ICC Prosecutor requests arrest warrant for Sudan's President al-Bashir

Darfur: ICC Moves Against Sudan’s Leader
Charges Against al-Bashir a Major Step to Ending Impunity

- from Hrw.org website. Click link for more information.

" Charging President al-Bashir for the hideous crimes in Darfur shows that no one is above the law. It is the prosecutor’s job to follow the evidence wherever it leads, regardless of official position. "
Richard Dicker, director of Human Rights Watch’s International Justice Program

One of the most monumental steps in bringing justice to the nation of Darfur is by the International Criminal Court finalizing their evidence and asking for a warrant for the people responsible for war crimes, crimes against humanity and genocide. When ICC Prosecutor Luis Moreno Ocampo requested that an arrest warrant be issued for the Sudanese President al-Bashier, hope can again flourish among the rebel groups fighting for their homes, families and land.

Read more about this directly from the HRW website (hrw.org) and also from the International Criminal Court website (http://www.icc-cpi.int/press/pressreleases/406.html)

Darfur. Help is in our hands, not anyone elses.

I just watched the clip from Hotel Rwanda where Don Cheadle (playing Paul Rusesabagina) says, "you must shame them into sending help."

"Reach through the phone and make it sound as though you are holding their hand, and if they let go of your hand... you will die."

His words were powerful regardless if the movie was based on a true story or not, but becuase it is based on a true story, one that is happening again in another part of the world, we must act. We must send help.

Educate yourself. It's the least you can do.

Step One. Week One.

10 Steps for Darfur

Ten Steps for Darfur: As Outlined by the Human Rights Watch

Below are the ten steps that will be the core values to which I write my letters from. I encourage everyone to write letters regarding these recommendations and show your support for the resolve that could come as a result of implementing these recommendations.



1. Publish and disseminate orders prohibiting the targeting of civilians and civilian property and indiscriminate attacks.

2. Enforce orders prohibiting targeting of civilians and civilian property and indiscriminate attacks.

3. Vet all appointments to public office on human rights grounds, and remove Ahmed Haroun, who has been indicted by the International Criminal Court, from all posts.

4. Publicize and enforce a policy of zero tolerance for violence against women.

5. Provide an up-to-date list of detainees and where they are held, and ensure that UN agencies and humanitarian organizations have confidential access to all detainees.

6. Cease any use in Darfur of military airplanes, helicopters, or vehicles painted white or otherwise mimicking UN or humanitarian organizations.

7. Issue a blanket waiver of legal immunities for war crimes and serious violations of human rights.

8. Fully cooperate with the International Criminal Court, and surrender two suspects now subject to arrest warrants.

9. Fully cooperate with the African Union mission and deployment of the new UN-AU force, including issuance of expedited visas and clearance for vehicles and equipment.

10. Issue a standing invitation to all UN human rights mechanisms and give these mechanisms full and unimpeded access.

New Letter Series: 10 Letters, 10 Weeks.

Human Rights Watch proposed 10 steps that would help alleviate the Genocide in Darfur, Sudan.

This was proposed in December 2007 and was developed on part becuase the Human Rights Council (HRC) was going to review the final report that was being produced by the Group of Experts (GOE) specifically reviewing the situation in Darfur.

I will write ten letters in ten weeks regarding each of the ten steps to different officials in the United States Legislature in order to promote those key elements in hopes that new amendments and pieces of legislation will be drafted to pressure the Executive branch into taking more direct action against the genocide.

This is also in correlation with STANDNow.org The Student Anti-Genocide Coalition. Their spring 2008 goal is to target the Executive branch in order to help the citizens of Sudan.

Read more about their work here with their four main goals:

Seal the Deal: Sudan, The Executive Legacy

http://www.standnow.org/campaigns/seal/about

1. Stick to your Promises
2. Enforce UNAMID
3. Apply an All-Sudan Solution
4. Lobby China

The Translator - Hari Daoud, a Sudanese translator and guide for Journalists.

Book Description taken from Google.com Book Descriptions.

Buy the Book here: http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1400067448?ie=UTF8&tag=boohav03-20&linkCode=as2&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=1400067448





I am the translator who has taken journalists into dangerous Darfur. It is my intention now to take you there in this book, if you have the courage to come with me.The young life of Daoud Hari–his friends call him David–has been one of bravery and mesmerizing adventure. He is a living witness to the brutal genocide under way in Darfur.The Translator is a suspenseful, harrowing, and deeply moving memoir of how one person has made a difference in the world–an on-the-ground account of one of the biggest stories of our time. Using his high school knowledge of languages as his weapon–while others around him were taking up arms–Daoud Hari has helped inform the world about Darfur.Hari, a Zaghawa tribesman, grew up in a village in the Darfur region of Sudan. As a child he saw colorful weddings, raced his camels across the desert, and played games in the moonlight after his work was done. In 2003, this traditional life was shattered when helicopter gunships appeared over Darfur’s villages, followed by Sudanese-government-backed militia groups attacking on horseback, raping and murdering citizens and burning villages. Ancient hatreds and greed for natural resources had collided, and the conflagration spread.Though Hari’s village was attacked and destroyedhis family decimated and dispersed, he himself escaped. Roaming the battlefield deserts on camels, he and a group of his friends helped survivors find food, water, and the way to safety. When international aid groups and reporters arrived, Hari offered his services as a translator and guide. In doing so, he risked his life again and again, for the government of Sudan had outlawed journalists in the region, and death was the punishment for those who aided the “foreign spies.” And then, inevitably, his luck ran out and he was captured. . . . The Translator tells the remarkable story of a man who came face-to-face with genocide– time and again risking his own life to fight injustice and save his people.

Human Rights FIRST

This is a great place to find a good deal of information regarding some of the more serious human rights abuses that are currently underway around the world.


If you scroll down on the sidebar, You'll note there is a powerpoint slideshow that gives a detailed introduction to the conflict in Darfur. It's a powerful way to give a presentation and has an incredible amount of information. To fully appreciate the slideshow, Either email me or get the powerpoint from the site. It has notes in the footer below each slide that tell you what to say during the presentation of this slideshow.

www.HumanRightsFirst.org

Banning Cluster Munitions

BAN CLUSTER MUNITIONS by 2008.

So Far: 75 Countries have signed the Treaty.

Is your country one of them?


To get in on the action: Visit the Human Rights Watch Website (Click the Link above or visit) http://hrw.org/campaigns/clusters/index.htm

Follow up needed.

Sand & Sorrow - New Documentary

http://www.sandandsorrow.org/


A New Movie coming out called "Sand and Sorrow" by Paul Freedman and Narrated by George Clooney. December 2007.

Check it out. It's going to be amazing.

To the Future President of the United States. I hope.

In Progress.
Letter re: Darfur, Keep up your efforts and continue to pursue them strongly.

As the front runner for the Presidential Election. I find it incredibly important that someone of this nature has the power to stop the genocide in Darfur.

If you would like to write to HRC, the more pressure she recieves, the more important she'll realize that the United States does in fact have a moral and ethical obligation to stop this type of mass atrocity from continuing in a countries like Sudan and Chad. (Among many others, of course)


The Honorable Hillary Rodham Clinton
United States Senate
476 Russell Senate Office Building
Washington, D.C. 20510-3203

Senators writing back। Read their letters here.

Click on the letters to enlarge them on your screen for easier reading.
It is interesting to note that only the senators responded to my letter. None of the House of Reps did. Of course, there may be a reason for this as one of the things that activists are warned against is sending the same letter to multiple people. Now I understand why.









Responses to my letter re: Darfur.

Two Responses, One from each of our current WA State Senators. Maria Cantwell and Patty Murray. I thank them for their consideration in writing a return letter regarding my concerns.

The Humanitarian Hybrid.

A minor improvement? Or Delay... Peacekeepers from the United Nations is the appropriate action to take. A hybrid UN and AU team of Peacekeepers has been allowed to enter Darfur, Sudan. So far so good. We'll see if they make it there or not. And where these "peacekeepers" are actually coming from is another question entirely. But it does seem like a positive step.

However, as hopes rise, doubts do as well. Humanitarian aid workers who have been around long enough to see this strategy work its way out before raise doubts as to the genuine effort being put forth by the Sudanese government.

The hybrid connection between African Union workers and United Nations Workers is a noteworthy cause and even though the best interest of the nation may not be the most important concern for Kig Abdullah, it is beginning to be for the international community. Potential agreements cause stirs, stirs cause attention.

Attention will undoubtably cause actions or so we activists would like to hope. So whether the intentions of this agreement were met by honorable eyes on both sides is practically irrelevant in some sense. Should this agreement fail, I believe we would see an even larger momentous force brought about by the international community and the worlds people becoming more willing to sacrifice what we have to save the lives of the 2.3 million IDP's and Refugee as well as giving peace of mind for the lost lives of nearly 400,000.

Introduction to Ending Genocide.

Our time is limited on this beautiful planet and the daily lives of a few individuals are keeping the rest of the world from enjoying what small bit of peace we may have left within it.

What follows here is a collection of my letters written to elected officers of our nation and nations around the world as well as anyone who I have found that may have even the slightest of influence in reshaping the political atmosphere that has arisen in the poorest countries of the world. The people of these countries like Darfur need a voice and I will not rest until each and every one of them has the ability to voice their needs, their wants, their desires to whom they either elected, or show loyalty to in their country.

But Darfur is only one of many. There is much work that needs to be done.

I encourage anyone who wants to start writing activist letters to these people - To take their names, take their addresses, find out the current status of the pieces of legislation going through our congress and show your support or if necessary your dismay. Our elected officials need your voice to shape their votes. They are asking for it, so give it to them.

As for the international letters, please review who is currently in those positions as they change often and are on a different time table than our own elected officials. If pushed hard enough they can make a strong case and become of the most influential support for ending genocide.

Discover what you can do and use wisely the time that is given to you.

Sara Cartwright
5:20 pm
4th of April 2007.