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Support Humanitarian Relief and a Political Settlement in Sri Lanka March 5th, 2009
Please ask your Representative to join this action to support humanitarian relief and a political settlement in Sri Lanka. Sign-ons are being accepted until noon on Monday, March 9th. See details below.
Congressman Jim Moran is asking his congressional colleagues to join him in sending the following letters to Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton and U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Susan Rice urging them to continue steps to address the grave humanitarian crisis in Sri Lanka and to work for a sustainable political settlement after the decades-long fighting ends.
Up to 200,000 civilians are trapped in northern Sri Lanka, amid fighting between Sri Lankan Government forces and the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam. Most have been cut off from outside food and medical supplies for weeks. Many have died from heavy artillery and air attacks and people are beginning to die of starvation. Human Rights Watch reports that 2,000 Tamil civilians have been killed since January, and 7,000 civilians have been wounded.
U.S. engagement thus far has achieved some important results. The Congressional action encourages further action to press for full protection of all civilians, greater engagement by United Nations agencies and others in humanitarian relief, and progress toward a lasting political settlement that includes ethnic Tamils in national governance. U.S. engagement both bilaterally with the Sri Lankan Government and at the United Nations is critical to saving lives and contributing to a better future for Sri Lanka, whose citizens have suffered greatly during a 25-year war.
Download PDF of Congressional letter to Secretary Clinton
Download PDF of Congressional letter to Ambassador Rice
Please tell your representative that to sign on, contact Tasha Manoranjan of Rep. Mary Jo Kilroy’s office at 225-2015 or Tasha.Manoranjan@mail.house.gov, or David Young of Rep. Jim Moran’s office at 225-3979 or david.young@mail.house.gov. The deadline to sign these letters is Monday March 9, at noon.
Take Action TODAY on Immigration Raids March 5th, 2009
Stop Immigration Raids – Sign the Petition to President Obama TODAY!
Work place raids by ICE continue under the new Obama Administration, not to mention the separation by deportation of parents from their children, many of who are US citizens. Over 100,000 parents were reportedly deported over the last few years. Even people who have had legal residency in the U.S. are being deported after spending time in jail for crimes that are not all that serious.
Please consider signing the petition given below TODAY, calling for an end to work-place raids. It is being sent to the President on Friday, 6 March.
Click here to read more »
Earth Hour – March 28 – Vote for the Earth! March 3rd, 2009
Send a clear message to politicians that we want action on global warming now. Join millions around the globe who plan to turn off their lights at 8:30pm for an hour on March 28. This simple action of turning off our lights will send the message that we care deeply about the world we will leave for our children.
Join others in cities and towns around the US and across the globe in making Earth Hour a wake-up call for our representatives in Washington!
This is the world’s first global election – a contest between earth and global warming. On March 28 you can VOTE EARTH by switching off your lights for one hour.
Or you can vote for global warming by leaving your lights on.
The results of the election are being presented at the Global Climate Change Conference in Copenhagen 2009. We want one billion votes for Earth, to tell world leaders that we have to take action against global warming.
SOS Amazon March 3rd, 2009
One of the most lasting images of the World Social Forum in Belém, Brazil was the human banner made by indigenous leaders, who used their bodies to spell out a bird´s eye message of “SOS Amazon” in Portuguese, to draw attention to the fragile region.
The human banner was organized by the Coordinating Group of Indigenous Organizations of the Brazilian Amazon, one of the major groups that participated in the forum, campaigning for indigenous rights, particularly in the South American jungle, where various economically-driven projects are having grave reverberations on native peoples.
Click here to read more »
72 Members of Congress Urge World Bank to Cancel Haiti’s Debt February 27th, 2009
Debt Cancellation Will Help Haiti Avoid National Collapse, Give Fragile Democracy a Chance
A bipartisan group of 72 US Representatives called on World Bank President Robert Zoellick late yesterday to immediately suspend all scheduled debt repayments from Haiti and grant complete debt cancellation to the impoverished nation. Haiti currently sends $1.6 million to the World Bank every month while thousands of Haitians starve and the nation struggles to fill a severe budget gap that threatens the struggling democracy’s stability.
The letter to President Zoellick was circulated by US Representative Maxine Waters (D-CA) as well as Representatives Barney Frank (D-MA) and Spencer Bachus (R-AL), Chairman and Ranking Member of the House Financial Services Committee. The Representatives express deep concern about “the urgent humanitarian needs of the people of Haiti and the difficulties Haiti has faced in qualifying for the cancellation of its debts.” “We understand that Haiti is scheduled to send approximately $20 million to the World Bank in 2009,” the letter reads, “Clearly, this money would be better spent on basic infrastructure and poverty reduction for the Haitian people.” Signers include 72 US Representatives from across the political spectrum, including Representative Ileana Ros-Lehtinen (R-FL), Ranking Member of the House Foreign Affairs Committee and Donald Payne (D-NJ), Chairman of the House Subcommittee on Africa and Global Health, and House Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Howard Berman (D-CA).
Download a PDF of the letter from Members of Congress to World Bank President Zoellick
Click here to read more »
