PHR Action Center

The people of Darfur are waiting for President Obama to end their long nightmare. They still need protection from continued attacks by their government; they need additional services in the camps to prepare them for life after war.

Please sign this petition to ask President-elect Obama to:

1. Press for the full deployment of peacekeepers
2. Promote justice and accountability by supporting the International Criminal Court;
3. Augment life-saving aid; and
4. Appoint a high-level envoy on Darfur.

Dear [ Decision Maker ] ,

Dear President-elect Obama,

We know that there are many pressing issues vying for your attention, but few are as critical as ending the bloodshed in Darfur - the first genocide of the 21st century.

We thank you for your election promises to work to end the crisis there, and we hope that it will be one of your foreign policy priorities. The people of Darfur need protection - peacekeepers and an end to violent attacks by the Government of Sudan - so that they can be safe now; a lasting peace so that they may return to their homes; and justice and accountability, so that the perpetrators of these heinous acts against their people, their culture and their land will be punished, and the people will be compensated. To that end, we ask that you do the following:

1. Support the full deployment of the UNAMID force for Darfur, and strengthen the UN force that will take over from the European Union force currently protecting refugees in eastern Chad.

Unarmed civilians in Darfur need protection from continued aerial assaults by the Sudanese Armed Forces. The UNAMID force in Darfur, which was supposed to number 26,000 troops and police, is instead less than half of that; 12,374. It does not have any of the transport and attack helicopters needed to transport troops around an area the size of France. UNAMID must be fully deployed.

In Chad, the 3,000-strong European Union force (EUFOR), which is protecting the refugees and the aid workers, is due to be replaced by a smaller UN force in the spring of 2009. This is despite the fact that refugees in Chad are often beaten or raped by Chadian villagers when they leave the relative security of the camps to gather firewood.

2. Support the International Criminal Court's case against perpetrators in Darfur.

The United Nations Security Council referred the case of Darfur to the International Criminal Court in 2005. The Court's Chief Prosecutor has since built up a case against Sudan's President, Omar al-Bashir, and two other Sudanese officials.

The Darfuris deserve justice for the horrors that have been inflicted upon them and the perpetrators must be punished.

Additionally, the Court will soon announce whether or not they will try President Bashir for war crimes and genocide. Bashir has promised to escalate violence against innocent Darfuri civilians and to completely block humanitarian aid if an arrest warrant against him is issued by the Court. The international community must take President Bashir to task for these threats, and also must make robust plans to protect civilians if the ICC does proceed with its case against him. He has proven too many times that his threats of violence are not idle ones.

3. Continue to support life-saving humanitarian assistance in both Chad and Sudan.

Several million refugees and internally displaced persons have been living in camps since the crisis began nearly six years ago. Aid organizations are providing basic services to the displaced in difficult and dangerous circumstances, but more needs to be done. Food aid should be increased and additional money provided for secondary education, vocational training and psycho-social programming, all of which will greatly impact both the present and future lives of these refugees.

4. Quickly appoint an influential, high-level envoy whose sole responsibility is ending the bloodshed in Darfur.

Show the world that you are serious about ending the conflict by immediately appointing a Special Envoy for Darfur.

Mr. President-elect, the crisis in Darfur is complex and entrenched, and the solution requires sustained commitment and leadership. We, and the people of Darfur, expect no less from you.

Sincerely,

Campaign Launched:
January 09, 2009