China breaks its word in Sudan: No work for peace in Darfur

The Society for Threatened Peoples (GfbV) accused the Chinese government on Tuesday of not doing more work for peace, as it had promised, in Darfur. "Peking is further fanning the flames of the genocide in the west of Sudan with new deliveries of arms and the search for oil in Darfur”, criticised the Sudan expert of the GfbV, Ulrich Delius. So it is insincere to celebrate

the opening of the Olympic Games under the motto "One world, one dream”. Peking is not living up to its responsibility in the world since it is not using its political, economic and military influence on Sudan’s rulers to achieve peace. The sending of just 315 Chinese engineers in the framework of the UNAMID peace-keeping operation is not enough. In the past seven months alone approximately 180,000 Darfuris have been expelled.

In an open letter to the Chinese President, Hu Jintao, 108 delegates of the US House of Representatives warned on 9th May 2007 that the People’s Republic would suffer a loss of image if China did not increase its efforts at a peace solution in Darfur. China’s leaders has on several occasions publicly announced greater work for solving the conflict in Sudan, but protested against any reference to the Olympic Games.

"More than a year after these promises the failure to keep their word is absolutely clear”, said Delius. Peking has three times, since December 2007 alone, prevented a condemnation of Sudan. Through countless interventions since October 2004 China has always prevented sanctions against Sudan.

Peking’s consideration towards Khartoum is above all due to China’s involvement in the Sudanese oil industry. Sudan is the fourth most important supplier of mineral oil to China. The People’s Republic is reported as having invested more than nine thousand million US dollars in the Sudanese oil industry. A report was published in July 2008 stating that Chinese oil companies are to take part in the prospecting work in the new oil-field Block 12A in North Darfur. The concession area is five times the size of Belgium.

But it is also through arms deliveries that China shares responsibility for the genocide, said Delius. The People’s Republic is for Sudan the most important supplier of small arms. Highly modern A-5S fighters, K-8 flight trainers, T-96 tanks, lories, T-92 armoured personnel carriers and the latest FN-6 ground-to-air missiles have been delivered by the People’s Republic since the beginning of the genocide in Darfur in February 2003. UN observers have photographed Nanchang A-5 Fanta fighters made in China at the airport Nyala (South Darfur). China has several times been blamed with infringing the UN arms embargo for Darfur.