[Congressional Bills 110th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H. Res. 795 Introduced in House (IH)]







110th CONGRESS
  1st Session
H. RES. 795

 Condemning the ongoing violence in the Eastern Democratic Republic of 
 the Congo (``DRC'') and recognizing the threat such violence poses to 
              the overall peace of the Great Lakes region.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                            November 5, 2007

 Mr. Cooper (for himself, Mr. McGovern, Ms. McCollum of Minnesota, Mr. 
    Doggett, Mr. Lynch, and Ms. Schakowsky) submitted the following 
   resolution; which was referred to the Committee on Foreign Affairs

_______________________________________________________________________

                               RESOLUTION


 
 Condemning the ongoing violence in the Eastern Democratic Republic of 
 the Congo (``DRC'') and recognizing the threat such violence poses to 
              the overall peace of the Great Lakes region.

Whereas the Democratic Republic of the Congo took the significant step in 2006 
        of holding the first multi-party, democratic elections since 
        independence in 1960;
Whereas since independence, the Democratic Republic of the Congo has been 
        consistently troubled by civil and ethnic warfare;
Whereas since the Rwandan genocide of 1994 nearly 2,000,000 refugees have fled 
        Rwanda and now reside in the Kivu and Goma regions of the Democratic 
        Republic of the Congo;
Whereas since the conflict in the Eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo began 
        in 1994, nearly 4,000,000 people have been killed and more than 
        3,400,000 displaced as a result of the ongoing and escalating violence;
Whereas since 2000 the Mission of the United Nations in the Democratic Republic 
        of Congo (``MONUC'') peacekeeping force has stationed 16,640 troops and 
        644 military observers, from 49 countries in the DRC to maintain peace 
        between the government and rebel forces;
Whereas the United Nations declared 2006 as a ``make or break point'' for the 
        region;
Whereas General Laurent Nkunda's rebel faction has operated in the North Kivu 
        region since 2005 in opposition to the Kinshasa government;
Whereas forces loyal to General Nkunda have been responsible for the 
        displacement of nearly 120,000 refugees from Rwanda, Uganda, and 
        Burundi;
Whereas in June 2007, the United Nations proclaimed General Nkunda the ``single 
        most serious threat to stability in the DR Congo'';
Whereas on October 16, 2007, President Joseph Kabila gave the forces loyal to 
        General Nkunda 3 weeks to integrate into the national army;
Whereas on October 17, 2007, President Joseph Kabila authorized the national 
        army to disarm General Nkunda;
Whereas the violence directed at women and girls is unusually extreme, and 
        includes the widespread use of rape as a tool of subjugation;
Whereas on October 18, 2007, Amnesty International issued a report accusing 
        state security forces of systematic torture and slaughter of opponents 
        of President Joseph Kabila;
Whereas due to its large size and locality in the Great Lakes region, the 
        instability of the Eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo affects the 
        stability of residents in Uganda, Rwanda, and Burundi; and
Whereas the increase of violence between General Nkunda's forces and the 
        national army has spread into the Virunga National Park and threatened 
        the safety of the population of mountain gorillas: Now, therefore, be it
    Resolved, That the House of Representatives--
            (1) condemns violent attempts to resist the freely elected 
        Government of the Democratic Republic of the Congo and 
        encourages all parties involved in the conflict to reach a 
        lasting cease-fire;
            (2) calls on all private militia to disband to end the 
        continuing threat to peace and stability in the Democratic 
        Republic of the Congo;
            (3) reaffirms its support for constitutional government, 
        the rule of law, human rights, and democratic processes in the 
        Democratic Republic of the Congo and calls upon regional 
        African leaders to support the preservation of a democratic 
        political system in the country;
            (4) encourages the United States Government to state 
        publicly its strong support for the disarmament and 
        reintegration of forces loyal to General Nkunda into the 
        national army; and
            (5) condemns the infiltration of soldiers into the Virunga 
        National Forest and the danger it poses to the mountain 
        gorillas.
                                 <all>