US Sudan envoy Gration & Ask U.S. - "Innovative Engagement with Advocacy Groups on Sudan"

Email from US Department of State:
Sudan Updates: “Innovative Engagement with Advocacy Groups on Sudan”
Thu, 12 Nov 2009 16:06:25 -0600

"Innovative Engagement with Advocacy Groups on Sudan"

Scott Gration
Special Envoy to Sudan
Washington, DC
November 12, 2009

On Tuesday, I participated in the ‘Ask U.S.’ live stream video question and answer session at the White House. Samantha Power, NSC Senior Director for Multilateral Affairs, and I answered questions posed to us by Jerry Fowler, the President of the Save Darfur Coalition, and Layla Amjadi, the Student Director of Stand (the student-led division of the Genocide Intervention Network). In the lead up to this event, the Save Darfur Coalition and STAND asked their members to both vote on which questions would be asked and to submit additional questions for consideration. We are eager to continue an active and robust dialogue with the advocacy community, and this unique event allowed us to engage directly with thousands of members of the Save Darfur Coalition and STAND.

The questions that Jerry and Layla posed touched upon a range of pressing concerns, inquiring about the administration's benchmarks for incentives and pressures, the circumstances in which internally displaced persons in Darfur might return home, the risks surrounding the 2010 elections in south Sudan, the importance of engaging China and Russia on the path forward, and the indispensability of including Sudanese civil society in the peace process. I found the exchange to be extremely useful and hope those who followed it online did as well.

A video link of the event is below if you were not able to watch it live on Tuesday.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aNSXeMkiZ_M

[end of email]

U.S. Sudan Gration: White House & State Dept partnering with Save Darfur Coalition and STAND to launch "Ask U.S."

Email just in from U.S. Department of State
Wed, 04 Nov 2009 12:59:22 -0600:

"Ask U.S." - Engaging on Sudan Strategy
Scott Gration
Special Envoy to Sudan
Washington, DC
November 4, 2009

On October 19, Secretary Clinton, accompanied by Ambassador Rice and myself, released the Obama Administration’s new comprehensive strategy to confront the serious and urgent situation in Sudan. As mentioned in my past blog post, the strategy focuses on three major areas: ending the conflict in Darfur, implementing the North-South Comprehensive Peace Agreement (CPA), and ensuring that Sudan does not become a safe haven for terrorists.

This approach involves engaging with all stakeholders, in and out of Sudan, and calls for addressing the myriad set of issues facing Sudan in a coordinated and comprehensive way, based on verifiable progress on the ground.

Today, we continue this engagement and conversation in a new and unique way.

The Sudan advocacy community is extremely active and deeply committed to raising critical awareness about the situation in Sudan. The Obama Administration is eager to continue an active dialogue with the advocacy community, and as such the White House and the State Department are partnering with The Save Darfur Coalition and STAND to launch “Ask U.S.”

“Ask U.S.” is an effort to reach out to the advocacy communities and to solicit questions on the U.S. Sudan policy from activists deeply and passionately engaged on this critical issue. As part of the “Ask U.S.” campaign, The Save Darfur Coalition and STAND will collect questions from their members over the course of this week and weekend. Next Tuesday, November 10th, leaders from these organizations will come to the White House and, in a live streamed video event, will pose selected questions to myself and Samantha Power, NSC Senior Director for Multilateral Affairs.

I would like to invite you to join the conversation and to watch the live stream at 3pm EST, Tuesday, November 10th. Through the State Department page on Facebook, you can watch as members of the advocacy community have their questions posed to us, and I also encourage you to participate by inviting your friends and family on Facebook to join in the chat as this conversation unfolds.

We look forward to opening up this dialogue, listening and learning and ultimately building ways that we can work together to support the Sudanese people in their quest for peace, security and prosperity.

The advocacy community has had a major impact by raising awareness about the situation in Sudan. By maintaining an open conversation and working together, we can make a real difference with real progress for the Sudanese people.

We hope you will join us.

[end of email]

Further reading

Voice of America

Now We Need Presidential Leadership

Huffington Post (blog) - ‎Oct 29, 2009‎

Jerry Fowler is the president of the Save Darfur Coalition, an alliance of more than 180 faith-based, advocacy and human rights organizations committed to ...

Editorial: Plotting a new course Philadelphia Inquirer

US Sudan Policy Goes from Rhetoric to Reality ISN

all 547 news articles »

New Zealand Herald

New US Policy Towards Sudan

NPR - ‎Oct 20, 2009‎

The President of the Save Darfur Coalition, Jerry Fowler discusses how the new US policy will try to stop the ongoing conflict in Darfur. ...

Video: Secretary Clinton, Special Envoy Gration on Sudan Policy Sec Santa Barbara Arts TV

Why all the 'howling' about Sudan's debt? Probe International

White House Unveils Sudan Strategy New York Times

msnbc.com - Reuters

all 1,240 news articles »

Save Darfur Coalition wants US to fight debt relief to Sudan

Probe International - ‎Oct 13, 2009‎

The US-based Save Darfur Coalition is making a new push to deny debt relief to Sudan. The activists are aiming to counter lobbying by Sudan at the annual ...