Today, Justice for Darfur urged Security Council members visiting Khartoum to raise Sudan's non-cooperation with the International Criminal Court (ICC), and to adopt a new resolution calling upon Sudan to cooperate fully with the court. The Nobel Women's Initiative supports this imperative call to action by the Justice for Darfur campaign, and a new resolution that would urge Sudan to cooperate fully with the ICC, including the prompt surrender of two suspects charged with 51 counts of war crimes and crimes against humanity.

The Nobel Women's Initiative partnered with Swedish women's organization, Kvinna Till Kvinna, in calling for meaningful inclusion of women in the Darfur peace negotiations. 

In a letter to UN Special Envoy to Darfur, Jan Eliasson, sent March 6, 2008, Mairead Corrigan Maguire, Betty Williams, Jody Williams and Lena Ag of Kvinna Till Kvinna sent a strong message about the importance of women's full participation in the peace talks.  "No peace agreement will be just or sustainable if women's voices are not heard." The letter called for women's voices at the peace table, and justice and reparations for the victims of atrocities, including sexual violence.

The authors also congratulated Ambassador Eliasson on his outreach to women's organizations in Sudan, and offered their support for his work. 

To read the full letter, click here.   

To read the Sudanese Women's Statement on Darfur, click here.  

Letter to President Hu Jintao sent six months before start of Beijing Games; Coincides with Global Day of Action

On February 12, 2008, Nobel Peace Prize laureates, Olympic athletes, government leaders, and public advocates around the world sent an open letter to President Hu Jintao of China, asking that the country stop aiding the mass atrocities and ethnic cleansing in Darfur and instead support peace in the region.

To read the full letter to President Hu, click here.

To view the full list of signatories to the letter, click here. 

The letter, coordinated by the Nobel Women's Initiative, coincides with a series of protests taking place at Chinese embassies and consulates around the world organized by the Globe for Darfur coalition.

Hollywood director Steven Spielberg made news by announcing he would resign as Artistic Director of the Beijing Olympic Games, citing concerns over China's policy on Darfur. 

Jody Williams and Mairead Corrigan Maguire are fasting on December 5th, 2007, in support of STAND-USA's Darfur Fast.  The event aims to raise funds and awareness for Genocide Intervention Network's  Civilian Protection Programs.  This year's fast draws attention to the massive sexual violence experienced by women and girls in Darfur. 

On December 4th, Nobel Peace laureate Jody Williams sent a letter to members of the UN Security Council, urging them to take a strong stance in response to the Government of Sudan's refusal to cooperate with the International Criminal Court (ICC).

The letter was sent to British Prime Minister Gordon Brown, Italian Prime Minister Romano Prodi, French President Nicholas Sarkozy, and Belgian Ambassador to the UN, Johan Verbeke.

In his December 5th report, the ICC prosecutor for Sudan is expected to tell the UN Security Council that the Sudanese government is not cooperating with the Court as required by Security Council Resolution 1593. In her letter, Williams emphasized the importance of justice for the people of Darfur.  

Jody Williams is joining with the Darfur Divestment Campaign to call for activist pressure on Swiss Banking Giant, UBS.

UBS is planning to underwrite the first sale of PetroChina stocks on the Shanghai stock exchange.  PetroChina is the listing arm for China National Petroleum Corporation - and no company is more adversely affecting the human rights situation in Sudan than China National Petroleum. 

In a special meeting of the full European Parliament on 5 June, Jody Williams and Archbishop Desmond Tutu offered members of the European Parliament their advice on how Europe should act confronted with the Darfur crisis. Archbishop Desmond Tutu, winner of the Nobel Peace Prize in 1984 for his role in fighting apartheid, called for UN sanctions against Sudan as he decried the "most ghastly example of inhumanity" unfolding in Darfur. Jody Williams, who led the UN High Level Mission on Darfur, called for deeds rather than words. She outlined a series of suggestions for the European Parliament on Darfur, and appealed to the MEPs not to forget Burma. "When you speak about Darfur, speak about Burma."

UPDATE: (9 April 2007) The Human Rights Council adopted a resolution addressing the human rights abuses in Darfur. Referencing the report presented by the High Level Mission, the resolution calls for the creation of a group of UN special rapporteurs to monitor specific issues in the Sudan and report back to the Council. Dr. Sima Simar, Special Rapporteur on human rights in Darfur and a member of the High Level Mission to Darfur, will be leading the group.