The UN Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator, Baroness Valerie Amos, will visit Khartoum from Monday 20 to Wednesday 23 of May.<\/p>\n
This was announced in a statement to Radio Dabanga on Sunday by Yasir Arman, Secretary General of the Sudan People\u2019s Liberation Movement \u2013 North (SPLM-N).<\/p>\n
\u201cWe have learned from Khartoum that Baroness Amos\u2019s programme will include meeting General Bashir, the Minister of Foreign Affairs and the Sudanese Humanitarian Aid Commission (HAC). She may also travel to Darfur,\u201d Arman said.<\/p>\n
\u201cThis visit comes at a crucial and critical time for the Sudanese people as Sudan is witnessing the worst humanitarian crisis in Africa today that includes Blue Nile, the Nuba Mountains, South Kordofan, North Kordofan and Darfur. Approximately four million civilians have been displaced or have become refugees as a result of a decade of war in Darfur. In the Nuba Mountains and Blue Nile, humanitarian access has been denied for two years by the Sudan government. It has simultaneously launched aerial and ground bombardments against the civilian population.\u201d<\/p>\n
Arman asserts that Khartoum is \u201cnot interested\u201d in addressing the humanitarian situation. \u201cAs usual, Khartoum is buying time, and is using the visits of high profile international officials to give lip service to the humanitarian situation,\u201d Arman said.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe Sudanese regime and General Bashir have been the largest manufacturer of the humanitarian crisis and the present regime has a long record of targeting civilian populations and destroying lives,\u201d he added.<\/p>\n
Arman said that while his movement appreciates the efforts of Baroness Amos, he points out that the government has never allowed her to visit the Nuba Mountains and Blue Nile state. \u201cWe therefore request Baroness Amos to consider visiting the areas in Blue Nile, Nuba Mountains and Darfur that are outside of the control of the government, to see for herself and to report to the international community the depth of the humanitarian crisis in those areas, rather than visiting the well selected areas by the government that do not reflect the magnitude of the crisis.\u201d<\/p>\n
On the subject of vaccinations, Arman underlined that the SPLM-N humanitarian wing has expressed its readiness for a meeting with OCHA to formulate a detailed plan. \u201cWe reiterate the need for a brief cessation of hostilities to carry out the vaccination plan. In the absence of a humanitarian agreement with Khartoum and considering the war situation, there is a need to agree on where the vaccination programme will originate from.\u201d<\/p>\n
Arman urged Baroness Amos to stress the concern and position of the United Nations, and that denying access for humanitarian purposes is a war crime in terms of international humanitarian law.<\/p>\n
File photo: SPLM-N Secretary General Yasir Said Arman<\/em><\/p>\n <\/p>\n