October 28, 2007:
Several
rebel groups have not agreed to take part in the new peace treaty, or have a
different interpretation of the October 26 agreement. The SLA-UC rebels didn't
sign the deal, UFDD called the agreement merely a declaration of principle,
while the RFC has already declared the deal null and void. The first of 4,000
European peacekeepers will start arriving next month, and they are prepared to
fight. No one with any knowledge of Chadian history would think that the many
factions in the region would make peace without fighting. There are periods of
much less fighting, which occur when the government has enough military power
to terrify many groups, and enough money to bribe the rest. There are over a
hundred tribes in Chad, and most believe they should be getting more from the
government. Many of those are willing to fight for more goodies. This fighting
was going on long before Chad was created as a French colony in 1900. The
colony became an independent nation in 1960. About half the population, in the
north, are Moslem. Those in the south are mainly Christian. The northern and
southern tribes do not get along, and that has been the main source of violence
for centuries. It's similar to the situation in Darfur, with the northern
tribes considering themselves "Arab," and therefore superior to the
southern, or "African" tribes. More so than Darfur, the tribal
divisions are more intense and violent.
October 26, 2007: The
government, and four rebel groups (UFDD, RFC, DNT and UFDD-F) signed a peace
deal in Libya. There is to be an immediate cease fire, amnesty all around,
freeing of hostages, and rebel officials are to be integrated into the
government. That, in effect, is a payoff, in order to obtain the cooperation of
these rebel leaders. The negotiations were supported by the UN and African
Union.
