The Sudan. Darfur. Genocide. Ethnic cleansing.
The reporter of this story, Samantha Power, is simply the best reporter I've ever read. It's a long article, and I haven't had time to finish it. It's not a light read, either, so you may need to take a break from time to time as I did to digest.
As you read along with me, think of the personal risks and physical deprivations Ms. Power took and endured to bring you, Gentle Reader, this synopsis of the world’s worst on-going human disaster. From the dust of the Sahara to the mud huts of refugees in Chad to the red rocks of Darfur, she was there. She talked to the sheiks, the condemned, the grieving victims. But the story of the Sudan is more than just another drop of bad news in the usual bucket. It’s a story that almost had a happy ending, but then the smiles slipped away. Murdering Arab janjaweed and treacherous French-for-oil, but who’s telling the truth?
Go here and start reading. I’ll let y’all know when I’m finished, and in the meantime please drop some comments in the box with your own observations.
Just finished Power's piece. Powerful and excellent. One can infer that she put herself in considerable peril at a number of places in the narrative, but (...unlike some...) she doesn't make anything of it. The Story is the point.
If this was reporting, I would still be buying the paper and listening to NPR to get the news. Maybe even watching network news (no, even fantasies can only go so far).
Here is a link to a Financial Times investigative report by William Wallis about differing interpretations of the proper role of Islam in Sudan's government. These differences sparked the revolt that led to Khartoum's current ethnic cleansing policy. Different take from that presented by Powers; adds to the picture.
http://64.233.167.104/search?q=cache%3A2dJWhWIx3WgJ%3Awww.ft.com%2Fcms%2Fs%2Faa10fff8-f0e5-11d8-95b8-00000e2511c8.html+%22William+Wallis%22+site%3Aft.com+&hl=en&lr=&ie=UTF-8&strip=1
Posted by: AMac | August 31, 2004 at 05:20 PM