[Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States: George W. Bush (2006, Book I)]
[April 28, 2006]
[Pages 830-831]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office www.gpo.gov]



Remarks Following a Meeting on Sudan
April 28, 2006

    I just had an extraordinary conversation with fellow citizens from 
different faiths, all of who have come to urge our Government to 
continue to focus on saving lives in Sudan. They agree with thousands of 
our citizens--hundreds of thousands of our

[[Page 831]]

citizens that genocide in Sudan is unacceptable.
    And there will be rallies across our country to send a message to 
the Sudanese Government that the genocide must stop. Those rallies will 
also be an indication that thousands and hundreds of thousands of our 
citizens urge the world to unite with the United States in concerted 
action.
    We have got AU troops on the ground; those troops need to be 
augmented and increased through strong United Nations action. And the 
United States strongly supports a U.N. resolution to do that. I believe 
it's important for the United States to be involved, and the best way to 
be involved with the AU troops is through NATO. I've worked with the 
Secretary General of NATO and our allies in NATO to provide a firm response to 
the actions that are taking place on the ground. I want the Sudanese 
Government to understand the United States of America is serious about 
solving this problem.
    I'm proud of our Nation's generosity when it comes to aid, and the 
American people ought to be proud of the taxpayer dollars that have gone 
to provide much needed aid for those who suffer. But this Government 
must understand that we expect the aid to get to the people, and we 
expect there to be a solution to this problem.
    There will be rallies all across the country. And for those of you 
who are going out to march for justice, you represent the best of our 
country. We believe every life is precious, every human being is 
important. And the signal you send to the world is a strong signal, and 
I welcome your participation. And I want to thank the organizers for 
being here.
    I want to thank this good man right here; he 
sits here next to his President, and it wasn't all that long ago that he 
was a slave inside Sudan. He sits here to represent the thousands of 
lives who have been affected by a Government that must honor human 
rights.
    And, Simon, I'm proud to have you here as a 
fellow American, proud to have you here as a friend.
    Thank you all for coming.

Note: The President spoke at 1:50 p.m. in the Roosevelt Room at the 
White House. In his remarks, he referred to Secretary General Jakob 
Gijsbert ``Jaap'' de Hoop Scheffer of the North Atlantic Treaty 
Organization; and Simon Deng, founder of the Sudan Freedom Walk.