Sample Letter 2
Re: Oppose in the strongest language possible the draft resolution in the U.N. Security Council to impose sanctions against Eritrea
The purpose of this letter is to request that you oppose in the strongest language possible the draft resolution in the U.N. Security Council to impose sanctions against Eritrea for aiding insurgents in Somalia. I have lived in VA for most of my life and vote in every election.
Eritrea is a country of five million people located in the Horn of Africa. The population of Eritrea is evenly split between the religions of Islam and Christianity and is lead by a secular government. The government of Eritrea has been and continues to be a victim of terrorist acts. Al Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden was based in adjacent Sudan until 1996 and had focused his sight on Eritrea long before he fled to Afghanistan and set his sights on the United States. International terrorism is a far greater threat to this young nation of 16 years than to any country in the world.
Former Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld visited Eritrea as part of a four-day visit to the Horn of Africa and Qatar in 2002. Following a meeting with Eritrean President Isaias Afwerki, Secretary Donald Rumsfeld was widely reported as having said that the United States can learn much about combating terrorists from the people of this small African nation. The Department of Defense had said at the time that Eritrea had cooperated in the war against terror and had offered facilities, intelligence, and other help such as over-flight and mooring permissions to the United States and other members of the worldwide coalition.
A comprehensive investigation of the charge of aiding Somali insurgents can easily show that the source of that lie is Ethiopia, a country with a history of bitter conflict with Eritrea, its northern neighbor. A weakened Eritrea would allow the government of Ethiopia to remain in occupation of sovereign Eritrean territories in violation of delimitation and demarcation decisions of the independent Eritrea-Ethiopia Boundary Commission (EEBC) in the Hague.
I would greatly appreciate your consideration and action on this issue. They are extremely important to our nation. I feel certain that upon careful investigation of the issues that you will agree with me that the United States would be ill served by a weakened secular government of Eritrea in a region rife with religious extremism. Thank you for taking the time to read this letter.
Respectfully,