WHEREAS, The Sudanese Government is presently engaged in the systematic killing and torturing of its own citizens; and
WHEREAS, During the last three years in the Darfur region of the Sudan, 300,000 people have been killed and more than 2 million driven from their homes; and
WHEREAS, In order to suppress dissent, the government places severe restrictions on the freedom of assembly, association, movement and speech; and
WHEREAS, The City of Brotherly Love, Philadelphia, stands with the global community in recognizing our moral obligation to condemn genocide anywhere in the world; and
WHEREAS, On June 16, 2005, Council adopted Resolution 050700 calling on the U.S. Government to condemn the genocide occurring in the Sudan at the hands of the Sudanese Government and urging the U.S. Government to provide humanitarian relief; and
WHEREAS, On March 3, 2006, Council adopted Resolution 060188 calling on one-million Americans to write President Bush, urging him to send a strong, multinational force to the Darfur region of the Sudan to stop the genocide occurring there; and
WHEREAS, Three states including Illinois, New Jersey and Oregon have passed legislation calling for pension fund divestiture of all investment holdings in the Sudan; and
WHEREAS, The Philadelphia City Controller Alan Butkovitz, as a trustee of the Philadelphia Board of Pensions, has asked the Board to conduct an inquiry to determine which domestic and foreign companies do business in the Sudan; identify whether we have investments with those companies; and divest holdings in those companies; and
WHEREAS, Council should join the Controller and others calling for divestiture of investment holdings in companies doing business in the Sudan or with the Sudanese Government; now therefore
RESOLVED, BY THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF PHILADELPHIA, That we call on the City and State Pension Funds to divest holdings in companies that do business in the Sudan or with the Sudanese Government and support an international crusade for full divestiture of all investments in the Sudan; and
FURTHER RESOLVED, That a copy of this resolution be forwarded to the Mayor of the City of Philadelphia, Chair and members of the Pension Board, to the Governor of the State of Pennsylvania, the Speaker of the House of Representatives and the Majority Leader of the Senate of Pennsylvania, the President and Vice-President of the United States and members of the United States House and Senate.
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