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Carter Squares Off With Sudan Guards

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By ALFRED de MONTESQUIOU, The Associated Press

Published: October 4, 2007

KABKABIYA, Sudan - Former President Carter confronted Sudanese security services on a visit to Darfur on Wednesday, shouting, 'You don't have the power to stop me' at some who blocked him from meeting refugees of the conflict.

The 83-year-old Carter wanted to visit a refugee camp in South Darfur, but the U.N. mission in Sudan deemed that too dangerous. Instead, he agreed to fly to the World Food Program compound in the North Darfur town of Kabkabiya, where he was supposed to meet with refugees, many of whom were chased from their homes by militias and government forces.

None of the refugees showed up, however, and Carter decided to walk into the town, a volatile stronghold of the pro-government janjaweed militia, to meet refugees too frightened to attend the meeting at the compound.

He was able to make it to a school, where he met with one tribal representative, and was preparing to go farther into town when Sudanese security officers stopped him.

'You can't go. It's not on the program,' the local security chief, who only gave his first name as Omar, yelled at Carter, who is in Darfur as part of a delegation of respected international figures known as 'The Elders.'

'We're going to anyway,' an angry Carter retorted as a crowd began to gather. 'You don't have the power to stop me.'

U.N. officials, however, told Carter's entourage that the Sudanese state police could bar his way. Carter's traveling companions, billionaire businessman Richard Branson and Graca Machel, the wife of former South African President Nelson Mandela, tried to ease his frustration, and his Secret Service detail urged him to get into a car and leave.

'I'll tell President Bashir about this,' Carter said, referring to Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir.

Omar, the security chief, said Carter had breached security once by walking to the school and would not be allowed to breach security again.

'We are in the security field. We're not that flexible,' he said after the confrontation ended.

Carter later played down the encounter, saying the security chief was only doing his job.

For the most part, the refugees in Kabkabiya appeared too frightened to speak to the visiting delegation.

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