[Congressional Bills 109th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H. Con. Res. 327 Introduced in House (IH)]







109th CONGRESS
  1st Session
H. CON. RES. 327

 Congratulating President Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf for becoming the first 
democratically-elected female President of the Republic of Liberia and 
                the first female African head of state.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                           December 18, 2005

 Ms. Eddie Bernice Johnson of Texas (for herself, Mr. Conyers, and Mr. 
    Honda) submitted the following concurrent resolution; which was 
          referred to the Committee on International Relations

_______________________________________________________________________

                         CONCURRENT RESOLUTION


 
 Congratulating President Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf for becoming the first 
democratically-elected female President of the Republic of Liberia and 
                the first female African head of state.

Whereas Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf won the 2005 presidential election in the Republic 
        of Liberia, becoming the first democratically-elected female President 
        of the Republic of Liberia and the first female African head of state;
Whereas President Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf says she wants ``to bring motherly 
        sensitivity and emotion to the presidency'' as a way of healing the 
        wounds of war in Liberia;
Whereas Mrs. Johnson-Sirleaf was a presidential candidate in the 1997 general 
        election in Liberia in which she came in second in a field of thirteen;
Whereas prior to that Mrs. Johnson-Sirleaf served for five years as Assistant 
        Administrator and Director of the Regional Bureau for Africa of the 
        United Nations Development Program with the rank of Assistant Secretary 
        General of the United Nations;
Whereas in a professional life that has spanned over 35 years, Mrs. Johnson-
        Sirleaf has been the Minister of Finance of Liberia, President of the 
        Liberia Bank for Development and Investment, Vice President of Citicorp, 
        Vice President of the HSBC Equator Bank, Senior Loan Officer of the 
        World Bank, board member and regional representative for West Africa of 
        the Modern Africa Growth and Investment Company (MAGIC), founder and 
        Chief Executive Officer of the Kormah Development Corporation (KODIC), 
        and founder of Measuagoon, a non-profit organization that supports 
        community development and education for girls in Liberia;
Whereas Mrs. Johnson-Sirleaf is the recipient of several special honors, 
        including the Commander de l'Ordre du Mono of Togo (1996), the Ralph 
        Bunche International Leadership Award of the United States (1995 and 
        1996), the Franklin D. Roosevelt Freedom of Speech Award of the United 
        States (1988), and the Grand Commander of the Star of African Redemption 
        of Liberia (1980);
Whereas Mrs. Johnson-Sirleaf was one of seven international eminent persons 
        designated by the Organization of African Unity (OAU) in 1999 to 
        investigate the Rwanda genocide, one of five commission chairs for the 
        Inter-Congolese Dialogue (2002), and one of two international experts 
        selected by the United Nations Development Fund for Women (UNIFEM) to 
        investigate and report (2002) on the effect of conflict on women and 
        women's roles in peace-building;
Whereas Mrs. Johnson-Sirleaf served as the initial chairperson (2000-2003) of 
        the Open Society Initiative for West Africa (OSIWA), is a member of the 
        Soros Foundation Network, and is Visiting Professor of Governance at the 
        Ghana Institute of Management and Public Administration (GIMPA);
Whereas Mrs. Johnson-Sirleaf was recently selected as an independent board 
        member of the Humanitarian Accountability Partnership International 
        (HAP);
Whereas Liberia, the first independent democratic republic in sub-Saharan 
        Africa, was established in 1847 with the predominance of descendants of 
        freed people of color who had lived in the Americas;
Whereas the path to Liberia's nation-building has been a turbulent and uneasy 
        union of people with pervasive distrust, fears, and suspicion;
Whereas for almost three decades, Liberia has been in the grip of brutal 
        dictatorships or ruthless warlords;
Whereas Liberia reached its nadir in 1980 when Samuel Doe overthrew the Americo-
        Liberian regime and introduced a rein of terror;
Whereas in 1990, Samuel Doe was killed by rebel forces led by Charles Taylor and 
        Prince Johnson, two equally ruthless warlords;
Whereas Liberia remained lawless until 1997 when Charles Taylor intimidated his 
        compatriots into electing him president, but rather than pursue peace 
        and reconstruction, Taylor instigated coups and civil wars in 
        neighboring states;
Whereas Charles Taylor sold arms in exchange for diamonds to Sierra Leone rebels 
        who cut off the limbs, ears, and noses of opponents;
Whereas in 2003, Charles Taylor was forced to resign but was granted refuge in 
        Nigeria in spite of an indictment for war crimes by the United Nations 
        Special Court for Sierra Leone;
Whereas the forced departure of Charles Taylor from Liberia paved the way for 
        the historic election of Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf;
Whereas Mrs. Johnson-Sirleaf, with her connections and legitimacy in the world 
        of global finance and capital, stands a better chance of leading Liberia 
        to economic recovery and international demarginalization;
Whereas the United States has always demonstrated a special responsibility to 
        Liberia because Liberia was established by Americans and enjoyed an 
        unusually close relationship with the United States until the end of the 
        cold war; and
Whereas the 2005 presidential election in Liberia has been recognized as free, 
        fair, and democratic: Now, therefore, be it
    Resolved by the House of Representatives (the Senate concurring), 
That Congress--
            (1) congratulates President Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf for 
        becoming the first democratically-elected female President of 
        the Republic of Liberia and the first female African head of 
        state; and
            (2) commends the people of Liberia for carrying out 
        Liberia's first free, fair, and democratic presidential 
        election and encourages them to continue their course toward 
        democracy and free-market economics.
                                 <all>