7 East Baltimore Street, Baltimore, MD 21202 http://www.worldrelief.org Fax: 443-451-1995 E-mail:

WORLD RELIEF

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Matthew Pugh at 443-451-1966

Saharawi Refugees In Need And Deserving Of A Just Solution Evangelicals Meet With Saharawi President To Address Concerns

BALTIMORE, July 16, 2003- There are nearly 200,000 Saharawi people languishing in Algerian refugee camps - 80 percent being women and children - awaiting a solution to their future.

These people have lived in refugee camps since 1975 when Spanish colonizers pulled out of Western Sahara and a series of wars and occupations took place. These incidents sent thousands of Western Sahara locals-the Saharawi-fleeing into the desert, where they currently remain stranded.

The Saharawi people long to return to their homeland, but are forced to hold out for an international negotiated settlement to the dispute over the future of Western Sahara.

In light of the Saharawi plight, a select group of Evangelical leaders will be meeting on Capitol Hill with the Saharawi President, Mohammad Abdelaziz, to learn, educate and mobilize Americans on the needs of the Saharawi people.

World Relief and the National Association of Evangelicals (NAE) will be co-sponsoring this event on Thursday, July 17, at the Rayburn House Office Building, Room B340 from 5:30-7:00 p.m.

"Evangelicals must pick up the challenge of responding to Africa in new ways," said Vice President of Governmental Affairs for the NAE, Richard Cizik.

A significant number of guests are expected to attend the event including U.S. Rep. Joe Pitts and Sen. James Inhofe, as well as church leaders from across the country. World Relief will be represented by its executive director R. Timothy Ziemer, and its senior vice president of programs, Gustavo Crocker.

For nearly 60 years, World Relief has worked with local churches to create sustainable solutions that help the desperately poor. Operating in more than 20 countries and in 26 cities in the U.S., World Relief's programs include disaster relief, refugee assistance, AIDS ministries, urban ministries, community health, agricultural development and community banking.

For interviews, please contact Matthew Pugh at 443-451-1966 or by e-mail at .

os.yahoo.com/rlgmediaau">http://au.photos.yahoo.com/rlgmediaau http://community.webshots.com/user/ramon_williams ------------------------------------------------------------------- Telling others, what others are doing for the Lord.

--- Outgoing mail is certified Virus Free. Checked by AVG anti-virus system (http://www.grisoft.com).