Two refugees from the war in the Darfur region of Sudan illustrated to ISU students the conflict in their homeland Thursday night.

The panel, held in the Sun Room of the Memorial Union, consisted of Abdelaziz Adam al-Hilu, Anwar Elnor and Rev. Russell Melby and was moderated by Intensive English and Orientation Program specialist Mary Barratt.

Al-Hilu, former deputy secretary general of the Sudanese People’s Liberation Movement leadership council for Northern Sudan Sector, spoke about the current state of the Sudan, with its splintered factions of regional tribes and an Islamic government that supports an ongoing 50-year civil war and commits genocide in the Darfur region.

Al-Hilu said death toll estimates range from 400,000 to 2 million in the ongoing civil war between tribal factions and the government.

“If it weren’t enough, 6 million Sudanese have been displaced and have taken refuge across the world, including America,” al-Hilu said.

Al-Hilu stated that the main reasons for the conflicts in the region are based mostly on differences of nationality, religion and socioeconomic development. The main problem lies with the reigning Islamic government, which wants to change the name of Sudan after a Muslim principle.

In 2003, the SPLM, now split into two factions, drafted the Comprehensive Peace Agreement. This treaty, although ratified by most factions, has been signed by the government in name only and has not been adhered to, Al-Hilu said.

Elnor, president of the Darfur People’s Association, questioned whether Sudan could be fixed with the CPA, since the government doesn’t abide by it.

The president of the country will not allow United Nations forces into the country, and the United Nations will not go into the region because of the threat of war.

“Because the international community is quiet on this subject, that means that we must accept the genocide in Rwanda and we must accept what happened in December 1939 in Germany,” Elnor said.

Last to speak was Rev. Russell Melby, who spoke about the efforts of the many church communities, citing the Church World Service/CROP, a group of many faiths that gives aid to help the people in Darfur.

Audience member and Ames resident John Day said he regretted that there isn’t much an individual can to do to help the situation.

“There are not a lot of options besides signing a petition, which doesn’t do much. Either you could give cash or help give aid, but in reality, that doesn’t do much either,” Day said.