[Ugnet] Payne Announces the 2005 Congressional Black Caucus Mid-Year Brain Trust on Africa Highlighting Genocide in Darfur

Payne Announces the 2005 Congressional Black Caucus Mid-Year Brain Trust on Africa Highlighting Genocide in Darfur

Tenth District Congressman Donald M. Payne, Ranking Member of the House International Relations Subcommittee on Africa, Global Human Rights and International Relations, announced today that the Congressional Black Caucus will hold their annual Mid-Year Brain Trust on Africa on Wednesday April 6, 2005 from 9am - 11am in Room 2226 of the Rayburn House Office Building in Washington, DC. Congressman Payne will lead a distinguished panel of experts on the topic of �Genocide in Darfur: What Ever Happened to �Never Again�?�

April 6th marks the 11th anniversary of the Rwandan genocide in which the world stood by and passively watched as nearly 1 million people were ruthlessly murdered. In the Darfur region of Sudan, there is an ongoing genocide and humanitarian catastrophe. Since February 2003, up to 300,000 people have been killed by violence, disease and man-made famine, about 2 million have been displaced internally and at least 200,000 have fled the country. The only intervention has been an African Union force of approximately 2,000 troops whose mandate does not include protecting civilians.

�As we look back on the Rwandan genocide, the world must take responsibility for failing to respond to that human tragedy�, said Payne who recently visited refugee camps in Chad near the Darfur border. �In doing so, we must acknowledge our complicity through inaction in Darfur�s genocide. It is our moral obligation not to fail the people of Darfur.�

Invited panelists include: Rwandan Ambassador Zac Nsenga, John Prendergast � Special Assistant to the President at International Crisis Group, Salih Booker � Executive Director of Africa Action, Brian Steidle � former US Marine Captain embedded with the African Union�s monitoring team in Darfur and Abdelbagy Abushanab � President of the Darfur Rehabilitation Project.

�Women and girls are raped daily,� Payne said. �Children are dying from avoidable disease and hunger. The people of Darfur are needlessly suffering. My recent bill, H.R. 1424, seeks to bring an end to the atrocities.�

Payne introduced his legislation, the Darfur Genocide Accountability Act, on Thursday March 17, 2005. Last year, Congress unanimously approved a measure Payne introduced declaring the conflict genocide.

Dear Colleague:

I invite you and your staff to attend The Congressional Black Caucus Mid-Year Braintrust on Africa.

Genocide in Darfur: What Ever Happened to �Never Again�?
Wednesday, April 6th
9:00-11:00 a.m.
2226 Rayburn House Office Building

Looking back on the genocide in Rwanda of 1994, when the world stood by and watched nearly 1 million people be killed, there is a collective feeling of shame and guilt in the U.S. and the international community. At a defining moment in time we have a choice again; to act or not to act in Darfur.

There is an ongoing genocide and humanitarian catastrophe in the Darfur region of Sudan, where, since February 2003, some observers estimate that up to 300,000 people have been killed by violence, disease, and man-made famine, about 2 million people have been displaced, and at least 200,000 have fled the country. The only intervention has been an African Union force of approximately 2,000 troops whose mandate is limited to the protection of ceasefire monitors and not civilians.

Please join us to discuss what can be done to improve the Darfur crisis, expanding the African Union mandate, the impact of the North-South agreement, and the Darfur Genocide Accountability Act -- HR 1424 -- which I recently introduced, based on Senator Corzine�s S 495. Please contact Noelle LuSane at 5-3436 with any questions.

Sincerely,

Donald M. Payne
Member of Congress

[Ugnet] Payne Announces the 2005 Congressional Black Caucus Mid-Year Brain Trust on Africa Highlighting Genocide in Darfur

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