Link between the Civil War and Famine in Sudan
Narrator: The devastating famine in the Sudan in 1998 was blamed on the
Civil War. Both government and rebel forces are accused of
abusive and predatory tactics, which drove the people off their
land.
Klaus Topfer: It is a question of social justice in the country to avoid problems
like famine, to organize this in advance, to be aware of some
responsibility for the poor people. And it is a shame that lots of
examples are available where the expenditure for military is in
going on while the poorest of the poor are really suffering on a
severe famine.
Narrator: At the height of the famine, the international community was
spending $1 million a day airlifting food to hungry Sudanese who
otherwise would fend themselves. Their government was
meanwhile spending $1 million a day making war. The experts
have coined a new term for tragedies like this, complex combined
emergencies of a number of such catastrophes is doubling every 20
years.
Transcription by:
Scribe4you Transcription Services