August 3, 2012

96 RIGHTS GROUPS URGE UNITED NATIONS, AFRICAN UNION AND LEAGUE OF ARAB STATES TO CONDUCT AIRLIFTS OF AID IN SUDAN

Filed under Actions, Press Releases

Susan Morgan, susan@paxcommunications.org
Elizabeth Blackney, eliz@medializzy.com

Crimes of Sudan Government Require Immediate and Drastic Measures to Save Lives, Say Groups

NEW YORK, NY – AUGUST 3, 2012 – Act for Sudan and 95 international organizations sent a letter to the United Nations Security Council, the African Union, the League of Arab States and IGAD, urging immediate and drastic measures to save the lives of men, women and children living in Nuba Mountains/South Kordofan and the Blue Nile states of Sudan.  Thousands of civilians in these regions face imminent death by violence and starvation orchestrated by the Government of Sudan.

For more than one year, the international community has had the opportunity to address the crises in the Nuba Mountains/South Kordofan and the Blue Nile State. The crises are unfolding in a manner and on a timeline that has been predicted for many months; however, the weak response by the international community has proven ineffective, according to the letter.

“We strongly recommend immediate airlifts, in coordination with the SPLM-North, to deliver aid to war affected populations in Nuba Mountains/South Kordofan and Blue Nile that are inaccessible due to Sudan imposed blockades and due to impassable roads caused by the rainy season,” the letter states. “The international community has exercised extraordinary patience and exhausting but fruitless diplomacy to secure access for the delivery of aid. The international community must now exercise its right and responsibility to protect the citizens of the two areas from crimes committed by the Government of Sudan.“

Since UN Security Council Resolution 2046 was adopted on May 2, many thousands more refugees have fled Sudan and found “shelter” in desperately inadequate border camps. The New York Times and others have reported deaths by starvation, injury and disease for those unable to flee Sudan or for those not strong enough to complete the long journey out of Sudan.

Just as it had forecast earlier, USAID raised its food insecurity threat level from “crisis” and declared a food “emergency” in its July 5 alert for the Nuba Mountains in South Kordofan, noting the need for emergency action because of “large food consumption gaps, very high levels of acute malnutrition, and excess mortality” as a result of the Government of Sudan blocking humanitarian access and bombing civilians. Since then the rainy season has begun further restricting the possibilities of transporting food from “on border” locations to those in need across the border.

In 2005, the United Nations adopted the principle of Responsibility to Protect, which allows the international community to take stronger measures if a State is the perpetrator of crimes against its citizens.  The African Union Constitution Article 4(h) states “the right of the Union to intervene in a Member State pursuant to a decision of the Assembly in respect of grave circumstances, namely:  war crimes, genocide and crimes against humanity.”

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Act for Sudan is an alliance of 72 American and Sudanese grassroots organizations that advocate for an end to genocide and mass atrocities in Sudan. Act for Sudan is dedicated to advocacy that is directly informed by the situation on the ground and by Sudanese people who urgently seek protection, justice, and peace. For more information please visit www.actforsudan.org.

 PDF of Press Release

FULL TEXT OF LETTER:

To:  The United Nations Security Council

The African Union Peace and Security Council

The League of Arab States

Dr. Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma, Chair of the African Union Commission

Thabo Mbeki, Chair of the African Union High Implementation Panel

Prime Minister Meles of Ethiopia, Chair of IGAD

 

From: The Undersigned 96 International Organizations

Date: August 3, 2012

Re: Implementation and Review of United Nations Security Council Resolution 2046

 

 

On June 6, 2012, 89 international organizations urged the UN Security Council to impose consequences as outlined in Resolution 2046 on Sudan if it did not allow immediate access for humanitarian aid into Nuba Mountains/South Kordofan and Blue Nile by June 14, 2012.

 

On June 14, 2012, the spokesperson for Secretary-General Ban Ki-Moon acknowledged serious food shortages particularly in the areas not under government control, and he committed to the delivery of 8,000 metric tonnes of food assistance.  We understand Sudan recently allowed the World Food Programme to provide a 3 month supply of aid to approximately 170,000 people in 13 government-held areas in eastern South Kordofan.

 

We appreciate the initial efforts to supply aid to war affected populations and we appreciate attention by the UN Security Council, the African Union and IGAD to address the crises in Sudan and South Sudan through implementation of the African Union Roadmap and UN Security Council Resolution 2046.

 

According to Resolution 2046 article 6, the UN Security Council intends to take appropriate measures under Article 41 of the UN Charter if Sudan, South Sudan and the SPLM-North do not comply with decisions set forth in the Resolution.  Review of compliance was scheduled for May 17th and in two week intervals thereafter.   In addition, Resolution 2046 article 5 established a 3 month deadline on August 2, 2012 for conclusion of negotiations between Sudan and South Sudan over oil, citizenship, the border and Abyei.

 

Besides concluding negotiations between Sudan and South Sudan, compliance by the parties is based on the following actions:

 

  • Cease all hostilities including aerial bombardments.
  • Withdraw troops to their side of the border.
  • Activate, by May 9th, the Joint Border Verification and Monitoring Mechanism and the Safe Demilitarized Border Zone.
  • Cease harboring or supporting rebel groups against the other state.
  • Activate the means to investigate allegations.
  • Cease hostile propaganda and protect property, religious and cultural symbols and nationals of the other State.
  • Implement the June 20, 2011 agreement on Abyei.
  • Reach a negotiated settlement between Sudan and the SPLM-N based on the June 28, 2011 Framework Agreement.
  • Accept and implement the tripartite proposal by Sudan and the SPLM-North.
  • Protect human rights including those of women and people belonging to vulnerable groups.

 

Non-compliance of these requirements is subject at any time to measures under Article 41, which include partial or complete interruption of economic relations and severance of diplomatic relations.

 

It is widely recognized that while South Sudan and the SPLM-North have largely complied with the Resolution, Sudan has not and instead has committed the following violations:

 

  • Ongoing bombardment and attacks in South Kordofan, Blue Nile and South Sudan.
  • Refusal to implement a buffer zone between Sudan and South Sudan.
  • Ongoing presence of Sudan military in Abyei.
  • Refusal to accept and implement the tripartite proposal and as a result condemning thousands of people to death by starvation, thirst, injury and disease within Sudan and creating a humanitarian crisis outside of Sudan as over 200,000 civilians seek refuge in South Sudan and Ethiopia.
  • Refusing to recognize the SPLM-North as a political party, arresting and torturing its members and confiscating their property while refusing to approach negotiations with the SPLM-North in good faith making a negotiated settlement impossible.
  • Violating human rights by arresting, torturing and killing peaceful protestors and individuals associated with opposition parties; indiscriminate bombing of civilian populations in Nuba Mountains/South Kordofan and Blue Nile; and by restricting access for international humanitarian aid throughout Sudan.

We recognize the tenuous nature of negotiations between Sudan and South Sudan and the implications of failed negotiations.  While there may be a reluctance to antagonize Sudan for fear of repercussions, failing to implement Resolution 2046 emboldens Sudan and other states to disregard international law and institutions and to instigate violence that threatens global peace and security.

 

We strongly recommend immediate airlifts, in coordination with the SPLM-North, to deliver aid to war affected populations in Nuba Mountains/South Kordofan and Blue Nile that are inaccessible due to Sudan imposed blockades and due to impassable roads caused by the rainy season.  The international community has exercised extraordinary patience and exhausting but fruitless diplomacy to secure access for the delivery of aid.  The international community must now exercise its right and responsibility to protect the citizens of the two areas from crimes committed by the Government of Sudan.

 

As part of the UN Secretary General’s September 2, 2012 proposal to address outstanding issues related to negotiations between Sudan and South Sudan, we recommend the inclusion of immediate consequences according to Article 41 if Sudan fails to comply with all components of the Resolution and if it continues to commit crimes against its citizens and the citizens of South Sudan.

 

In addition, serious and unresolved humanitarian and political crises are ongoing in Darfur, Eastern Sudan and throughout Sudan.  Compliance with Resolution 2046 article 3, a negotiated settlement based on the June 28, 2011 Framework Agreement on Political Partnership, would pave the way for a comprehensive security and political arrangement at the national level.  However, the effectiveness of an agreement is contingent upon full participation by opposition parties and rebel groups, civil society organizations, grassroots activists and Sudanese citizens, particularly citizens from the marginalized regions.  Given Sudan’s well established pattern of failing to abide by negotiations, commitment by the international community to strictly monitor the implementation process and the ensuing transitional period will be necessary

 

We appreciate your immediate attention to these urgent matters.

 

Signed by:

 

Act for Sudan

Martina Knee, Co-Founder

San Francisco, CA, USA

Aegis Trust

Dr. James Smith, CEO

London, England, UK

African Soul, American Heart

Debra Dawson, President

Fargo, ND, USA

Afro Canadian Evangelical Mission

Rev. Fr. Lexson A. Maku, Head of Mission

Abbotsford, BC, Canada

Alliance for the Lost Boys of Sudan

Joan Hecht, President

Jacksonville, FL, USA

American Friends of the Episcopal Church of Sudan (AFRECS)

C. Richard Parkins, Executive Director

Washington, DC, USA

Arry Organization for Human Rights and Development

Osman Habi, President

Kansas City, MO, USA

Beja Organization for Human Rights and Development

Ibrahim Tahir Ahmed, Co-Founder and Executive Director

Fairfax, VA, USA

Blue Nile Association

Abdal Babikir

Washington, DC, USA

Brooklyn Coalition for Darfur & Marginalized Sudan

Laura Limuli, Coordinator

Brooklyn, NY, USA

Catholic Diocese of Jackson, Mississippi

Bishop Latino, Roman Catholic Bishop of Jackson, Mississippi

Jackson, MS, USA

“Change the world. It takes cents.” TM

Sara Kornfeld, Project Founder/Educator

Denver, CO, USA

Christian Solidarity International-USA

Reverend Heidi McGinness, Director of Outreach

Denver, CO, USA

Collectif Urgence Darfour

Dr. Jacky Mamou, President

Paris, France

Colorado Coalition for Genocide Awareness and Action

Roz Duman, Founder/Director

Denver, CO, USA

Combat Genocide Association (CGA)

Uriel Levy, Director

Tel Aviv, Israel

Comité Soudan

Diagne Chanel, Présidente

Paris, France

Community Empowerment for Progress Organization – CEPO

Edmund Yakani, Program Coordinator

Juba, Central Equatoria, Republic of South Sudan

Connecticut Coalition to Save Darfur

Tim Oslovich, Chairperson

Vernon, CT, USA

Darfur Action Group of South Carolina

Richard Sribnich, MD, Chairman

Columbia, SC, USA

Darfur and Beyond

Cory Williams, Co-Founder

Doreen A. Romney, Co-Founder

Phoenix, AZ, USA

Darfur Development Agenda (DDA)

Saifeldin A. Nemir,

Manchester, England, UK

Darfur Human Rights Organization of the USA

Abdelgabar Adam, President and Founder

Philadelphia, PA, USA

Darfur Interfaith Network

Martha Boshnick, Co-Chairman

Washington, DC, USA

Darfur Leaders Network (DLN), USA

Motasim Adam, Director/ Co-Founder

Washington, DC, USA

Darfur People’s Association of New York

Ahmat Nour, President

Brooklyn, NY, USA

Darfur Relief and Documentation Centre

Hamid Eltigani Ali, Chair, Board of Directors

Geneva, Switzerland

Darfur Solidarity USA

Mohammed Eisa, Vice President

Boston, MA, USA

Darfur Union, UK & Ireland

Hussain Begira, Chairperson

London, England, UK

Darfur Victims Organisation for Rehabilitation and Relief (DVORR)

Mariam Suliman, Chairperson

London, England, UK

Dear Sudan Love Marin

Gerri Miller, Founder

Tiburon, CA, USA

End-Impunity Organization

Angelina Daniel Seeka, Regional Director

Juba, Republic of South Sudan

Episcopal Diocese of Iowa, Des Moines for Darfur

Rev. Peggy Harris

Des Moines, IA, USA

Episcopal Diocese of Mississippi

The Rt. Rev. Duncan M. Gray III, Bishop of the Diocese of Mississippi

Jackson, MS, USA

Genocide No More- Save Darfur

Marv Steinberg, Coordinator

Redding, CA, USA

Genocide Prevention Institute/ Georgia Coalition to Prevent Genocide

Melanie Nelkin, Founder (Institute)/ Chair (Coalition)

Atlanta, GA, USA

Genocide Watch

Gregory Stanton, President

Washington, DC, USA

GeNoticed

Elizabeth Blackney, Founder and Managing Director

Virginia Beach, VA, USA

Help Nuba

Rabbi David Kaufman, Founder and Co-Chair

Mark Finkelstein, Executive Council

Des Moines, IA, USA

Hope for Women and Children of South Sudan

Teresa Yaak, Founder and President

Grand Rapids, MI, USA

Hope With Sudan

Jerry Drino, Executive Director

San Jose, CA, USA

Humanitarian Aid Relief Trust (HART)

Baroness (Caroline) Cox, House of Lords and CEO

United Kingdom

Humanity Is Us

Kimberly Hollingsworth, Founder

New York, NY, USA

Idaho Darfur Coalition

A.J. Fay, Co-Founder

Boise, ID, USA

Institute for Training and Research

David Adalla, Program Director

Juba, Republic of South Sudan

Investors Against Genocide

Eric Cohen, Chairperson

Boston, MA, USA

Iowa Center for Genocide Prevention

Kristen Anderson, Founder

Des Moines, IA, USA

Jerusalem Center for Genocide Prevention

Professor Elihu D Richter MD MPH

Yael Stein MD, Co-Founder

Jerusalem, Israel

Jewish World Watch

Fred Kramer, Executive Director

Los Angeles, CA, USA

Jews Against Genocide

Eileen Weiss, Co-Founder

New York, NY, USA

Joining Our Voices

Jack Slater Armstrong, Founder/Director

Baton Rouge, LA, USA

Justice & Equality Movement Sudan (JEM)

Ahmed Hussain Adam, Secretary for Foreign Affairs

Sudan

Kentuckiana Taskforce Against Genocide

Phil L. Nippert, Chairperson

Louisville, KY, USA

Live Well Clinic

Dr. Thon Paul Agok, Managing Director

Juba, Republic of South Sudan

Long Island Darfur Action Group

Nancy Walsh, Coordinator

Farmingdale, NY, USA

Massachusetts Coalition to Save Darfur

William Rosenfeld, Director

Boston, MA, USA

Mississippi Area of The United Methodist Church

Hope Morgan Ward, Resident Bishop

Jackson, MS, USA

Moro Association of United States, Inc.

Philip Tutu, President

Kansas City, MO, USA

My Sister’s Keeper

Rev. Gloria White-Hammond, M.D., Executive Director

Sarah Cleto Rial, Program Director

Boston, MA, USA

National Sudanese Women Association (NSWA)

Omayma Elmardi, Chairperson of the Executive Committee

Khartoum, Sudan

Never Again Coalition

Diane Koosed, Co-Chairs

Portland, OR, USA

New York Coalition for Darfur and All Sudan

Neiki Ullah, Director of Communications and Advocacy

New York, NY, USA

New York Darfur Vigil Group

Helga Moore, Coordinator

New York, NY, USA

Nigrizia Magazine, Comboni Missionaries

Fr. Franco Moretti, Editor

Verona, Italy

Nuba Christian Family Mission, Inc.

George Tutu, Founder/President

Denver, CO, USA

Nuba Mountain Peace Coalition

Tito Elgassai, Co-Founder

Dallas, TX, USA

Nuba Mountains American Advocacy Group

Mario Angelo, Secretary General

Fresno, CA, USA

Nuba Mountains International Assoc. USA

Magid Kabash, Secretary of Information

New York, NY, USA

Nuba Mountains Solidarity Abroad

Zaki Samwiil, Chairman

United Kingdom and Ireland

Nuba Vision Coalition, Inc.

Yassir Kori, Executive Director

Oklahoma City, OK, USA

Nubia Project

Nuraddin Abdulmannan, President

Washington, DC, USA

NYC Genocide Prevention Coalition

Staci M. Alziebler-Perkins, Convener

New York, NY, USA

Operation Broken Silence

Mark C. Hackett, President

Memphis, TN, USA

Persecution Project Foundation

Brad Phillips, Director

Culpeper, VA, USA

Salmmah Women’s Resource Centre

Fahima Hashim, Director

Khartoum, , Sudan

San Francisco Bay Area Darfur Coalition

Mohamed Suleiman, President

San Francisco, CA, USA

Save Darfur Washington State

Ned Laskowski, President

Seattle, WA, USA

Shine A Ray of Hope

Carmen Paolercio, Coordinator

New Rochelle, NY, USA

Society for Threatened Peoples

Sharon Silber, US Representative

New York, NY, USA

Stop Genocide Now

Gabriel Stauring, Director and Founder

Redondo Beach, CA, USA

Sudan Advocacy Action Forum

Bill Andress, Moderator

Lexington, SC, USA

Sudan For All

Emad Bukhari, Founder

Phoenix, AZ, USA

Sudan Rowan Inc.

Ngor Kur Mayol, Founder

Atlanta, GA, USA

Sudan Unlimited

Esther Sprague, Director

San Francisco, CA, USA

Sudanese Marginalized Forum-USA

Gogadi Amoga, Chair

Batavia, OH, USA

Sudanese Ministry Committee, Episcopal Diocese of Mississippi

Greg Miller, Janice Trimble Professor of English, Milsaps College

Bul Garang Mabil, Sudanese Ministries

Jackson, MS, USA

Sudanese Women Empowerment for Peace (SuWEP)

Zaynab Elsawi, Coordinator

Khartoum, Sudan

The Institute on Religion and Democracy 

Faith McDonnell, Director of Religious Liberties Programs and Church Alliance for a New Sudan

Washington, DC, USA

THE INSTITUTE on Religion and Public Policy

Joseph Grieboski, Founder and Chairman of the Board

Washington, DC, USA

The International Justice Project, Inc.

Kristin Rosella, Program Director

Newark, NJ, USA

The South Sudanese Community

Natalina Malwal, President

Washington, DC, USA

Triangles of Truth

Simon Goldberg, Executive Director

New York, NY, USA

Unite for Darfur Organization

Bahar Arabie, CEO

Gaithersburg, MD, USA

Use Your Voice to Stop Genocide RI

Sandra Hammel, Director

Portsmouth, RI, USA

Voices for Sudan

Jimmy Mulla, President & Co-Founder

Washington, DC, USA

Waging Peace

Olivia Warham, Director

London, England, UK