Ignorance is Devastating

I have never heard of Mia Farrow. But, her interview on the BBC last night has made this headline. She was talking about the world's negligence of the suffering of the people of Darfur. The world is shying away from taking any concrete action in Darfur, and the UN is unable to put forward a cncrete plan.

The peacekeeping task in Darfur has suffered a setback, with the attack on the miniscule African Union peacekeeping force. If the soldiers in that region cannot defend themselves, then what must be the plight of the ordinary civilians, that was highlighted by Mrs. Farrow. She also talked of the situation getting worse, and that the world powers were not doing anything, and she had criticism for China.

Darfur has been on the News Radar for some time, ever since the event came into the eyes of the world. But, now, the world has completely closed its eyes on Darfur. Their mind reasons that this is only an addition into the powderkeg that is central Africa. From Sierra Leone till Somalia and from Sudan to Congo, the whole region is gripped in conflict and bloodshed.

Darfur forms the chain of events taking place across the Central part of Africa. Why is nobody doing anything on Darfur? when one British teacher got jailed in Sudan, the media focused intensively on her plight and she now stands a chance of being pardoned. Now, when the media is giving coverage, why is the world not responding?

The key to this could be ECONOCRACY. The term that I have used fitted Burma perfectly, now it can be tagged into Darfur as well. Mrs. Farrow highlighted that China is proving to be an Obstacle for any resolution on Darfur. It does not want to offend the Khartoum Regime because of its dependency on Oil. China is one of Sudan's prime trading partners, and any action which alienates the Khartoum government may result in adverse effects on their economy. So, to protect their economic interests, China has engaged in Econocracy over Darfur.

The other powers are too occupied with their own problems. The US will not act so much in Sudan because there is not much of Oil in that region. Britain always tags with America on foreign policy, and the African Union is simply too weak and divided to initiate concrete action. When there is so much of apathy, what must be done?

The signs are not encouraging. The hopes of the people are fast fading away. Africa has proven to be the test case of Ignorance being Devastating. Somalia, Rwanda, Zimbabwe and many more cases prove the point. However, when the world tries to explore options, they run into a brick wall of ambiguity or fear. This is a potent obstacle, one which may resign the people of Darfur and the few who care into disillusionment and bitterness