The Crisis in Darfur

The Darfur region of Sudan has been involved in a conflict for over three years. 400,000 people have been killed and almost 2 million people have been displaced from their homes. Many of these refugees currently reside in refugee camps in the neighboring nation of Chad.

But why is this happening? Starting in 2003, the government-backed militia called the Janjaweed has been fighting two groups in Darfur.

The President realizes this situation, but has not done much to stop these atrocities. António Guterres, the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) has recognized the Darfur conflict as "the largest and most complex humanitarian problem on the globe."

The UN Security Council has tried to stop the Sudanese government from funding the Janjaweed. However, the Janjaweed army still remains in Darfur.

Your Blog Questions:
1. How do you think our government should respond to these atrocities?
2. What do you think the United Nations can continue to do to help stop the problem in Darfur.
3. What action do you think that the school community can take to help stop the problem in Darfur?

Learn how you can take action at: www.savedarfur.org

Source: Save Darfur (www.savedarfur.org)

The Water Crisis in Africa

As many of you know, the first issue that our club has decided to help is the water crisis in Africa. We chose PlayPumps International, a non-profit organization to donate our money to. But why do we need to donate money to the water crisis in Africa? The main reason is because there is a horrible lack of clean water in African countries. Did you know that 1.1 billion people around the world have no access to clean water?

Over 14,000 people each day die of water related diseases! Water related diseases are the leading cause of death in the world!

Our action benefiting PlayPumps International is just a start. Many people need to act and take a stand against this horrible crisis. Ordinary people have the ability to solve big problems.

Your Blog Questions:
1. What action do you think could be taken by ordinary people to help solve the water crisis in Africa?
2. What action do you think could be taken by governmental orgainizations and businesses to help solve the water crisis?

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION ABOUT PLAYPUMPS, VISIT WWW.PLAYPUMPS.ORG

Source: PlayPumps International

Welcome to the SMS Human Rights Blog!

Hello and welcome to the SMS Human Rights Club blog! On this site, we will keep you updated with the latest news and information about the SMS Human Rights Club team. Our team is very excited to have this new feature built into our club. In addition, we will put up posts on certain human rights issues and ask YOU for your ideas. Thank you for your support of our club. We promise to keep you posted.

You can always contact us at our email address:
SMSHumanRights@Gmail.com