European Week: The impending famine in Sudan and the Orbán presidency of the EU

If you thought that activity was going to calm down with the beginning of summer, you better think again. The electoral results of the first round in France and the general elections in United Kingdom They offered totally different readings of the political mood of the citizens.

The political groups of European Parliament They continued to struggle to find partners and alliances ahead of their inaugural session in Strasbourg in less than two weeks. AND Belgium handed over the current presidency of the EU to Hungaryold enemy of Brussels.

The vagaries of the calendar made the Government of Viktor Orbán take over the EU agenda, which is like the fox guarding the henhouse, as one observer put it.

This week, Orbán also visited Ukraine and launched a new far-right alliance, Patriots for Europe, to potentially become the largest refuge for like-minded parties in the European Parliament. “If we want to stop the current decline, if we want to stop losing more and more strength and if we want to become strong again, we have to be great again“, said Orbán in a television interview.

“How else can we compete with the United States, which has become great, if we don’t want to become great ourselves,” he added. But the greatness of Europe, to which Viktor Orbán alludes, also depends on how the EU acts on the international scene and in the main crisis hotspots of the world.

Hundreds of thousands of people face starvation in Sudan

This week, the international community has paid more attention to the situation in Sudanwhat is devastating. For more than a year, the violent conflict between the Sudanese army and rebel forces has displaced hundreds of thousands of people who have basically nothing to eat.

Various agencies of the HIM they launched urgent warnings. “We find ourselves in a race against timenot only to have sufficient resources, but also to be able to deliver these resources to the people who are on the verge of starvation“said Eddie Rowe, Sudan director of the UN World Food Programme.

Just a few days ago, the International Rescue Committee developed a Sudan Crisis Alert to highlight the trajectory of this humanitarian catastrophe. The report deplores diplomatic failures to address the disaster and pushes for a complete realignment of the humanitarian response.

For more information, we spoke to Eatizaz YousifSudan director of the International Rescue Committee.

Euronews: There is a lot of talk about the humanitarian catastrophe in Sudan, can you give us an idea of ​​its severity?

Yousif: I think Sudan is going through a very difficult time. Half of Sudan’s population faces food insecurity, and nearly 750,000 people face starvation or hunger. And that massive displacement is really putting Sudan at the forefront of any humanitarian crisis.

Euronews: Who is to blame for this situation, who has failed the people of Sudan?

Yousif: The continuous clashes and the two sides refusing to stop and sit down and try to overcome their problems are contributing factors. And the pressure from the international community to silence the guns also contributes a lot. And Sudan also faces enormous financing problems. Of the $2.8 billion requested for the humanitarian response plan for Sudan, only 16% is being funded so far.

Euronews: Why is so little attention paid to the crisis internationally?

Yousif: I suppose these are multiple competing priorities with the multiple crises that have occurred around the world, such as those in Gaza, Ukraine, Yemen or Syria. And, also, I think that Sudan’s geographical position is not that attractive or attracts that much attention.

Euronews: What should the international community and the European Union in particular do to help?

Yousif: I believe that the EU and its Member States have played a leading role in the international response to the Sudan crisis, such as the recent organization of the Paris conference in April and the intensification of the humanitarian effort. Furthermore, we ask the EU to strengthen its diplomatic weight to guarantee the ceasefire and access for humanitarian aid, and to strengthen its commitment to regional actors. Because, at this time, political pressure is really necessary.

The Netherlands’ slave past

In this week’s program we also address the slave past of the Netherlands, which this week closed the Memorial Year of the Slave, which commemorates the abolition of slavery in 1863. The main ceremony took place in Amsterdam’s Oosterpark, attended by the Prime Minister, Mark Ruttein its last day in office.

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For more than 300 years, Dutch slave traders kidnapped and shipped adults and children across the Atlantic from various parts of Africa. The former Dutch colonies of Surinam and Caribbean islands like Aruba y CuraçaoThey owe their economic wealth to the forced labor of slaves.

With the Commemorative Year, the Dutch Government wanted to contribute to permanently increasing knowledge of a little-exposed part of the country’s history. He Government also asked apologies and reparations. July 1 is now called Keti Koti or “the day the chains were broken.”