[Dialogue] {Disarmed} Witness to Darfur

[KarenBueno at aol.com]

Genocide in Darfur 
September 1, 2007 
From Karen Bueno 
A high school student in our UMC congregation was studying genocide when she 
heard of the current situation in Darfur in the Sudan.  She volunteered to 
present a program for our members, with a computer-generated slide show.  The 
presentation was last Thursday, and well received by the 25 people in attendance. 
For those of you who have not followed the Darfur crisis, you may need these 
facts:  Sudan is the largest country in Africa, located just south of Egypt on 
the eastern edge of the Sahara desert.  Darfur, an area about the size of 
Texas, lies in western Sudan and borders Libya, Chad and the Central African 
Republic.  The approximately 6 million inhabitants of Darfur are among the poorest 
in Africa.   
The Sudanese divide themselves into two groups: Arabs and Black Africans.  In 
2003, two rebel groups of Black Africans challenged Sudan’s president, Omar 
al-Bashir and his government, mainly Arabs.  The president’s response to the 
rebels was brutal, and continues today.  Bashir has called for the removal of 
all Black Africans from Sudan. 
The Black Africans are traditionally farmers; Arabs are nomads who, and are 
known to graze their animals on the farms.  With the Sudanese government 
leadership, villages are emptied by direct violence, then looted, then burned to the 
ground along with food stores and current crops.  Disease, violence, and 
starvation have claimed as many as 400,000 lives.  Some 2.5 million Darfuris have 
fled to refugee camps, and are completely dependent on the United Nations and 
other humanitarian organizations for their livelihood - food, water, shelter, 
and health care.  (see savedarfur.org) 
As Missions Team chair at my congregation, I saw to it that the presentation 
was scheduled, advertised and attended, and ordered and delivered 100 t-shirts 
to be awarded for a $15 donation to the United Nations World Food Program. 
If you want a t-shirt, send $15 to me at Karen Bueno 11284 Dexter Circle, 
Thornton, CO  80233.  I’ll stand the postage back to you and donate your money to 
the UN.  The shirts are all cotton, a natural color, with brown lettering and 
original artwork and say “Save Darfur”.  Specify large or extra large. 
The United States has donated some $74 million to refugee relief through the 
United Nations, but apparently there has been little done to stop the 
violence.  Sudan produces oil… 
One of the best options I’ve heard suggested as I’ve studied the situation 
is to begin naming Omar al-Bashir and the rest of his government officials as 
war criminals in the open press.  Who knows how to get this done? 
And has anyone seen evidence that there are US congress people working on the 
issue? 
The United Nations has promised 26,000 peace-keeping troops by December 31, 
2007.  This kind of promise has been made in the past, and it has not happened. 
 Most of the current violence is happening in spite of a signed cease-fire 
between the rebels and the Sudanese government.  See the book, The Devil Came On 
Horseback, by Brian Steidle, 2007, _www.publicaffairsbooks.com_ 
(http://www.publicaffairsbooks.com/)  
The cast of “Oceans Thirteen” has donated one million dollars to the United 
Nations World Food Program.  Don Cheadle, a Denver kid who went to East High 
with my son, Denny Wright, is actively supporting the Save Darfur cause.  His 
suggestion is for all of us to be sure we know about it, and that we are 
sharing what we know in any small groups where we a part. 
Here I stand.  Finding as many ways as I can to take responsibility for 
Darfur. 
****** 
Karen Bueno, in Thornton, Colorado, formerly Karen Wright.  My family and I 
were in Fifth City from 1969 to 1972, and in Houston until 1973, and in Denver 
as extended order following that. 



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