Unamid police chiefs handed memorandum during South Darfur camp visit

A group of 200 leaders of Kalma camp for the displaced in Nyala locality, South Darfur, submitted a memorandum to Unamid police chiefs visiting the camp on Tuesday morning. The Kalma camp leaders had decided on Saturday to demand from Unamid to establish a force at the camp, to protect the terrified camp residents from the almost daily attacks by militiamen. Saleh Eisa, the Secretary General of Kalma camp, told Radio Dabanga that they handed the memorandum to the Unamid Head of Police Operations and the Unamid Chief of Police in South Darfur, as well as to a number of Unamid police chiefs of North and South Darfur, who were visiting the Unamid base at the camp on Tuesday morning. The camp leaders gave Unamid five days to respond to their demand. “We told them that in case a protection unit will not be established within five days, the displaced will block the irregular Unamid police patrols at the camp.” “The Unamid representatives promised us that they would raise the issue to the Sudanese authorities. Yet, we strongly protested this idea, as it is this very Sudanese government that is the cause of the rampant insecurity. It is the government, we need protection from.” Eisa said that the Unamid chiefs told them about the UN Security Council’s resolution 2148 of 3 April this year on the review of Unamid’s performance and the preparation for the implementation of the Mission’s revised strategic priorities. “The coming period, they said, the protection of displaced and civilians in Darfur will be reviewed.” “The Unamid chiefs emphasised that the most important task is protection of civilians. They would seriously consider the demand for a protection unit at the camp. They also apologised for the behaviour of the Unamid policemen two weeks ago, who had fled Kalma camp at the first shooting by militiamen.” File photo: Kalma camp, August 2010 (Albert González Farra/Unamid) Related: South Darfur’s Kalma camp demands Unamid unit (19 May 2014) Gunmen fire over South Darfur camp, Unamid policemen flee (8 May 2014) South Darfur’s Kalma camp registers 19 rape cases within 12 days (1 May 2014) Drinking water denied to South Darfur’s Kalma camp residents (29 April 2014)