Issue 140 - June 2 2005
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| On Tuesday, May 24, 2005 Africa
Action hosted a media briefing, in Washington, D.C., along with
other national advocacy groups, to demand that President Bush take
specific steps to stop the genocide in Darfur. The groups released
an Open Letter to the President on Darfur, signed by 80 prominent
national organizations and leadership figures, representing millions
of Americans. The letter lays out the most important immediate steps
that leading advocacy groups and leadership figures from across the
U.S. believe the Bush Administration must take to stop the genocide
and protect the people in Darfur.
Heads of leading advocacy organizations spoke about the urgency of the situation in Darfur and the necessary U.S. and international response. Salih Booker, Executive Director of Africa Action, said, "The President of the U.S. has recognized that genocide is occurring, but apparently there are more pressing matters requiring his attention. We must ask, what could possibly be more pressing than genocide? Unless there is an immediate international intervention in Darfur, up to a million people may be dead by the end of this year." The Open Letter to the President on Darfur asserts the need for an urgent international intervention to support the African Union’s mission in Darfur, in order to:
The letter calls on the Bush Administration to
The original signatories of the Open Letter to the President on Darfur are: Africa Action, American Jewish World Service, Coalition for International Justice, Darfur Rehabilitation Project, Foreign Policy in Focus, Genocide Intervention Fund, Physicians for Human Rights, Save Darfur Coalition, TransAfrica Forum and Professor Eric Reeves. Some of the prominent additional signatories to the letter include Members of Congress, the NAACP, the National Council of Negro Women, the General Secretaries of the All Africa Conference of Churches and the National Council of Churches (USA), as well as interfaith & labor leaders, heads of women’s groups and advocacy organizations and other leadership figures from across the U.S. The letter and full list of signatories are below: Open Letter to the President on the Genocide in Darfur Dear President Bush, In September 2004, your Administration rightfully recognized that the crisis in Darfur constitutes genocide. Yet the U.S. has failed to respond to this genocide with the urgency that is required. As the death toll in Darfur continues to mount, it is clear that nothing short of international intervention can protect the people of Darfur. We call on you to assert U.S. leadership to ensure such an international intervention takes place as a matter of the greatest urgency. Up to 400,000 people have lost their lives in Darfur since the government-sponsored genocide began in 2003. More than 2.5 million people have been displaced, their livelihoods and villages destroyed by government forces and their proxy militias, and many thousands of women and girls have been raped by these forces. Recent reports confirm that the government-sponsored violence continues in Darfur, and that the security situation is deteriorating. The humanitarian crisis that forms part of the genocide is escalating, as the government of Sudan continues to obstruct humanitarian operations, creating famine conditions for millions of vulnerable people. Mr. President, our most important priority must be providing protection to the people of Darfur. The African Union (AU) has shown important leadership, and its mission in Darfur is doing what it can on the ground in the face of growing insecurity. But the AU cannot address this crisis alone, and nor should it have to. Genocide is an international crime, a crime against humanity, and it requires an international response. Unless there is an urgent international intervention in Darfur, up to a million people may be dead by the end of this year. An international intervention is essential to support the AU’s efforts, and can achieve four critical purposes: (1) stop the killing and provide security for millions of internally displaced people (IDPs); (2) facilitate the urgent delivery of humanitarian assistance; (3) enforce the cease fire and provide a stable environment for meaningful peace talks to proceed; and (4) facilitate the voluntary return of IDPs to their land and the reconstruction of their homes by providing a secure environment. The U.S. is to date the only government that has rightfully recognized that genocide is taking place in Darfur. We urge you to immediately take the following steps to support an urgent international intervention to stop genocide in Darfur: First, the U.S. must assert leadership at the United Nations (UN) by circulating a resolution calling for a stronger civilian protection mandate for the African Union mission and for a broader international force under Chapter 7 of the UN Charter. Second, the U.S. must encourage the UN to quickly approve and assemble a robust international force, under Chapter 7 of the UN Charter, to integrate or co-deploy with the African Union and reinforce its efforts. Such a force can be assembled with troop contributions and financial and logistical support from additional countries within and outside the African continent. Mr. President, genocide is a unique crime and it requires a unique and urgent response. We can still save thousands of lives in Darfur if we act now. We look to you to provide strong leadership to stop the genocide in Darfur by supporting an international intervention force to protect the people of Darfur as a critical first step to bringing peace and stability to this troubled region. Original Signatories: Salih Booker, Ruth Messinger, Nina Bang-Jensen, Elnour Adam, Emira Woods, Mark Hanis, Leonard Rubenstein, David Rubenstein, Eric Reeves Bill Fletcher, Jr., Additional Signatories: Rep. Sanford D. Bishop (D-GA) Rep. John Conyers, Jr. (D-MI) Rep. Chaka Fattah (D-PA) Rep. Barbara Lee (D-CA) Rep. Donald M. Payne (D-NJ) Rep. Charles B. Rangel (D-NY) Rep. Maxine Waters (D-CA) Hilary Shelton, Dorothy I. Height Bishop Mvume Dandala Rev. Dr. Robert Edgar, Rev. Dr. William Lesher Bishop Charles E. Blake Rev. Jim Wallis James E. Winkler, General Secretary Suliman A. Giddo, Morton Bahr Edgar Romney Samantha Power Aram Hamparian, Mayor Roosevelt Dorn Capt. Brian Steidle Rabbi Eric Yoffie David A. Harris Shelley Lindauer Rev. William G. Sinkford, Rev. Dr. James Vigen Jim Fussell Eve Ensler, Seddik Abdel Jabbar Rev. Elenora Giddings Ivory Sabit Alley Kim Nichols Dedrick Mohammed, Linda Burnham Dr. Ronald Walters Carolyn Makinson Jehmu Greene Marcia Thomas Marie Lucey, OSF Marie Dennis, Ron Stief Susie Johnson, Joseph Beasley Bishop Beverly J. Shamana, President Gretchen S. Wallace, Dr. Toyin Falola Ritu Sharma, M. William Howard, Jr., DD, DHL, LLD, Pastor Amy Woolam Echeverria Sameer Dossani Sister Marilyn Kesler Kateri Caron H. Eric Schockman, Ph.D Daniel Sokatch, Norman L. Epstein David Rosenberg, John Goott Rabbi David Steinberg Rabbi H. David Teitelbaum, Rev. Dr. George F. Regas Mansour Kane Rabbi Saul J. Berman Rabbi Deborah Bronstein Rev. Francis Mercer, Leonard Glickman Rev. Dr. Peter A. Terpenning, Marie Abrams, Florence Johnson, Tony Hileman, *Affiliation listed for identification purposes only + Denotes Africa Action Board member |
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