Social Science Research Council

Posted on behalf of Julie Flint.
At 2 pm on Sunday 4 May, a single Antonov bomber targeted the village of Shegeg Karo in North Darfur, destroying the market and hitting the village school during classes. At least 11 people were killed outright, six of them children between the ages of five and eleven. More [...]

Posted on behalf of Johan Brosché
The point of departure for the report, Darfur: Dimensions and Dilemmas of a Complex Situation, published by the Uppsala University Department of Peace and Conflict Research, is a field study conducted by the
author in Sudan during the fall of 2007. The purpose of this analysis is
to deepen knowledge about the [...]

The question of land ownership lies at the heart of Sudan’s wars and the viability of its peace agreements. The configuration of issues is different in Darfur to Southern Sudan, South Kordofan, Eastern Sudan and the national capital—but in every case, we cannot expect lasting peace unless land ownership issues are settled in an equitable [...]

Editors note: We are pleased to have this contribution from Daniel Large, a UK-based scholar on China—Sudan relations who has published widely on the topic. He recently authored a piece, “China and the Changing Context of Development in Sudan,” for the journal Development.

Europe and America have tended to regard China as the Great Hope or the Great Demon, moving historically between binary projections of China as an enlightened model to learn from or as an example to avoid. In the case of Sudan today, however, China is paradoxically held up to represent both: it is supposedly the route to peace in Darfur but it is also responsible for ‘empowering evil’ in Sudan.

Steven Spielberg’s decision not to continue his role as artistic director[...]

Editor’s note: Chris Alden, senior lecturer in international relations at the London School of Economics, contributed this post on Steven Spielberg’s withdrawal from his involvement in the Beijing Olympics. Alden is the author of the acclaimed China in Africa, part of the African Arguments series to which Alex de Waal’s book on Darfur, written with Julie Flint, also belongs.

Steven Spielberg’s decision to publicly withdrawal from his post as artistic director of the Beijing Olympics has reignited a simmering debate as to China’s relationship with the Sudanese government and its role in the troubled Darfur region. In what appears to be a carefully worded statement, Spielberg acknowledges that while the Sudanese government bore the ‘bulk of the responsibility’ for crimes in Darfur, the ‘international community and China in particular should be doing more’ [...]

This past Wednesday, the Hollywood director Steven Spielberg resigned from his post as artistic director of the Beijing Olympics. His stated aim in doing so was to attract attention to China’s ties with Sudan.

China responded by continuing to distance itself from the issue [...]

This week’s issue of New York magazine gives a shout-out to a next week’s Frontline program, “On Our Watch.” Alex de Waal is one of the people they interview, along with James Traub and Samantha Power.

The exchanges on this blog on the issue of mortality in Darfur have been refreshingly sober. Let me add some further observations, on culpability for famine deaths, what constitutes a “normal” death rate, and on staying objective amidst powerful moral considerations.
One: Famine Crimes
First, are all the deaths in Darfur the criminal responsibility of the Sudan [...]

How many people have died in Darfur and what is the value of this information? The recent ruling by the British Advertising Standards Authority that Save Darfur was guilty of misrepresenting the figure of 400,000 deaths as "fact" rather than, in its view, as "opinion," has ignited a controversy that has long haunted advocacy around [...]

(The following essay is posted on behalf of Selma Scheewe. The author based this essay on her Thesis titled “Sexual Violence and HIV/AIDS in Conflict-ridden Darfur”, at the University of Groningen.)
Introduction
Sexual violence is a prominent aspect of many recent conflicts. In the media and the reports of humanitarian agencies, this sexual violence is often linked [...]