Letter to Ministers Joly, Miller, & Hussen regarding the Crisis in Sudan

Hon. Mélanie Joly
Minister of Foreign Affairs
Melanie.Joly@international.gc.ca

Hon. Marc Miller
Minister of Immigration, Refugees, and Citizenship
Minister@cic.gc.ca

Hon. Ahmed Hussen
Minister of International Development
Ahmed.Hussen@international.gc.ca

Delivered by email

March 22, 2024

Re: Canada’s Response to the Crisis in Sudan

Dear Minister Joly, Minister Miller, and Minister Hussen,

I write to you today urging the Government of Canada to take immediate action to address the deteriorating crisis in Sudan.

It is nearly one year since war broke out in Sudan’s capital Khartoum between the Sudanese army and paramilitary Rapid Support Forces. The scale of destruction unleashed by this war is unprecedented in the modern history of Sudan. This crisis has evolved into one of the most serious humanitarian crises in the world. This is an emergency.

According to OCHA, the number of people displaced by this conflict over the past year has reached 8.1 million. With expectations of a reduced upcoming harvest, signs of famine across Sudan, and acute malnutrition, Sudan is weeks away from a catastrophic hunger crisis. Millions are at risk of cholera.

The 2024 Sudan Humanitarian Response Plan is only 5% funded. Canada must immediately increase its financial commitments to trusted humanitarian partners operating in Sudan and encourage other donors to do the same. New Democrats again express our opposition to the Liberal government’s misguided cuts to Canada’s international assistance budget at a time when global hunger, violence and suffering are increasing.

Moreover, experts are urging Canada to do more to ensure humanitarian access, as life-saving aid cannot reach as many as 90 per cent of civilians due to insecurity and interference from warring parties.

We are distressed by reports of horrific atrocities, particularly against women and children, as well as reports of forced recruitment and slavery. Twenty-four million children are currently exposed to brutality and human rights violations, according to the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child.

Canada must impose sanctions immediately on those responsible for violations of international law and human rights.

Moreover, the perpetrators of these crimes must be held to account. We therefore ask Canada to:

• Call on Sudanese authorities to immediately surrender the suspects for whom there are outstanding arrest warrants, including former President Omar al-Bashir, to the International Criminal Court;

• Support and push for the expeditious issuance of arrest warrants by the ICC against those suspected of committing war crimes, crimes against humanity and genocide since the eruption of renewed hostilities;

• Call on Sudanese authorities to immediately secure visas and unfettered access to areas of interest for staff of International Criminal Court’s Office of the Prosecutor; and

• Work to build support among international partners to push for a United Nations Security Council referral of the entire situation in Sudan to the International Criminal Court.

Despite the seriousness of this crisis, international diplomacy has failed to respond effectively to the war in Sudan. There are no meaningful negotiations yet under way, even for a ceasefire. As former Canadian diplomat Nicholas Coughlan has said: “A concerted, high-level international diplomatic push is urgently needed.” Ministers, New Democrats are asking you to lead that diplomatic push for negotiations on behalf of the Canadian government. Sudan’s future, and the lives of millions of people, are at stake.

Earlier this month, the United States urged countries to stop supplying Sudan’s warring parties with weapons. Canada must do far more to name and shame states that are arming the Sudanese government and paramilitary forces, and work to end the illegal trade in weapons that is contributing to this crisis.

New Democrats are also alarmed that the reunification process for those applying through the humanitarian pathway is mired by delays. For nearly a year New Democrats have been calling on the Canadian government to ensure dependent family members receive priority processing of Permanent Residence applications from Sudan. These people should be Canada’s priority – especially in instances where there are minor children who have been separated from their families. Your government’s long processing delays have kept parents and their children separated, contrary to the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child which calls for timely reunification by setting a maximum of 6-month processing standard to reunite children of asylum seekers awaiting a refugee determination in Canada.

We have raised this in Parliament and directly with your government on multiple occasions. And yet, Sudanese-Canadians tell us they are devastated and terrified that their family members will be killed before they reach safety in Canada. We are deeply concerned that it took your government ten months from the beginning of the war to begin accepting applications for a humanitarian pathway. And to the best of our knowledge, not one of the applicants to this program have arrived in Canada. New Democrats urge you to immediately accelerate the processing of applications for dependent family members of Sudanese-Canadians.

These are steps Canada must take immediately in order to help alleviate suffering in Sudan and ensure an end to this war. Millions of Sudanese people, and thousands of Sudanese-Canadians, are looking to you for leadership.

I look forward to your reply.

Sincerely,

Heather McPherson
NDP Foreign Affairs Critic
NDP International Development Critic