Damanga Coalition for Freedom & Democracy receives $50,000 grant from a Rockefeller Philanthropic Adviser
October 25, 2005
The Philanthropic Collaborative, a New York City based organization with offices in the Rockefeller Philanthropic Advisers Organization, has awarded the Damanga Coalition for Freedom and Democracy a $50,000 grant. The Philanthropic Collaborative, founded as the philanthropic office of the Rockefeller Family, has clients interested in philanthropy from all over the U.S. The grant, from an anonymous donor, is a general support grant intended to strengthen the program and further the building of Damanga as an organization committed to the welfare of the people struggling for justice in Western Sudan. The donors are impressed with what this small group of dedicated Darfurians and Americans has managed to achieve in a very short period of time with little or no funding. They are confident the infusion of $50,000 will further assist in bringing the plight of the Darfurian people to the attention of more Americans and those world wide who are dedicated to a free and democratic society for all peoples. Damanga is based in Charlottesville, Virginia; its website address is www.damanga.org. Its executive director, Mohamed Yahya, a native of Western Sudan and a resettled refugee, is a popular speaker to groups who desire a more informed understanding of the situation in Darfur.
Damanga Director Mohamed Yahya says, “Damanga is so grateful for the generous funds it got from the Rockefeller Philanthropic Collaborative. Thank you also to those who helped and recommended Damanga to be approved. The kind words of the donors are a great honor for Darfurians, Americans and others.”
Director Yahya goes on to give background on Damanga:
“Damanga was founded by Darfurian students living in Cairo Egypt, in 1991 under the name The Massaleit Charity. In 1995 it become the Representatives of the Massaleit Community in Exile (RMCE); it was renamed Damanga in January of this year. The history of RMCE and Damanga spans a decade. It is considered the first grass roots organization that highlighted, circulated and educated the world about the genocide taking place in Darfur of western Sudan, long before anyone else. From 1991 until 1999 it was the only organization that contributed on a large scale by sharing significant amounts of information on the enormousness of the situation in Darfur which in turn provided the necessary help to those concerned researchers, United Nations Offices around the world, lawyers, governmental and nongovernmental organizations, courts, and individuals around the globe.
“Because Darfur is a very remote area and the government of Sudan restricts and clouds the information regarding the situation so it does not reach the world, Damanga has many challenges to face in order to get out to the international community and the United Nations the true story. We began doing this very early on through our humble and limited reports. One of these reports, an open letter to the international community titled: The Hidden Slaughter and Ethnic Cleansing in Western Sudan, for which I was a co-author, is referenced in the UN General Assembly of 1999 on page 8, paragraph 37. This paper is available on our website www.damanga.org and can be accessed here.
“RMCE and Damanga have provided support and recommendations for the majority of Darfurian and other Sudanese Refugees, who have applied for asylum and resettlement to authorities around the world from Egypt, Chad, Kenya, Syria, Jordan, Libya, Ghana, Europe, USA, Canada, and Australia. Because of Damanga’s support and recommendations these refugees have been accepted into asylum or resettlement. All of this work was done when we were still students and without receiving our first grant or funding of any kind. It was our determination, ambition and belief that pushed us to do so. The RMCE and Damanga have worked and are still working with Amnesty International and the Human Rights Watch and other humanitarian organizations to release thousands of Prisoners of Conscience inside Darfur, Sudan and even in some European countries. Because Damanga is trustworthy and well known for its activities around the world I was honored and have been presented with a humanitarian award as a human rights activist from Darfur-Sudan.”
|
