The Genocide Prevention Task Force – a joint initiative of the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum, the American Academy of Diplomacy and the U.S. Institute of Peace – issued a report today that outlines critical steps to prevent future genocide and mass atrocities around the world.
Coalition president Jerry Fowler issued the following response to the report:
As an organization committed to ending the first genocide of the 21st century, the Save Darfur Coalition applauds the conclusions of the Genocide Prevention Task Force and supports the imperative goal of preventing genocide.
To prevent and respond effectively to future genocide and mass atrocities, two things are necessary: a government that is better equipped to recognize and respond to these horrific situations as they develop and a politically salient constituency of conscience that demands action.
The Task Force report outlines concrete steps that, if taken, will move toward achieving the first goal of improving the U.S. government’s ability to recognize and respond to impending threats of mass murder. And essential to taking those steps and making them real, as Secretaries Cohen and Albright recently wrote, is leadership, especially from the White House and Congress.We can also be optimistic that the American people will do their part. The mass movement that has responded to genocide in Darfur shows that there is a constituency of conscience of people from all walks of life, all ages, and all political, religious and ethnic backgrounds that will raise its voice in response to mass atrocities.
While Darfur has been this constituency’s primary focus during the past five years – it hasn’t been its only focus. And moving forward, this movement will demand presidential and congressional leadership to end the Darfur genocide and prevent the next Darfur from occurring.
The opinions expressed here are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the position of the Save Darfur Coalition.
