Sudan and South Sudan

Lord Bach Excerpts

Monday 8th December 2014 Grand Committee

[Lord Bach (Lab)]

My Lords, I congratulate the noble Earl on securing this debate and thank the other speakers for their expertise and interest in this subject. We look forward to the Minister summing up and giving us the government position, particularly on the UNAMID question that has been raised by a number of noble Lords.

The people of both South Sudan and the Republic of Sudan continue to suffer in a way and to an extent that is almost incomprehensible to us in the UK and the West. Reports from both countries indicate that the inhabitants of these two states are the victims of practically every kind of outrage known to humankind. This is a story that seems very difficult to stop or to break into, however hard the rest of the world tries. There can be no doubt that the world, whether in the form of the United Nations, the African Union, various NGOs or individual countries, including our own, has employed and continues to employ considerable resources in personnel, advice and finance in an attempt to encourage peace and to get good government—or at least moderate government—in that part of Africa.

From this side, we support Her Majesty’s Government in their aid programmes to both countries. By way of example, as part of the humanitarian response to the rising food crisis in South Sudan, I understand £150 million has already been given. However, there is clearly a need to widen the international effort from other countries. As we have heard, nearly 2 million people have been displaced by a civil war that has already killed a vast number, and now the rainy season is over, hostilities have been resumed. As the Daily Telegraph wrote on 10 November,

“a resumption of hostilities … could tip the country into a full-blown famine”.

The politics of both countries seem cursed. As we have heard, South Sudan’s independence, only a few years ago now, was warmly welcomed by the outside world, but the civil war, now one year old, has changed all that. Attempts at mediation by IGAD, allowing prolonged peace talks, are of course to be praised, but the failure of three or four deals already that were meant to stop the fighting, and the recent putting on hold of a new round of talks in neighbouring Ethiopia are, frankly, not good omens.

The position of the Republic of Sudan today is hardly more promising. As was referred to by the noble Lord, Lord Jay, the Guardian is running a series of articles all week, which is very much to be welcomed. The first is out today and sets out the backdrop to where we are. President Bashir, now 70, having been in power for 25 years, now has an even greater desire to stay there, of course, because five years ago the International Criminal Court issued an arrest warrant so that he might face grave charges, now also including genocide. Of course, any successor might well be tempted to hand him over. The description in the paper this morning is of a pervasive climate of fear and paranoia in Khartoum.

The economy in the Republic of Sudan seems moribund. There is little hard currency because of the loss of a huge amount of oil production to South Sudan. Many teachers and doctors have left in the past few months—the figure of 4,000 is given. There is the new influx of refugees from South Sudan, to add insult to injury. Add to that 40% inflation and the effect of American trade sanctions.

It is disappointing but perhaps inevitable to end by quoting the head of the UN’s Mission in South Sudan, who told the Security Council:

“I have been shocked by the complete disregard for human life”.

That is a suitably depressing note on which to end. I hope the noble Baroness may be able to cheer us up a bit, but I fear that we have to say what we find, and the situation at the moment looks very grim indeed.