U.S. Rep. Chris Smith, who returned this week from a tour of Sudanese refugee camps, says the U.S. government has helped stabilize the health of civil war victims and now must help them rebuild their lives. 

    Smith, R-Washington Township, visited two refugee camps in the African nation's Darfur region as part of a nine-day humanitarian tour. He said U.S. contributions have been instrumental in meeting the medical and nutritional needs of the thousands of refugees displaced by genocidal race wars. Now they need money to help pay troops to protect their return home. 

    He said some $200 million is needed to fund the African Union troops who are protecting the black Africans driven from their homes by Arab militias.  "When I looked into the eyes of those Darfurians who have suffered so much, I saw gratitude and expectancy; hope and a sense of `We're getting our lives back, stay with us.' 

    Smith, chairman of the House Subcommittee on Africa, Global Human Rights and International Operations, began his African tour in Ethiopia on Aug. 13, where he met with HIV/AIDS victims and toured a Catholic hospital that treats women for obstetric fistula, a potentially fatal condition that can arise from obstructed labor or rape. Smith's amendment to the $22.3 billion Foreign Relations Authorization Act provides $12.5 million to fund 12 more African centers to provide the treatment for women. 

    Smith also met with Ethiopian Prime Minister Meles Zenawi and members of his ruling party to urge a full investigation of election protests following the nation's June elections. The protests left at least 36 dead, according to a news release. He also met with members of the opposition party to encourage them not to boycott parliament. 

    But it was Smith's visit to refugee camps in Sudan and his meeting with the head of the African Union protectors that dominated his thoughts in a phone interview from his Washington office yesterday. Smith helicoptered into camps in remote areas of Mukjar and Kalma to meet with men, women and children driven from their villages by Janjaweed militias reportedly supported by the Sudanese government. 

    Smith spent several hours in Kalma, the largest refugee camp with 156,000 occupants. He spent the night in Mukjar, home to 13,500 refugees. He described the visits as "very emotional, very moving," adding that the refugees expressed thanks for the U.S. humanitarian contributions. 

    "Our food and nutrition are restoring the Darfurians," Smith said. "They look very healthy. They've been stabilized. The key now is returning them, with protection, to their homes and that requires an overarching settlement of the hostilities in the region." 

    Smith met for two hours with Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir. He was the first U.S. elected official to do so. He said he stressed the need to put a stop to the Janjaweed's reign of terror. 

    "At times the meeting was very testy," Smith said. "He's not used to meeting with people from the outside. I told him the whole international response (to the genocide) is ratcheting up, not down. I said if (the Sudanese) want any chance of economic prosperity, any at all, the genocide has to absolutely cease and security pacts have to be put in place. He listened, he argued but he didn't take any blame for anything." 

    Smith said the meeting was a rare chance to convey the United State's commitment to ending ethnic cleansing in Darfur. "When you get a chance to debate a dictator, and a ruthless one, it gives you the opportunity to look him in the eye and press these issues," he said. "You can't do that by making a speech on the (House) floor." 

    A visit with African Union leaders convinced Smith that the United States must continue its support for the African peace-keeping efforts, adding that monetary support is crucial at this point. 

    He said the African Union, charged with overseeing the ceasefire needs up to $200 million to pay soldiers and to buy gasoline and other supplies. 

    "I'm not sure we should (fund) it all ourselves but we should do much of it and right away," Smith said. "We want to make sure this is the quintessential African peacekeeping deployment of all time. The African Union has gotten its sea legs and are emerging as a strong regional organization with a peacekeeping deployment. It's in our best interest to make sure it works."