Running head: The Darfur Conflict and its Link to Climate Change 1

The Darfur Conflict and its Link to Climate Change

name

Excelsior College

Author Note

This paper was prepared for HIS353: Holocaust, taught by Dr. Steven Leibo
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Abstract

Climate change and its effects on the world is one of the most unyielding challenges we face as a

global community. The impact of climate change has been felt the hardness in developing

countries; Africa has felt the impact the hardest causing conflict to occur in Darfur. The lack of

resources, the political landscape and the inadequate financial support has made this region

unstable. The decreased rainfall and land abasement has made it difficult for Darfurians to allow

their cattle the opportunity to graze, thus pushing those to migrate to the south. Unfortunately,

this has created conflict as they are denied access. The increased competition for natural

resources, water and land access has caused conflict among its people. This paper will explore

the links between race-based ideology and the dehumanization of the Darfurians. It will show the

correlation between genocide and climate change. Furthermore, how precautionary tactics can

lessen future conflicts in the region.

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The Darfur Conflict and its Link to Climate Change

Nearly 400,000 Africans may have lost their lives in the radically motivated, lethally destructive;

state supported and militarily unjustified attacks on the farms and villages of the Darfur region of

Sudan (Hagan & Richmond, 2005). Climate change has been debated by scholars for years as it

relates to its effect on scarcity resource and conflict. While a consensus has not been reached;

strong theoretic arguments can be made to support the link between armed conflict and resource

scarcity. Akasha (2014) argues “that the impacts of climate change cannot be the same in every

society, the severity of these impacts depend on the situation within the state itself”. This paper

will work to show the relationship between climate change and genocide.

The History of Genocide

Ralph Lemkin in his book “Axis Rule in Occupied Europe” would introduce the concept
of genocide. The definition of genocide that is used reflects the official definition as outlined in
the Convention (UN 1948):
… Any of the following acts committed with intent to destroy, in whole or in part,

a national, ethnic, racial or religious group as such:

(a) Killing members of the group;

(b) Causing serious bodily or mental harm to members of the group;

(c) Deliberately inflicting on the group conditions of life calculated to bring about

its physical destruction in whole or in part;

(d) Imposing measures intended to prevent births within the group;

(e) Forcibly transferring children of the group to another group.

Anti-Semitism and the Holocaust

Anti-Semitism can be traced back to Martin Luther and Hitler as they were both obsessed

about the Jewish people. Dawidowicz (1986) would cite, “Know, Christian,” wrote Luther, “that
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next to the devil thou hast no enemy more cruel, more venomous and violent that a true Jew”.

Hitler’s racial policies were similar to those of Luther. However, the German anti-Semitism is

somewhat different as it is related to the Christian anti-Semitism foundation created by the

Catholic Church. Modern German anti-Semitism was the “bastard child of the union of Christian

anti-Semitism with German nationalism” (Dawidowicz, 1986). Hitler would believe that the

“Aryan” race was the pure race and “bearer of human cultural development and consequently,

human culture and civilization” (Dawidowicz, 1986, p. 18).

The Darfur Conflict

In the paper titled, “The Collective Dynamics of Racial Dehumanization and Genocidal

Victimization in Darfur” the authors John Hagan and Wenona Rymond-Richmond focus on “the

Sudanese government’s crisis framing of a dehumanizing collective process” (p.4). The

dehumanization process would include terrorism including the use of racial epithets (e.g., “you

are slaves, kill the slaves” and “this is the last day for blacks”) resulting in violent victimization,

which form the collective process of dehumanization (Hagan & Richmond, 2008).

Hagan & Richmond (2008) share a theory called “Collective Framing” to explain the role

of the state in activating racial dehumanization in which ”racial targeting was the socially

constructed and critically contingent mechanism that mediated the influence of population–

resource competition on genocidal victimization” (p.5). The authors hypothesize

that the aggregation and concentration of racial epithets during attacks created a

collective effect that intensified the severity of genocidal violence. Collective

dehumanization processes place groups outside the normative universe of moral

protection, leaving them vulnerable to targeted genocidal victimization. These racialized

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and collectivized dehumanization processes establish the contingent conditions for

genocide (p.5)

Sudanese would align with the Janjweed Sudanese forces joined with Janjaweed

militia to attack black African settlements. They aggregated and concentrated racial epithets in a

collective process of dehumanization and organized terror, which amplified the severity of

genocidal victimization, the lethal and lasting scar of the genocidal state.

The conflict in Darfur has similarities and differences. The Nazis of Germany sought to

annihilate the entire Jewish race in Europe. The Sudanese government murdered those they

thought to be an inferior race. Both groups terrorized the people they deemed not worthy of life.

The Nazis believed in Social Darwinism and the Jews were the inferior race. The Nazis would

murder over six million Jews; while the Janjaweed Militia and Sudanese Government would

murder close to 400,000 people.

Climate Change and Darfur Genocide

Since the 1990s Sudan has suffered from social and economic pressures. The people of

Darfur have remained in consistent poverty and

lack of good infrastructure, the difficulty of getting a foothold in the world

market, and thus the intractability of underdevelopment, but also by the effects of armed

conflict which has started since August 1955 and continued under the ruling of the

successive governments took power in Sudan (Akasha, 2014, p.16).

Akasha (2014) describes how small-scale conflicts without arms have been fought in

Darfur throughout its history. In the past thirty years the conflicts have been mostly in the south,
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west and east of the country. These disputes occur over cattle theft, access to water and grazing,

as well as local politics (p.55).

The drought of 1873/1874 would cause major famine for the area. Darfur would suffer

from years of drought condition that would lead to poor harvest and conflicts with the Weddasi.

These conflicts would lead to pillaging and trading. The famine of 1888-92 has been described

as the “worst ever” and would cause fighting between the Mahdist forces under the “governor of

Darfur and a religiously inspired rebel army” (p.55). Akasha (2014) cites, “Many studies found

substantial evidence of a strong link between the recent occurrences of local conflicts in Darfur

and the environmental degradation” and the “UN Environment Programme asserted a very strong

link between land degradation, desertification and conflict in Darfur” (Akasha, 20104, p.35).

Sudan has always been dependent on rainfall as it is an agricultural economy. The inconsistent

rainfall in the region has made it “vulnerable to the adverse consequences of climate change”

(p.35).

The United Nations response

The United Nations Security Council (UNSC) in response to the genocide in Darfur

“adopted nine major and overall 26 resolutions since the start of the crisis and repeatedly warned

and urged the Sudanese government to stop the violence” (Akasha, 2014, p.65). The resolution

adopted in July 2004 mandated the Sudan government to disarm the militias and bring the guilt

parties to justice. In addition arms embargos were placed on non-government entities. However,

Akasha would cite, The UNSC then failed to monitor the implementation of its demand, let alone

take action against Khartoum for failing to act. (In reality, the Sudan government was incapable

of disarming the militia.)

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The second resolution titled 1554 was passed later that same year requesting the Sudan

government comply with the first resolution. Resolution 1554 “created an International

Commission of Inquiry to report on violations of human rights and humanitarian law in Darfur”

(p.65). A third resolution, 1590 was passed to establish the “UN Mission in Sudan (UNMIS)”

which would call for a “ban on offensive military flights over Darfur, extended arms embargo to

all in Darfur, and authorized targeted sanctions (travel ban and asset freeze) (p.65). The U.N.

would continue to pass a ban in a final effort to resolve the problem in Darfur by referring the

matter to the “International Criminal Court (ICC)”

In March of 2009, “ICC issued arrest warrants for the President of Sudan, Omar al-

Bashir, accusing him of war crimes and crimes against humanity” (p.66).

Conclusion

Many years have passed since the conflict in Darfur and billions of dollars have been

spent “over negotiations, humanitarian aid and the deployment of military troops, nevertheless,

the crisis is unfolded but evolving” (p.70). The International Community has shown great

involvement with Darfur, however, the problem is not a political one. Akasha (2014) cites,

it's high time for International community to look at the crisis from another

untraditional perspective, try to look deep for the root causes rather than the symptoms.

The crisis in Darfur is not an accidental disaster, or a human catastrophe that

humanitarian intervention can reverse or solve. The conflict is as not simple as presented

in the media, which casts the conflict in terms of Arabs versus black Africans. The reality

is far more muddled. It is a human tragedy, brewing for decades that finally erupted into a

vicious cycle of violence in 2003 (p.70).

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The Darfur conflict is portrayed in the media as war against Arabs and Africans instead of

looking at the root cause of the conflict. This view is an over simplicity representation.

The International community will need the involvement of all nations to prevent further

genocide. It was work to create sanctions, trade embargos and other tactics to prevent and

eliminate further acts of genocide from occurring.

Recommendations

Several recommendations have been made to address the on –going crisis in Darfur. One

is to “increase adaptive capacity through improving environmental governance: by building the

capacity of local environmental leaders to understanding climate change in Darfur, especially for

drought management. The lack of drought management was a key issue in the conflict” (Akasha,

2014, p.72). Increase awareness in social learning and adaptation to increase environmental

awareness of climate change and incorporate climate change strategies to increase awareness and

improve environmental education, and incorporate indigenous knowledge in daily adaptation

strategies” to (p.72).

Akasha (2014) suggest the following on gaining support from the International

community:

the International community should initiates sustainable integrated rural

development projects, guided by pro-poor policies and centered on improved

natural resources management for increased sustainable agricultural productivity,

improved rural infrastructure, reliable services including extension, credit and

crop protection in addition to improved social service and better marketing

channels by:
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• Enhancing natural resources management through strengthening information

base, land reform, conservation measures and sustaining the natural pastures.

• Raising agricultural productivity through improved farming systems- improved5

technologies.

The crime of genocide happens over and over again. After the Holocaust, the hollow
words “never again” are not true as more atrocities have occurred since the Holocaust. The
International community must react and take steps to prevent and stop any known acts of
genocide. The community must work on being proactive to prevent genocide and education all
on the effects of climate change and how they impact it for further generations.
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Bibliography

Akasha, M. O. (2014). Darfur : A tragedy of climate change. Hamburg, Germany: Anchor.

Dawidowicz, L.S., (1986) The war against the jews. New York, NY: Bantam

RHagan, J., Rymond-Richmond, W., & Parker, P. (2005). The criminology of genocide: the death

and rape of Darfur. Criminology, 43(3), 525-562. doi:10.1111/j.0011-1348.2005.00016.x

Hagan, J., & Rymond-Richmond, W. (2008). The collective dynamics of racial dehumanization

and genocidal victimization in Darfur. American Sociological Review, 73(6), 875-902.

Kress, C. (2005). The Darfur report and genocidal intent. Journal Of International Criminal

Justice, 3(3), 562-578. doi:10.1093/jicj/mqi054

Straus, S. (2005). Darfur and the genocide debate. Foreign Affairs, 84(1), 123-133.