Institute on Religion and Democracy Media Advisory
October 26, 2016
Contact: Jeff Walton office: 202-682-4131, cell: 202-413-5639, e-mail: jwalton@TheIRD.org
“The immense human suffering caused by the Sudanese government forces’ attacks on Darfur must no longer be ignored by the world.”
-Amnesty International
Who: Act for Sudan, Damanga Coalition for Freedom & Democracy, Darfur Action Group of South Carolina, Darfur Interfaith Network, Darfur Women Action Group, Institute on Religion & Democracy, Jews Against Genocide, Never Again Coalition, NY Coalition for Sudan, Nubia Freedom Group, Red Eagle Enterprises, and Sudan Unlimited
What: Demonstration to protest Sudan regime use of chemical weapons against men, women, and children in Darfur (recently documented by Amnesty International), and lack of U.S. response to the regime’s ongoing atrocities
When: Friday, October 28, Noon-4:30 p.m.
Where: The White House, Pennsylvania Avenue NW, Washington, DC
Washington, DC—A broad coalition of human rights organizations is demanding that the U.S. Administration hold the Sudanese government accountable for perpetrating genocide and numerous crimes against humanity, citing the recent use of chemical weapons against people groups in the African country. American activists will join in solidarity with Sudanese coming from across the United States. The coalition also demands that the U.S. should not even consider lifting the terrorist sanctions against the Sudan regime.
A recent report from Amnesty International provides hard evidence of the Sudan government’s use of chemical weapons against the people of Darfur. In more than 200 interviews with survivors, investigators identified at least 30 likely chemical weapon attacks in the Jebel Marra area of Darfur since January 2016. But Sudanese people groups in the Nuba Mountains and Blue Nile State have long asserted that chemical weapons have been used against them by the regime as well. This is not the first use of such weapons by the Khartoum regime: during Sudan’s previous civil war, regions in what is now the independent nation of South Sudan were attacked by northern forces using chemical weapons, according to numerous human rights organizations.
IRD Religious Liberty Program Director Faith J.H. McDonnell commented:
“It is vital that Americans stand alongside Sudanese to oppose the loosening of terrorist sanctions against a regime that is committing genocidal crimes against humanity and that is an incubator of global jihad.
“In the face of an ongoing genocide in the Sudanese regions of Darfur, Nuba Mountains and Blue Nile State, the U.S. government needs to respond appropriately – not continue to allow Khartoum to commit genocide with impunity.
“Oppression and persecution of all Sudan’s marginalized people must be acknowledged and those people groups supported by the U.S. They are our true partners in fighting against global terrorism.”
The Institute on Religion & Democracy works to reaffirm the church’s biblical and historical teachings, strengthen and reform its role in public life, protect religious freedom, and renew democracy at home and abroad.
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