[Congressional Record Volume 152, Number 129 (Wednesday, November 15, 2006)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E2057]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                         DIVESTMENT FROM SUDAN

                                 ______
                                 

                           HON. FRANK R. WOLF

                              of virginia

                    in the house of representatives

                      Wednesday, November 15, 2006

  Mr. WOLF. Mr. Speaker, I want to share with our colleagues my 
statement from a press conference I hosted with Congressman Donald 
Payne, and the Genocide Intervention Network today calling on all state 
Governors to divest from companies doing business in Sudan. Local 
students from Langley High School and Westfield High School also 
participated, and I would like to commend them for being so active on 
this issue.

       Thank you all for coming. Today I join my good friend and 
     congressional colleague Donald Payne in calling on all states 
     to divest from companies doing business in Sudan. I want to 
     especially thank the Sudan Divestment Taskforce and the 
     Genocide Intervention Network for working so hard on this 
     issue. This movement started at UCLA and Swarthmore College 
     and has gained recognition over the last 2 years. I also 
     would like to thank all of the students in attendance. So 
     many young people are embracing this issue. I commend them 
     and urge them to remain vigilant.
       For over 20 years the government of Sudan engaged in a 
     brutal civil war with the people of southern Sudan. This 
     conflict took the lives of over 2 million people. During this 
     time slavery flourished and terrorism took root in Sudan. In 
     2003 a conflict in Sudan's Darfur region broke out. The 
     government reacted by unleashing a war on innocent people and 
     began the genocide. That was 3 years ago. Over 400,000 people 
     have died since and over 2 million continue to be at risk.
       I led the first congressional delegation to Darfur. I 
     witnessed the horror these people live with day to day and 
     the impact of decades of war. Just last week the United 
     Nations reported fresh ongoing attacks. There is no question 
     that the government of Sudan orchestrated and continues to 
     direct the genocide in Darfur. In one village, 27 of the 
     people that were killed were children under the age of 12. 
     The United Nations is working to try to get desperately 
     needed U.N. troops on the ground but the government of Sudan 
     continues to reject this deployment.
       Targeted divestment from companies doing business in Sudan 
     is an action that can make a difference. The genocide in 
     Sudan can be stopped. Every American can do his or her part. 
     The United States Congress and the president have called it 
     genocide. It is now up to the states to apply economic 
     pressure on the government of Sudan and divest from companies 
     doing business in Sudan. We have seen in the past that the 
     government in Khartoum responds to economic pressure.
       Last month I called on my home state of Virginia to divest 
     and a state senator will be putting forth legislation when 
     the General Assembly returns in January. I hope every state 
     will follow the lead of California, Connecticut, Illinois, 
     Maine, New Jersey and Oregon which have already moved to 
     divest from companies doing business with Sudan. Today we 
     call on the remaining 44 states to do the same.
       We encourage all governors to review their state's pension 
     funds and identify companies which are doing the type of 
     business in Sudan that is aiding the government and 
     fulfilling this genocide, not helping the people. We ask that 
     they work with their state legislators to enact legislation 
     to divest from those companies.
       California just passed a law last month and its model of 
     targeted divestment limits the scope of companies and 
     investments, providing a good plan for action. We need to 
     send a signal to the government in Khartoum that America and 
     the West will not stand silent in the face of genocide--that 
     the women and children in those camps matter as much to us as 
     our own families.
       History will judge our willingness to act.

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