[Congressional Bills 109th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H. Con. Res. 313 Introduced in House (IH)]







109th CONGRESS
  1st Session
H. CON. RES. 313

 Commending the people of the Republic of Liberia for holding peaceful 
 national elections in 2005 and congratulating President Ellen Johnson-
 Sirleaf on her victory and becoming the first female president of any 
                            African country.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                            December 8, 2005

Mr. Payne (for himself, Mr. Smith of New Jersey, Mr. Conyers, Mr. Meeks 
 of New York, Ms. McCollum of Minnesota, Ms. Watson, Mr. Tancredo, and 
   Ms. Lee) submitted the following concurrent resolution; which was 
          referred to the Committee on International Relations

_______________________________________________________________________

                         CONCURRENT RESOLUTION


 
 Commending the people of the Republic of Liberia for holding peaceful 
 national elections in 2005 and congratulating President Ellen Johnson-
 Sirleaf on her victory and becoming the first female president of any 
                            African country.

Whereas between April 25 and May 21, 2005, more than 1.3 million Liberians, 
        which accounted for 87 percent of the eligible voters in the Republic of 
        Liberia, registered to vote in the October 11, 2005, national elections;
Whereas the Liberian National Elections Commission validated 22 presidential 
        candidates, 22 vice-presidential candidates, 206 senatorial candidates, 
        and 512 congressional candidates for the national elections;
Whereas 74.1 percent of registered voters in Liberia took part in the national 
        elections, some lining up for hours;
Whereas because no presidential candidate received over 50 percent of the vote, 
        a run-off election was scheduled for November 8, 2005, between the two 
        front-runners--Ms. Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf and Mr. George Weah;
Whereas on November 8, 2005, Liberians again peacefully assembled to participate 
        in this historic process;
Whereas the final tabulation of votes from the run-off election indicates that 
        Ms. Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf won the presidency of Liberia with 59 percent 
        of the votes;
Whereas the victory of Ms. Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf marks an important milestone 
        for Africa because Ms. Johnson-Sirleaf will be the first elected female 
        president in African history;
Whereas the people of Liberian have suffered from repressive and corrupt 
        political leadership, including that of Samuel Doe, who led a coup that 
        ousted President William Tolbert in 1980;
Whereas in 1989, Charles Taylor, an accused embezzler and United States prison 
        escapee, led an insurrection and fomented a devastating civil war that 
        claimed more than 200,000 Liberian lives, resulted in gross human rights 
        abuses, and forced half of the Liberian population to flee as refugees 
        to neighboring countries or to become internally displaced persons 
        within Liberia;
Whereas mediation and efforts by the Economic Community of West African States 
        (ECOWAS), and the signing of a peace agreement in 1995 and an addendum 
        thereof in 1996, paved the way for elections in 1997 in which Charles 
        Taylor was elected President of Liberia;
Whereas President Charles Taylor and his government failed to effectively pursue 
        national political reconciliation, build institutions, or improve socio-
        economic conditions for the people of Liberia;
Whereas President Charles Taylor continued to aid and abet an insurrection 
        against the Government of Sierra Leone by the Revolutionary United Front 
        (RUF), a brutal rebel group known for amputating the limbs of innocent 
        children and causing prolonged suffering among Sierra Leoneans until 
        January 2002;
Whereas President Charles Taylor and officials within his government profited 
        openly from the illicit trade in ``blood diamonds'' and exploited 
        natural resources for private gain;
Whereas the regime of President Charles Taylor failed to adhere to the rule of 
        law, repressed the independent press, created an atmosphere of public 
        intimidation, operated with little or no accountability or transparency, 
        harassed and imprisoned civil society leaders, and routinely violated 
        human rights;
Whereas on June 17, 2003, the Government of Liberia, Liberians United for 
        Reconciliation and Democracy (LURD), and the Movement for Democracy in 
        Liberia (MODEL) signed the Agreement on Ceasefire and the Cessation of 
        Hostilities (hereinafter referred to as the ``Ceasefire Agreement)'' to 
        halt Liberia's civil war and bring renewed hope for the people of 
        Liberia;
Whereas the Ceasefire Agreement states that immediately following the signing of 
        the Ceasefire Agreement, the Government of Liberia, LURD, and MODEL, 
        with all other Liberian political parties and stakeholders, would 
        participate in a dialogue to seek, within a period of 30 days, a 
        comprehensive peace agreement and the formation of a transitional 
        government;
Whereas on August 18, 2003, the involved parties signed the Comprehensive Peace 
        Agreement and shortly thereafter peacekeepers from the Economic 
        Community of West African States (ECOWAS) and the ECOWAS Mission in 
        Liberia (ECOMIL) were deployed to Liberia to end the fighting by 
        observing and enforcing the Ceasefire Agreement as well as to facilitate 
        the distribution of relief aid;
Whereas in September 2003, the United Nations Mission in Liberia (UNMIL) 
        absorbed ECOMIL and took over the responsibilities of peacekeeping, 
        civilian policing, facilitating the safe return of over 500,000 
        internally displaced persons and refugees in neighboring countries, and 
        aiding in the delivery of humanitarian assistance and goods;
Whereas UNMIL committed to assist the National Transitional Government of 
        Liberia (NTGL) in the implementation of the Disarmament, Demobilization, 
        Re-integration and Rehabilitation (DDRR) program, whose aim is to re-
        incorporate into civilian life socially and economically an estimated 
        101,000 combatants, among them 11,000 child soldiers under the age of 
        18;
Whereas on October 14, 2003, the NTGL, headed by Chairman Gyude Bryant, took 
        office with the task of re-establishing a governmental authority and 
        helping organize national elections within two years;
Whereas the United States and Liberia have a long, historic relationship 
        beginning in the 19th century when freed slaves from the United States 
        founded the Republic of Liberia with a grant of $100,000 from President 
        James Monroe and thousands of free Black Americans from the United 
        States immigrated to Liberia and declared their independence; and
Whereas in spite of its troubled domestic political history and disappointing 
        political leadership, Liberia has been a strong political ally of the 
        United States, including providing a base for the Allies in West Africa 
        during World War I, allowing United States troops to be based in the 
        country during World War II, and permitting the construction of a Voice 
        of America transmitter to cover the entire African continent to expose 
        Soviet propaganda during the cold war: Now, therefore, be it
    Resolved by the House of Representatives (the Senate concurring), 
That Congress--
            (1) commends the people of the Republic of Liberia for 
        holding peaceful national elections in 2005 and congratulating 
        President Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf on her victory and becoming the 
        first female president of any African country;
            (2) commends the Government and people of Liberia for their 
        commitment to the democratic renaissance of Liberia;
            (3) commends the Liberian National Election Commission for 
        conducting the 2005 national elections in a free and fair 
        manner and for investigating election complaints;
            (4) applauds the candidates and their supporters, the 
        United Nations, the Economic Community of West African States 
        (ECOWAS), and the Government of the United States for their 
        role in helping Liberia carry out the 2005 national elections;
            (5) urges all political and civic leaders in Liberia to 
        continue to lead the country into a sustained peaceful 
        transition to democracy;
            (6) acknowledges and welcomes the strong and long-standing 
        relationship between the United States and Liberia and 
        expresses its firm commitment to continuing efforts by the 
        people and Government of Liberia to forge ahead toward the 
        establishment of a full democracy and a sustainable economy; 
        and
            (7) pledges its continued support to lasting peace and 
        democracy in Liberia and to the further development of Liberia.
                                 <all>