Mission

The Save Yar Campaign is a coalition of student and community organizations dedicated to research and advocacy work toward the goals of ending child abductions in South Sudan and neighboring countries and returning abducted children to their families. We support only nonviolent means to this end. We are guided by international human rights standards, in particular those set forth in the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child. We oppose racial and ethnic stereotyping, and we champion reconciliation between communities as a cornerstone of security and the protection of human rights in South Sudan. Recognizing that child abductions often occur amid economic and social problems, we are committed to researching these and advocating for solutions in cooperation with local governmental and nongovernmental actors.

2008 Visit to South Sudan
The Save Yar Campaign sent three students to Juba, South Sudan, in March 2008. The purpose of their visit is to:

1. To interview key national, international and nongovernmental official actors in South Sudan about the issue of child abduction and their roles in child protection;
2. To establish contacts with individual practitioners and organizations as a base for a transnational advocacy network on the issue of child abduction;
3. To observe the social and political context in post-conflict South Sudan as it relates to the issue of child protection;
4. To provide a written report of their findings to the Human Rights Program, University of Minnesota, U.S. government, and the global human rights community.

To reflect the depth and duration of our mission, this campaign will incorporate as a nonprofit organization known as Yar’s Campaign to End Child Abduction.