Displaced, refugees and armed movements of Darfur have welcomed Mohamed Ibn Chambas as the Joint Special Representative for Darfur and Head of the African Union and United Nations Mission in Darfur (UNAMID).<\/p>\n
Displaced and refugees<\/strong><\/p>\n Speaking to Radio Dabanga on Tuesday, 25 December, Omda Ahmed Ateem, coordinator of North Darfur camps and member of the displaced and refugees association, welcomed and congratulated Chambas\u2019 appointment.<\/p>\n However, he stressed that displaced and refugees still perceive the mandate of UNAMID as weak, adding they believe the mission\u2019s forces \u201chave done nothing so far\u201d.<\/p>\n They pointed out that peacekeepers have not reached or are not stationed in areas such as Hashaba and East Jebel Marra, where \u201cmassacres against civilians were committed\u201d.<\/p>\n Displaced and refugees are demanding that UNAMID\u2019s mandate changes into a \u201cnew and strong\u201d one, which clearly protects civilians and increases the number of troops and patrols, covering \u201call areas in the region\u201d.<\/p>\n Ateem also demanded that Chambas not be \u201cbiased\u201d in favoring the government of Sudan and be \u201cbrave\u201d in implementing resolutions, \u201cas opposed to what his predecessor Ibrahim Gambari did\u201d.<\/p>\n SLM-MM<\/strong><\/p>\n Abdullah Mursal, spokesman of the Sudan Liberation Movement-Mini Minnawi (SLM-MM), expressed \u201chope\u201d that Chambas will lead UNAMID in a better way than Gambari. The movement also hopes that he will try to achieve the mission\u2019s \u201cbasic goals\u201d.<\/p>\n The spokesman suggested that during Gambari\u2019s tenure, UNAMID had \u201ccompletely deviated from its mandate and became closer to the government of Sudan\u201d.<\/p>\n He stressed this is inconsistent with the mission\u2019s policies, adding that the protection of civilians is one of its most important elements.<\/p>\n Mursal claimed that under Gambari, UNAMID could not move effectively towards sites where \u201cmassacres were committed by the regime\u201d, including Shawa, Hashaba, Kutum, Mellit and Nyala, because of restrictions imposed by the government of Sudan.<\/p>\n The movement stated that all is wants is the discontinuation of Gambari\u2019s policy under the new head of the mission, asking him to play a \u201cmajor role\u201d in activating UNAMID.<\/p>\n They also called on Chambas to implement the mission\u2019s mandate and support the deployment of troops from \u201ccountries not manipulated by the National Congress Party\u201d.<\/p>\n \u201cAlthough we do not expect a significant change in the era of the new president, we do hope for a simple focus on the people of Darfur and the protection of camps and citizens subjected to all forms of ongoing violations in the region today\u201d.<\/p>\n JEM<\/strong><\/p>\n Jibril Adam Bilal, spokesman of the Justice and Equality Movement (JEM), also welcomed Chambas and expressed hope that he will not follow the steps of his predecessor.<\/p>\n Bilal claimed Gambari \u201cmiserably failed in his core mission in Darfur\u201d, which was to protect civilians and conduct investigations into \u201ccrimes and massacres\u201d committed against civilians. He also pointed out that UNAMID failed to protect its own personnel.<\/p>\n \u201cHopefully the new president will perform his assigned duties in accordance with the UN Security Council resolutions, prosecute criminals belonging to the National Congress militias, provide camps real protection and refrain from allowing the National Congress militias to repeat crimes committed against civilians during Gambari\u2019s era\u201d, the spokesman outlined. <\/p>\n Lastly, he stated that as an administrator, Chambas \u201cmust be committed to neutrality and not be biased in favor of the National Congress Party, alike Gambari\u201d. <\/p>\n Photo: Mohamed Ibn Chambas and UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon (UN)<\/em><\/p>\n Related: <\/em>Ibn Chambas appointed to head UNAMID<\/a> (21 December 2012)<\/span><\/p>\n