File #: Res 0395-2004    Version: Name: Denouncing the crimes committed against civilian populations in the western region of Darfur .
Type: Resolution Status: Adopted
Committee: Committee on Cultural Affairs, Libraries and International Intergroup Relations
On agenda: 6/7/2004
Enactment date: Law number:
Title: Resolution strongly denouncing the crimes committed against civilian populations in the western region of Darfur and the actions of the government of Sudan in connection with those crimes, and urging the government of the United States to take immediate action to support the implementation of a United Nations multi-national peace-keeping force and humanitarian relief effort to end the reign of terror that exists in that region.
Sponsors: G. Oliver Koppell, Helen D. Foster, Gale A. Brewer, Yvette D. Clarke, Leroy G. Comrie, Jr., James F. Gennaro, Robert Jackson, Letitia James, Allan W. Jennings, Jr., Michael C. Nelson, Bill Perkins, Philip Reed, James Sanders, Jr., Larry B. Seabrook, Kendall Stewart, Peter F. Vallone, Jr., Jose M. Serrano, David I. Weprin, Miguel Martinez
Council Member Sponsors: 19
Attachments: 1. Committee Report 9/23, 2. Committee Report 10/21, 3. Hearing Transcript 9/23, 4. Hearing Transcript 10/21, 5. Hearing Transcript - Stated Meeting 10/27/04
Date Ver.Prime SponsorAction ByActionResultAction DetailsMeeting DetailsMultimedia
10/27/2004AG. Oliver Koppell City Council Approved, by CouncilPass Action details Meeting details Not available
10/21/2004*G. Oliver Koppell Committee on Cultural Affairs, Libraries and International Intergroup Relations Hearing Held by Committee  Action details Meeting details Not available
10/21/2004*G. Oliver Koppell Committee on Cultural Affairs, Libraries and International Intergroup Relations Amendment Proposed by Comm  Action details Meeting details Not available
10/21/2004*G. Oliver Koppell Committee on Cultural Affairs, Libraries and International Intergroup Relations Amended by Committee  Action details Meeting details Not available
10/21/2004AG. Oliver Koppell Committee on Cultural Affairs, Libraries and International Intergroup Relations Approved by CommitteePass Action details Meeting details Not available
9/23/2004*G. Oliver Koppell Committee on Cultural Affairs, Libraries and International Intergroup Relations Hearing Held by Committee  Action details Meeting details Not available
9/23/2004*G. Oliver Koppell Committee on Cultural Affairs, Libraries and International Intergroup Relations Laid Over by Committee  Action details Meeting details Not available
6/7/2004*G. Oliver Koppell City Council Referred to Comm by Council  Action details Meeting details Not available
6/7/2004*G. Oliver Koppell City Council Introduced by Council  Action details Meeting details Not available

Res. No. 395-A

 

Resolution strongly denouncing the crimes committed against civilian populations in the western region of Darfur and the actions of the government of Sudan in connection with those crimes, and urging the government of the United States to take immediate action to support the implementation of a United Nations multi-national peace-keeping force and humanitarian relief effort to end the reign of terror that exists in that region.

 

By Council Members Koppell, Foster, Brewer, Clarke, Comrie, Gennaro, Jackson, James, Jennings, Nelson, Perkins, Reed, Sanders, Seabrook, Stewart, Vallone, Serrano, Weprin and Martinez

 

                     Whereas, Recent reports have indicated that the armed forces of the government of Sudan, along with government-supported militias, have committed numerous systematic attacks against the civilian populations of the African Fur, Masaalit and Zaghawa ethnic groups in the Darfur region; and

Whereas, The attacks include massacres, rape, and indiscriminate aerial bombardment that have killed thousands, displaced countless others and destroyed villages, food stocks and other supplies essential to the civilian population; and

Whereas, Andrew Natsios, the Administrator of the United States Agency for International Development and Special Humanitarian Coordinator for Sudan, stated on June 3, 2004, that the grave situation in Darfur is the worst humanitarian crisis in the world today and that even under the best-case scenario and optimal conditions as many as 320,000 people could die; and

                     Whereas, The government of Sudan has reportedly failed to take any immediate steps to stop these attacks, reverse the ethnic cleansing and provide the necessary protection and assistance to the millions of displaced civilians; and

Whereas, According to a report recently issued by the United Nations Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights, the horrific attacks committed against the civilian populations in the Darfur region of Sudan may constitute war crimes and/or crimes against humanity; and

Whereas, Among the recommendations found in the report is a call for the government of Sudan to publicly and unequivocally condemn all actions and crimes committed by the Janjaweed militias and ensure that all militias are immediately disarmed and disbanded; and

Whereas, The report also urges full and unimpeded access for humanitarian workers in order to ensure the delivery of much needed humanitarian assistance to the Darfur region; and

Whereas, Additionally, the report calls for an international commission of inquiry the mandate of which would include identifying what crimes have been committed against the civilian populations in the Darfur region; and

Whereas, On July 13, 2004, Congressman Charles B. Rangel was arrested for his act of civil disobedience at the Sudan Embassy in Washington, D.C. during his efforts to call attention to the urgency of United States support for a United Nations multi-national peace-keeping force and humanitarian relief effort for the people of Darfur; and 

Whereas, Congressman Rangel further outlined his position in a July 15, 2004 article appearing in The New York Amsterdam News, by stating that “the people being slaughtered in Darfur are Muslims of Black African descent who have traditionally been marginalized by the Sudanese government;” and

Whereas, Congressman Rangel further stated that the “international community, led by the United States, must take immediate action to stop the genocide in Darfur and save the lives of the 700,000 people still clinging to hope;” and

Whereas, According to Congressman Rangel, the international community should provide the $350 million needed by the United Nations to finance shipments of food and medicine to Darfur and neighboring Chad, where most of the one million refugees have gone; now, therefore, be it

Resolved, That the Council of the City of New York strongly denounces the crimes committed against civilian populations in the western region of Darfur and the actions of the government of Sudan in connection with those crimes, and urges the government of the United States to take immediate action to support the implementation of a United Nations multi-national peace-keeping force and humanitarian relief effort to end the reign of terror that exists in that region.

 

Res. No. 395-A

LS#1107/1460

RA - 8/20/2004

H:/word/resolutions/res 0395-A-2004