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Genocide continues in Darfur

Wednesday, October 31 at 2:00 PM

Becky O’Brien of Lafayette writes:

Two-year-old Zahra was yanked from her fleeing mother’s back and bludgeoned to death in front of her mother and siblings. Halima’s baby boy was torn from her arms and bayoneted; he was one of three of her children to be murdered that day. These are but two of the hundreds of thousands of deaths that have and continue to take place in Darfur, Sudan.
The genocide continues to rage on after 4 ½ years. One of the reasons this atrocity has not been stopped is China. As Sudan’s best friend in the international community, China protects the Sudanese government at the U.N. Security Council, sells arms to the Sudanese government, and is the largest player in Sudan’s oil industry, thereby providing funds for the Sudanese military.
China is also the host of the 2008 Summer Olympics, an event that stands for peace and brotherhood. As the Games approach, advocates for security in Darfur have an extraordinary opportunity to reach out to the Chinese government, in its role as host, to urge Beijing’s leaders to use their considerable influence with Sudan to bring peace to Darfur.
Join the Colorado community in calling on China to ends its complicity in genocide by attending the Olympic Dream for Darfur Torch Relay and Rally at Cheesman Park in Denver on Sunday, October 28, at 1:30 p.m. Join Mayor Hickenlooper, genocide survivors, Olympic athletes and others in demanding an end to the protection of the genocidal regime that is the Sudanese government. Visit www.dreamfordarfur.org for more on the Denver event and this campaign.

This letter has not been edited.

READER COMMENTS

Becky,

Aside from the horrors which continue in Darfur, two things strike me in another sad way.

I don’t know when you sent this letter in to the Rocky Mountain News, but it was published way late for your announcement of the rally on Sunday, Oct. 28. As it turned out, your letter didn’t get published until Wednesday, Oct. 31. If the RMN received your letter early enough they should have placed it above the heap of some ridiculous letters that they published before yours.

Secondly, it’s really sad that I am the only person to post a comment to your letter. I suppose too many people have more fun bashing people with whom they disagree, and cannot take their precious time away from those important activities to express worry about people being slaughtered thousands of miles from here.

Most people prefer not to politicize the Olympics. I am one of those people. However, this might be one of the times when there ought to be an exception to that rule. China needs to finally get the hint (which has been way too subtle thus far) that they need to join the civilized world when it comes to human rights and basic decency. I don’t understand what it is that makes world leaders so fearful of coming down firm on the Chinese. They have an atrocious human rights record, they get a total pass on pollution violations, and worst of all they support the most hideous regimes across the globe. I hope that our future president will boycott the Olympics unless China makes some big, big changes.

Posted by Mountain Cat on November 2, 2007 08:30 AM

MC,I'd been watching this letter too.All the bloggers(myself included) were having way too much fun with the usual group of topics to weigh in on this one.Too bad we don't condemn this real genocide instead of condemning Democrats, Republicans,Christians,Muslims,Jews,Iranians,Americans,Europeans,men,women,and everyone else not in the preceding groups.

Posted by Jimminy on November 2, 2007 01:05 PM