Author: John Prendergast

It is enormously encouraging that the Nobel Committee chose its Peace Prize winner on the basis of the hope he instills and inspires around the world. With the added luster of such an award, peace activists hope that President Obama will wade more deeply into resolving the deadliest conflicts in the world in the last half century: Sudan and Congo ...

Of course the war is not over in Darfur. Yes, there are ebbs and flows to conflict in Sudan, just as there were in the 20 year war in the South and transitional areas. But the suffering of Darfur's civilian population continues, and any assessment that distorts the reality of Darfur's continuing strife does a disservice to the ongoing efforts to keep this issue burning brightly for the policymakers and diplomats who so far have failed to help end the crisis ...

The conflict in Congo has always been a scramble for resources and a fight to the death over land, ethnicity, and other internal factors that spill over from and to Rwanda. So rapprochement between Rwanda and Congo, while critical, is still only a step on the road to real peace ...

This post was written in response to a cross post we ran this morning from Campus Progress. Well-meaning people can disagree about the way to characterize the ongoing crisis in Darfur. Given the evidentiary requirement to prove intent in the Genocide Convention, it would be difficult at this stage to prove that it is or is not a genocide. That is why the International Criminal Court judges split on the question, and left the case open for further evidence. It is a fair debate. An even more important debate is the question of what to do about the crisis in ...

In the aftermath of Secretary of State Clinton's trip to Africa, the U.S. has a chance to help bring an end to two of the great unfolding tragedies of the 21st century. Together, Sudan and Congo represent two of Africa's largest countries, two of Africa's richest natural resource bases, two of Africa's longest wars, two of the world's deadliest conflicts in the past half century, two of the continent's most predatory governments, and two of the most dangerous places in the world to be a woman or a girl. That is a legacy that deserves and demands a rethink of ...

Recently Enough Co-founder John Prendergast spoke with the press in response to ongoing discussions on the Obama administration's policy towards Sudan. Listen to the conversation ...

The Obama administration is in the midst of a contentious review of its Sudan policy, which was the subject of three hearings on July 29 and 30 on Capitol Hill. The outcome of the debate will help determine the future of millions of people from Sudan and the surrounding region. At the July 29 Africa Subcommittee hearing, members heard a bipartisan critique of the current direction of U.S. policy towards Sudan. Rich Williamson, Roger Winter and I all have negotiated extensively with the regime in Sudan, have roughly a combined six decades in working on or in Sudan, and have ...

For 13 years, the people of eastern Congo have been ensnared in a tangled web of armed groups—from foreign rebels to the Congo’s own army—who prey on Congolese civilians and, with collaboration from governments and multinational corporations, strip the country of its immense natural wealth. This conflict can only end when the international community abandons the piecemeal approach it has adopted to deal with this multi-layered and immensely complex conflict and takes a holistic approach to peacemaking ...

I’m joining this fast today in solidarity with the people of Darfur, who for six long years have borne the brunt of violence and suffering orchestrated by their own government. As if the brute violence wasn’t enough, Khartoum now is inflicting further trauma on civilians by expelling the aid agencies that were providing life-saving food, water, and medical supplies. President Bashir’s retaliatory move, which came in reaction to the International Criminal Court’s warrant for his arrest, is further evidence that the government of Sudan thinks it can treat its own citizens as pawns. This is unacceptable. As we fast to ...

Testimony of John Prendergast, Co-founder of the Enough Project, Before the Senate Committee on Foreign Relations ...