Actor George Clooney Wednesday donated $1 million through his foundation to an organization he co-founded to investigate African war criminals and the financial networks behind them.
“Our focus is to make sure that war crimes don’t pay,” Clooney said. “We want to make it more difficult for those willing to kill en masse to secure their political and economic objectives. When we’re able to go after the warlords’ wallets and bankrupt those who choose the bullet over the ballot, suddenly the incentives are for people, not war; transparency, not corruption.”
Clooney made the donation through the Clooney Foundation to Justice to The Sentry, which works to develop dossiers on war criminals and turn them over to banks and governments, building a foundation for regulatory and legal action, including prosecution and asset seizure.
The donation marked the beginning of a “Making War Criminals Pay” fundraising campaign. Actor Don Cheadle and other donors have also provided funds, giving the campaign a total of $3.45 million toward a goal of $6 million.
“The Sentry is pursuing a new strategy to counter mass atrocities that would utilize the tools of financial pressure normally reserved for countering terrorism, organized crime and nuclear proliferation,” organization co-founder John Prendergast said. “We aim to undermine the pillars of the war economy and disrupt the financial flows that fuel conflict.”
–City News Service