Power Calls For More Divestment

Samantha Power, a lecturer on public policy at the Kennedy School of Government, and the International Crisis Group (ICG) recently released a written call to action to 100 universities, encouraging them to investigate their investment portfolios and divest from stocks connected to the Sudanese government.

The letter, which was written by members of the ICG and carries Power’s signature, cited Harvard’s recent divestment from PetroChina as a model for other universities that may wish to reconsider their economic links to Sudan.

“A publicly announced review of your investment portfolio, to see if action similar to Harvard’s is appropriate at this time, would send a clear message to the companies involved and to the Government of Sudan that you will not support those who profit from the atrocities committed in Darfur,” the ICG wrote.

Colin S. Thomas-Jensen, media and advocacy assistant for Africa at the ICG, said that in an age of globalization many universities may unknowingly be linked to Sudan through their investments in hedge funds and mutual funds. According to the ICG, divestment from these holdings serves as a symbolic condemnation of the Sudanese regime.

“It was Harvard’s decision to divest that was the impetus for this initiative,” said Thomas-Jensen. “As an advocacy group, we first saw it as an opportunity to get the ball rolling to make an economic dent in the regime. Second, we saw it as an opportunity to encourage universities to make a public statement about what is occurring in Darfur.”

Benjamin B. Collins ’06, a co-writer of the petition for Harvard to divest from Sudan, said that Power’s letter will also give more leverage to student groups trying to veer their universities in the direction of divestment.

“It was a big help to get the Harvard name on divestment but this letter provides another perspective on why investment in Sudan’s oil industry is contributing to genocide,” he said.

Upon receiving the ICG letter, Yale University President Richard C. Levin referred the matter to the Yale Advisory Committee on Investor Responsibility. The ICG has also received inquiries for more information about divestment from UCLA, Stanford, and Amherst.

The ICG said it hopes that academic institutions’ reconsideration of their investments will create broader pressure for state pension funds and mutual funds to divest from stocks affiliated with Sudan’s current regime.

­­—Staff writer Candice N. Plotkin can be reached at cplotkin@fas.harvard.edu.