{"id":33,"date":"2006-06-19T03:34:22","date_gmt":"2006-06-19T08:34:22","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.traprockpeace.org\/traprock_blog\/index.php\/2006\/06\/19\/open-letter-on-witnessing-darfur-a-benefit-for-the-people-of-darfur\/"},"modified":"2022-05-27T15:18:54","modified_gmt":"2022-05-27T15:18:54","slug":"open-letter-on-witnessing-darfur-a-benefit-for-the-people-of-darfur","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/grassrootspeace.org\/traprock_blog\/2006\/06\/19\/open-letter-on-witnessing-darfur-a-benefit-for-the-people-of-darfur\/","title":{"rendered":"Open Letter on Witnessing Darfur – A Benefit for the People of Darfur"},"content":{"rendered":"

Traprock Peace Center homepage<\/a><\/p>\n

TO: The attention of co-sponsor Mayor Claire Higgins<\/p>\n

RE: An Open Letter about the June 21, 2006 event:
\nWitnessing Darfur: A Benefit for the People of Darfur<\/p>\n

Sunday, 18 June 2006
\nDear Friends,<\/p>\n

We are writing to express our concern over the upcoming June 21 event:
\nWITNESSING DARFUR, to be held at Smith College, for which many local
\nand national religious, cultural or political organizations are co-sponsors (see
\nbottom). Like you we deeply believe in the need to alleviate the
\npeople of Darfur’s suffering, however, we strongly feel that the
\nposition being taken, which many local organizations have supported,
\nnamely that the Islamic government of Sudan is committing genocide
\nagainst the “African” people of Darfur, does not accurately reflect or
\nfully address the complexities and realities of the situation.<\/p>\n

We strongly believe that the situation in Darfur should be placed in a
\nwider context and the role of the United States and other external
\nactors MUST be acknowledged and dealt with honestly if there is to be
\npeace and stability in Darfur, Sudan or indeed an improvement of basic
\nconditions. We encourage people to think carefully and examine the
\nhistory of humanitarian aid organizations before making any financial
\ncontributions: it is well documented that certain organizations
\nworking in Sudan have been involved in very dubious activities
\ncounterproductive to expressed or publicized humanitarian aims.<\/p>\n

We respectfully ask that people actively seek out and examine
\ndifferent points of view. We emphasize that we are not trying to
\nmalign or attack either any sponsor of this event, the producers of
\nthe film(s) to be shown, or speaker Dr. Eric Reeves of Smith College;
\nrather we are calling for an open dialogue now and in the future. If
\nthe U.S. wants to end the violence in Darfur and elsewhere its first
\nstep should be to stop participating in it. We believe that our first
\nstep as US citizens and residents should be to speak openly and
\nhonestly and to hold the US government accountable. We find it
\nincreasingly difficult to do so within the United States: can we
\nexpect that it will be done in a far away, oil-rich country like
\nSudan? (Petroleum is one of Darfur’s several coveted resources.)<\/p>\n

We respectfully encourage all those who wish to allocate funds for aid
\nin Darfur to do so, but to donate only after careful examination of ALL
\nthe facts. We respectfully ask the Community Foundation of Western
\nMassachusetts to HOLD all Sudan Aid Funds received, to date, or
\nsubsequently, for the same reasons. We call on co-sponsor Mayor Clare
\nHiggins and the town of Northampton to hold a public hearing,
\nimmediately, where the entire spectrum of issues can be openly and
\npublicly aired. Given the gravity of the situation and people’s desire
\nto alleviate the very real suffering in Darfur, we ask the sponsors of
\nthis event, and people concerned about the Darfur situation, to press
\nfor this hearing to occur immediately.<\/p>\n

We urge you to read the SUPPORTING DOCUMENTATION we have provided
\nbelow; this is by no means an exhaustive or comprehensive sampling of
\nrelevant issues. We also ask that you circulate this letter widely,
\nforward to your organizations’ mailing list, to all interested
\nparties, and the press.<\/p>\n

With sincerity and best wishes,<\/p>\n

Deborah Chandler, graphic designer and activist, Northampton, MA
\ndeborahchandler@comcast.net<\/p>\n

Dimitri Oram, writer & researcher, Northampton, MA
\ndadima23@yahoo.com<\/p>\n

Doug Wight, writer & activist, Northampton MA
\nwellness15@yahoo.com<\/p>\n

Keith Harmon Snow, genocide & human rights investigator, Williamsburg, MA.
\nksnow_srintl@yahoo.com – www.allthingspass.com<\/a>
\n{Contractual experience in the human rights arena includes: [a]
\nConsultant on Genocide, United Nations: Ethiopia, 2005; [b] Genocide
\nInvestigator, Genocide Watch : Sudan &
\nEthiopia, 2004; [c] Genocide Investigator, Survivor’s Rights
\nInternational < www.survivorsrightsinternational.org >: Sudan and
\nEthiopia, 2004; [d] work at the International Criminal Tribunal on
\nRwanda (2001). Also independent human rights researcher in the Dem.
\nRep. of Congo, 2004-2006; ten years experience in 17 countries in
\nAfrica.<\/p>\n

***************************************************************<\/p>\n

SUPPORTING DOCUMENTATION<\/p>\n

Undisclosed information about the current geopolitical realities
\nregarding the Darfur conflict include the facts that the U.S. was
\nfunding and supporting forces in Southern Sudan (Sudan People’s
\nLiberation Army & Movement: SPLA\/M) throughout the 1990s and beyond.
\nWe believe the US is still supporting rebel forces in Darfur thus
\nactively contributing to the conflict. We are aware these are strong
\ncharges but there is plenty of documented evidence for the former
\ncharge and a good deal of circumstantial evidence for the latter. A
\nquick sampling reveals:<\/p>\n

\u2022 “The Clinton administration has launched a covert campaign to
\ndestabilize the government of Sudan which it considers a key supporter
\nof international terrorism and instability in the Middle East. More
\nthan $20 million of military equipment, including radios, uniforms and
\ntents will be shipped to Eritrea, Ethiopia and Uganda in the next few
\nweeks. Although the equipment is earmarked for the armed forces of
\nthose countries, much of it will be passed on to the Sudan People’s
\nLiberation Army (SPLA), which is preparing an offensive against the
\ngovernment in Khartoum.” (James Adams “Americans Move to Destabilize
\nSudanese Regime,” Sunday Times, Nov. 17, 1996);
\n\u2022 “U.S. Secretary of State Madeleine Albright had a surprise meeting
\nin Kampala [Uganda] Wednesday with Sudanese opposition leaders
\nincluding SPLA rebel chief John Garang in what was seen as a move
\nfurther pressuring Khartoum’s Islamic fundamentalist leaders. Albright
\ntold reporters that Washington sought to show top-level support for
\nefforts to secure political change in Sudan, where Garang’s Sudanese
\nPeople’s Liberation Army in the Christian and animist South has fought
\ntroops of the Moslem North since 1983.” (Dec. 10, 1997, Deutsch Presse
\nAgenteur);
\n\u2022 “Welcome to the 1980s. Long live Ronald Reagan. Remember the
\nscenario\u2014a rebel group being trained and armed by the CIA to topple a
\nsovereign government, cross-border incursions from secluded camps, and
\nthe whole destabilization exercise backed by international sanctions
\nand a massive propaganda campaign. It sounds like Nicaragua or Angola
\ncirca 1984. In fact it’s Sudan 1998.” (Jonathan Steele, “Stop this war
\nnow; The US could remove the threat of starvation for thousands of
\nSudanese May 1, 1998 The Guardian);
\n\u2022 “[T]o the peril of regional stability, the Clinton Administration
\nhas used northern Uganda as a military training ground for southern
\nSudanese rebels fighting the Muslim government of Khartoum…The
\npeople in Sudan want to resolve the conflict. The biggest obstacle is
\nUS government policy said former president Carter in an interview last
\nweek in Mozambique “The US is committed to overthrowing the government
\nin Khartoum. Any sort of peace effort is aborted, basically by
\npolicies of the United States” Kurt Schillinger “Carter, Others say
\nClinton has faltered on Africa” Dec. 8, 1999 Boston Globe).<\/p>\n

A confirmed and egregious violation of international law was the U.S.
\nbombing of Sudan’s sole pharmaceutical plant in 1998 with all the
\nmisery and death that followed. With a background like that isn’t it
\npossible that the U.S. is still covertly intervening in Sudan
\nespecially Darfur? Is it mere coincidence that the rebels in Darfur
\nlaunched their first major attacks the month that USAID set up its
\nmission in Darfur?<\/p>\n

\u2022 “Under the Bush administration, the work of USAID has become
\nincreasingly politicized. But over Sudan, in particular, two of its
\nmost senior officials have long held strong personal views. Both
\nNatsios, a former vice-president of the Christian charity World
\nVision, and [Roger] Winter have long been hostile to the Sudanese
\ngovernment.” (U.S. ‘hyping’ Darfur Genocide Fears by Peter Beaumont,
\n03 October 2004, The Observer)
\nhttps:\/\/www.guardian.co.uk\/sudan\/story\/0,14658,1318643,00.html<\/p>\n

The U.N., the European Union, Medecins Sans Frontieres, aid groups,
\nU.N. officials and human rights groups have all questioned the
\ngenocide claims.<\/p>\n

While no one doubts there is horrendous death and suffering in Darfur
\nuse of the word genocide has been used to put all blame on the
\ngovernment, exonerate the rebels and prevent peace. Indeed, as Emily
\nWax writes “that label only seems to have strengthened Sudan’s rebels;
\nthey believe they don’t need to negotiate with the government and
\nthink they will have U.S. support when they commit attacks. Peace
\ntalks have broken down seven times, partly because the rebel groups
\nhave walked out of negotiations.” (Washington Post, “5 Truths About
\nDarfur,” April 21, 2006)<\/p>\n

The African Union “peacekeeping” mission in Darfur includes U.S.
\nmilitary personnel; training and logistical support by the U.S.
\nmilitary has also been provided. (See: Department of Defense, “U.S.
\nTransports Rwanda Forces to Sudan”:
\n<\/p>\n

Rwandan Defense Forces sent to Darfur are themselves responsible for
\ncrimes against humanity and acts of genocide in the Democratic
\nRepublic of Congo, and these troops are highly linked to the U.S.
\nmilitary (Rwanda New Times, 15 May 2006). The U.S. military’s European
\nCommand (EUCOM) is also partnered with Uganda, and working with
\nUgandan troops, and Uganda’s role in Sudanese affairs mirrors its role
\nin Congo: clandestine guerrilla activities, massacres, rapes,
\nextortion, gun-running and plundering of natural resources. These have
\nall been widely documented by numerous international human rights
\nbodies.<\/p>\n

The African Union mission also included supporting operations by
\nprivate military contractor Dyncorp: Dyncorp was caught running a sex
\nslave ring in Bosnia, was sued for illegally spraying toxic herbicides
\nin Ecuador, believed to have smuggled drugs from Colombia and is
\ngenerally accused of brutal behavior wherever it goes. Pacific
\nArchitects and Engineers (PAE) is also on the AU job. According to
\nCorpwatch: PAE “has a history of being accused of overcharging.” Also,
\nPAE “already provides[d] staff for a so-called Civilian Protection
\nMonitoring Team (CPMT) which monitors human rights in Sudan under the
\nState Department contract. The CPMT office is run by Brigadier General
\nFrank Toney (retired), who was previously commander of Special Forces
\nfor the United States Army and organized covert missions into Iraq and
\nKuwait in the first Gulf War.”<\/p>\n

Could these mercenary groups be involved in helping the rebel groups?
\nIt is also uncomfortable that a State Department official connected to
\nSudan issues who wished to remain anonymous said: “We are not allowed
\nto fund a political party or agenda under United States law, so by
\nusing private contractors, we can get around those provisions. Think
\nof this as somewhere between a covert program run by the CIA and an
\novert program run by the United States Agency for International
\nDevelopment. It is a way to avoid oversight by Congress.” (CorpWatch
\nOct. 21, 2004)<\/p>\n

It’s also true that a number of humanitarian groups are far from
\nimpartial. Several of them were and probably still are smuggling
\nweapons into Sudan and working toward regime change. Norwegian
\nPeople’s Aid (NPA) was caught red-handed and its role in supplying
\narms to the SPLA was the subject of a 1999 Norwegian television
\ndocumentary, entitled ‘Weapons Smuggling in Sudan’. “CSI [Christian
\nSolidarity International], along with the U.S.-based groups Voice of
\nthe Martyrs and Samaritan’s Purse (run by Franklin Graham, the son of
\nBilly Graham), are among a handful of Christian groups that have taken
\nsides in the dispute. They work exclusively in southern Sudan\u2014and
\nprovide not only humanitarian aid but also political and sometimes
\nlogistical support for the southern rebels…Even during the peace
\ntalks, they’ve lobbied the U.S. government to provide military aid and
\nweaponry to the SPLM…According to Human Rights Watch, the SPLM, like
\nKhartoum, has committed numerous human-rights violations.” (Fighting a
\nPeace Plan: Some Christian aid groups are supporting the rebels, by E.
\nBenjamin Skinner, August 18, 2003 NEWSWEEK INTERNATIONAL.)<\/p>\n

…<\/p>\n

We do not excuse violence, murder, or sexual atrocities committed by
\nany side, but we question the predominant version of events in
\nDarfur\u2014which we believe is grossly disinformational and
\none-sided\u2014presented by the mass media and by both Right- and Left-wing
\npolitical factions in the United States. We want to know where money
\nmarked for “Sudan Aid” is going, and we do not so quickly accept some
\nof the answers that are being given. We are greatly disturbed by the
\nfact that the ultra-Right Wing organization Center for Security
\nPolicy, a strong proponent of multi-billion dollar programs in
\nNational Missile Defense and a tool of the military industrial complex
\nis advocating divestment from the same firms Eric Reeves has and is
\ntargeting. [1]<\/p>\n

We note that the organization Save the Children is closely tied to
\nUSAID, its board of trustees includes one retired Rear Admiral, and
\nalmost all the others (15) are connected to the mainstream US media
\n(ABC, CBS, Hollywood). More concerning, Save the Children is funded in
\npart by Exxon-Mobil (according to an Exxon-Mobil corporate report) to
\nbuild a road through neighboring Chad\u2014a country with a heavy U.S.
\nmilitary involvement\u2014to the Darfur region: we are concerned that this
\nmay be for strategic and military purposes cloaked under the banner of
\nhumanitarian aid and poverty alleviation.<\/p>\n

The role of USAID official Roger Winter with the U.S. Committee for
\nRefugees includes organizing support for the Rwanda Patriotic Front
\ninvasion of Rwanda in 1990; the U.S. Committee for Refugees remains a
\nhighly unusual political organization with a specious agenda.<\/p>\n

The director\/advisers of the International Rescue Committee include
\nHenry Kissinger.<\/p>\n

[1] See: https:\/\/www.centerforsecuritypolicy.org\/index.jsp?section=papers&code=01-F_68;
\nplease also examine the CSP’s take on the antiwar movement
\nhttps:\/\/www.centerforsecuritypolicy.org\/index.jsp?topic=peacemvmt\u00a7ion=featured.<\/p>\n

—————————————————-<\/p>\n

Witnessing Darfur: A Benefit for the People of Darfur is sponsored by:
\nCongregation B’nai Israel Darfur Action Group<\/p>\n

Co-sponsors include: Al-Baqin Mosque \u00b7 American Friends Service
\nCommittee, Western Mass. \u00b7 Amnesty International USA\/Group 76 \u00b7 Beit
\nAhavah \u00b7 Catholic Social Justice Committee of Greater Northampton \u00b7
\nEdwards Church \u00b7 Episcopal Peace Fellowship of Grace Church, Amherst \u00b7
\nHampshire Interfaith Council \u00b7 Jewish Family Services of Western Mass.
\n\u00b7 Mayor Clare Higgins \u00b7 National Association of Social Workers,
\nPioneer Valley Chapter \u00b7 Northampton Committee to Stop the War in Iraq
\n\u00b7 Northampton Friends Meeting \u00b7 Physicians for Social Responsibility,
\nPioneer Valley \u00b7 Progressive Christian Voice Task Force, The First
\nChurches \u00b7 Safe Passage \u00b7 Smith College \u00b7 Unitarian Society of
\nNorthampton and Florence \u00b7 The Vestry of St. John’s Episcopal Church,
\nNorthampton \u00b7 Western Mass. Darfur Coalition<\/p>\n

————————————————-<\/p>\n

Traprock Peace Center homepage<\/a>
\n<\/https><\/www><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Traprock Peace Center homepage TO: The attention of co-sponsor Mayor Claire Higgins RE: An Open Letter about the June 21, 2006 event: Witnessing Darfur: A Benefit for the People of Darfur Sunday, 18 June 2006 Dear Friends, We are writing to express our concern over the upcoming June 21 event: WITNESSING DARFUR, to be held… Continue reading Open Letter on Witnessing Darfur – A Benefit for the People of Darfur<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-33","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized","entry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/grassrootspeace.org\/traprock_blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/33","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/grassrootspeace.org\/traprock_blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/grassrootspeace.org\/traprock_blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/grassrootspeace.org\/traprock_blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/grassrootspeace.org\/traprock_blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=33"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/grassrootspeace.org\/traprock_blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/33\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":177,"href":"https:\/\/grassrootspeace.org\/traprock_blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/33\/revisions\/177"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/grassrootspeace.org\/traprock_blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=33"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/grassrootspeace.org\/traprock_blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=33"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/grassrootspeace.org\/traprock_blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=33"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}