peace talks founder

[hela]

Dear teachers,

Would you please explain these excerpts to me?

1) "the fighting in Darfur is entering a new and deadly phase --one in which the government is planning an aggressive campaign against the rebel groups fighting here as efforts to find a negotiated peace founder. "

2) "Today two dozen rebel groups are jockeying for territory and influence in Darfur. Some analysts say the government has sown chaos by splintering the rebel groups to weaken them."

- The government has sown chaos among the population, the rebel groups, both ?
- "splintering the rebels" means that the gvt have / has (?) managed to cause division, disagreement, discord among them? They have / It has (?) succeeded in splitting / breaking them up, disunifying them which made them fight one another and so cause even more casualties and havoc among the civilian population ?

Many thanks,
Hela

[RonBee]

1) "the fighting in Darfur is entering a new and deadly phase --one in which the government is planning an aggressive campaign against the rebel groups fighting here as efforts to find a negotiated peace founder. "

They have failed to negotiate a peace settlement.

The phrase "splintering the rebels" means that the gvt have / has (?) managed to cause division, disagreement, discord among them?

Yes.

They have / It has (?) succeeded in splitting / breaking them up, disunifying them which made them fight one another and so cause even more casualties and havoc among the civilian population ?

Possibly.

[hela]

Good morning RonBee,

Sorry, but I still don't understand the meaning of the sentence.

They have failed to negotiate a peace settlement.

Who "they": the gvt, the rebels ?

1) "the fighting in Darfur is entering a new and deadly phase --one in which the government is planning an aggressive campaign against the rebel groups fighting here as efforts to find a negotiated peace founder."

Should I read the passage this way?
a) "the gvt is planning a campaign against the rebel groups [who are] fighting here" ? (= in this place, in this instance ?)

b) "the gvt is planning an aggressive campaign [= attack ?] to find a negociated peace founder"
What I don't understand is why do they have to fight with the rebels and kill civilians to find peace (??)

c) "the rebel groups fighting here as efforts to find a negotiated peace founder"
Or is it the rebels who are trying to settle a peace agreement ?
Who is making efforts to find peace?

d) what does "a negociated peace founder" mean ?

See you

[RonBee]

"They" are the rebel groups and the government - both parties to the conflict. They tried to negotiated a peace but failed to do so.

Re:

The fighting in Darfur is entering a new and deadly phase --one in which the government is planning an aggressive campaign against the rebel groups fighting here as efforts to find a negotiated peace founder.

an aggressive campaign - war; a military campaign
the rebel groups fighting here - the rebel groups fighting in Darfur against the government

Peace talks have broken down, and the government is going to make another effort to defeat the rebel groups militarily. (More people will die. Inevitably, civilians will be among them.)

[RonBee]

What I don't understand is why they have to fight the rebels and kill civilians to find peace.

They don't have to. They want to. They could just let them alone, but they want to subdue them. They want to force their will on those who are rebelling against the government. If innocent civilians die that is part of the cost of war. (Indeed, one point of view is that those innocent civilians aren't so innocent if they agree with the rebels.)

[hela]

RonBee, please, there is something I still don't understand:
"the government is planning an aggressive campaign against the rebel groups fighting here as efforts to find a negotiated peace founder."

[Anglika]

RonBee, please, there is something I still don't understand:
"the government is planning an aggressive campaign against the rebel groups fighting here as efforts to find a negotiated peace founder."

...as efforts to find a negotiated peace are not successful.


"founder" here = to be unsuccessful; to fail

[RonBee]

foun·der2
verb (used without object)
3.
to become wrecked; fail utterly: The project foundered because public support was lacking.

founder - Definitions from Dictionary.com


foun·der
1. intransitive verb break down: to fail ( refers to an undertaking )
Negotiations foundered on a single issue.
http://encarta.msn.com/encnet/features/dictionary/DictionaryResults.aspx?refid=1861613180

founder
3. To fail utterly; collapse: a marriage that soon foundered.
http://www.bartleby.com/61/91/F0279100.html

[hela]

Good evening everyone,

Hum... I think I've got it now.
"as efforts" means "since efforts" ?
So the gvt have attacked the rebels once again because every attempt they made to find peace failed (i.e. "foundered" ??) ?
Is the verb "founder" in the sentence above in the simple present tense ?

[RonBee]

Good evening everyone,

Hum... I think I've got it now.
"as efforts" means "since efforts" ?
So the gvt have attacked the rebels once again because every attempt they made to find peace failed (i.e. "foundered" ??) ?

Every attempt to negotiate a peace agreement failed ("foundered").

Is the verb "founder" in the sentence above in the simple present tense ?

Simple past.