In Darfur, Sudan, civilians' human rights are being violated daily as a militant group called the Janjaweed commits genocide against the people as a way of "ethnic cleansing," a representative from Amnesty International said Monday.
Eric Sears, Amnesty International's Mid-Atlantic field organizer, said the militants, specifically targeting the Fur, Masalit and Zaghawa ethnic groups, purposely kill and torture these civilians using rape and other sexual violence as weapons.
The Leonard Hall Residence Hall Association and Amnesty International sponsored the hour-long lecture, attended by about 25 people.
An estimated 30,000 have been killed in Darfur, The Washington Post reported yesterday.
Sears spent some time in Sudan this year when he and others from Amnesty International were granted access to much of the country. Throughout the lecture, Sears provided the audience with detailed background information about the history of Sudan and the crisis, using his expertise and experience with the situation. Sears also called attention to the Sudanese government's lack of assistance to its citizens, and emphasized that it has been very difficult to get food and aid to the oppressed civilians.
Leonard Hall President Micah Winograd, who helped set up the program, said Sears did an excellent job informing the audience of the crisis in Sudan and its related history.
Winograd added that he was impressed with Sears' ability to answer a variety of questions from the audience.
He also stated the significance of the whole event as part of Leonard Hall's continual effort to help students on campus understand what is going on in the world around them. He said that just as situations in the United States are important, it is important to place America's situation in context with the issues of the surrounding globe.
"Being an international hall, this is what Leonard Hall is all about," Winograd said. He said that making AU students aware of the circumstances of other countries helps them "to be good global as well as American citizens."
Winograd and the other Leonard Hall resident assistants are currently raising money for the victims of the Janjaweed.
