Please Distribute To All Concerned Africans...We Are One People and Our
Struggles Are The Same...We Must Support Each Other In Our Struggles
for Freedom!
I have attached the following press release notification of this
upcoming demonstration as a word attachment for downloading and
distribution. Thank you.
Jamila
______________________________________________________________________
CONCERNED SIERRA LEONEANS FOR
THE RESTORATION OF DEMOCRACY
853 Broadway, Suite 1516, New York, NY 10003
SIERRA LEONEANS TO RALLY AT THE UNITED NATIONS
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contacts:
Ishmael Taylor-Kamara Tel: (212) 940-6625 Fax: (212) 935-8405 E-mail:
[log in to unmask]
Crimilda Williams: Tel: (201) 656-4378 E-mail: [log in to unmask]
New York City, May 22, 2000
Sierra Leoneans from throughout the tri-state area will converge in New
York City for a Rally at the United Nations on Thursday, May 25, 2000.
At the event, which is being organized by an alliance of groups led by
Concerned Sierra Leoneans for the Restoration of Democracy (CSLRD) and
Sierra Relief Organization, a call will be issued for increased
international support for ongoing efforts to secure lasting peace in
Sierra Leone. In addition, the international community will be urged
to render more meaningful logistical and material support for the
troops currently providing security to the civilian population of
Sierra Leone, including United Nations peacekeepers. An appeal will
also be made for the strenghtening of the UN troops, who are
ill-equipped and also lack the mandate to properly address the rebel
menace.
The keynote speaker at the Rally will be the well-respected community
leader and civil rights activist Reverend Herb Daughtry. A complete
list of sponsors will soon be available. According to the organizers,
the Rally will be preceded by a short march from Sierra Leone's Mission
to the United Nations, 245 East 49th Street (between 2nd and 3rd
Avenues) to the rally site, commencing at 11:30 a.m. The Rally will
take place at Ralph Bunche Park (43rd Street/First Avenue), and
commence at 12:00 noon and end at 3:00 p.m.
RUF rebels in Sierra Leone waged a brutal eight-year campaign of terror
against innocent civilians starting from 1991 during which they
murdered over 50,000 and laid waste to most of the country outside of
the capital. The capital, Freetown, was spared such violence until
January 1998 when it was attacked and beseiged by the rebels for two
weeks. In their wake they left substantial damage to the city and a
death toll of close to 5,000. A tenuous peace agreement signed by the
war-weary nation in July 1999 granted amnesty to the rebels, secured
them a place in government and effectively ceded to them control of the
country's diamond mines in the hopes that they would disarm, end the
bloodshed and commit to peace. Instead, they have consistently
violated the agreement and refused to disarm or cooperate with the UN
peacekeeping force sent in to oversee the disarmament process. The
most recent crisis erupted when RUF rebels killed four peacekeepers and
seized as many as 500 others and began an offensive towards Freetown.
Their leader, accused of plotting a coup at the time, escaped after his
followers shot into a crowd of civilian demonstrators, killing
nineteen. His whereabouts were unknown until his capture and detention
last week.
Concerned Sierra Leoneans for the Restoration of Democracy is fully
committed to securing support and material assistance from the
international community to bolster the worldwide efforts of Sierra
Leoneans to restore peace and stability to their country. For more
information regarding CSLRD or its upcoming events and how you can
support its activities, please call its 24-hour hotline on (212)
479-7734.
__________________________________________________
Do You Yahoo!?
Send instant messages & get email alerts with Yahoo! Messenger.
http://im.yahoo.com/
|
