A chara, - Last September there was a lot of self-righteous craw-thumping and protestation at the visit of President Clinton to Ireland. Primary among the reasons for such protestation was the bombing of two sites in Sudan and Afghanistan the previous month. In the case of Sudan, I wrote at that time that such protestation was illogical and ill-advised given that no-one was killed as a result of the bombing.
By contrast, close to two million Sudanese have died as a direct consequence of the policies being pursued by the fundamentalist Islamic regime in Khartoum. This makes it the bloodiest conflict since the second World War and one of the least reported. An estimated 4.5 million people have been displaced or fled the country, according to UNHCR. Another 2 million are threatened by a manmade famine, as the regime used food as a weapon of war.
This regime has been responsible for ethnic cleansing in large areas of South Sudan that makes Milosovic look like an angel. Constant aerial bombardment of civilian targets in Southern Sudan continues. A UN special investigator, Mr Leonardo Franco has confirmed the practice of slavery in Sudan. Yet when the Minister of Foreign Affairs of that discredited regime visited Ireland on April 12-13th this year not one whimper was heard from those self-same guardians of public morality. I rest my case. - Is mise,
Padraig O Murchu, Woodlands, Maynooth, Co Kildare.