[MAPC-policy] Re: city council humanitarian resolution on

[MAPC-policy] Re: city council humanitarian resolution on

born-digital

email

yes

no

2001-11-14

Hi,
   I introduced the resolution that Diane sent last night. It should come
before
the council on this coming Tuesday, before Thanksgiving.
X

X wrote:

> Hello everyone,
>
> Following is the text of the humanitarian resolution on Afghanistan which
we
> would like to propose be submitted to the Common Council.  At the Madison
> Area Peace Coalition meeting earlier tonight, people felt very strongly
that
> this resolution should be voted on as soon as possible - at the Nov 20
> Council meeting, if at all possible - since the humanitarian situation it
> addresses is growing worse by the day.  Please do let me know, by e-mail
or
> by phone (XXX-XXXX day, XXX-XXXX night), if this can still be done.  If
it's
> too late for that, then we would request the resolution be introduced at
the
> Nov 20 meeting and voted on at the Dec 4 meeting.
>
> I've talked directly with X, who I know is willing to co-sponsor
> this, and I've heard from X that X and X
> are also willing to co-sponsor (and that there may be other alders
willing,
> too).  If someone on the Council could fill us all in on who is willing to
> co-sponsor and when this can be voted on, we'll swing into action to raise
> awareness and build support for it.
>
> Thanks to everyone for your help and support, and I apologize for any
> confusion in communications.
>
> Best,
> X
>
> Title:    Humanitarian Priorities in Afghanistan
>
> A RESOLUTION regarding the urgent need to provide emergency humanitarian
> assistance and development assistance to civilians in Afghanistan,
including
> Afghan refugees in surrounding countries.
>
> WHEREAS,    a disastrous humanitarian crisis is underway, with an
estimated
> 7.5 million people in Afghanistan facing critical food shortage or
outright
> starvation this winter; and
>
> WHEREAS,    70 percent of these people are women and children, and the UN
> estimates 400,000 children under five will likely die this year, an
increase
> of 100,000 over last year; and
>
> WHEREAS,     food aid shipments have been disrupted because of U.S.
bombing
> in Afghanistan; and
>
> WHEREAS,    the aid agencies active in the region, including the Nobel
> laureate Doctors Without Borders (MSF), Oxfam International and the World
> Food Program have stated that the U.S. food drops can not meet the
> increasing and urgent need for assistance; and
>
> WHEREAS,    Madison now participates directly and indirectly in U.S.
> military efforts through many channels, including the federal taxes its
> citizens pay, and through its citizens' participation in the armed forces;
> and
>
> WHEREAS,    the Mayor and Madison Common Council are appalled at the mass
> starvation that will result from these actions to which they are a party
if
> the situation is not speedily addressed; and
>
> WHEREAS,    the Mayor and Madison Common Council deplore the dishonor such
> an outcome would be for the victims of the terrorist attacks of September
> 11th;
>
> NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED THAT the Mayor and Madison Common Council
> support a resolution to the situation that minimizes loss of life; and
>
> BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED THAT humanitarian concerns must now be a top
priority
> for U.S. policy toward Afghanistan, especially as there exists a narrow
> window of opportunity for supplying food to the region's population before
> winter makes this difficult or impossible.  The Mayor and Madison Common
> Council call on the federal government to defer to the judgement of
> international aid agencies that a cessation in bombing is necessary to
avoid
> humanitarian disaster; and
>
> BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED THAT the Mayor and Madison Common Council call on
> Afghanistan's neighbors to immediately reopen their borders to allow for
the
> safe passage of refugees, and call on the U.S. federal government and
other
> members of the international community to prepare to contribute to the
> economic costs incurred by the flight of desperate Afghan civilians; and
>
> BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED THAT the Mayor and Madison Common Council call on
the
> U.S. federal government to actively support the work of various agencies
to
> deliver assistance in Afghanistan, particularly through overland truck
> convoys, and to support safe humanitarian access to affected populations,
in
> partnership with humanitarian agencies, in quantities sufficient to
> alleviate a large scale humanitarian catastrophe; and
>
> BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED THAT the Mayor and Madison Common Council call on
the
> U.S. federal government to contribute to efforts by the international
> community to provide long-term, sustainable reconstruction and development
> assistance for the people of Afghanistan, including efforts to protect the
> basic human rights of women and children; and
>
> BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED THAT the Mayor and Madison Common Council call on
the
> international community to support democratic processes in Afghanistan
> leading to a government which represents all its people, including women.
>
> BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED THAT the Mayor and Madison Common Council, on
behalf
> of the people of Madison, in solidarity with the international community
and
> in their capacity as citizens of the United States, urge the U.S. federal
> government to put humanitarian concerns first in its policies and actions
> overseas.  Furthermore, the Mayor and Madison Common Council will consider
> the U.S. federal government responsible for both the direct consequences
of
> its military actions in Afghanistan and for unintended, indirect results
of
> its actions leading to humanitarian crises in Afghanistan and the
> surrounding region.
>
> ____________________________________________
X
>
> Check out these internet sites!
> the East Timor Action Network/US http://www.etan.org
> Madison, WI - East Timor projects http://www.aideasttimor.org
> Madison's Social Justice Center http://www.socialjusticecenter.org
>
> "... in '74, after the [Indonesian military] invasion [of East Timor] ...
> we all fought together, we were united ... and I believe that if we could
> unite, we can forge another kind of unity, to fight for other things, like
> fight against poverty, fight against illiteracy, fight against disease,
> fight against many, many other things."
> -Kay Rala Xanana Gusmão


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Wednesday, November 14, 2001 9:53 AM

[MAPC-policy] Re: city council humanitarian resolution on