On this Global Day for Darfur, Sojourner's Place joins in this CALL TO ACTION TO STOP THE GENOCIDE AND RAPE OF WOMEN AND CHILDREN IN DARFUR!
Fearing for their lives, hundreds of thousands of women and children have fled war-torn Darfur only to find themselves victims of sexual assault and rape. The violence against women and children by the warring groups is reaching alarming levels.
The genocide began in Sudan's Darfur in 2003. Now, five years later, women and children have displaced in camps, towns, and rural areas. Yet, it is in these would be safe-haven areas where women and children are extremely vulnerable to sexual violence as a result of either attacks on civilians or during "times of calm". Such culprits of these attacks are have been reported by some to be men from the Sudanese security forces, militias, rebel groups, and former rebel groups generally targeting women and girls from Fur, Zaghawa, Masalit, Berti, Tunjur, and other non-Arab ethnicities.
The culprits of these heinous acts have no fear of being caught or even investigated because they know that for them the silence of their victims is golden. Darfur women and girls, out of fear and cultural restraints, often do not seek medical treatment because reporting of sexual assaults is mandatory. The report requires not only the victim's name but the culprit's as well. The lack of confidentiality prevents survivors from seeking available medical and psychological treatments AND allows the culprit to do it again without fear of retribution.
Sojourners, I ask you to let let your voice be heard and join in this call to action!
Educate
Reports and Studies
Five Years On: No Justice for Sexual Violence in Darfur: This is a full report by the organization Human Rights Watch available online as well as a pdf file.
Trip to Darfur Travelogue: The Res Publica Team that runs Darfurgenocide.org conducted a six-week trip to Darfur and the surrounding areas. This travelogue describes their encounters with the Darfuri people, political leaders as well as the Sudanese Liberation Army.
Creating a Peace to Keep in Darfur - A Joint Report by the ENOUGH Project and the Save Darfur Coalition : This is a very detailed report suggesting real and tangible suggestions on ending the genocide in Darfur as well as healing her.
News Items and Commentaries
UN Peace Missions Falter in Africa: This article explains that the United Nations along with the African Union currently have 7,467 troops in Darfur but are being strangled into incompetency due to the lack of donations from UN member states. Kofi Anaan warned that the United Nations has taken on too many peacekeeping missions with too limited support from member countries.
China’s Genocide Games: This article goes into the connection between Darfur and China. In effective activist campaigns you have to hit them where it hurts. With the heated protests that have been seen throughout the journey of the Olympic Flame and the Chinese response, The Beijing Olympics are a powerful target to be pursued.
Rape widespread in Darfur: This article demonstrates that women and girls [as young as 11] live in constant fear of sexual violence and rape in Darfur. These most shameful acts of violence are committed by Sudanese military as well as the Janjaweed.
Facts and Stats
Sudan - The Quick and the Terrible: A Frontline presentation gives a history of the region and crisis.
International Crisis Group - Crisis in Darfur: A plethoria of information about Darfur with reports, action suggestions, news reporting and so much more.
You can let your voice be heard right now! Just go to Dream for Darfur! All of the actions listed below are available at that site.
1. Write to the ambassadors of the US, the UK, Russia and France to the UN. Urge them to help China insist that Khartoum stop its obstruction.
2. Email or call the Olympic Corporate Sponsors. Send a letter to companies sponsoring the 2008 Olympics, hosted by China. (Dream for Darfur’s email system will let you do this with the touch of a button.)
3. Pledge to turn off the commercials of Olympic Sponsors during the Games. Olympic corporate sponsors have been silent about China’s financing of the Darfur genocide, even as the sponsors are spending billions to enhance China’s image as Olympic host. If sponsors continue to ignore China’s complicity in the Darfur genocide, we will ignore their million-dollar ad campaigns.
4. Write to the UN Special Adviser on Sport for Development and Peace. Mr. Adolf Ogi represents the UN Secretary-General in contacts with international sports bodies. Tell him you are concerned that the world will gather for the Olympics while the people of Darfur are being slaughtered.
5. Petition the International Olympic Committee. Urge the IOC to work with the international community to ensure that China uses its leverage with the government of Sudan to help stop the genocide in Darfur, and avoids tarnishing the 2008 Games in Beijing.
In Solidarity: Global Day for Darfur Participant List Available at Modern Musings
Obliged to you for hearing me, and now old Sojourner('s Place) ain't got nothing more to say. ~ ~SjP
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