Background and Links

Responding to a rebellion in 2003, the regime of Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir and its allied militia, known as the Janjaweed, launched a campaign of destruction against the civilian population of ethnic groups identified with the rebels. They wiped out entire villages, destroyed food and water supplies, stole livestock and systematically murdered, tortured and raped civilians. The Sudanese government’s genocidal, scorched earth campaign has claimed hundreds of thousands of lives through direct violence, disease and starvation, and continues to destabilize the region. Millions have fled their homes and live in dangerous camps in Darfur, and hundreds of thousands are refugees in neighboring Chad. Violence continues today. Ultimately, the fate of the Darfuri people depends on establishing a lasting and just peace in all of Sudan and in the region.

Learn the facts:

• SaveDarfur.org | “What Has Happened in Darfur”

• U.S. State Department Report on Sudan

• Human Rights Report from the U.S. State Department

Enough Project – Helping to build a permanent constituency to prevent genocide and crimes against humanity. Too often, the United States and the larger international community have taken a wait-and-see approach to crimes against humanity. This is unconscionable. The Enough Project mission is to help people from every walk of life understand the practical actions they can take to make a difference. www.enoughproject.org

Save Darfur Coalition – Working with world leaders, Save Darfur is demanding an end to the genocide, and their efforts are getting results. www.savedarfur.org

Genocide Intervention Network – (GI-NET) empowers individuals and communities with the tools to prevent and stop genocide. Our members envision a world in which the global community is willing and able to protect civilians from genocide and mass atrocities. The Genocide Intervention Network is mobilizing a permanent anti-genocide constituency that lobbies our leaders for substantial action, and creates a political cost for those officials who fail to take these necessary actions. www.genocideintervention.net

While We Wait – On April 8, 2009, it was reported that General Scott Gration, the US Special Envoy to Sudan, proposed a resolution to fill the gap left by the Government of Sudan’s decision to expel 16 aid groups from Darfur. This blog gives daily updates on actual events to show how Darfuri lives are affected as they wait for aid to be restored. Updates and comments about the crisis are provided by Mohamed Suleiman, a US-based Darfuri with a broad network of Darfuri contacts from the Diaspora and from IDP camps in Sudan and refugee camps in Chad, and President of the SF Bay Area Darfur Coalition. www.whilewewaitsudan.org.

STAND – The student-led division of the Genocide Intervention Network. www.standnow.org

Investors Against Genocide – “Ethical investing” may mean different things to different people, but surely there is a minimum standard upon which nearly all of us agree. We do not want our family savings and pension funds invested in companies that help to fund genocide. The goal of Investors Against Genocide is to convince financial institutions to make a commitment that they will not invest in genocide. www.investorsagainstgenocide.org

Eric Reeves: Sudan Research, Analysis and Advocacy – Electronically published analytic briefs and advocacy writings on Sudan by Eric Reeves. These are organized chronologically, and include all electronic publications since the signing of the historic Machakos Protocol (July 2002). www.sudanreeves.org