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The Abyei Community in USA is exerting efforts to promote the rights of the people

of Abyei to participate in the referendum guaranteed in the Comprehensive Peace

Agreement and recommended by the African Union High-Level Implementation

Panel and accepted by the African Union Peace and Security Council to take place

this October.

On August 15th, the new U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations, Samantha Power,

hosted a town hall meeting on Twitter. The Abyei Community and its friends

contacted Ambassador Power repeatedly before the meeting and asked

Ambassador Power to focus on Abyei. The community was very pleased that her

first message at the meeting was, I share your urgency on Abyei. Pressing to get

Mbekis 9/21 proposal, in reference to the September 21, 2012 AUHIP proposal on

Abyei that states, The Referendum shall be held during the month of October

2013.

On August 20th a letter was sent to the African Union Commission urging the AU to

conduct the referendum in October in the event the government of Sudan renegeson the conduct of the referendum as agreed. The letter highlighted the benefits of

the referendum for the people of Abyei and it underscored the importance of the

referendum in building peace in and between Sudan and South Sudan. The African

Union responded by indicating that the letter was well received. Voice of America

and Sudan Tribune both ran pieces on the letter.

On September 9, 2013, a letter was sent to President Obama noting that a key

factor in the success of the South Sudan referendum was [his] personal

engagement with international leaders at the 2010 UN General Assembly. The

letter asked President Obama to encourage the AUPSC to endorse the AUHIP

Proposal on the final status of Abyei and to outline a specific timeline for

preparation and conduct of the referendum and to include the measures that will be

taken by the international community if the timeline is not adhered to strictly. A

second letter was written to Congress urging its members to contact the President

and to reinforce the Abyei Communitys request to President Obama. The letters

were hand-delivered to nearly 200 Members of Congress in Washington and in their

home districts.

The Abyei Community has organized and is organizing rallies in some states of USA,

and it is preparing for a large rally in New York City on September 23 rd during the

African Union Peace and Security meeting scheduled to be held on the margins ofthe UN General Assembly. The organizers of the rally are expecting a large turnout

by the Abyei Community and by other communities of South Sudan, Sudan and the

U.S. Their petition will be presented to the AUHIP, AUPSC, UNSC, UN Secretary

General, permament members of the UNSC, EU Special Envoy to the two Sudans,

US Special Envoy to the two Sudans and UN Special Envoy to AU and Vice President

James Wani of South Sudan. The petition urges the AUPSC to: (1) endorse the

mailto:S.@MiaFarrow%20I%20share%20your%20urgency%20on%20Abyei.%20Pressing%20to%20get%20Mbeki%E2%80%99s%209/21%20proposal.%20You%E2%80%99ve%20done%20phenomenal%20job%20giving%20voice%20to%20people%20of%20Sudanmailto:S.@MiaFarrow%20I%20share%20your%20urgency%20on%20Abyei.%20Pressing%20to%20get%20Mbeki%E2%80%99s%209/21%20proposal.%20You%E2%80%99ve%20done%20phenomenal%20job%20giving%20voice%20to%20people%20of%20Sudanmailto:S.@MiaFarrow%20I%20share%20your%20urgency%20on%20Abyei.%20Pressing%20to%20get%20Mbeki%E2%80%99s%209/21%20proposal.%20You%E2%80%99ve%20done%20phenomenal%20job%20giving%20voice%20to%20people%20of%20Sudanmailto:S.@MiaFarrow%20I%20share%20your%20urgency%20on%20Abyei.%20Pressing%20to%20get%20Mbeki%E2%80%99s%209/21%20proposal.%20You%E2%80%99ve%20done%20phenomenal%20job%20giving%20voice%20to%20people%20of%20Sudan

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AUHIP September 2012 Proposal on the final status of Abyei, (2) immediately

form Abyei Referendum Commission to conduct Abyei Referendum in

October 2013, (3) outline a specific timeline for preparation and conduct of

Abyei referendum, and (4) ask the government of Sudan to withdraw its

forces from Kec/Diffra in Abyei Area.

News about the Abyei referendum and information about activities in support of the

Abyei referendum can be found on the Abyei Referendum 2013 Facebook page and

also by following the campaign on twitter @Abyei2013. Please show your support

for the Abyei Referendum, for upholding the rights of the people and for full

implementation of the Comprehensive Peace Agreement.

Thank you!

Abyei Community Organization in USA