Wherever you find it. Especially the White House!
Esther Sprague, a tireless Sudan advocate, has provided the following information. Please act on it and, like Eric Cohen, get in touch with Karen Richardson at the White House. And make sure to read the totally unsatisfactory statement from the White House below Eric’s note to Karen Richardson.
Esther writes:
“How many mass graves must we know about (after the fact), before we act…”
Please join Eric in contacting the White House to demand urgent protection for Sudanese.
Karen E. Richardson [email protected]
Subject: Statement from the President on Sudan Date: Wed, 22 Jun 2011 10:25:01 -0400 From: Eric Cohen To: Karen Richardson [email protected]
Karen – Glad to see the statement below condemning the violence in South Kordofan and threatening that “the roadmap for better relations with the Government of Sudan cannot be carried forward.”
My question is, what is the US doing NOW to help protect the civilians being attacked in Sudan? There are now many credible reports of government-led and government-sanctioned murders of the Nuba people in South Kordofan. General concern for the “peace process” and words condemning violence are simply not enough.
How many mass graves must we know about (after the fact), before we act to help the Nuba? We are watching as Omar al-Bashir proceeds with his fourth genocide in Sudan. Isn’t it time we acted forcefully? Please help protect the people of Sudan from their government. Please help the Nuba defend themselves, now. Please help the Government of South Sudan be ready to defend its people.
It’s time to take clear sides.
Eric Cohen, Chairperson, Investors Against Genocide
——– Original Message ——–
Subject: Statement from the President on Sudan Date: Wed, 22 Jun 2011 10:03:05 -0400 From: Richardson, Karen E. [email protected]
THE WHITE HOUSE Office of the Press Secretary FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
June 22, 2011
Statement from the President on Sudan
On Monday, the Government of Sudan and the Sudan People’s Liberation Movement (SPLM) signed an agreement in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, to reduce tensions in Abyei and allow UN peacekeepers from Ethiopia into the region. I commend the parties for taking this step forward toward peace, and I urge them now to build on that progress and agree to an immediate cease fire in Southern Kordofan. Under the Comprehensive Peace Agreement, both parties committed to resolve their differences peacefully, and both parties have a responsibility to end the current violence and allow immediate humanitarian access to desperate people who have been driven from their homes and are now cut off from outside help.
The situation in Southern Kordofan is dire, with deeply disturbing reports of attacks based on ethnicity. The United States condemns all acts of violence, in particular the Sudanese Armed Forces aerial bombardment of civilians and harassment and intimidation of UN peacekeepers. With a ceasefire in Southern Kordofan, alongside the agreement to deploy peacekeepers to Abyei, we can get the peace process back on track. But without these actions, the roadmap for better relations with the Government of Sudan cannot be carried forward, which will only deepen Sudan’s isolation in the international community. Without a cease-fire and political negotiations, the people of Southern Kordofan cannot enjoy the right to have their political grievances addressed. The negotiations now under way in Addis Ababa demand the urgent commitment from both sides to peace and to the agreement for immediate help to those civilians caught up in this conflict.
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