Ambassador Linda Thomas-Greenfield
U.S. Representative to the United Nations
New York, New York
March 28, 2022
AS DELIVERED
Thank you, Madam President. And thank you, SRSG Perthes, for your comprehensive briefing and reporting.
The United States fully supports UNITAMS’ efforts to monitor and report on the situation in Sudan, including on the human rights situation, as it has been mandated to do by this Council. We agree with our UK colleague that it is essential for UNITAMS to be able to provide a full and balanced representation of the situation in Sudan in its reporting to the Council. The United States fully supports the collaborative efforts of UNITAMS, the African Union, and the Inter-Governmental Authority on Development to facilitate a Sudanese-led political process, one which will restore a civilian-led transition to democracy. Sudan needs a transitional framework that is civilian led, moves the country toward free and fair elections, reworks the role of security services as participants of the government, and is broadly acceptable to the Sudanese people.
In order for this process to be effective, the military and security services need to take concrete steps to create an environment where all actors can safely participate in negotiations. Sudanese authorities must immediately end the unjust detentions of civil society activists, politicians, journalists, cultural figures, and humanitarian workers. The authorities must allow media outlets to re-open and end communications blackouts. And state actors must stop the terrible violence perpetrated against peaceful protesters, including reported sexual violence and attacks on patients in medical facilities and medical personnel.
We also call for the authorities to hold accountable, without delay, those responsible for human rights abuses and violations, including the excessive use of force against peaceful protesters. The United States stands with the Sudanese people in their pursuit of a democratic, human rights-respecting, and prosperous Sudan. That’s why, on March 21, the United States designated Sudan’s Central Reserve Police for serious human rights abuses committed during protests calling for democracy. All people in Sudan must be able to express their opinions and peaceably demonstrate without threat of violence or arrest. Our action demonstrates the United States continues to implement the tools at our disposal to stop the violence and press for a restoration of Sudan’s democratic transition.
Restoring a transitional government that is legitimate in the eyes of the Sudanese people will require demonstrable steps toward a reassertion of genuine, irreversible civilian authority. In the meantime, we will continue to press for sustained and unhindered humanitarian access to all conflict-affected and displaced populations to facilitate lifesaving assistance. In Darfur, security forces and former armed and opposition groups continue to clash and exacerbate the inter-communal violence. We condemn the violence in Darfur and elsewhere in Sudan, express our concern for its impact on the people of Sudan, and urge Sudan’s authorities to implement the Government of Sudan’s own National Plan for Civilian Protection.
Finally, I hope this Council’s Panel of Experts on Sudan can continue its vital work to report on the situation in Darfur, including to document this violence and its drivers. We heard the SRSG say how high the stakes are here, so we must work to find a solution and we must end the violence in Sudan.
Thank you very much. Thank you, Madam President.
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