wfn.org | [PCUSANEWS] Church and civic leaders urge Bush to stop genocide in

[PCUSA NEWS <PCUSA.NEWS@ECUNET.ORG>]

Note #8944 from PCUSA NEWS to PRESBYNEWS:

05531
Oct. 4, 2005

Leaders of 134 church and civic groups
urge Bush to stop genocide in Darfur

by Ecumenical News International  
  
WASHINGTON - A coalition of Protestant, Islamic, Jewish and secular groups is
calling on the administration of President George W. Bush to act more
decisively to stop a "genocidal campaign" in Darfur, Sudan.  
  
	In a Sept. 21 letter to Bush, six religious leaders - backed by an
alliance of 134 religious and secular humanitarian and human rights groups
calling itself the "Save Darfur" coalition - expressed "horror and dismay" at
the violence in the western Sudanese region and called for more money for an
African Union protection force there.	
  
	It is estimated that 400,000 people in Darfur have been killed and
2.5 million driven from their homes in what some call a campaign of genocide
by the Sudanese government and militias aligned with it.   

	The Sudanese government has denied the genocide charges. It says it
is fighting a war against anti-government insurgents and has no control over
the paramilitary forces.  
  
	Those who signed the letter include Robert Edgar, the general
secretary of the National Council of Churches; Richard Cizik, vice president
of the National Association of Evangelicals; and representatives of the
American Jewish Committee, the Islamic Circle of North America and other
faith and civil groups.  
  
	They say there is a "moral imperative" to respond to atrocities in
Darfur. Their letter urges the administration to protect civilians and ensure
the safety of those who have been uprooted; provide more humanitarian aid;
and hold perpetrators of atrocities legally accountable.  
  
	"These reasonable and necessary goals cannot be achieved without your
leadership," the letter says. 
  
	The coalition wants Bush to speak out more forcefully on the issue;
to press nations that have economic interests in Sudan, such as China, to
support international efforts to resolve the crisis; and to have the United
States sponsor a United Nations Security Council resolution expanding the
mandate of the troops in Darfur to include protection of civilians. The
coalition also wants more money for the African Union force.  
  
	The U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops has issued a similar call for
action in Darfur.

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