Washington, D.C. - Peacekeeping efforts in Sudan and the United Nations (UN) budget crisis were the focus of discussion this morning at meetings with members of the Congressional Black Caucus (CBC) and UN officials at the UN Headquarters in New York City. CBC Members participating in the meeting included U.S. Representatives Donald Payne (D-NJ), co-chair of the CBC International Relations Task Force, Gwen Moore (D-WI) and G.K. Butterfield (D-NC).

The delegation met with representatives of the UN Security Council, the Department of Peacekeeping Operations, the Secretary-General's Special Representative for Sudan, leaders of the Group of 77 and the UN's Under-Secretary-General and Comptroller.

The meeting was sponsored by the Humpty Dumpty Institute (HDI), a non-profit organization that seeks to strengthen ties between the U.S. Congress and the United Nations.

"As a member of the House International Relations Committee and one of two Congressional Delegates to the United Nations, I believe it is important that Congress remain closely engaged in the work of the UN," said U.S. Rep. Payne. "I commend HDI for putting together an agenda which focuses on the pressing issues of peacekeeping in Darfur and the UN budget crisis. I am hopeful that our discussions will help lead to positive developments in finding much-needed solutions to meeting the most critical international challenges."

"I am pleased that the United States and the United Nations have been engaged and focused on ending the genocide and suffering in Sudan," said U.S. Rep. Moore. "But, with the daunting challenges of ensuring that the May 5 peace agreement is fully implemented, the Janjaweed militias are demobilized, peacekeepers and relief workers have the tools to ensure stability and prevent starvation, we need to keep national and international attention focused on this problem. Finally reaching the peace agreement itself was important, but just the beginning of our commitment to ending the genocide".

Discussions are currently underway for the deployment of a UN peacekeeping force in Darfur as part of the effort to end genocide in that region.

Conversely, the UN is facing a looming budget crunch that could seriously impact its activities, not just in New York, but around the globe. Of particular concern is the effect this could have on current UN peacekeeping operations, such as the one in Haiti, or the planned one in Darfur.

U.S. Rep. Butterfield noted, "In my first official trip as a member of Congress to the UN, I looked forward to engaging with UN leaders as we addressed issues facing our country and the world. We strongly encouraged representatives of the Group of 77 to be more engaged with a resolution of genocide in Darfur."

In an effort to dramatize the urgency of the crisis in Darfur, the CBC has held several protests in front of the Sudanese Embassy and has committed to holding additional protests until the genocide ends. The previous protests have resulted in the arrest of Members for civil disobedience for obstructing the entrance to the Sudanese Embassy.

To date, an estimated 450,000 Darfurians have died since the beginning of the genocide in 2003, more than 2.5 million have been displaced from their homes and nearly 3.5 million people are currently in need of emergency humanitarian assistance as a result of the crisis orchestrated by the Government of Sudan and its allied Janjaweed militias.

The CBC was the first to highlight the crisis in Darfur and on June 24, 2004 introduced H. Con. Res. 467, declaring genocide in the region.

U.S. Representatives Edward Royce (R-CA) and William Delahunt (D-MA) were part of the bipartisan delegation.