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| Home away from home: Al-Hajj Saboor Arta (center) was once a refugee himself. Now, he offers his land to some 160 families of Darfuri refugees,
like the four men next to him. Melanie Stetson Freeman – staff   A Chadian farmer's gift |
Flooded with refugees, a farmer shares land
A Chadian farmer's gift provides a chance at self-sufficiency for Darfuri refugees.
from the July 12, 2007 edition
Page 2 of 3
When international aid is measured in billions, the generosity of a few acres of land by a small farmer like Bakit may seem like small change. But in a harsh arid region, where plots of arable land are precious and often separated by dozens of miles of rocky desert, Bakit's gift is breathtaking and powerful.
Aid workers say they are concerned that foreign assistance for the displaced Darfuris could cause resentment among the native Chadians, an advantage that is sometimes perceived as favoritism. Bakit says Chadians would only gain if Darfur farmers succeed.
| A Chadian farmer's gift |
Farming in both Darfur and Eastern Chad is a very low-tech business. In both places, it's a matter of waiting for the rains to come in early July before shoving seeds into the wet desert floor, one at a time, with a thumb.
But the farmers of Darfur have slightly more water, slightly longer growing seasons, and have accumulated more techniques for farming, such as the use of animals for pulling plows, carrying water from nearby streams, and so on. Because of their added experience, Bakit believes that Darfuris have a lot of knowledge they can share with their relatively less developed brethren in Chad.
"When I go to the mosque, I tell people to give land to the refugees; they have experience in growing crops that we don't have," says Bakit. "In the mosque, most keep silent, some say yes, but I'm sure, if you dig for water here, and these refugees start to grow crops in the dry season, people will start to give their land to the refugees too. They are waiting to see what happens first."
The terms of Bakit's gift – he told the farmers they could use the land as long as they need it – come with major risks. Sudanese refugees from Darfur belong to the same Zaghawa tribe that live in and around Iriba, and they could easily blend with the local population, staying on Bakit's land forever. It is for this reason, and also because of tree-chopping by refugee farmers on Bakit's farmland, that Bakit's neighbors have become disgruntled. Chadian forestry authorities in Iriba arrested Bakit three times, fining him the princely sum of $240 on charges of deforestation.
"Other people don't like what I'm doing, but that doesn't concern me," says Bakit. "It's my land. Let them take me to the police station. I fear only God."
For Sudanese refugees, the offer of land from a Chadian farmer like Bakit is a rare glimpse of hope after four years of near-despair. Many Darfuris see the Darfur Peace Agreement hammered out in Abuja in June 2006 as a disappointment, since only one of the three main rebel groups – the Sudanese Liberation Movement of Minni Minawi – signed the cease-fire with the Sudanese government in Khartoum.
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