Seventy thousand are dead. One and a half million are displaced.

Still, the United States as well as the entire United Nations stand idly by, watching while a whole population is swept away by a ruthless rebel regime. Someone must act.

The Muslim north and now the body of the Sudanese government have been oppressing and murdering the animist southern Darfurians ever since they took power in a military coup in 1989. The situation has flared tremendously in the past year.

Leading the brutal attacks and assaults on the Darfurians is the Arab Janjaweed militia hired and supported by the Sudanese government. This ingrains a perplexing problem in solving the conflict. How can the murdering and killing stop when the country’s own government is the lead supporter of this murderous army?

One and a half million Darfurians have fled their homes to neighboring countries such as Chad. Those who remain face starvation and torture, while those who leave still are not receiving the necessary aid they need due to restrictions by a dogged Sudanese government.

The Janjaweed have murdered, raped, tortured and starved ultimately 70,000 Darfurians, and it seems like no one but Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist deems this situation severe enough to openly call it “genocide.”

The United States has refused to send over any troops because the Bush Administration claims they cannot spare any forces due to Iraq. Only a single question was asked about Sudan during the first Presidential debate.

European nations fear a backlash by Muslim countries across the globe. This argument simply provides a wall to hide behind preventing further questioning.

Western nations must emerge from their selfish political bubble and send troops to Sudan. The UN must enforce penalties on the Sudanese government for not following through with several agreements to cease fighting and enable easier aid access. Not even the African Union, whose main purpose is to “protect human rights,” will send in troops to help a member country.

The number of deaths associated with the Darfur genocide is steadily creeping to numbers comparable to that of the Rwandan genocide.

The UN Charter states that when genocide is occurring, member nations must act. What is going on?