December 15, 2004

"GIFT OF HOPE" FOR DISPLACED & ORPHANED SUDANESE CHILDREN FROM ISRAEL AND AMERICAN JEWISH GROUPS SUDANESE EXILE OFFERED THANKS AND FRIENDSHIP

(New York, NY, December 15, 2004) At a news conference held today in Manhattan, Israeli Consul General Arye Mekel; Ruth Messinger, president and executive director of American Jewish World Service; and Will Recant of the American Jewish Joint Distribution Committee who oversees the Jewish Coalition for Disaster Relief were among Jewish leaders to announce an educational initiative, Sudan Refugee Children's Education Project in Chad, for orphaned and vulnerable Sudanese children.

Speaking on behalf of the Sudanese community and offering his gratitude was Mohamed Yahya, a founder of the Representatives of the Massaleit Community in Exile. His group has been documenting human rights violations in Darfur for more than 10 years. After being exiled by the Sudanese government for criticizing the persecution of the Massaleit tribe in Darfur, Mr. Yahya spent eight years in Egypt before coming to the United States as a refugee two years ago.

"All my life I was taught that Jews are the enemy, but when I came here I saw that you are a passionate, kind and supportive people," said Mr. Yahya as he addressed the room full of Jewish supporters. "My own people are killing us, but it is the Jews who are working to save us," he said. "From today on, you are our best friends. When one is killed in Tel Aviv or Darfur, you will hear our cry," he vowed.

The funds are being donated to the Jewish Coalition for Sudan Relief to provide formal and informal education in the Kashuni refugee camp, which was built and is managed by the International Rescue Committee (IRC) in northeastern Chad. The contribution from the State of Israel represents the latest response to the humanitarian crisis in Darfur that has been resonating strongly among Jews.

Ambassador Arye Mekel, Consul General of Israel in New York said, "As a people who have suffered from ongoing persecution, we will not let ourselves sit idly by on the sidelines, watching this horrific humanitarian tragedy unfold. We hope that we will help to alleviate the suffering of these victims of violence - in particular the children," he said.

In addition to Israel, the American Jewish organizations contributing to the $100,000 plus initiative include American Jewish World Service, UJA-Federation of New York, Union for Reform Judaism, and United Jewish Communities of MetroWest New Jersey. The Jewish Coalition for Sudan Relief is also contributing funds and UJA Federation of Northern New Jersey expects its board of directors to approve a contribution to the effort next week.

Ruth Messinger traveled to Sudan in August. She heads American Jewish World Service, an international development and emergency relief organization that has raised more than half a million dollars to date for the victims in Darfur. She explained that the date chosen to announce the Jewish collaboration was symbolic for Jews.
"As Jews around the world end the festival of Chanukah, which celebrates our freedom from oppressors bent on converting or destroying us, it is only fitting that we commemorate this holiday by expressing our solidarity with the nearly two million African tribal farmers who are suffering displacement and brutal violence from their oppressors," Ms. Messinger said.
The grant will allow IRC to open a fourth school in the camp that will provide a culturally sensitive curriculum combined with major psychosocial support. Informal education will be offered to children who are unable to participate in normal schooling because they have been forced to take on adult obligations-becoming the head of the household or caring for younger siblings. In addition to basic literacy and numeracy programs for these children, activities will focus on tailoring, knitting, brick making and carpentry, allowing them to learn life skills and earn a living.

"I can't think of a better gift to give this holiday season than the gift of hope," said Will Recant, assistant executive vice president of the American Jewish Joint Distribution Committee, who emceed the news conference.

Mr. Recant explained that education is essential in helping children overcome the traumas associated with mass violence and displacement. When children are not in school they are at increased risk for early marriage and childbirth as well as economic and sexual exploitation. "Education plays a critical role in helping children return toward normalcy, even in an abnormal setting, and in laying the foundation for them to play a productive role in society," he said.

The Jewish Coalition for Sudan Relief is the latest effort organized by the Jewish Coalition for Disaster Relief (JCDR) to respond to the humanitarian crisis in Sudan. Coordinated by the American Jewish Joint Distribution Committee, the JCDR is comprised of 46 North American Jewish organizations as a mechanism to assist victims of natural and man-made disasters outside of the United States on a non-sectarian basis.

The Coalition has raised over $250,000 for Sudan relief to date. Combined with the appeals launched by American Jewish World Service and the Union for Reform Judaism, close to $1 million dollars have been raised for humanitarian relief by the organized Jewish community. Additionally, several of the groups are involved with fund relief and advocacy efforts with inter-faith coalitions on behalf of the people of Darfur.

Since February 2003, more than one and a half million African tribal farmers have been displaced, forced from their homes as their villages are torched, water supplies poisoned or destroyed, livestock stolen or killed, and people raped or murdered by the Sudanese government-backed Janjaweed ("evil men on horseback"). Some 200,000 refugees are now living in neighboring Chad, where the program will be launched beginning January 1, 2005.