[Congressional Bills 104th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H. Res. 399 Introduced in House (IH)]

  2d Session
H. RES. 399

 Expressing the sense of the House of Representatives with respect to 
         the promotion of democracy and civil society in Zaire.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                             March 29, 1996

  Mr. Payne of New Jersey (for himself, Mr. Chabot, Mrs. Clayton, Mr. 
Conyers, Ms. McKinney, Mr. Bereuter, Mr. Owens, and Mr. Wynn) submitted 
   the following resolution; which was referred to the Committee on 
                        International Relations

_______________________________________________________________________

                               RESOLUTION


 
 Expressing the sense of the House of Representatives with respect to 
         the promotion of democracy and civil society in Zaire.

Whereas the people of the United States support the development of democratic 
        institutions and the growth of civil society in Zaire that reflect the 
        will of the people of Zaire;
Whereas the people of the United States applaud the efforts of Zairian civil 
        society, and particularly of indigenous human rights groups, to promote 
        the general welfare of Zaire's citizens, to advocate the establishment 
        of functioning democratic institutions and the rule of law, and to 
        ensure and respect universal human rights standards;
Whereas the people of the United States respect the right of Zairians, as 
        recognized by the Constitutional Act of the Transition, to participate 
        in a free and open political process, which includes the right to form 
        competing political parties and to participate in free and fair 
        elections;
Whereas antidemocratic and destabilizing measures of President Mobutu Sese Seko, 
        including the intimidation of local organizations and political parties 
        promoting democracy and the protection of fundamental human rights, the 
        encouragement of torture, arbitrary arrest, extrajudicial killing, and 
        extortion by the security forces under his control, and the guarantee 
        that his supporters may act with impunity, have contributed to the 
        obstruction of the transition to democracy in Zaire;
Whereas President Mobutu has, in violation of the Constitutional Act of the 
        Transition, used his de facto control over the security forces and 
        Zaire's governmental and financial institutions to undermine Zaire's 
        transition to democracy;
Whereas this continuing intimidation of local civil society organizations and 
        opposition political parties, widespread violation of fundamental 
        rights, and guarantee of impunity for violators have been deplored by 
        numerous human rights organizations in Zaire, the United Nations 
        Commission on Human Rights, and the United States Government;
Whereas President Mobutu, having repeatedly failed to honor promises and 
        commitments he has made to cooperate with international efforts to 
        stabilize the refugee crisis in Eastern Zaire, has again, in the 
        Declaration of the Cairo Conference of November 29, 1995, and the 
        Tripartite meeting of Zaire, Rwanda, and the United Nations High 
        Commission for Refugees that was held on December 22, 1995, made similar 
        and to date unfulfilled promises;
Whereas the United States has recognized by Presidential Proclamation that 
        President Mobutu is the primary obstacle to the transition to democracy 
        in Zaire; and
Whereas House Concurrent Resolution 238, unanimously passed by the 102d 
        Congress, calling on President Mobutu to step down, was not heeded: Now, 
        therefore, be it
    Resolved, That the House of Representatives--
            (1) expresses its profound support for Zairian 
        nongovernmental organizations seeking to promote the protection 
        of fundamental human rights and the transition to democracy in 
        Zaire;
            (2) encourages all political parties in Zaire to include 
        representatives of civil society in every stage of the 
        electoral process;
            (3) condemns the continuing intimidation of those groups by 
        military authorities in Zaire;
            (4) condemns the continuing practice of torture, arbitrary 
        arrest, extrajudicial execution, and extortion by elements of 
        the Zairian armed forces;
            (5) condemns the human rights violations and the 
        intimidation of local civil society groups by the Zairian armed 
        forces, with President Mobutu's implicit approval;
            (6) urges that President Clinton continue indefinitely the 
        sanctions already imposed upon Zaire, including--
                    (A) the denial of visas to President Mobutu, his 
                family, and his associates; and
                    (B) the suspension of all forms of economic 
                assistance to Zaire, except for that which can be 
                offered through nongovernmental organizations in direct 
                circumvention of President Mobutu and the Zairian 
                Government;
            (7) urges that the United States work through the United 
        Nations Commission on Human Rights to extend the mandate of the 
        Special Rapporteur on Zaire and pressure the Government of 
        Zaire to allow the Special Rapporteur to open an office in 
        Kinshasa and to facilitate this process;
            (8) urges the President of the United States to pressure 
        President Mobutu to respect his commitments--
                    (A) to prevent the use of Zairian territory for 
                military incursions into Rwanda or for military or 
                militia training; and
                    (B) to halt the flow of arms to Hutu extremists 
                living in Eastern Zaire;
            (9) urges the President of the United States to assist the 
        United Nations Arms Investigators in removing from the refugee 
        camps intimidators who by actual or threat of violence compel 
        refugees to follow a political agenda of the Zairian 
        Government;
            (10) urges the President of the United States--
                    (A) to combat extremist propaganda in the refugee 
                camps that is designed to undermine voluntary 
                repatriation efforts of the United Nations Commission 
                on Human Rights; and
                    (B) to cooperate with the efforts of the 
                International Tribunal to bring the perpetrators of the 
                Rwandan genocide to justice; and
            (11) recommends that the United States, in collaboration 
        with its allies, investigate and implement other means of 
        continuing and reinforcing international pressure on President 
        Mobutu, his family, and his associates.
                                 <all>