GW STAND MINUTES!
January 24, 2006

 THEY WON'T ALWAYS BE SO LONG!!! be nice and at least browse? tons of love, Gw StAnD :P

WHY SIT WHEN YOU CAN STAND?

Attached you can find the LA FORUM FLYER!

A week from today!

Please distribute this and make the event a success.

 

TOMORROW! THURSDAY JAN. 26

12:15-12:45 in Kogan Plaza

Come kick off the first STAND event of the Spring semester!!

Power to Protect Campaign Kick off!

We will be performing a STAND for STAND along with STAND's all across the world in Kogan Plaza. This event is EXTREMELY important, and. AWARENESS IS KEY! Traffic will be great then, so stop by even if you can't stay.  If you can show up at 12:00 at KOGAN to help set up, that would be awesome. If you can't make it until 12:30 because you have class, that's fine too. WE JUST NEED YOUR BODY (you know what we mean) SO COME JOIN US! And don't forget to wear a green shirt if you can (preferably your Darfur shirt if you have one).

DORM STORMING FOR THE LA FORUM!!!  Meet at Kogan Plaza on Saturday and/or Sunday at 4pm. We know everyone shutters at the sound of it, but Dorm Storming will be a key factor in having good turn out at the LA Forum (on Feb 1st @ 7:30.

IMPORTANT EDITORIAL on the state of Darfur by Kofi Annan BELOW!!!

 

 

SO WHAT'S THE DEAL WITH DARFUR?

·         Out of the conclusion of the North South civil war in Sudan that spanned 20 years and killed 2 million people arose the genocide in Darfur.

·         This came about because people in the West hadn't gotten their due; they had been marginalized. 

·         The largest cause of the genocide was inequality; Sudan's central government drained resources instead of providing them

·         In January 2003 to protest this marginalization a small number of Darfuri's lead a limited rebellion against military targets

·         In reaction the Sudanese government began of policy of killing the fish by emptying the water, killing all the innocents in an area to catch a few dissenters. 

·         It is wrong for a government to respond to an attack against its military by attacking civilians; it's unthinkable to respond to an attack by killing an entire race.

·         Rather than arresting rebels the correct way, Khartoum looked for a cheap and easy way.  The government freed prisoners and armed them with machine guns, bombers, logistical support and gasoline to burn towns.  Some of the very oil that should have been used to build schools instead went to burning children. 

·         These government back militias called Janjaweed would go from village to village bombing, looting, killing and using rape as a weapon of war against women.

o        In longer presentation describe an attack and rape

§           Brian Steidle's descriptions- government planes would first fly overhead scaring civilians out of their homes.  The planes would release flechetts used to maim civilians as they ran out of their homes.  Then Janjaweed, or devils on horseback, would ride into the village killing the men, raping the women and after looting all the goods would burn the town so civilians could never return.

§          Describe rape as a weapon of war.  Janjaweed would taunt women while raping telling them their children will create a new Arab race.  They would then cut the women so they would never forget the attack.  The children who have been born from rape have been rejected by society and will continue to face problems as they grow up.

·         Outcomes of the conflict:

o        400,000 innocent civilians have been murdered

o        90 % of all villages are destroyed leaving 1.8 million people displaced and 3 million people effected by the conflict

o        Now that the villages have mostly been destroyed we hear much less in the media but there is still genocide occurring.. 

§          The US defines genocide as creating conditions that lead to starvation and the destruction of people.  Right now the government of Sudan is using hunger as a weapon in its war against innocents. 

·         Our message to you is that you can put an end to this

·         As Americans we have the power to build a movement.  When we make people aware of genocide we build a constituency that cares and when enough people pay attention, our leaders listen. 

o        High profile issues get dealt with; when we raise awareness throughout the country we raise the profile and find our solution. 

o        In a longer presentation give actions that can be taken

§          Keep informed, contact the media- write op/eds or tell your news channel you want to hear more about Darfur www.beawitness.com, communicate with the government- tell your representatives your views and concerns, support relief efforts, engage your community-talk about Darfur with friends, family, people from work, religious community etc, and Join GW STAND

·         We have a real solution for Darfur: empower peacekeepers to protect, allow the aid workers inside, and dissolve the militias.

 

 

 

 

NEWS update:

      Sudan's govt will not be heading the African Union.  This position will

go to Congo instead.

      Feb. is a key month because the U.S. will be leading the security

council-push for a mandate!

 

Notes on How to Table-

1)Make eye contact, catch peoples attention (use catchy phrases

like "Do you know GW is sponsoring genocide?"

2) Tell them about Darfur and divestment

3)Tell them about GW-Stand

4) Tell them about actions they can take

          *Fill out postcards

          *Write opeds

          *Come to L.A. Forum!

5) Answer questions

Remember, be short and concise!

 

If you have questions on any of these things, PLEASE ask at our next meeting!

 

 

 

Divestment…so what is it?

-GW University might be investing our endowment in companies supporting

the Sudanese govt.  We want them to stop.

-More of a symbolic gesture

-We don't want one cent of our $ fueling genocide in Darfur

-Visit GWDivest.com for more info

 

 

 

 

EVENTS!

*Tuesday January 31^st  at 6:30 in the Marvin Center Grand Ballroom the Roosevelt Institution will be holding an event "Inside the Beltway, Outside Politics" an evening dedicated to student ideas. Cocktail dress recommended. RSVP to Eva at Eva_S@...

 

*Feb 2nd- GWAid Benefit Concert.  Tickets are $10 at TicketMaster and are selling FAST so get them soon!

Darfur Descending

No Time for Apathy on Sudan

 

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/01/24/AR2006012401136_pf.html

 

By Kofi A. Annan

Wednesday, January 25, 2006; A19

 

When I visited Darfur last May, I felt hopeful. Today I am pessimistic, unless a major new international effort is mustered in the coming weeks.

 

I visited a village whose people had returned after fleeing from violence and were living in relative safety, thanks to the presence of troops from the African Union (A.U.). True, this was only a beginning. Much of the vast region was prey to sporadic violence, with more than a million people living in camps. But thanks to a massive relief operation led by the United Nations, the number dying from hunger or disease was falling dramatically. A cease-fire, admittedly flawed, was in place. Peace talks between the Sudanese government and the rebel movements, ably mediated by A.U. representatives, were proceeding in Abuja, Nigeria. It was hoped that agreement could be reached by the end of the year.

 

There were other positive signs. The U.N. Security Council had referred the situation to the International Criminal Court and had decided in principle to apply targeted sanctions to individuals who could be identified as responsible for the atrocities of the past two years.

 

I wish I could report that all these efforts had borne fruit -- that Darfur was at peace and on the road to recovery. Alas, the opposite is true. People in many parts of Darfur continue to be killed, raped and driven from their homes by the thousands. The number displaced has reached 2 million, while 3 million (half the total population of Darfur) are dependent on international relief for food and other basics. Many parts of Darfur are becoming too dangerous for relief workers to reach. The peace talks are far from reaching a conclusion. And fighting now threatens to spread into neighboring Chad, which has accused Sudan of arming rebels on its territory.

 

Despite a chronic funding crisis, A.U. troops in Darfur are doing a valiant job. People feel safer when the troops are present. But there are too few of them -- a protection force of only 5,000, with an additional 2,000 police and military observers, to cover a territory the size of Texas. They have neither the equipment nor the broad mandate they would need to protect the people under threat or to enforce a cease-fire routinely broken by the rebels, as well as by the Janjaweed militia and Sudanese government forces.

 

On Jan. 12, the African Union decided to renew the mission's mandate until March 31, while expressing support, in principle, for a transition to a U.N. operation this year. The timing of this transition is still being discussed, including at this week's A.U. summit in Khartoum. This puts the Security Council on the spot. The U.N. Charter gives the council primary responsibility for international peace and security. And in September, in a historic first, U.N. members unanimously accepted the responsibility to protect populations from genocide, ethnic cleansing, war crimes and crimes against humanity, pledging to take action through the Security Council when national authorities fail.

 

The transition from the A.U. force to a U.N. peace operation in Darfur is now inevitable. A firm decision by the Security Council is needed, and soon, for an effective transition to take place.

 

But let no one imagine that this crisis can be solved simply by giving the present A.U. mission a "U.N. hat." Any new mission will need a strong and clear mandate, allowing it to protect those under threat, by force if necessary, as well as the means to do so. That means it will need to be larger, more mobile and much better equipped than the current African Union mission. Those countries that have the required military assets must be ready to deploy them.

 

Such a force would take the United Nations months to deploy. In the meantime, the A.U. mission must be maintained and strengthened. We cannot afford any gaps or any weakening of the force in place. Last May the African Union and the United Nations organized a donor conference in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, to raise money and logistical support for the A.U. force. A follow-up conference is planned for Feb. 20. At the same time, the massive relief operation must continue, and be fully funded, so that Darfur's people continue to receive clean water, food and other vital supplies.

 

Finally, and above all, much stronger pressure must be brought on all parties -- the rebels as well as the government -- to observe the cease-fire and commit themselves to the Abuja peace talks with a sense of urgency. The current delays are inexcusable; they cost lives every day. Those negotiating must be reminded of their personal responsibility.

 

One thing is clear: Whatever external force is sent to Darfur can provide at best only temporary security to the people there. Only a political agreement among their leaders can secure their future and the return of 2 million of them to their homes.

 

The writer is secretary general of the United Nations.

© 2006 The Washington Post Company

 

 

 

HAVE A GREAT WEEK! Join us tomorrow at Kogan! 12:15!

 

Peace,

GW STAND