Philadelphia City Council Passes Darfur Resolution
Darfur Alert Coalition
– Contact: Jamilah Brown 2672579354
June 21, 2005 (Philadelphia, PA) -The Darfur Alert Coalition presented a resolution to Majority Leader Janie Blackwell (3rd District) imploring the City of Philadelphia to take an official stance against the genocide currently occurring the Darfur region of the Sudan.
On June 16, 2005, Majority Leader Blackwell introduced the Philadelphia Darfur Resolution to the City Council of Philadelphia (PA), which passed with no objections.
DAC is hopeful that other grass roots organizations, in addition to city & state governments, will adapt the resolution to increase local and national focus towards the issue and ignite legislation.
Calling on the U.S. government to condemn the genocide occurring in the Darfur region of Sudan and urge the U.S. government to provide humanitarian relief.
WHEREAS, an increasing number of residents in Philadelphia are of African descent, including many from the Sudan, especially the Darfur region; and
WHEREAS, the City¹s racial, ethnic and cultural diversity, including the presence of residents of varied national origins from throughout the world, is one of our community¹s greatest strengths; and
WHEREAS, The City of Brotherly Love, Philadelphia, stands with the global community in recognizing our moral obligation to condemn genocide anywhere in the world. We are committed to alerting our community to the urgency of the situation in Darfur and working together with The Philadelphia Area Darfur Alert Coalition to end this human tragedy.
WHEREAS, the Sudanese presence here, and throughout the United States in increasing numbers during the last few years, reflects the longstanding armed conflicts and authoritarian rule which have prevailed in that country over the last 50 years. Authoritarian rule has produced the forced displacement of millions of people from southern Sudan and from the Darfur region; and
WHEREAS, The city of Philadelphia is committed to the defense of the rule of law, including the basic standard of international law and international human rights which are contained in treaties signed by the United States such as the United Nations Charter, The Geneva Conventions, The Convention Against Torture, the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, the Convention for the Elimination of Discrimination Against Women (CERD), the Convention for the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination (CERD) and the American Convention of Human Rights, which are part of the ³supreme law of the land² according to the U.S. Constitution; and
WHEREAS, the City of Philadelphia took note of the United Nations report of the International Commission of Inquiry on Darfur, which resulted in the United Nation¹s Security Council Resolution No. 1593, in which the Security Council decided to refer the situation prevailing in Darfur since July 2002 to the Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court. Therefore, our community stands with the victims of the atrocities in Darfur in affirming their basic human rights and struggle for democracy in their homeland, and urge the residents of this community and of other communities in the United States and around the world to join the call. Now therefore, be it RESOLVED BY THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF PHILADELPHIA, that we call on the U.S. government to condemn the genocide occurring in the Darfur region of Sudan and urge the U.S.government to provide humanitarian relief, and FURTHER RESOLVED, that a copy of this Resolution be forwarded to all members of the United States House and Senate.
About Darfur Alert!
Darfur Alert! is an alliance of peace, faith-based, humanitarian, immigrant and human rights organizations. Our mission is to raise public awareness and to mobilize an effective unified response to the atrocities that threaten the lives of two million people in the Darfur region.
The seed of the coalition was planted on December 10th, 2004, UN Human Rights Day when The Church of the Advocate, The American Friends Service Committee, Project Voice, The Women’s International League for Peace and Freedom and The Painted Bride Art Center presented “The Children of Darfur: Surviving Genocide, Exhibit and Panel Discussion”. Dr. Jerry Ehrlich, a pediatrician with Doctors Without Borders, who treated refugees in Darfur, Sudan, inspired us as he spoke about the photographs he took and the children’s artwork he brought back from the Kalma refugee camp. These images introduced us to men, women and children weary from loss, in desperate need of nourishment and safety.
Additionally, the panel discussion: “Understanding the Darfur Tragedy and Putting it on the US foreign Policy Agenda” featuring Ms. Zeinab Eyega, Ali B. Ali-Dinar, PhD, Mr. Salih Booker, Rep. Joseph Hoeffel, and Camilo Perez-Bustillo helped clarify how much work we all needed to do to stop these crimes against humanity.
Still, Dr. Jerry Ehrlich’s words remain our guiding light: “Not a day went by when a child didn’t die – oftentimes in my arms. You don’t leave that behind. If you end the conflict one month earlier?you have no idea how many lives are saved.”
Contact Info:
– Darfur Alert!
– Lou Ann Merkle
– Tel. 610-832-7028
– Email. [email protected]
– Website : www.darfuralert.blogspot.com
– Affiliate: www.genocideinterventionfund.org