Kerry in Sudan

[karynnj]

The Sudanese Government has welcomed the visit of John Kerry, US Senate Foreign Relations Committee, which starts today.

The US relations officer in the Sudanese Ministry of Foreign affairs, Nasr el Din wali, told the press that the visit is a positive step towards developing the US-Sudanese relations.

John Kerry arrives in Khartoum today heading a delegation from the US Congress.

<snip>

Speaking to Miraya FM, Fernandez said that the visit will concentrate on solving the Darfur crisis, specially the humanitarian situation after the government's decision of expelling aid organizations from Darfur, in addition to following up the implementation of the Comprehensive Peace Agreement.

http://sudanwatch.blogspot.com/2009/04/us-senator-john-kerry-arrives-in.html

[wisteria]

1. Mentioned in the Washington Post.

U.S. senator Kerry arrives in Sudan for three day visit

KHARTOUM (Reuters) - U.S. senator and former presidential candidate John Kerry arrived in Sudan Wednesday for a three-day visit as the diplomatic detente between Washington and Khartoum shows further signs of a thaw. Kerry, chairman of the U.S. Senate Foreign Relations Committee, will lead a congressional delegation to Sudan's Darfur region and hold talks with senior members of the Sudanese government.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/04/15/AR2009041500469_2.html



"diplomatic detente"- interesting.

[ObamaKerryDem]

2. Good luck to the Senator on this very important visit.

I have complete confidence he will represent us very well, as he always does. :)

[karynnj]

3. looking for more Sudan stories, I found his 2004 comments - also Teresa is there too

Other than the snark in the first line by the blogger - he credited Kerry with having the strongest position on this - http://www.michaeltotten.com/archives/2004/07/kerry-stop-genocide-in-sudan.php

This is intriguing - here is a link on TV coverage in London - apparently Teresa is with Senator Kerry.

"U.S. senator John Kerry arrives in Sudan on a three-day visit for talks
with government officials on the situation in Darfur.

SHOWS:

KHARTOUM, SUDAN (APRIL 15, 2009) (REUTERS - ACCESS ALL)
1. U.S. SENATOR JOHN KERRY AND HIS WIFE TERESA WITH U.S. AND SUDANESE
OFFICIALS WALKING INTO VIP LOUNGE AT KHARTOUM AIRPORT"


http://rtv.rtrlondon.co.uk/2009-04-15/f613474.html

[wisteria]

4. Yes, Teresa is with him, she was in Pakistan also.

At first I wondered why she was there except perhaps to be with her husband and give him support. Then I got to thinking about Sudan and Teresa being a philanthropist and thought perhaps she could do something for the people of Sudan through one of the Heinz foundations.

[karynnj]

5. Same thoughts here

but I think other reasons are that he trusts her opinions and I think he is better when he is with her. That was at least true when he was campaigning in the US. Although diplomacy is different, some of it is connecting with the people you are meeting. In addition, from various little articles in the past, Teresa and John often hosted dinners for foreign leaders when they were DC - so she likely knows many of the leaders that he was meeting with.

She was also with him on his trip in the Middle East and on 2007's trip to South Africa when he was doing oversight on the AIDS in Africa program. She likely was an incredible asset in Africa.

[beachmom]

6. Agreed. Teresa is truly an asset in these types of settings.

Also, don't forget that she was a student activist in South Africa protesting Apartheid (and getting kicked out of the country for her political activities). She grew up in Africa, and I think she still views it as home to a certain extent. In short, she really cares about that continent. It's really good to hear she is accompanying the Senator to Sudan. Not to be overly dramatic, but my assumption is that everyone he meets with from the Sudanese government is potentially a war criminal and truly evil. The President of Sudan has already been charged with war crimes by the ICC:

http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2009/mar/04/omar-bashir-sudan-president-arrest

The Sudanese president, Omar al-Bashir, has been charged with war crimes over the conflict in Darfur, becoming the first sitting head of state issued with an arrest warrant by the international criminal court (ICC).

The court, based in The Hague, upheld the request of the chief prosecutor, Luis Moreno-Ocampo, to charge Bashir with war crimes and crimes against humanity. More than 200,000 people have died since 2003 in the country's western Darfur region.

Judges dismissed the prosecution's most contentious charge of genocide. Prosecutors had alleged Bashir tried to wipe out three non-Arab ethnic groups.

Within minutes of the announcement, hundreds of protesters took to the streets in Khartoum, the Sudanese capital.

Mustafa Osman Ismail, an aide to Bashir, described the decision as "neo-colonialism ... They do not want Sudan to become stable."

The ICC spokeswoman, Laurence Blairon, said the indictment, drawn up by three judges, included five counts of crimes against humanity: murder, extermination, forcible transfer, torture and rape. The two counts of war crimes were for directing attacks on the civilian population and pillaging.

Blairon said Bashir was criminally responsible as the head of state and commander of the Sudanese armed forces for the offences during a five-year counter-insurgency campaign against three armed groups in Darfur.

I think Teresa has an excellent talent in judging someone's character. Those skills will be put to good use in Sudan.

[karynnj]

7. I agree with all you wrote - Teresa is incredible and she brings out the best in him

The way Teresa was treated in 2004 was as dishonest as anything else - and as you wrote yesterday, 2004 was very dishonest on the Republicans side. I loved the line in his dedication to the "New War" about Teresa. "And to my wife, Teresa, who has brought new understanding, commitment, and meaning to my life."

The ironic thing is that long term they would have been better off being more honest - likely leading to a Kerry win.) When Obama took office, it was with the country knowing that he faced enormous problems and he has a big Democratic majority rather than the Republican majority in both houses Kerry would have had. Had Kerry won, all these problems were already there or developing. Although he would have worked as hard as he could and the country would likely be far better off - no one would know the complete disaster that Bush led to. Kerry would have been accused of "losing Iraq" and blamed for the financial crisis that was already building up.

[ObamaKerryDem]

16. "And to my wife, Teresa, who has brought new understanding, commitment, and meaning to my life."

Aww, that's so sweet! He and Teresa make a great team; a true power couple in every sense of the term. Glad she's there with him! :)

[wisteria]

20. Sweet n/t

[wisteria]

11. I hadn't given any thought to her being acquainted with some of these world leaders

from previous visits. But, I do know that she is definitely an asset to have along.

[karynnj]

8. A article with good comments from a spokesman for the Sudan People's Liberation Movement political

bureau.

"Yasser Arman, a member of the Sudan People's Liberation Movement political bureau, said Kerry's visit would help push implementation of the 2005 Comprehensive Peace Agreement that ended the war between the north and south regions of the country.

"Sen. Kerry is adding another angle of the Congress and of the legislature of the United States. ... He would also be trying to strengthen peace and democracy in Sudan," Arman told VOA.

Kerry's visit also will impact the implementation of the peace agreement, Arman said.

"Absolutely, he would add his voice which is a strong voice to the need of implementing the CPA and honoring the commitment from the National Congress side," he said. "And he will help both parties and most importantly he would also be visiting Darfur and that would bring more focus on the issue of Darfur and the issues of the CPA."

http://www.upi.com/Top_News/2009/04/16/Sen-John-Kerry-stops-in-Sudan/UPI-47521239889536/

Not Kerry related, but the linked article on Obama's envoy is very interesting - he seems an excellent choice. http://www.upi.com/Top_News/2009/03/23/Darfur-aid-groups-praise-US-envoy-choice/UPI-86981237810403/

[beachmom]

9. Oh, never mind. I'll leave the quotes though.

http://www.voanews.com/english/Africa/2009-04-16-voa5.cfm

Yasser Arman is a senior member of the SudanPeople's Liberation Movement (SPLM) Political Bureau. He tells reporter Peter Clottey that Senator Kerry's visit would help push to the forefront implementation of the 2005 Comprehensive Peace Agreement that ended the war between the north and South.

"It is an important event and as you know Senator Kerry is a prominent figure and he is adding value after the U. S envoy came here when he presented the administration's point. Senator Kerry is adding another angle of the congress and of the legislature of the United States. And a man of his caliber coming at this critical stage to Sudan will open new doors, new avenues, and new opportunities and trying to work out resolutions of the Darfur crisis as well as implementing the CPA. He would also be trying to strengthen peace and democracy in Sudan, "Arman noted.

He said Senator Kerry's visit would have an enormous impact on the full implementation of the CPA.

"Absolutely, he would add his voice which is a strong voice to the need of implementing the CPA and honoring the commitment from the National Congress side. And he will help both parties and most importantly he would also be visiting Darfur and that would bring more focus on the issue of Darfur and the issues of the CPA. And we think his presence is of value to us (SPLM) and we encourage more visits from him and others to focus on the implementation of the CPA and the democratization and transformation of the country and the comprehensive resolution of the Darfur crisis," he said.

Arman described the Darfur humanitarian crisis as reprehensible.

...

Sudan's Comprehensive Peace Agreement (CPA) effectively ended what was widely described as Africa's longest war between Khartoum government and the insurgent Sudan People's Liberation Movement/Army (SPLM/A).

Political analysts see the main obstacles to the full implementation of the 2005 CPA to be President Bashir's ruling National Congress Party's of unwillingness to embrace genuine power sharing and elections, and ultimately allow a referendum for southern self-determination after the six-year interim period.

[wisteria]

12. Quotes of high praise and optimism. I truly hope that Senator Kerry

can deliver what those who praise him most want. He will have his work cut out for him though. From your comments it appears President Bashir is insecure and fearful of losing his power, so he isn't willing to do what must be done to bring peace to the region.

[ProSense]

10. Photos

here

[wisteria]

13. Hello and thanks ProSense. n/t

[ProSense]

24. Hi

:hi:

[karynnj]

14. Video of JK and THK in Sudan

http://english.ntdtv.com/ntdtv_en/ns_me/2009-04-16/467092612725.html

[wisteria]

15. Thanks for locating this. n/t

[karynnj]

17. Some success - Reuters reports: Sudan to allow some relief aid in Darfur

A small amount of good news - though more is needed. (All 13 relief aid organizations were thrown out.)

Sudan has told the United States it will allow some aid back into its Darfur region, U.S. Senator John Kerry said on Thursday.

"Thanks to the leadership of the president's special envoy General Scott Gration and thanks to the willingness of the government here to engage in a new dialogue with us, some of that capacity for humanitarian assistance will be restored," Kerry told reporters after meeting senior members of the Sudanese government.

<snip>
"Today I emphasised, to all the leaders I met with, that a partial restoration of capacity is not sufficient," Kerry said.

"Time is of the essence to avert a humanitarian catastrophe."

http://uk.reuters.com/article/worldNews/idUKTRE53F6CD20090416

Posted in LBN because it really is a big deal - http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=102x3835303

[Island Blue]

18. My friend's cousin has been named Special Envoy

to Sudan. http://www.whitehouse.gov/the_press_office/President-Obama-Announces-Major-General-Scott-Gration-as-US-Special-Envoy-for-Sudan

(Not that I'm dropping names or anything. ;))

[wisteria]

19. Nice. n/t

[karynnj]

21. He really seems a really good choice

That is cool that he is your friend's cousin.

[ProSense]

25. Cool!

:hi:

[karynnj]

22. Another article that has some more interpretation

http://www.voanews.com/english/2009-04-17-voa26.cfm

[ProSense]

23. More

news

[wisteria]

26. Positive advancements are coming out of this visit. I hope they result in real changes. n/t

[wisteria]

27. A Kerry interview. Some good news.

http://www.reuters.com/article/latestCrisis/idUSLH612957


"He told a group of about 100 people Washington had reached agreement with Khartoum on a resumption of aid activities, but that the expelled aid groups would not necessarily return.

"We have agreement that in the next weeks we will be back to 100 percent capacity," said Kerry."

[karynnj]

28. Coverage of a more extensive interview in Sudan and some really interesting Sudanese coverage

interview coverage - http://www.reuters.com/article/latestCrisis/idUSLH612957

Sudanese coverage - http://www.sudanvisiondaily.com/modules.php?name=News&file=article&sid=44176

It would be naive to thing that everything will be reasonable soon in that country, but this 3 day visit seems to have done far more than anyone hoped.

[ObamaKerryDem]

29. Sounds like he acheived a lot on it! Good to hear. Thanks for the articles! :) n/t

[wisteria]

30. Kerry article from NPR-audio available soon. Please comment if you feel so inclined.

http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=103295567&ft=1&f=1001&sc=YahooNews