[Update 8-23-08: The Russian draft resolution was put in blue on 8-21-08 so it can be voted on by the Security Council. Thus far only the Russian draft has been put into the form to make it possible for the council to vote on it. Comparing the Russian resolution with the draft French resolution, which is not in blue, however, helps to clarify the difference among some of the delegates on the Security Council.*]

 Two contending draft resolutions have been placed before the United Nations Security Council in the controversy over what has happened in the conflict over Georgia and its actions in South Ossetia. While the controversy which exists inside the council is being reflected in some degree in the international mainstream media, the manifestation of it is more remarkably demonstrated in the netizen media of online discussions and commentary, blogs, and online media of many varieties. (see for… weiter lesen

Was there a chance to stop a major escalation of a conflict that was missed?

 On Thursday evening, August 7, the Russian Ambassador to the United Nations, Vitaly Churkin arrived for a meeting of the United Nations Security Council with a request.  A letter he submitted to the Council (S/2008/533) asked that a meeting be held to discuss events taking place in Georgia. The members of the Security Council gathered and decided to hold consultations. The consultations were held in a closed door session. It was not till early in the morning on August 8, Friday, that a public meeting of the Security Council was convened.

 The meeting was convened around 1 a.m. Friday, August 8.

 In his statement to the members of the Security Council, the Russian Ambassador… weiter lesen

[Editor's Note:This is part II of  the article "Security Council Extends Joint UN-AU Darfur Mission Despite Controversy"]

Mamdani on Darfur

In an article he wrote for the London Review of Books in 2007, Columbia Professor Mahmood Mamdani explains the background of the fighting in Darfur and his view that there is the need for a political settlement to the conflict in Darfur to end the suffering of civilians.

Mamdani describes the role played by the U.S. government, the U.S. press and  some U.S. advocacy organizations to develop what he terms “the reduction of the complex political context to a morality tale….” (8)

Mamdani proposes that there has been a widespread and well funded campaign to support U.S. government sanctions against Sudan and the inaccurate labeling of… weiter lesen

[Editor's Note: This is Part I of a two part article. For Part II see "The Struggle Over How the Media Frames Its Presentation of the Darfur Conflict"]

 Some Background

The question before the Security Council on Thursday, July 31 was whether or not to renew the United Nations-African Union Mission in Darfur (UNAMID). This joint (hybrid) peacekeeping mission combines UN and African Union (AU) efforts to work toward finding a way to bring peace to the Darfur conflict in Sudan.

 UNAMID’s renewal falls under Article 7 of the UN charter. To be a peacekeeping operation, there needs to be a peace agreement, or the potential for such an agreement along with a means of encouraging the  contending forces to support the mission and a resolution of the conflict.

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