The International Tribunal on Hurricanes Katrina and Rita calls on the Congressional Black Caucus (CBC) to introduce Federal legislation that a) recognizes the Internally Displaced status of Katrina and Rita Survivors and b) provides Restitution for their loses.
The International Tribunal strongly encourages the CBC to adopt and champion the cause to have all those displaced by Hurricanes Katrina and Rita officially recognized and treated by the United States Government, on all levels, as Internally Displaced Persons (IDP’s). We encourage the CBC to develop and introduce a bill that recognizes this status and provides the resources needed to ensure that the rights it guarantees are fully enacted and enforced. Precedent for such a bill is provided by House Resolution 426 recognizing the year 2007 as "the Year of the Rights of Internally Displaced Persons in Columbia". Various aspects of HR 4197 also provide it.
Consonant with this recognition, the findings of the International Tribunal on Hurricanes Katrina and Rita call for a Congressional Bill that provides restitution for IDP’s for the losses they incurred as a direct result of the governments failure to provide adequate protections through its management of the regions wetlands and water management systems, particularly the Levee system of New Orleans, and the human rights abuses they suffered as a direct result of their forced evacuation and dispersal at the hands of the Federal government and its agents.
Both of these Bills are necessary in order to repair, restore, and rebuild the lives of those displaced by Hurricanes Katrina and Rita. The International Tribunal would like to work with the CBC in drafting this critical legislation.
For more information about the International Tribunal visit www.internationaltribunal.org or www.peopleshurricane.org. You can contact us directly at info@internationaltribunal.org or info@peopleshurricane.org. We can be reached by phone at 504.301.0215 or fax at 504.301.0306.
In Unity and Struggle,
Kali Akuno
PHRF Executive Director on behalf of the International Tribunal Organizing Committee
Wednesday, September 26, 2007
