published: Inter Press Service (Johannesburg), ANALYSIS, 27 March 2008

David Cronin
Brussels

The European Union has been accused of "supporting a dictator" by deploying a military mission to Chad that is largely comprised of troops from France, the country's former colonial master.

By mid-March, nearly half of a 3,700-strong EU force (Eufor) had arrived in Chad, with the remainder expected to be there before the local rainy season begins in May or June. The domination of French soldiers in the force has fuelled claims that it would be virtually impossible to distinguish the operation from almost 2,000 French troops participating in a separate mission in Chad.

Known as Epervier, the latter mission has shored up the regime of President Idriss Deby, who seized power in a 1990 military coup. During an uprising in the capital N'Djamena earlier this year, French troops guarded the airport where helicopter gunships used to ward off rebel fighters were based.

This was not the first time that Deby has effectively been rescued by French troops, who are stationed in Chad under an agreement dating from the 1970s. In 2006, the French gave logistical support to Deby when he successfully repelled an onslaught by the rebel United Front for Democracy.

France's government has also been reluctant to publicly criticise Deby and his henchmen for ordering the arrest of opposition leaders, some of whose whereabouts remain unknown.

Tobias Pflüger, a German left-wing member of the European Parliament (MEP), severely criticised Eufor in a Mar. 27 debate.
Arguing that the logic of sending this mission is unclear, he described its deployment as "highly irresponsible".
"The best thing would be to put a stop to the Eufor Chad mission now, to say we don't want the situation on the ground to escalate due to the presence of our mission," he said.
Pflüger lamented that other EU states have not complained that more than half of the mission's troops will hail from France, once it is at full capacity. "People seem to be putting on velvet gloves and refraining from criticism because it is linked to the French government," he added.
His view was echoed by French Green MEP Marie-Anne Isler-Béguin. "At the moment, we are basically supporting a dictator," she said.

But Torben Brylle, a diplomat representing the EU's 27 governments in Chad and neighbouring Sudan, said he could not share the scepticism expressed about the mission.
Brylle said communication efforts are being undertaken to explain the purpose of Eufor to community leaders in Chad. "We are not actors in the internal power struggle in Chad," he told IPS.
He underscored that Eufor is operating under a mandate from the United Nations Security Council. "When I talk to humanitarian organisations, the general sense I leave with is that there is an understanding of the positive contribution of Eufor. We are not there to replace humanitarian operations. We are there to create a secure environment and to protect the civilian population."

Officially, Eufor is part of Europe's response to the persistent conflict in Darfur, across Chad's border with Sudan. About a quarter of a million refugees are taking shelter in Chad after being uprooted by violence in Sudan. The violence has mainly been blamed on the Janjaweed militia, which is widely regarded as a proxy force for the Sudanese government.

It is "quite clear", according to Brylle, that the perilous situation in Darfur has "not improved", with efforts to bring relief to refugees hampered by attacks on aid convoys. Some 56 attacks have occurred so far this year, resulting in the deaths of three humanitarian workers.
The "gloomy realistic assessment" is that a "political process has not developed," said Brylle, since negotiations were launched between the various parties to the Darfur conflict in Sirte, Libya, in October. "There is no military solution to the conflict in Darfur, the only sustainable way out of the conflict will be a political settlement," he said. "Unfortunately, the parties to the conflict are opting for a military solution."

Ana Gomes, a Portuguese Socialist, said she did not feel that the Council of Ministers, the institution binding together the EU's governments, "really understands what is at stake" in Darfur.
She nonetheless disagreed with criticisms of Eufor. "It is the fault of those who have not contributed (troops) that it is too French," she said.

Although some 14 EU countries are taking part in the mission, two of the Union's most populous nations, Germany and Britain, are not sending even one soldier to Chad.

But Michael Gahler, a German conservative, suggested that France's existing presence in Chad could compromise Eufor's nominal impartiality. "The question is: can the people in Chad distinguish between these white faces - the neutral troops and the troops that are there on the side of the government?"