[Congressional Bills 109th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 1424 Introduced in House (IH)]






109th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 1424

To impose sanctions against perpetrators of crimes against humanity and 
           genocide in Darfur, Sudan, and for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                             March 17, 2005

 Mr. Payne (for himself, Mr. Tancredo, Mr. Meeks of New York, Ms. Lee, 
   Mr. Capuano, Mr. Conyers, Mr. Rangel, Mr. Pitts, Mr. Thompson of 
  Mississippi, and Mr. Rush) introduced the following bill; which was 
          referred to the Committee on International Relations

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
To impose sanctions against perpetrators of crimes against humanity and 
           genocide in Darfur, Sudan, and for other purposes.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Darfur Genocide Accountability Act 
of 2005''.

SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS.

    In this Act:
            (1) Appropriate congressional committees.--The term 
        ``appropriate congressional committees'' means the Committee on 
        Foreign Relations of the Senate and the Committee on 
        International Relations of the House of Representatives.
            (2) Government of sudan.--The term ``Government of Sudan'' 
        means the National Congress Party-led government in Khartoum, 
        Sudan, or the successor Government of National Unity to be 
        formed pursuant to the Comprehensive Peace Agreement signed by 
        the Government of Sudan and the Sudan People's Liberation 
        Movement in Nairobi, Kenya on January 9, 2005. Measures against 
        the Government of Sudan, as defined in this paragraph, shall 
        not apply to the Government of South Sudan (GOSS) or to areas 
        formerly under the control of opposition groups.
            (3) Member states.--The term ``member states'' means the 
        member states of the United Nations.
            (4) Sudan north-south peace agreement.--The term ``Sudan 
        North-South Peace Agreement'' means the Comprehensive Peace 
        Agreement signed by the Government of Sudan and the Sudan 
        People's Liberation Movement/Army on January 9, 2005.

SEC. 3. FINDINGS.

    Congress makes the following findings:
            (1) On July 22, 2004, the House of Representatives and the 
        Senate declared that the atrocities occurring in Darfur, Sudan, 
        are genocide.
            (2) On September 9, 2004, Secretary of State Colin L. 
        Powell stated before the Committee on Foreign Relations of the 
        Senate, ``[w]hen we reviewed the evidence compiled by our team, 
        along with other information available to the State Department, 
        we concluded that genocide has been committed in Darfur and 
        that the Government of Sudan and the [Janjaweed] bear 
        responsibility--and genocide may still be occurring''.
            (3) On July 30, 2004, the United Nations Security Council 
        passed Security Council Resolution 1556, calling upon the 
        Government of Sudan to disarm the Janjaweed militias and to 
        apprehend and bring to justice Janjaweed leaders and their 
        associates who have incited and carried out violations of human 
        rights and international humanitarian law and carried out other 
        atrocities in the Darfur region.
            (4) On September 18, 2004, the United Nations Security 
        Council passed Security Council Resolution 1564, determining 
        that the Government of Sudan had failed to meet its obligations 
        under Security Council Resolution 1556, calling for a military 
        flight ban in and over the Darfur region, demanding the names 
        of Janjaweed militiamen disarmed and arrested for verification, 
        establishing an International Commission of Inquiry into 
        violations of international humanitarian and human rights laws, 
        and threatening sanctions should the Government of Sudan fail 
        to fully comply with Security Council Resolutions 1556 and 
        1564, such as actions to affect Sudan's petroleum sector.
            (5) In late January 2005, the International Commission of 
        Inquiry on Darfur submitted a 176-page report to Secretary 
        General Kofi Annan detailing the atrocities committed by the 
        Government of Sudan and its Janjaweed militia allies.
            (6) The Commission declared that ``based on thorough 
        analysis of the information gathered in the course of the 
        investigations, the Commission established that the Government 
        of Sudan and the Janjaweed are responsible for serious 
        violations of international human rights and humanitarian law 
        amounting to crimes under international law.''.
            (7) The Commission further stated that Sudanese Government 
        officials and other individuals may have committed genocidal 
        acts, and submitted a sealed document with 51 suspects for 
        prosecution by the International Criminal Court (ICC).

SEC. 4. SENSE OF CONGRESS.

    It is the sense of Congress that--
            (1) the atrocities unfolding in Darfur, Sudan, are 
        genocide;
            (2) the Comprehensive Peace Agreement between the 
        Government of Sudan and the Sudan People's Liberation Movement/
        Army must be fully and unconditionally implemented and a new 
        coalition government established under such Agreement;
            (3) the African Union must amend the mandate of the African 
        Union Mission in the Sudan to focus directly on protecting 
        civilians from attacks and to neutralize the Janjaweed militia 
        and other militia groups engaged in attacks against civilians;
            (4) the United Nations or NATO should deploy at least 
        10,000 troops to the Darfur region to augment the African Union 
        Mission in the Sudan;
            (5) the United States strongly condemns attacks on 
        humanitarian workers and calls on all forces in Darfur, 
        including forces of the Government of Sudan, all militia, and 
        forces of the Sudan Liberation Army/Movement and the Justice 
        and Equality Movement, to refrain from such attacks;
            (6) the President should appoint a Presidential Special 
        Envoy to Sudan--
                    (A) to seek comprehensive peace throughout Sudan;
                    (B) to support the implementation of the Sudan 
                North-South Peace Agreement;
                    (C) to find ways to bring stability and peace to 
                Darfur;
                    (D) to address instability throughout Sudan; and
                    (E) to address the related crisis in Northern 
                Uganda;
            (7) the United States should support accountability through 
        action by the United Nations Security Council, pursuant to 
        chapter VII of the Charter of the United Nations, to ensure the 
        prompt prosecution and adjudication in a competent 
        international court of justice or the United States-proposed 
        Sudan Tribunal of individuals responsible for war crimes, 
        crimes against humanity, and genocide; and
            (8) the President of the United States shall instruct the 
        United States Permanent Representative to the United Nations to 
        demand--
                    (A) the extension of the military embargo to the 
                Government of Sudan, as called for in paragraphs 7 
                through 9 of United Nations Security Council Resolution 
                1556;
                    (B) the freezing of property and assets of 
                government and military officials and their family 
                members; Janjaweed leaders; and individuals engaged in 
                planning, directing, and implementing of the atrocities 
                in Darfur;
                    (C) that member states significantly reduce the 
                number and the level of the staff at Sudanese 
                diplomatic missions and consular posts and restrict or 
                control the movement within their territory of all such 
                staff who remain;
                    (D) steps to restrict the entry into or transit 
                through their territory of members of the Government of 
                Sudan, military officials of that Government, militia 
                leaders, and other individuals involved in the 
                planning, directing, and enforcing measures against 
                civilians; and
                    (E) steps to discourage international and regional 
                organizations from convening any conference in Sudan.

SEC. 5. IMPOSITION OF SANCTIONS.

    (a) Blocking of Assets.--Beginning on the date that is 30 days 
after the date of enactment of this Act or 30 days after the formation 
of the National Unity Government of Sudan, the President shall, 
consistent with the authorities granted in the International Emergency 
Economic Powers Act (50 U.S.C. 1701 et seq.), block the property and 
assets of officials of the Government of Sudan and their family 
members; military officials and their family members; individuals 
implicated in the atrocities in Darfur as well as businesses partially 
or fully controlled by the above aforementioned individuals; and 
property and assets controlled by the National Congress Party.
    (b) Visa Restriction.--Notwithstanding section 428(b) of the 
Homeland Security Act of 2002 (6 U.S.C. 236(b)), the Secretary of State 
shall prohibit the granting of a visa to--
            (1) officials of the Government of Sudan implicated in the 
        atrocities in Darfur;
            (2) officials of the military of Sudan implicated in the 
        atrocities in Darfur;
            (3) militia members or other individuals implicated in the 
        atrocities in Darfur; and
            (4) family members of an individual described in paragraphs 
        (1), (2), and (3).
    (c) Travel Restrictions.--The Secretary of State shall take 
measures to significantly reduce the number and the level of the staff 
at the Sudanese diplomatic mission in Washington, D.C., and restrict or 
control the movement within the United States of all such staff who 
remain.
    (d) Restriction on International Conferences.--The Secretary of 
State shall instruct the United States Permanent Representative to the 
United Nations to oppose any conference organized by United Nations 
member agencies or other international and regional organizations from 
being held in Sudan.
    (e) Reporting Requirement.--Not later than 30 days after a decision 
to freeze the property or assets of, or deny a visa or entry to, any 
person under this section, the President shall report the name of such 
person to the appropriate congressional committees.

SEC. 6. AUTHORIZATION TO USE FORCE TO STOP GENOCIDE IN DARFUR, SUDAN.

    (a) Authorization to Use Force.--The President is authorized to use 
all necessary means, including use of the United States armed forces, 
to stop genocide in Darfur, Sudan, consistent with the Convention on 
the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide, to enforce 
United Nations Security Council Resolutions 1556 and 1564, and in 
response to the Comprehensive Sudan Peace Act of 2004.
    (b) Authorization to Neutralize Perpetrators of the Violence.--The 
President is authorized and strongly encouraged to consider utilizing 
unmanned armed planes and other military assets to neutralize--
            (1) Janjaweed or other militia groups intent in targeting 
        civilians;
            (2) helicopters or fixed aircraft used to attack civilians 
        or to provide cover and assistance to militia groups; and
            (3) intelligence or military headquarters used to plan and 
        direct attacks against civilians.
    (c) No-Fly Zones.--The President is authorized to use force to 
enforce a no-fly zone over the Darfur region by utilizing American 
military assets, including--
            (1) those currently stationed in the Horn of Africa region 
        and/or use of NATO forces;
            (2) options that employ technological capabilities to 
        intercept and jam communications between the Government of 
        Sudan and the Janjaweed; and
            (3) cost-effective equipment such as aerostats, airships, 
        or unmanned aerial vehicles to achieve situational awareness.
    (d) Port Entry Denial.--The President is authorized to deny port 
entry to the United States to cargo ships or oil tankers engaged in 
business or trade activities in the oil sector of Sudan and/or involved 
in the shipment of goods for use by the Sudan Armed Forces.

SEC. 7. PROHIBITION ON TRADING IN UNITED STATES CAPITAL MARKETS.

    (a) Prohibition.--The President shall exercise the authorities he 
has under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (without 
regard to the requirements set forth in section 202 of that Act) to 
prohibit any entity engaged in any commercial activity in Sudan--
            (1) from raising capital in the United States; or
            (2) from trading its securities (or depository receipts 
        with respect to its securities) in any capital market in the 
        United States.
    (b) Penalties.--The penalties under section 206 of the 
International Emergency Economic Powers Act shall apply to violations 
under subsection (a) to the same extent as such penalties apply to 
violations under that Act.
    (c) Waiver.--The President may waive the application of sanctions 
in section 5 and this section if the President determines and certifies 
to the appropriate congressional committees that such a waiver is in 
the national interest of the United States.
    (d) Notification of Waivers of Sanctions.--Not later than 30 days 
before waiving the provisions of any sanctions currently in force with 
regard to Sudan, the President shall submit to the appropriate 
congressional committees a report describing the waiver and the reasons 
therefor.

SEC. 8. REPORTS TO CONGRESS.

    (a) Disclosure of Business Activities in Sudan.--
            (1) Annual report to congress.--The Secretary of the 
        Treasury shall, not later than 6 months after the date of the 
        enactment of this Act, and not later than the end of each 1-
        year period thereafter, submit to the Congress a report that 
        includes-
                    (A) the identity of all entities that are engaged 
                in commercial activity in Sudan;
                    (B) the nature and extent of that commercial 
                activity in Sudan, including any plans for expansion or 
                diversification;
                    (C) the identity of all agencies of the Sudanese 
                Government with which any such entity is doing 
                business; and
                    (D) the relationship of the commercial activity to 
                any violations of religious freedom and other human 
                rights in Sudan.
            (2) Disclosure to the public.--The Secretary of the 
        Treasury shall publish or otherwise make available to the 
        public each report submitted under subsection (a).
    (b) Conforming Amendment.--Section 8(b)(1) of the Sudan Peace Act 
(50 U.S.C.1701 note) is amended to read as follows:
            ``(1) The best estimates of the extent of aerial 
        bombardment of, as well as the extent of militia activity 
        against, civilian centers in Sudan, by the Government of Sudan, 
        including targets, frequency, and best estimates of damage.''.
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