January 5, 2012

Activists and Congress Work Together to Oppose Khartoum Lobbyists in Washington

Filed under Media & Press

Guest blog post by Act for Sudan co-founder, Esther Sprague, for United to End Genocide.

On Friday, December 16, 2011, Act for Sudan joined by representatives from United to End Genocide, the Enough Project, American Jewish World Service, the Washington-based Darfur Interfaith Network, and Sudanese Diaspora, protested Bart Fisher’s representation of the Government of Sudan in the United States. Representative Frank Wolf (R-VA) joined the protest saying that Mr. Fisher’s actions are offensive and that the Obama Administration should not have granted him permission to represent the Government of Sudan. In conjunction with the protest, Act for Sudan sent an open letter to President Obama explaining why we hope that the U.S. is not about to reward the Government of Sudan by removing it from the State Sponsors of Terrorism List. Such removal is the objective of Mr. Fisher’s contract with Sudan.

Rep. Wolf has asked Treasury to revoke Fisher’s license, and spoke passionately on the floor of the House of Representatives:

“Martin Luther King famously said, “In the end, we will remember not the words of our enemies, but the silence of our friends.” What must the people of Sudan be thinking at this particular juncture when the administration struggles to find its voice on their behalf, while at the same time seemingly empowering the voice of their oppressors.”

As indicated below, these actions represent just the latest effort by activists and Congress to work together to oppose any measures that would reward the Khartoum regime.

Read the Timeline of Opposition to Previous Sudan Lobbying Efforts  here