“The atrocities in Darfur are terrible, spread the butter.”
Why is genocide called “ethnic cleansing”? it’s not very clean. It is a dirty business most often perpetrated by soulless demons (soldiers of fortune). The smells of rotting and burning meat are everywhere the “cleaning” happens. After all, there is no single disposal site that contains carcass volumes numbering in the hundreds of thousands. These things should not happen on this planet. But we will be blindfolded against what we do not want to see.
The film I want to designate as the “most important” has won accolades and awards. However, I have to think that not enough people have seen it. Is the human race really so indifferent as to allow the things seen in “The Devil Came on Horseback” (Break Through Films, 2008) to continue indefinitely? Don’t we know or don’t we care? A retired Marine taking pictures and crying, wracked with guilt that he was sent with a camera instead of a gun, is that just convincing theatrics?
Some say that the genocide in Darfur, Sudan did not happen, that Captain Brian Steidel’s photographs are inconclusive (meaning they essentially show lies). Some say the Holocaust never happened either. What selfish purpose could a man have to display such atrocities, to have nightmares for the rest of his life, to cause those close to him to have nightmares? Well, maybe he just enjoys making people feel bad. Anyone who can look at the photos Brian took and call them “inconclusive” is blinded by the pampering that has been enjoyed in this country (USA).
Every time a “made in China” product is purchased, a percentage of the purchase price goes toward weapons for the Khartoum government’s Janjaweed mercenaries. These units burn and slaughter innocent residents of Darfur, even reaching into neighboring Chad to carry out executions in refugee camps. This is “conjecture”, says the Sudanese “government”.
I may have missed it, but I did not see a single victim of this horrible genocide carrying a gun. The so-called government in Khartoum, Sudan, calls the victims “rebels.” With no way to respond, let alone instigate violence, are these people rebels? The atrocities in Darfur are another cross for Africa. As humans, our only job is the perpetuation of our species. We are failing in this work in some areas of the world.
The most difficult scene in the film for me to watch was the one where Brian and his sister were talking to a refugee from Darfur in a camp in Chad. The poor soul was sure to thank the American people for all they had done. I felt the man walk away from the American couple thinking “Surely now the world understands”. That is not the case for the Sudanese patriot. The world does not understand. The world hasn’t suffered enough to understand what your life has become. Essentially, the influential countries have done nothing more than sham. Reason: Sudan is a supplier of oil, particularly to China.
Of all crimes against humanity, genocide is the least understandable. Why are the mad power-mongers throughout history destroying their greatest resource?
Most of the scenes depicted in the film take place at the height of the murders (mid-decade 2003). Although the situation has changed, to this day Darfurians remain pawns in a deadly game for them. There are not so many innocents left to kill, but Khartoum’s military politicians continue to lie and defy. Lately, in retaliation for the court’s findings on genocide, the regime has begun disbanding humanitarian organizations. Nice!
WARNING: Do not allow children to view this until you have determined they can withstand the trauma. Of course, you can tell them that it’s just a fantasy.
