Daniel Allott
2006-11-17 08:00:00.0
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WASHINGTON -

“Genocide can never be the exclusive internal concern of a country … whenever it occurs, it must concern the entire civilized world.” – From the Darfur exhibit at the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum

Two years ago last month, United States Secretary of State Colin Powell declared for the first time that killings taking place in Sudan’s Darfur region constituted genocide. Shortly thereafter, the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum’s Committee on Conscience undertook to erect an exhibit it hopes helps visitors understand what that genocide looks like and what they can do to help end it.

Today, the Genocide Emergency: Darfur, Sudan exhibit — tucked inside the museum’s Wexner Learning Center — offers visitors a glimpse of the devastation and desolation of Darfur. The room’s grainy beige-hued walls, which replicate the flat, featureless desert plains that dominate Darfur’s geography, show close ups of the anguished faces of Darfuris who fill the refugee camps.

Videos describe the region’s complex political history and the heart-wrenching plight of its refugees. The display also includes interactive learning centers, which further educate visitors about the crisis that United Nations Secretary-General Kofi Annan has referred to as “one of the worse nightmares in recent history” and “little short of hell on earth.”

On a recent visit, I spoke with John Heffernan, director of the museum’s Genocide Prevention Initiative, who told me that the display’s purpose is “to move people from memory to action.”

He explained that amidst three floors of exhibits that recount mass murder during the Nazi Holocaust, the Darfur exhibit is a stark reminder to visitors that genocide is not just a thing of the past — an evil confined to black and white photographs of a bygone era — but also a tragic reality of today.

After three years of murder and mayhem, the government of Sudan stands accused of presiding over the systematic slaughter of at least 300,000 civilians, as well as the rape, disfigurement and dislocation of another three million people.

And conditions continue to deteriorate. Now that the rainy season has ended, government-backed militias have launched a new wave of attacks in Darfur and eastern Chad, where hundreds of thousands of Darfuris are seeking refuge. In a recent attack, 27 children were killed by militiamen, many of whom were wearing Sudanese military officers garb.

Due to the spike in violence, aid groups say they cannot access hundreds of thousands of refugees who rely on them for food, water and medical care.

For its part, the U.N. has been reluctant to act and recently pushed back until 2007 its estimated time of arrival in Darfur. In September, the U.N. Security Council finally passed a resolution authorizing the deployment of 20,000 peacekeepers.

But, the deployment of those troops is still dependent on approval from the Sudanese government, whose “president,” Omar al-Bashir has promised to make Darfur “a graveyard” for any entering force. Last week, Bashir refused to meet with newly-appointed U.S. envoy Andrew Natsios, citing fresh sanctions imposed against his regime by the United States.

In the midst of these disappointments, the Holocaust Museum’s message remains hopeful: “Your voice can make a difference. Do not be silent.” The Museum estimates that over 260,000 visitors have viewed the Darfur Exhibition since its opening. It has also distributed some 10,000 copies of the DVD “Witnessing Darfur: Genocide Emergency” to teachers and to student and community groups across the country, reaching an estimated 500,000 people.

Clearly, the Holocaust Museum is making a difference. Museum directors plan to turn the temporary Darfur display into a permanent exhibit — to open next year — that includes information about other recent genocides, such as Rwanda. As Heffernan explained: “It honors the memory of the Holocaust to stop genocidal situations today.”

As one exits the Darfur exhibit, lettering on the wall asks, “Who will survive today?” It’s a question millions of Darfuris must ask themselves each morning. The Holocaust Museum is doing its part to see that more Americans ask themselves that same question — and then act.

To learn more on what you can do to help end genocide in Darfur, go to www.committeeonconscience.org.

Daniel Allott is a writer and policy analyst for American Values, a Washington-based public policy organization.