United for Sudan: Petition & Rally

One year into the conflict in Sudan, the international community’s response remains woefully inadequate.

Nonviolent Peaceforce joins Refugees International and partners* in calling on President Biden to take urgent action to prevent further atrocities.

On April 15, Sudanese activists, organizations with colleagues in Sudan, Rep. McGovern, Rep. Sara Jacobs, Sen. Chris Van Hollen, and Sudanese artists gathered to demand action and show solidarity with the people of Sudan.

Together, they delivered a box of petitions to President Biden urging the administration to speak out on Sudan.

As the conflict drags on, more and more civilians are facing hunger and malnutrition. It's not too late to add your name to Refugee International's petition, which already has 10,000+ signatures. The more attention we bring to the conflict, the more we can capture the attention of the international community at large.

*April 15th Rally Co-Hosts: Refugees International, Amnesty International USA, the Sudanese American Physicians Association, the Sudanese American Public Affairs Association, Refugee Congress, Never Again Coalition, Girifna, U.S. Educated Sudanese Association, iACT, American Friends Service Committee, NOIR United International, Advocacy Network for Africa, Darfur Women Action Group, Kandaka Magazine, Alliance for Peacebuilding, and Vital Voices.
*Organizations that have endorsed the petition are listed below.

Dear President Biden,

We, the undersigned individuals and organizations, urge you to speak out on the crisis in Sudan. Since April 2023, the ongoing fighting between the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) has devastated the country, with countless atrocities and millions forcibly displaced and in dire need of humanitarian assistance. Many in Sudan are at the brink of famine, if not experiencing these horrors already.

In December 2023, your Secretary of State Antony Blinken made an official atrocity determination on Sudan, citing that members of the SAF have committed war crimes and that members of the RSF and allied militias have committed war crimes, crimes against humanity, and ethnic cleansing. The ethnic based targeted killing in Darfur, in particular, echoes the atrocities in Darfur that caught the world’s attention some 20 years ago. The threat of violence against civilians remains and the risk of widespread hunger grows.

It is clear that urgent action is needed to prevent further atrocities and loss of life. We urge you to:

• Fully support your appointed Special Envoy for Sudan in strengthening diplomatic efforts to protect civilians and secure humanitarian access, including through bilateral and multilateral engagement with the leaders of governments with influence over the parties involved in the conflict.
• Call out governments implicated in arming those responsible for committing atrocities against civilians, and in violation of the UN Security Council Sudan Arms Embargo.
• Work with other donor countries to scale up humanitarian assistance, including through local Emergency Response Rooms and other mutual aid groups led by Sudanese civilians.
• Support evidence collection, documentation efforts, and accountability measures in Sudan including through the UN Fact-Finding Mission for Sudan, the International Criminal Court, and any future credible accountability process within Sudan.
• Engage and support the governments of neighboring countries to ensure aid and refuge is offered to those fleeing hunger and violence in Sudan.
• Most urgently, Mr. President, we urge you to speak out on the crisis in Sudan. Address the nation and the world to bear witness to the tragedy unfolding in Sudan, to mobilize international support for Sudanese civilians, and to prevent the further loss of civilian life.

Signed,

1. Alliance for Peacebuilding

2. American Friends Service Committee

3. Amnesty International USA

4. Darfur Women Action Group

5. Genocide Watch

6. Girifna

7. Human Rights Watch

8. Humanity United

9. iACT

10. Institute for Genocide and Mass Atrocity Prevention (I-GMAP) - Binghamton University

11. Jewish World Watch

12. Kandaka

13. Never Again Coalition

14. No Business With Genocide

15. Nonviolent Peaceforce

16. PAEMA

17. Peace Direct

18. Presbyterian Church (USA)

19. Refugee Congress

20. Refugees International

21. South Sudan Women United

22. Strategic Initiative for Women in the Horn of Africa (SIHA)

23. Sudanese American Physicians Association

24. Sudanese American Public Affairs Association (SAPAA)

25. The Sentry

26. STAND

27. Sudan Unlimited

28. The Tahrir Institute for Middle East Policy (TIMEP)

29. U.S. Educated Sudanese Association (USESA)

30. Vital Voices