Mahmood Mandani on Darfur: "The Politics of Naming: Genocide, Civil War, Insurgency"

President Bush has ordered new sanctions to be placed on the Sudanese government for its role in the violence in Darfur.

Last week's announcement blocks thirty-one companies tied to the Sudanese government from using the U.S. banking system.

The sanctions were seen as a victory for the Save Darfur Coalition, a U.S. group leading a vocal campaign pressuring the White House to take action. But the New York Times reported Saturday some of Save Darfur's public efforts have angered aid groups working on the ground in Sudan. The aid groups say Save Darfur's call for imposing a no-flight zone could lead to a halt in aid flights and put their workers at risk.

Aid groups have also criticized Save Darfur for not spending its multi-million dollar budget on aid to Darfur's refugees.

* Mahmood Mamdani, one of the world's most prominent Africa scholars. Earlier this year he wrote a major piece for the London Review of Books titled "The Politics of Naming: Genocide, Civil War, Insurgency." He was born in Uganda, and now splits his time between Uganda and New York, where he teaches at Columbia University. He is the author of many books including, "Good Muslim, Bad Muslim: America, the Cold War and the Roots of Terror."

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