FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contacts:
Jonathan Hutson, Enough Project [email protected], 202-386-1618
Ann Brown, Genocide Intervention Network/Save Darfur Coalition, abrown@annbrowncommunications.
WASHINGTON, D.C. – Sudan Now congratulates Southern Sudan on holding a peaceful, fair and credible referendum and strongly urges President Obama to stay focused on peace for all of Sudan. While the Obama administration demonstrated a strong commitment to a successful referendum in South Sudan, with President Obama and Senator Kerry in particular demonstrating real leadership internationally, the work to create peace for all Sudan has only just begun. Agreements must still be reached on urgent issues of wealth sharing, border demarcation, citizenship, and Abyei. U.S. leadership and continued diplomacy remains vital in resolving these issues, and vital as well for efforts to secure peace in Darfur.
“This is a great day for the people of southern Sudan, but it is not the time to reward the Khartoum regime for its behavior,” stated Mark Hanis, President of Genocide Intervention Network / Save Darfur Coalition. “The government of Sudan continues to attack civilians, impede the work of peacekeepers, arrest human rights activists and block humanitarian workers from serving millions of displaced Darfuris struggling for adequate food, water and medical care. Khartoum's actions in Darfur demand a stepped-up campaign of international pressure, and we urge the United States be at the forefront.”
Enough Project Co-Founder John Prendergast added, "This historic referendum lays the groundwork for a real opportunity for peace in Sudan. President Obama said that for normalization with the U.S. to occur, there has to be peace in all of Sudan. We hope his administration lives up to that pledge and continues to enhance its efforts for peace in Darfur and the South."
“Good news has too often been hard to come by in Sudan and this is certainly good news,” said Ruth Messinger, President of American Jewish World Service. “Unfortunately, this good news on the referendum is a far cry from a sustainable peace for all of Sudan. With violence and instability rising in Darfur and so many questions still to be resolved throughout the country, the work for all of us is far from over.”
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Sudan Now is a campaign led by a group of anti-genocide and human rights advocacy organizations committed to bringing meaningful and lasting peace to Sudan and encouraging strong American leadership and action to achieve this goal. The campaign challenges President Obama, top U.S. administration officials, and the international community to live up to their promises to take strong and immediate action to help end the international crisis in Sudan and bring a lasting peace to Sudan’s people. Organizations participating in the campaign include Humanity United, the Enough Project at the Center for American Progress, Genocide Intervention Network/Save Darfur Coalition, Stop Genocide Now, Investors Against Genocide, and American Jewish World Service. For more information, please visit www.sudanactionnow.org