Letter to the Editor, Irish Independent , 3rd November 2006

Sir,

Statistics, as we know, can be infuriatingly boring. However in the case of the Darfur tragedy they can be helpful to understand the seriousness of the situation.

At present the United Nations has deployed 10,000 peacekeepers in South Sudan and 17,000 peacekeepers in the Democratic Republic of Congo. But not a single peacekeeper has been sent to protect the vulnerable in Darfur.

This, despite the fact that 400,000 people, mostly women and children, have been murdered in Darfur during the past 2 years. And 2.5 million lives hang by a slender thread.

And still, the politicians insist that there is a meaningful role for the United Nations in the area of protecting those in greatest need.

Yours, etc

John O’Shea
GOAL