Amnesty International USA Marks United Nations Day, October 24, With White House Delivery of Global Petition on Darfur
|
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
OCTOBER 22, 2006
2:04 PM
|
CONTACT: Amnesty International
Suzanne Trimel, 212-633-4150
or
Ben Somberg, 212-633-4268
|
| |
|
Amnesty International USA Marks United Nations Day, October 24, With White House Delivery of Global Petition on Darfur
|
| |
|
WASHINGTON - October 22 -With the date uncertain for the deployment of a multi-national peacekeeping force to Darfur and new blocks being thrown up by the Sudanese government, Amnesty International USA (AIUSA) on Wednesday, Oct. 24 -- United Nations Day -- will press President Bush for a firm timetable, delivering to the White House a global petition with close to half a million signers calling for deployment by early 2008 to urgently save lives.
Signers include José Ramos-Horta, the Nobel Peace Laureate and President of East Timor, rock star Michael Stipe, lead singer of R.E.M., with the rest of the band, the rock band Maroon 5, actor Gael Garcia Bernal and performer Serj Tankian (System of a Down), among other celebrities.
Larry Cox, executive director of AIUSA, and Lynn Fredriksson, advocacy director for Africa, will deliver the petition to the White House.
At noon, Amnesty International activists, Darfuri human rights advocates in the United States and others will gather for a vigil at Lafayette Park, directly across from the White House. In addition to Larry Cox, speakers will include Jeremy Riddell-Kaufman, founder of the student-led 400,000 Faces for Darfur (AIUSA partner on the global petition), Alex Meixner from the Save Darfur Coalition, Lynn Fredriksson of AIUSA and Garelnabi Abusikin, a Darfuri human rights advocate.
The violence and atrocities that have befallen civilians in Darfur since 2003 have sparked new outrage internationally with reports of another brutal massacre in South Darfur (The New York Times, Oct. 17) weeks away from peace talks between the Sudanese government and warring rebel factions. Witnesses told the United Nations and the African Union that government troops killed more than 30 civilians in the village of Muhagiriya, slitting the throats of several men praying at a mosque and shooting a 5-year-old boy in the back as he tried to run away.
"The viciousness of this latest attack only adds to the urgency of our message," said Cox of Amnesty International. "Are the U.S. and other key governments willing to sacrifice more lives while the deployment process moves slowly into gear? As a permanent member of the U.N. Security Council, the United States has an obligation to use its influence to save lives now in Darfur by pushing ahead swiftly to get the peacekeepers on the ground early next year. This force is the only hope that the suffering will end."
A new report issued Monday by Amnesty International warns that the peacekeeping force is being delayed by Sudan's failure to accept the list of troop-contributing countries agreed on by the African Union and the United Nations, and open the land assigned to the force, among other things. The report also said the international community is failing to supply urgently-needed supplies, including military helicopters.
The petition calls on President Bush to use his influence to set a timeline and benchmarks for the deployment of the force, protect displaced civilians in neighboring eastern Chad and support a United Nations presence there, and ensure sufficient support for the peacekeepers to protect civilians and stabilize the region.
United Nations officials estimate that more than 200,000 people have died and more than 2.5 million have been driven from their homes and depend on international aid to survive. The United Nations has committed to sending 26,000 troops to Darfur -- the world's largest peacekeeping force.
WHAT: White House global petition delivery on Darfur and vigil by Amnesty International USA
WHO: Larry Cox, AIUSA executive director, activists and advocates
WHEN: Wednesday, Oct. 24, 2007
WHERE: 12:00-1 pm vigil at Lafayette Park, across from White House
###
|
|
Printer Friendly Version
E-Mail This Article
