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CONTACT: Mark Schlakman, (850) 644-4614, <mschlakman@admin.fsu.edu> June 2008 CHAOS IN AFGHANISTAN FOCUS OF NATIONAL SECURITY TALK AT FSU Mark Schneider, senior vice president of the International Crisis Group and former director of the Peace Corps, will speak at Florida State University on Monday, June 23, to kick off the Human Rights and National Security in the 21st Century summer lecture series. The series examines human rights interests and national security imperatives within the context of the U.S.-led “War on Terror.” Schneider will address the current conditions in Afghanistan, the ongoing military engagement by the United States and the role of humanitarian assistance and foreign aid. The talk will follow first lady Laura Bush’s recent visit to the region and a Paris conference where the Bush administration will ask the international community to pledge more aid to support the war-torn country. In April 2008, Schneider testified on Capitol Hill before the House Committee on Foreign Affairs Subcommittee on the Middle East and South Asia on “Strategic Chaos and Taliban Resurgence in Afghanistan.” As vice president of the International Crisis Group, Schneider directs the Washington advocacy office, conveying analyses and recommendations to the White House, the State Department, the Department of Defense and Congress as well as the World Bank and other international organizations. He also serves as the International Crisis Group’s special adviser on Latin America and on HIV/AIDS and security. Schneider joined the International Crisis Group in 2001 after serving as the director of the Peace Corps since 1999 when President Clinton appointed him to that post. Before that, he worked at the U.S. Agency for International Development as the assistant administrator for Latin America and the Caribbean, (1993-1999); chief of the Office of Analysis and Strategic Planning, Pan American Health Organization/World Health Organization, (1981-1993); and deputy assistant Secretary of State for Human Rights, U.S. Dept. of State (1977-1979). Schneider’s talk is sponsored by the FSU Center for the Advancement of Human Rights in collaboration with the National Security Network. The event, which is free and open to the public, will be held: MONDAY, JUNE 23 Public parking is available across the street at the Tallahassee-Leon County Civic Center. # # # |