So it’s beginning to look like the issues that have been going on in Uganda for 21 years are finally beginning to come to a halt… The LRA is gathering all of its troops in Ri-Kwangba. This is part of an agreement tat they recently renewed with the Ugandan government. Also part of the agreement: A specific path is set up that will keep them away from the citizens of Uganda who they have often armed in their fights with the government. This whole situation has gotten way, way out of control and has been for a long while. The LRA has displaced families, kidnapped children, and set mines in farming land which has prevented families from growing the food that they need to survive.
How many people do you who have diabetes? I can think of at least four off the top of my head. Diabetes really affects a lot of people – It’s a major problem lacking a cure. Scott Hanselman has started an effort to raise $50,000 for the American Diabetes Association in their search for a cure. On top of the $50,000, 7 different bloggers have chosen to match all donations given between noon on May 9th and noon on May 11th. And, because two of the bloggers work for Microsoft, Microsoft is matching it twice, while Scott will be personally matching all donations that get PayPall’d through his account. Check it out and maybe even donate a little…
What is going on in Darfur right now seriously makes me want to vomit. It’s just wrong. I had no idea that genocide was still happening on this big of a level. I almost feel like we’re dealing with Nazi Germany here. Tons and tons of genocide is going on and people are barely starting to have an impact over there. Really, I can’t even begin to summarize what’s going on… Check out what Save Darfur has to say about it on their Background page:
Darfur has been embroiled in a deadly conflict for over three years. At least 400,000 people have been killed; more than 2 million innocent civilians have been forced to flee their homes and now live in displaced-persons camps in Sudan or in refugee camps in neighboring Chad; and more than 3.5 million men, women, and children are completely reliant on international aid for survival. Not since the Rwandan genocide of 1994 has the world seen such a calculated campaign of displacement, starvation, rape, and mass slaughter.
Since early 2003, Sudanese armed forces and Sudanese government-backed militia known as “Janjaweed” have been fighting two rebel groups in Darfur, the Sudanese Liberation Army/Movement (SLA/SLM) and the Justice and Equality Movement (JEM). The stated political aim of the rebels has been to compel the government of Sudan to address underdevelopment and the political marginalization of the region. In response, the Sudanese government’s regular armed forces and the Janjaweed – largely composed of fighters of nomadic background – have targeted civilian populations and ethnic groups from which the rebels primarily draw their support – the Fur, Masalit and Zaghawa (notes about our use of ethnic terminology).
The Bush Administration has recognized these atrocities – carried out against civilians primarily by the government of Sudan and its allied Janjaweed militias – as genocide. António Guterres, the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, has described the situation in Sudan and Chad as “the largest and most complex humanitarian problem on the globe.” The Sudanese government and the Janjaweed militias are responsible for the burning and destruction of hundreds of rural villages, the killing of tens of thousands of people and rape and assault of thousands of women and girls.
I will definitely be praying for Darfur and the humanitarian aid troops over there right now.
Looking for a great way to help end world hunger? Each year, World Vision heads up an event (Which I participated in about a week and a half ago) called the 30 Hour Famine which is definitely a step towards ending starvation. Church youth groups everywhere get together and fast for – you guessed it – 30 hours. Participants ask family and friends to sponsor them and the money earned goes to World Vision. The fast starts at 12pm on Friday after participants eat lunch and the fast is broken at 6pm on the next day. It’s really cool and I encourage you to try it out next year. The country that was the center of attention for this year was Uganda, but all of Word Vision’s countries are supported by the fast.
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