AMNESTY INTERNATIONAL SPONSORS “CONFLICT IN THE CONGO: PROMOTING PEACE AND HUMAN RIGHTS”

 

-- Forum To Call Attention to Human Rights Issues in the Democratic Republic of Congo and Provide Opportunities for Action --

 

(September 12, Atlanta) – The Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) is currently the scene of one of the worst human rights and humanitarian disasters in the world and the most deadly war ever documented in Africa.  Years of civil war and pillaging, the use of child soldiers, poor refugee conditions and exploitation of the region’s natural resources have taken a dramatic toll.  In the past 4.5 years alone, more than three million people have died and half a million have been forced to leave their homes. 

 

 

Local Amnesty International activists invite the public to learn what’s going on in the DRC and what they can do about it at the forum, “Conflict in the Congo:  Promoting Peace and Human Rights,” on Wednesday, September 24 from 6:00 p.m. to 10:00 p.m. EST.  The forum will be held at the Trevor Arnett Art Gallery of Clark Atlanta University

 

The forum will focus on the current situation in the DRC through the first-hand accounts of the following expert speakers. 

• Derreck Kayongo, Advocacy Field Coordinator for the Southern Region of CARE U.S.A., will give a crisis overview and facilitate the evening’s discussion;
• Leslie Miller of the American Red Cross will talk about the tens of thousands of children recruited to fight in the bloody war; 
• Adotei Akwe, African Advocacy Director of Amnesty International USA, will describe how the exploitation of natural resources has funded the war and fueled human rights abuses;
• Les Roberts, former Director of Health Policy of the International Rescue Committee, will outline the public health consequences of the conflict and offer hope for the peace process; and
• Art Hansen, professor of International Affairs and Development at Clark Atlanta University, will address the situation of refugees and internally displaced people in the Congo and neighboring countries.

 

This forum presents a unique opportunity to become informed, ask questions, and take action to promote peace and human rights in the DRC.  Attendees can sample traditional Congolese food as they listen, learn and make a difference. 

 

- more -

The event is free, although a $5.00 donation is requested at the door.  For more information, contact Natalia Taylor at 404/931-7509.  For directions to Clark Atlanta, please visit www.cau.edu; parking will be available on the campus.

 

The event is sponsored by the Southern Regional office of Amnesty International, Amnesty International Group 75, the Department of African and African American Studies – Africana Women’s Studies at Clark Atlanta University, as well as the Trevor Arnett Art Gallery.

 

# # #

 

The Trevor Arnett Art Gallery is located in Trevor Arnett Hall, 2^nd level, 223 James Brawley Drive, Atlanta, GA, 30314

 

Directions to Trevor Arnett Art Gallery

 

Trevor Arnett Hall is on the corner of Greensferry Street and James P. Brawley Drive. Traveling from I-75/85 to I-20 West, Clark Atlanta University Art Galleries is 5 blocks north of I-20 Lee Street /Atlanta University Center Exit (in other words Turn Right onto Lee Street); Park at the right end of the series of large parking lots.