Yesterday, sixty-two members of the House of Representatives sent a letter to President Obama urging a shift in the United States’ policy on Sudan. The letter was initiated by Sudan Caucus co-chair, Congressman Michael Capuano.
The letter underscores the need for a revised policy approach in saying, “…recent events in Southern Kordofan, Blue Nile, and Darfur provide clear evidence that the Administration’s policy toward Sudan must be reinvigorated to address the urgent humanitarian and civilian crises facing millions of Sudanese.” Additionally, the letter highlights the worsening humanitarian situation, describes the root cause of the problems in Sudan as the “marginalization of the peripheries by Khartoum”, and calls for the Administration to “marshal the international community” to end violence and support prospects for long-term peace.
Battle Continues to Protect the International Affairs Budget
For the second time since the beginning of the month, Senate consideration of the International Affairs Budget has been delayed. The International Affairs Budget funds the diplomatic and development work of the United States. This funding saves lives in countries affected by conflict, works to prevent atrocities and supports international peacekeeping.
Although the International Affairs Budget was expected to be up for consideration last week, negotiations on the bill fell through before the November 18th deadline. Since funding was set to run out after the 18th, Congress passed a resolution to create a short-term extension and avoid a government shutdown. The new deadline is December 16th. After the Thanksgiving recess, the House and Senate will have three short weeks to pass the International Affairs Budget. There is ongoing concern about proposed cuts that would disproportionately target this critical funding. (more…)
Signed by Secretaries Henry Kissinger (1973-1977), George Shultz (1982-1989), Madeleine Albright (1997-2001), Colin Powell (2001-2005) and Condoleezza Rice (2005-2009), the letter underscores the important role that international diplomacy and development play in advancing the interests of the United States.
As the letter states, “[international affairs] programs are critical to America’s global leadership and represent strategic investments in our nation’s security and prosperity.”
Read the entire letter and take action to help protect the International Affairs Budget.
Senators Chris Coons (D-DE) and Susan Collins (R-ME) are circulating a letter to President Obama urging the Administration to develop the necessary tools to successfully avert mass atrocities and prevent the conditions that can lead to violence against civilians.
Urge Your Senators to Sign-on
The letter will be open for additional signatures until November 17, 2011 and all members of the Senate are welcome to join. Urge your Senators to add their signature to this letter today. You can contact Senators by phone or send an email by clicking on the webform link. Your Senators should contact the office of either Senator Coons or Collins to sign-on.
Sample Script: As a constituent who cares about ending mass atrocities and genocide, I urge the Senator to sign-on to the Coons/Collins letter on genocide prevention. The letter urges President Obama to develop the necessary tools to successfully avert mass atrocities. Please contact the office of either Senator Coons or Collins to sign-on. Thank you.
About the Letter
The letter reiterates the principles of Senate Concurrent Resolution 71, which passed unanimously in December 2010. S.Con.Res. 71 urged the administration to conduct an interagency review to evaluate existing capacities for preventing, and responding to genocide and other mass atrocities.
The letter welcomes the recently-released Presidential Study Directive (PSD) 10, which created an Atrocities Prevention Board (APB), and underscored that preventing genocide and mass atrocities is in America’s national interest. Finally, it urges the Administration to establish coordinating mechanisms between Congress and the APB, and consider a whole of government approach to atrocities prevention.
Remember, the deadline for Senators to sign-on to this letter is Thursday, November 17.
Late last night, the Financial Times reported that the Syrian regime has stopped payments to European oil giants Royal Dutch Shell and Total. Shell and Total are two of more than fifteen companies that operate in Syria’s petroleum sector. Many of these companies are European, but the list also includes companies from Canada, China, India and Russia. This news is significant as it raises questions about the future of oil operations in Syria and the state of the regime’s finances.
There are frequent and widespread reports that Syrian Army tanks have been deployed and used in civilian areas.
Violence against Civilians and Oil
Despite the outbreak of violence against civilians and suspected crimes against humanity, companies have continued to operate in Syria. The Syrian oil sector has been a key target because oil revenue directly supports the regime. Although Syria’s economy was fairly well diversified, it was estimated that–before violence broke out in March–the oil sector provided the government with $7 to $8 million a day. As other sectors of the economy like tourism have collapsed, oil revenue has become even more important.
Sanctions by the European Union
The news that the Syrian Government has stopped payments comes shortly before key European Union (EU) sanctions banning the importation of Syrian oil are set to take effect on November 15. The ban on the importation of Syrian oil is significant because EU countries purchase about 95% of Syria’s oil exports. However, European companies are legally able to continue oil exploration and production in the country.
In light of ongoing violence, the EU also announced yesterday that they plan to further sanction between fifteen and twenty individuals.
Sanctions by the United States
The United States has sanctions on Syria that predate the recent atrocities. In testimony before the Senate Subcommittee on Near Eastern and South and Central Asian Affairs, a Treasury Department official stated that “[U.S.] sanctions currently already do prohibit any new investment in the Syrian oil sector. [Sanctions] prohibit all transactions between U.S. persons and the Government of Syria.”
In order to provide additional pressure on non-U.S. companies, Senator Kirsten Gillibrand introduced legislation earlier this year that would provide penalties in the United States for any foreign company that continued to operate in Syria’s petroleum sector. The bill has twelve co-sponsors and has continued to gain momentum in the Senate.
The Need for Additional International Pressure
Just as the European Union and the United States have been leading efforts to pressure the Syrian regime, other countries like China and Russia have been lagging far behind. The United States, France and the United Kingdom have led attempts at the United Nations Security Council to pass a resolution that would impose further sanctions, including an arms embargo. However, in an unusual move, China and Russia cast a double veto of the measure. It’s important to note that Russia is a significant arms supplier to the Syrian Government and has said that unless the UNSC adopts an embargo they will continue to sell arms to the regime. There is still strong interest from western countries in the passage of a resolution, but Russia and China continue to pose a major challenge.
Congressman Michael Capuano (D-MA) has been joined by the co-chairs of the Sudan Caucus in writing a bipartisan letter to President Obama. The letter urges Obama to adopt a new approach on Sudan.
Urge Your Representative to Sign-on
The letter will be open for additional signatures until November 18, 2011 and all members of the House of Representatives are welcome to join. Urge your Representative to add their signature to this letter today. You can contact your Representative by phone through 1-800-GENOCIDE or send an email through house.gov. Your Representative should contact Congressman Capuano’s office to sign-on.
Earlier this week, United to End Genocide joined American Jewish World Service, Enough Project, Jewish World Watch, Humanity United, The Institute on Religion and Public Policy, and Investors Against Genocide in urging members of the United States Senate to fully support international affairs funding. The letter focused on the current challenges facing Sudan and the need to ensure adequate resources are available for humanitarian aid, development assistance, economic support, and peacekeeping funding. (more…)
After months of demanding to be heard, United to End Genocide has secured a Congressional Hearing “Sudan: The Ongoing Humanitarian Crisis in South Kordofan and Continuing Human Rights Violations in Darfur” which began today at 10am. Below is the testimony by our President Tom Andrews. You can also followlive tweets of the hearing here.
Testimony of the Hon. Thomas H. Andrews
President of United to End Genocide
Tom Lantos Human Rights Commission
“Sudan: The Ongoing Humanitarian Crisis in South Kordofan and Continuing Human Rights Violations in Darfur”
September 22, 2011
Thank you Chairman Wolf, Chairman McGovern and members of the Tom Lantos Human Rights Commission for holding this hearing. I greatly appreciate the opportunity to testify before you today on the escalation of attacks against civilians in Sudan. So many members of this Commission have been long-time champions of peace and accountability in Sudan. Your leadership on Sudan is critical.
I was in the region a little over two months ago visiting Rwanda, Kenya and South Sudan, and in Juba just weeks after violence broke out in South Kordofan. Everywhere I went I heard story after story of the horror that continues to be inflicted. Two refugees from Darfur told me about their harrowing experience of being awakened at dawn by the sound of hooves and gunfire as the Janjaweed raided their village. They fled to South Kordofan’s Nuba Mountains and described how the people there welcomed them. They expressed their alarm and horror that the same regime that had forced them to flee their homes in Darfur was now attacking the very people who provided them refuge.
The common denominator in the devastating attacks on civilians in both Darfur and South Kordofan is Sudan’s President Omar al-Bashir. Let me be clear – Bashir is a genocidal monster who is already wanted by the International Criminal Court for directing atrocities in Darfur. Since Bashir came to power in a military coup in 1989 he has murdered, starved and destroyed the lives of millions of innocent civilians in South Sudan, Abyei, Darfur, Blue Nile and South Kordofan.
I have provided additional details on the violence being perpetrated across Sudan by Bashir’s forces in my written testimony. But my focus today is on what is happening now in South Kordofan and the stories that were told to me by the people I met.
I spoke to several people displaced from South Kordofan’s Nuba Mountains when I was in Juba in early July. The numbers of displaced have only increased since then. Two priests who had just arrived after a narrow escape told me that the Sudanese Armed Forces and allied militias had gone door to door, targeting people based on their religion and the color of their skin. They spoke of churches being burned and looted. One church was hit by a bomb as Antanov planes, the same used to terrorize the people of Darfur, launched indiscriminate attacks on civilian areas. That was in July. The attacks continue.
Last Thursday, the Senate Foreign Relations Committee held a hearing entitled “Two New Sudans: A Roadmap Forward.” The Committee heard from Princeton Lyman, the US Special Envoy to Sudan, on South Sudan’s independence and the challenges it will face moving forward. In his statement, Ambassador Lyman spoke about the ongoing border disputes in Abyei and South Kordofan regions. He emphasized the need for a resolution by the end of this month between North and South Sudan or else there would be certain “risk of expansion of hostilities” on the ground. The issues to be resolved include:
Treatment of widely diverse populations (citizenship rights, migrant populations, and resettlement)
Ambassador Lyman called for at least an interim agreement to be settled by the end of the month, along with a firm timetable for negotiations moving forward. The more quickly North and South Sudan resolve their issues, the higher the likelihood of a successful peace and transition to statehood for South Sudan.
In regard to Darfur, Lyman noted that in order for political reform to occur, the Government of Sudan (GoS) must satisfy a list of conditions put forth by the United States, which would create an enabling environment in Darfur for political pluralism and freedom of expression. Until these conditions are met, the United States will not facilitate a peacekeeping process in the region.
Sen. Kerry (left) and Sen. Lugar
Concerns about GoS’ exclusion of key Darfuri rebel groups from negotiations in Doha was also a point for discussion. At this point the GoS is only engaging with the Liberty and Justice Movement (LJM), when they need to be bringing in leaders of the Justice and Equality Movement (JEM), and Sudanese Liberation Army(SLA), in order to construct a viable solution that addresses the issues raised by all parties involved in the conflict.
In reference to getting access to humanitarian aid in South Kordofan and Abyei, Lyman confirmed that both sides were “open” to the idea of a “72 hour pause” in fighting to allow aid workers to bring in food and medical supplies to the displaced.
Senators Chris Coons (D-DE) and Dick Lugar (R-IN) engaged in discussion regarding agricultural development as essential to food security and economic prosperity in South Sudan. Development aid provided from the United States and international community would provide technological assistance to vastly increase South Sudan’s output, thus reducing its import dependencies and shifting it towards an export-based economy.
Senators John Kerry (D-MA), Lugar, John Isakson (R-GA), Coons, and Tom Udall (D-NM) were all in attendance at the hearing. Senator Coons announced that he, Senator Richard Durbin (D-IL), Senator Isakson, and Senator Roger Wicker (R-MS) will be introducing a resolution commending the cooperation by both sides, and calling on a peaceful resolution to the conflict in Sudan. The meeting had the overarching tone of urgency and uncertainty regarding negotiations and the full implementation of the Comprehensive Peace Agreement (CPA) before current hostilities expand beyond a point of negotiation.
At noon on July 22, Sudanese Diaspora members and activists around the globe will begin a 24-hour long fast for Darfur. During the global hunger strike, participants will be contacting their government officials, asking for:
- Immediate protection of civilians
- Unimpeded humanitarian access
- Accountability for the crimes against humanity committed by Khartoum’s regime
- Justice for the genocide victims and atrocities committed in Darfur and throughout Sudan.
On July 23rd, the 7th anniversary of the United States Congress declaring the conflict in Darfur to be Genocide, Sudanese from all regions,including Darfur, the Nuba Mountains, Abyei, Nubia, Eastern Sudan and Central Sudan, will join together with American activists outside the White House, to protest the ongoing violence of Omar al-Bashir’s regime. They will call for action from the United States to protect civilians, hold al-Bashir accountable, and bring peace to all of Sudan.
Confirmed speakers at the White House Rally include:
Other speakers will include prominent human rights activists, policy experts, and genocide survivors will speak.
Separate events will also be held throughout the US (including Nebraska, Arizona and Texas) and Internationally in Canada, France, the UK, Egypt and Uganda.
The Senate will be on recess from August 8-September 2, giving you a great opportunity to meet with them at their local offices. With so much going on, we anticipate that August will be a crucial month to lobby on both Sudan and genocide prevention. You can sign up online and we’ll provide talking points and materials for your meeting. We will also be holding several training calls to help you prepare and can connect you with others in your area who might be interested in lobbying.
Sign up to lobby your Senators today. Meetings will need to be scheduled soon.
Make the Call: 1-800-GENOCIDE
As always, we’ll be making 1-800-GENOCIDE available to connect you directly with the White House and with talking points, so you can call TODAY.
