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| July 29, 2009 |
Toward a Comprehensive Strategy for Sudan
Tomorrow July 30 at 3:30 the Senate Committee on Foreign relations is holding a hearing entitled "Toward a Comprehensive Strategy for Sudan".The Khartoum regime claims that labeling the atrocities committed upon the people of Darfur as genocide is 'unhelpful' in its all out effort to normalize relations between Sudan and the US, specifically in lifting economic sanctions and removing Sudan from the list of countries sponsoring terrorism.
In light of the fact that Scott Gration, the US Special Envoy to Sudan, and Sen. John Kerry have intimated that the US is open to accommodating Khartoum's wishes, and since the people of Darfur are unable to attend the hearing, we now must step up for them .
Please call Sen. Kerry's office at 202 224 2742. My eleven visits into the region and the countless hours I have spent listening to the people leave me without any doubt about what they want. Darfur's people do NOT want the United States to normalize relations with Khartoum. They DO want Darfur's civil society to be represented in the August (Doha) peace talks. And without question they want the international community to stand strong for justice, in the form of the International Criminal Court indictment of President Omar al-Bashir.
Questions for Sen. Kerry: Ask Scott Gration what sanctions or other measures the US is prepared to take if the Khartoum regime continues to defy the ICC ruling as well as multiple UN resolutions.
What is the US doing to enlist the support of our European allies in the currently unilateral US Treasure sanctions? What oil sanctions are we prepared to implement? What are you doing to restore full humanitarian aid?
Many are saying the Obama government has been 'conciliatory' in our relations with the genocidal Khartoum regime. Clearly Mr Gration is nowhere near as knowledgeable or clear minded as Roger Winter, the Former Special representative on Sudan. In a hearing before the house Committee on foreign relations today Mr Winter stated; the government of Sudan "has a 100% perfect record. It NEVER ever keeps the agreements it signs with i's opponents." And he referred to the "revolving door of U.S. diplomats and special envoys who think that Khartoum can be appealed to to 'do the right thing' on behalf of the marginalized people of Sudan. It's just not so. Khartoum reads us very well.'
Some 3 million Sudanese people have died as a result of the policies and practices of the current regime, since it came to power by coup as the National Islamic Front. For two decades the NIF has been at war with the Sudanese people in the East, South, North and West. It is incomprehensible and morally unacceptable to take any sort of conciliatory position with this corrupt, genocidal cabal. They should be sidelined as much as possible by the international community to enable moderate, representational voices to position themselves for responsible leadership in Sudan.