A/HRC/4/80
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much lower Human Development Index ratings than other areas of the country, high disease
rates, inadequate health services, high rates of child malnutrition, low numbers of families with
adequate food supplies, and a general lack of access to justice.
70.
The Mission has enquired and assessed the most pressing needs in Darfur. The first of
these, emphasized by virtually everyone we met, and a consistent theme in the documentation we
collected, is the need for effective protection. For most that we spoke to, this means a large,
robust, broadly-mandated, well-resourced UN/AU peacekeeping/protection force deployed
across the territory of Darfur. The force should be supplemented by the contingent of UNMIS
human rights monitors currently supported by the High Commissioner for Human Rights. It
should be accompanied as well by the proposed national human rights commission provided for
in the interim national constitution, which should be established in accordance with the
United Nations Paris Principles. Establishing such a commission will require facilitated broad
consultations, technical advice and assistance, and material support for start-up and early
operations.
71.
Secondly, peace is among the most pressing needs of the people of Darfur. No one we
met believed that a military solution to the conflict is possible, and all stressed the need for a
negotiated solution to the crisis. But the issue of renewed peace negotiations is a sensitive one.
The Government had insisted that the DPA be signed as is. Most others called for a reopening
of peace negotiations to include all parties to the ongoing conflict. Representatives of the
non-signatory rebel movements with whom we met (including the NRF and JEM) as well as
refugees that we met in Chad were adamant that the DPA as it stands does not adequately reflect
their needs and aspirations. They sought an “Abuja Plus” to address issues they viewed as
unresolved, including power sharing, wealth sharing and compensation for victims. When
pressed on the DPA, the NRF and JEM told us they thought they were close to peace, with the
signing of the First Declaration of Principles on 5 July 2005, but, as the various rounds of talks
continued they said that international mediators became frustrated with the time it was taking to
address outstanding issues in the negotiations and, in the seventh round, the DPA was forced on
them. They contrasted this with the long and delicate negotiations between the Government and
SPLM/A that resulted in the Comprehensive Peace Agreement with the South. Without renewed
talks, they insist that peace will remain out of reach for the people of Darfur. We also heard that
to resolve the human rights situation in Darfur, any “Abuja Plus” type negotiations must include
all stakeholders, including all fighting forces, civil society, human rights defenders, prominent
individuals, women and women’s groups.
72.
Third, while the international community has been generous in its support for
humanitarian assistance to the people of Darfur, the effective delivery of that aid has been
dramatically hampered by the obstruction of humanitarian access, assaults on humanitarian
workers, and a general shrinking of humanitarian space. Today, Darfur is confronted with an
urgent need for expanded humanitarian access and safety, a need which requires not just aid
funds, but also political will on the part of the Government and the various armed groups of
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