Books by John Prendergast
Darfur and southern Sudan Publications
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Mar 16, 2009
The Obama administration offers a fresh opportunity for the United States to meaningfully engage in an effort to bring peace to Sudan at a time when the stakes have never been higher. Nevertheless, policymakers still need the collective voice of activists to keep the conflict high on their agendas and to generate public support for making tough decisions. We explore the impressive accomplishments of Sudan activists to date; the windows of opportunity for peace in Sudan; and what you can do. The bottom line: thoughtful, persistent activism makes a difference. The genocide in Darfur won’t end overnight, and there are no guarantees that the North-South war won’t resume, but there are a number of factors that provide a real opportunity for lasting peace in Sudan— if the international community acts boldly and swiftly. Such action will come if—and probably only if—activists continue to generate enough light and heat to point the way.
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Mar 12, 2009
East and central Africa is battered by an arch of chronic conflict that stretches from Somalia to the Democratic Republic of Congo. Congo and Sudan alone account for nearly eight million deaths due to the legacy of war in the past two decades. Although the United States has provided billions of dollars in humanitarian aid, support for peacekeeping missions, and electoral assistance, this aid has not yet succeeded in altering the dynamics that have kept this region dangerously destabilized.
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Feb 19, 2009
The precarious peace between northern and southern Sudan stands at a crucial crossroads. Intended by its architects as the cornerstone of peace in a country fractured by conflict, the Comprehensive Peace Agreement, or CPA, has been hamstrung by the National Congress Party’s intransigence, the Sudan People’s Liberation Movement’s growing pains, and the international community’s neglect.
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Feb 12, 2009
The issuance of an arrest warrant for Sudan’s sitting head of state for crimes against humanity offers the Obama administration a chance to catalyze multilateral efforts to bring about a solution to Sudan’s decades-long cycle of warfare. One of the crucial missing ingredients to conflict resolution efforts has been some form of accountability for the horrific crimes against humanity that have been perpetrated by the warring parties in Sudan, primarily the Khartoum regime. Peace without justice in Sudan would only bring an illusion of stability, without addressing the primary forces driving the conflict.
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Feb 12, 2009
The precarious peace between northern and southern Sudan stands at a crucial crossroads. Intended by its architects as the cornerstone of peace in a country fractured by conflict, the Comprehensive Peace Agreement, or CPA, has been hamstrung by the National Congress Party’s intransigence, the Sudan People’s Liberation Movement’s growing pains, and the international community’s neglect.
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Jan 29, 2009
The narrative of an irreparably fragmented rebellion in Darfur does not reflect the reality on the ground. This paper identifies key rebel groups, and explains what they represent, what divides them, and—most importantly—what could potentially unite them if a credible, sustained, and internationally backed peace effort was put in place.
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Jan 22, 2009
This is the second installment in a series of letters to President Obama spelling out a practical roadmap to end the crisis in Sudan.
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Jan 22, 2009
This is the second installment in a series of letters to President Obama spelling out a practical roadmap to end the crisis in Sudan.
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Nov 13, 2008
The next president will face an unprecedented array of foreign policy demands upon taking office in January. The urgent national security challenges are the most visible among them, with Iraq and Afghanistan topping the list. But Pakistan, the ongoing Arab-Israeli conflagration, Iran, North Korea, Russia, Sudan, Somalia, and the global financial crisis will also cry out for immediate attention.
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Nov 6, 2008
The message of Sudan activists all over the United States is clear: Don't try to contain the damage from the war in Darfur--end the war. Don't just declare that genocide is taking place--end the genocide. Don't just try to manage the consequences of crisis after crisis in Sudan--end these crises.
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Sep 30, 2008
China has again assumed the Presidency of the U.N. Security Council, a position that it last held in July 2007 when it led the authorization of a U.N. peacekeeping force for Darfur. At that time, Beijing appeared to be responding to a global campaign by activists, in advance of the Olympics, to shame China into using its influence to address human rights crises in locales in which it has significant economic investments. But China's actions have belied its rhetoric, and it has continued to protect its favorite deadly dictators in places like Darfur, Burma, and Zimbabwe. The Chinese government is not entirely a lost human rights cause, but its roadmap badly needs revision.
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Sep 24, 2008
My testimony today will address threats to the agreement that ended that brutal war—Comprehensive Peace Agreement (CPA). However, I want to focus my remarks on the significant opportunities available right now not just to implement that agreement, but to achieve a lasting peace for all of Sudan, including Darfur. The stakes could hardly be higher. If the CPA unravels, there will be no chance for peace in Darfur, and if Darfur continues to deteriorate, the likelihood increases dramatically of a return to what was—for 20 years—a far more destructive war in the South.
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Sep 23, 2008
The ICC’s request for an indictment of Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir, the renewed prospect of an inclusive peace process for Darfur, and the drive toward national elections in 2009 are three major opportunities that the United States and others must urgently seize to bring peace to Sudan.
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Aug 7, 2008
China’s support for despots in Sudan, Zimbabwe, and Burma is a bad investment. In the long-run, China’s own interests would better be served by standing up to states that abuse their own citizens.
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Jul 24, 2008
Steps towards an International Criminal Court arrest warrant for Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir provides an opportunity for the U.N. Security Council to demand real changes in Khartoum’s policies and behavior. Unfortunately, the historical record suggests that the Council will likely miss this opportunity as it has missed many others during the past five years. This report diagnoses the underlying obstacles to effective Security Council response, providing a practical guide on how activists can better engage their governments to stop—and ultimately prevent—genocide and crimes against humanity.
