Amnesty International, Eastern PA

Members of Amnesty International Center City Group 112 will be meeting together with representatives from Darfur Alert Coalition to discuss the possibility of a joint fundraiser in June. The meeting will be next Monday, April 20, at 7:00 pm at the Philadelphia Ethical Society, on Rittenhouse Square near 19th Street, Philadelphia. Any Amnesty supporters who are interested in helping plan this joint fundraiser are encouraged to attend.

Even though it’s not New Year’s Day, I have resolved to at least look at Amnesty International USA’s Urgent Action feed once a day. Letter-writing on behalf of prisoners of conscience and others is the heart of why I joined Amnesty. I may not have time to write a letter every day, but I will look at the actions and do the best I can.

Today I read the case of Mohamed Al Mahjoub (this link is to a PDF of the Urgent Action file). He is the director of a center in North Darfur that helps victims of torture. Instead of being allowed to peacefully work to help people there, Mohamed Al Mahjoub was himself arrested and detained on April 11. He has not been allowed access to a lawyer or any others.

Mohamed Al Mahjoub committed no known crime and it’s unclear why he was arrested. Amnesty theorizes that his detention is a part of a pattern of harassment of human rights defenders that has been going on ever since March 4, when the ICC issued a warrant for the arrest of President al Bashir for war crimes.

Attached is a sample letter - please modify and personalize it if you have time, and see the Urgent Action for other addresses to send this appeal.

Mohamed Al Mahjoub sample letter

Thursday, May 15, 2008
9:00 am

Central Green (by Memorial Steps & Library)

Darfur event. Details TBA

Tuesday, April 22, 2008
8:15 pm
University of Pennsylvania, Huntsman 270 (3730 Walnut Street)

*This is not an Amnesty International event, but may be of interest to AI supporters.

The Armenian Student Association at the University of Pennsylvania is holding a film screening as part of Genocide Awareness Week.

Screamers is a 2006 documentary by director Carla Garapedian. The film explores why genocides have recurred into the modern day, and involves the band System of a Down, Serj Tankian’s grandfather (who is an Armenian Genocide survivor), the human rights activist and journalist Professor Samantha Power, and various people involved with genocides in Rwanda and Darfur. Screamers also examines genocide denial in current day Turkey, and the trend of neutrality that the United States generally holds towards genocide.

Here is a report about last weekend’s Global Day for Darfur from the Mid-Atlantic Regional Office staff.

Global Day for Darfur - This April marks 5 years of crisis in Darfur. Children have grown up knowing violence, displacement, and unrest as a normal way of life. On Sunday, April 13th, Amnesty International USA joined in a global day of action for Darfur.

Here are a few highlights from the day:

• More than 1,000 people walked through Displaced, Amnesty International’s human rights exhibition.
• Darfuris and activists came from all over the east coast to participate in the day of action.
• Approximately 500 people stopped what they were doing to hear the inspiring words of Larry Cox, Mohamed Yahya, and others Darfuris and activists.
• Over a thousand petition signatures were collected and hundreds of students and young people used their hand prints to call on the Bush Administration to use their authority to end the violence in Darfur.
• MARO Director, Folabi Olagbaju, got an op-ed printed in the Richmond Times.

Take action for Darfur in your community
See pictures from the day on Flickr

Come join us for Amnesty International Chester County’s next meeting!

Amnesty International New Member Night & Darfur Information Session
Wednesday, April 16 at 7:30pm
NEW LOCATION!
Saxby’s Coffee
60 Lancaster Ave., Malvern PA
610-812-6640

Our April meeting will be dedicated to welcoming new members and honoring our returning veteran members, and will also focus on the human rights crisis in Darfur.

In our next meeting we’ll…

• welcome new members and present them with their fabulous “welcome premiums”
• enjoy an Amnesty International fashion show by America’s Next Flop Model Jeff Singleton
• taste complimentary Saxby’s coffee and desserts
• begin planning for spring and summer tabling events
• discuss recruiting strategies
• see brief video presentation of Darfur atrocities and testimonies from Darfur survivors produced by SaveDarfur.org
• hear a brief summary of Amnesty International’s new report on the displaced people of Darfur
• sign a petition to Secretary of State Rice concerning delays in deployment of peacekeeping forces in Darfur
• send letters that press some of the most powerful companies in the world, 10 of the top investors in Sudan’s oil industry, to use their influence to help end the human rights catastrophe in Darfur
• send letters to our Senators and Congressmen urging them to co-sponsor important resolutions to protect civilians in Chad and the Central African Republic

Hope to see you there!

Saturday, May 3, 2008
7:30 pm

Arch Street Meetinghouse
Fourth and Arch Streets, Philadelphia

Concert to Benefit Darfur Alert Coalition
Performed by the Jazz for Peace Foundation
Information and tickets at www.jazzforpeace.org

Not an Amnesty International event

Sunday, April 13 is being marked by many organizations as Global Day for Darfur. Amnesty International is holding a large rally in Washington, DC that day. If you cannot make it to Washington, Darfur Alert Coalition is also holding a rally in Philadelphia (however, this event is not sponsored by Amnesty). Here are the details about the two events.

Amnesty International Rally in Washington:
Global Day For Darfur
5 Years of Conflict is a Lifetime for a Child

For the last five years the world has borne witness to war, famine, disease and rape in the Darfur region. Children have grown up with conflict as their normal way of life. Five years of conflict is a lifetime for a child and we are working to stop childhood under attack.

Join us on the national mall to educate and activate yourself for Darfur.

When: Sunday, April 13 from noon to 4 pm
Where: National Mall, Washington DC
Metro Directions: Take the orange or blue metro line to the Smithsonian stop and exit towards the mall. We will be between 12th and 14th streets.
For more information contact GlobalDayForDarfur@gmail.com

Darfur Alert Coalition Rally in Philadelphia:
Come on down to City Hall!

The Darfur Alert Coalition is holding a public rally Sunday, April 13, at noon, as part of an annual day of worldwide demonstrations. With the Beijing “Genocide Olympics” on the horizon, and the Olympic torch about to arrive in the U.S., China’s shameful role as Sudan’s enabler is the main focus of our collective Global Day for Darfur protests.

We’ll be at Philadelphia’s crossroads – the west plaza of City Hall at Broad and Market Streets – from noon to 2 p.m. We’ll have a Tent of Hope set up, and lots of petitions for people to sign. With the Pennsylvania presidential primary heating up, help us take this opportunity to raise awareness about world inaction and show people how they can get involved.

And bring your cameras: With the primary campaign going full tilt, we’re inviting the presidential candidates to stop by!

To sign up, email us at info@darfuralert.org

Friday, April 11, 2008

For the 13th consecutive year, Amnesty International Local Group 133 in Somerville, MA is organizing Get on the Bus (GOTB), a trip to New York City for one full day of human rights action and education. GOTB will be held Friday, April 11 in NYC.

2008 Actions:

Darfur: Call for International Justice and Accountability (IJA) ~ GOTB activists will focus on the need to lobby the government of Sudan to bring individuals responsible for human rights violations in Darfur to justice.

Special Focus Case: Fathi el-Jahmi (Libya) ~ Amnesty International considers him a prisoner of conscience, who has been detained solely for the peaceful expression of his political views. We will be calling for the immediate and unconditional release of Fathi el-Jahmi.

Side Action: Bhopal ~ To show our continued commitment to the survivors of the 1984 chemical disaster in Bhopal, a small group of GOTB activists will gather at the Indian Consulate to demand the Government of India compel Dow Chemicals to appear before the Indian courts.

More information forthcoming at the GOTB Website

Tuesday, November 13, 2007
7:00 pm
Lehigh University - Perella Auditorium, Rauch Business Center room 184, Bethlehem PA

From Karen:
Tomorrow at 7 pm (Tuesday, November 13), the Sudanese Ambassador to the United Nations will lecture at Lehigh University on his views on Darfur, namely that there is no genocide. The lecture will be held in Perella Auditorium, located in Rauch Business Center room 184. Rauch is on the SE corner of Taylor and East Packer Avenue. It is next to the Zoellner Auditorium.