CRISIS IN DARFUR, WESTERN SUDAN

Early day motion 1954, tabled 17 November 2004 by Hilton Dawson (Labour). Signed by 2 members.

That this House is alarmed at the deteriorating security situation in the Darfur region of Western Sudan, where escalating violence has according to the UN cut off nearly 200,000 people from humanitarian assistance and has driven a further 150,000 people from their homes in the past month; notes that, despite two previous UN Security Council resolutions, the Government of Sudan has failed to disarm the Janjaweed militia and provide protection and security for the people of Darfur where civilians continue to be attacked and forcibly relocated or returned to unsafe villages; calls for an immediate halt to increasingly violent attacks by Sudanese security forces on displacement camps; urges the international community to contribute generously to the UN humanitarian appeal for Darfur which shamefully remains under-funded by US$200 million, provide urgent financial and logistical support to the African Union and push for an expanded civilian protection mandate for the AU; welcomes the signing of protocols on humanitarian and security issues by the Government of Sudan, Sudan Liberation Army and Justice and Equality Movement and urges the international community to take all necessary measures to ensure the parties to the conflict respect the agreed protocols; and calls on the UK Government to use its influence in the UN to adopt tough measures against the Government of Sudan and a timetable for compliance, push for an immediate mandatory, comprehensive and monitored arms embargo against the Government of Sudan, and pressure the Government of Sudan and the Sudan People's Liberation Army to conclude swiftly peace negotiations in Naivasha.

Signatures by party: Labour 1, Labour/Co-operative 1.