur last year saw a repeated pattern of aerial attacks on both military and civilian targets using SAF Sukhoi-25 ground-attack aircraft, Mi-24 helicopter gunships, and Antonov transport aircraft used as rudimentary but effective bombers.
Amnesty has found that Sudan received 36 new Mi-24 helicopter gunships between 2007 and 2009. The continual replacement of Mi-24s by Russia makes it possible for attacks in Darfur to continue.
Amnesty claimed that it has obtained evidence of the use of air-to-ground rockets in several SAF airstrikes during 2011. These rockets have been manufactured in a number of former Soviet Union countries and are consistent with the weapons suites of Mi-24 helicopter gunships and Su-25 ground attack aircraft.
Sudan has continued to import a significant number of armored vehicles from Belarus and Russia.
For comments and feedback: editorial@rttnews.com