A/HRC/4/80 page 11 mechanisms.6 But in the 1970s, in part in an effort to modernize, Khartoum introduced a number of administrative changes that began to erode those mechanisms. First Darfur was divided into three states, fragmenting the collective power of tribal groups. Khartoum then appointed new officials with both executive and judicial powers at the state level, and appointed leaders at the local level based upon loyalty to the central government, without regard to the traditional leadership recognized by the communities. While traditional mechanisms were still sought out, those structures were severely weakened, just as power relations between groups were being distorted. 25. In the 1970s and the 1980s, increased desertification and drought resulted in significant movements of people, with nomadic groups moving deeper into southern areas as well as “newcomers” entering from Chad, the Libyan Arab Jamahiriya and Mauritania. With Darfur’s own issues of scarce water and other resources, relations became increasingly contentious. The intensity of conflicts increased significantly with the formation of village defence groups and militias and the influx of small arms and light weapons into the region. By the end of the 1980s most conflict was between the Fur and nomadic tribes. 26. In addition to the struggles around land and resources, the peoples of Darfur have felt discriminated against and marginalized by the central Government. Generally excluded from social services normally provided by the State such as education and basic medical care, they have had no significant political voice in Khartoum. Attempts by the Government to mediate ongoing tribal conflicts produced no long-term results, fuelling the perception that Khartoum was unwilling or unable to protect Darfurians or to address their broader needs. Quite to the contrary, as fighting intensified between 1995-1998, the Government began its recruitment of militias, further aggravating divisions. 27. Against this backdrop of conflict and marginalization, two rebel groups began to organize in 2001/02 – the Sudan Liberation Movement/Army (SLM/A) and the Justice and Equality Movement (JEM) – drawing their members primarily from village defence groups. Most rebels were from the Fur, Massalit and Zaghawa tribes. Interestingly, they were calling for equality 6 While Darfur is made up of many dozens of ethnic groups and tribes, all are of the Muslim faith and Arabic is the “lingua franca.” Land is a fundamental issue in Darfur and ownership has traditionally been communal. The predominant tribes in Darfur live in generally mutually accepted homelands, called dar. These include that of the Fur around Jebel Marra and the Zaghawa in parts of West and North Darfur. Also in West Darfur around El Geneina and to its south are the Masalit. The Rizeigat, the largest and most powerful of the Arab tribes, are mainly found in the southern parts of South Darfur. Some groups are primarily sedentary agriculturalists, and some of these also herd cattle. Others, primarily Arab, are nomadic and semi-nomadic and traditionally have passed through other tribal homelands as they moved with their herds of camels and cattle. The nomadic Arab tribes, north of Jebel Marra, are known as Abbala, and include the Taaysha, the Habaneya, the Beni Helba, the Mahameed and others. The sedentary southern Arab tribes are collectively called Baggara. Some tribal sections are Abbala in some parts of Darfur, but Baggara in others. These complex tribal configurations become even more so with generations of intermarriage and other intertribal relations.