August 28th, 2008 at 12:10 pm | posted by Virginia Simmons
(UPDATED: I added video.)
Yesterday afternoon, I attended the National Democratic Institute’s global poverty panel at the DNCC. It was moderated by Gayle Smith, who’s a senior fellow at the Center for American Progress.
The speakers were:
Madeleine K. Albright, former U.S. Secretary of State and NDI chairman Ben Affleck, actor, director, and advocate Nancy Birdsall, president of the Center for Global Development John J. Danilovich, CEO of the Millennium Challenge Account Tom Daschle, former Senate Majority Leader and Co-Chair of ONE Vote ‘08 Hernando de Soto, president of the Institute for Liberty and Democracy Obiageli “Oby” Ezekwesili, vice president of the Africa Region of the World Bank Donald Payne, U.S. representative Tim Wirth, former U.S. senator, and CEO of the United Nations Foundation James Wolfensohn, former president of the World Bank.
Josh Lozman of our policy staff is going to be sending in a post about the panel a little later.
I also took a small camera with me and shot some simple video, so I’ll post a couple clips here to give you a sense of what it was like to be in the room. The 1st is of Senator Tom Daschle answering a question about his recent trip with ONE through Rwanda.
This second one is of Ben Affleck talking about his new perspective after having visited Africa- and what he thinks that new perspective means for how we should message effectively. After, President of the Center for Global Development Nancy Birdsall talks about the incredible progress we’ve seen.
June 27th, 2008 at 3:55 pm | posted by Ben.Affleck
Over the last year, I have been traveling to the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) in an effort to learn more about the country.
I view this as a long and ongoing learning experience to educate myself before making any attempt to advocate or “speak out.” My plan has been to explore, watch, listen and find those doing the best work with and on behalf of the people of the DRC, in an effort to give exposure to voices which might not otherwise be heard.
It makes sense to be skeptical about celebrity activism. There is always the suspicion that involvement with a cause may be doing more good for the spokesman than he or she is doing for the cause.
I welcome any questions about me and my involvement, but I hope you can separate whatever reservations you may have from what is unimpeachably important about this segment: the plight of eastern Congo.
Anyone familiar with the Congo has heard the mind-numbing statistics: more than four million dead since 1998 (and many more before then), the most killed in any conflict since the Second World War. 1,200 people a day are still dying from conflict and conflict-related causes such as starvation and preventable disease.
The country languished as the second worst on the list of failed states until last year, when it bumped up a few notches (though it still ranks below Iraq and Afghanistan on many indices). (more…)
June 27th, 2008 at 3:38 pm | posted by Virginia Simmons
ABC Nightline followed Ben Affleck to the Democratic Republic of Congo where he shared his experience learning about the most savage war since WWI.
Below we have the full story, as broadcast on ABC last night, broken up into 4 clips.
More than 4 million have died in the war in the Democratic Republic of Congo, and the fighting continues today. As Ben explains, it’s a place where atrocities happen every day, but most people don’t even know.
Ben:
“This is my third visit to the region this year. I’ve been coming here to learn about the Congo because I don’t want to involve myself without first understanding what I’m getting involved in. Learning here means meeting with war lords (some accused of atrocities) spending time in refugee camps, talking with aid workers, meeting with those whose everyday is a struggle to survive. I’m not affiliated with any aid agency. I’m not any kind kind of ambassador. I’m not going to give you a history lesson. Among other reasons, I wouldn’t be qualified. I simply want to share what I’ve seen.”
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