[Congressional Bills 110th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. Con. Res. 16 Referred in House (RFH)]

  1st Session
S. CON. RES. 16


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                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                             March 6, 2007

              Referred to the Committee on Foreign Affairs

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                         CONCURRENT RESOLUTION


 
  Calling on the Government of Uganda and the Lord's Resistance Army 
 (LRA) to recommit to a political solution to the conflict in northern 
 Uganda and to recommence vital peace talks, and urging immediate and 
   substantial support for the ongoing peace process from the United 
                States and the international community.

Whereas for nearly two decades, the Government of Uganda has been engaged in an 
        armed conflict with the Lord's Resistance Army (LRA) that has resulted 
        in up to 200,000 deaths from violence and disease and the displacement 
        of more than 1,600,000 civilians from eastern and northern Uganda.
Whereas former United Nations Undersecretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs 
        and Emergency Relief Coordinator Jan Egeland has called the crisis in 
        northern Uganda ``the biggest forgotten, neglected humanitarian 
        emergency in the world today'';
Whereas Joseph Kony, the leader of the LRA, and several of his associates have 
        been indicted by the International Criminal Court for war crimes and 
        crimes against humanity, including rape, murder, enslavement, sexual 
        enslavement, and the forced recruitment of an estimated 66,000 children;
Whereas the LRA is a severe and repeat violator of human rights and has 
        continued to attack civilians and humanitarian aid workers despite a 
        succession of ceasefire agreements;
Whereas the Secretary of State has labeled the LRA ``vicious and cult-like'' and 
        designates it as a terrorist organization;
Whereas the 2005 Department of State report on the human rights record of the 
        Government of Uganda found that ``security forces committed unlawful 
        killings... and were responsible for deaths as a result of torture'' 
        along with other ``serious problems,'' including repression of political 
        opposition, official impunity, and violence against women and children;
Whereas, in the 2004 Northern Uganda Crisis Response Act (Public Law 108-283; 
        118 Stat. 912), Congress declared its support for a peaceful resolution 
        of the conflict in northern and eastern Uganda and called for the United 
        States and the international community to assist in rehabilitation, 
        reconstruction, and demobilization efforts;
Whereas the Cessation of Hostilities Agreement, which was mediated by the 
        Government of Southern Sudan and signed by representatives of the 
        Government of Uganda and the LRA on August 20, 2006, and extended on 
        November 1, 2006, requires both parties to cease all hostile military 
        and media offensives and asks the Sudan People's Liberation Army to 
        facilitate the safe assembly of LRA fighters in designated areas for the 
        duration of the peace talks;
Whereas the Cessation of Hostilities Agreement is set to expire on February 28, 
        2007, and although both parties to the agreement have indicated that 
        they are willing to continue with the peace talks, no date has been set 
        for resumption of the talks, and recent reports have suggested that both 
        rebel and Government forces are preparing to return to war;
Whereas a return to civil war would yield disastrous results for the people of 
        northern Uganda and for regional stability, while peace in Uganda will 
        bolster the fragile Comprehensive Peace Agreement in Sudan and de-
        escalate tensions in the Democratic Republic of the Congo;
Whereas continuing violence and instability obstruct the delivery of 
        humanitarian assistance to the people of northern Uganda and impede 
        national and regional trade, development and democratization efforts, 
        and counter-terrorism initiatives; and
Whereas the Senate unanimously passed Senate Resolution 366, 109th Congress, 
        agreed to February 6, 2006, and Senate Resolution 573, 109th Congress, 
        agreed to September 19, 2006, calling on Uganda, Sudan, the United 
        States, and the international community to bring justice and provide 
        humanitarian assistance to northern Uganda and to support the successful 
        transition from conflict to sustainable peace, while the House of 
        Representatives has not yet considered comparable legislation: Now, 
        therefore, be it
    Resolved by the Senate (the House of Representatives concurring), 
That Congress--
            (1) disapproves of the LRA leadership's inconsistent 
        commitment to resolving the conflict in Uganda peacefully;
            (2) urges the Lord's Resistance Army (LRA) and the 
        Government of Uganda to return to negotiations in order to 
        extend and expand upon the existing ceasefire and to recommit 
        to pursuing a political solution to this conflict;
            (3) entreats all parties in the region to immediately cease 
        human rights violations and address, within the context of a 
        broader national reconciliation process in Uganda, issues of 
        accountability and impunity for those crimes against humanity 
        already committed;
            (4) presses leaders on both sides of the conflict in Uganda 
        to renounce any intentions and halt any preparations to resume 
        violence and to ensure that this message is clearly conveyed to 
        armed elements under their control; and
            (5) calls on the Secretary of State, the Administrator of 
        the United States Agency for International Development, and the 
        heads of other similar governmental agencies and 
        nongovernmental organizations within the international 
        community to continue and augment efforts to alleviate the 
        humanitarian crisis in northern Uganda and to support a 
        peaceful resolution to this crisis by publicly and forcefully 
        reiterating the preceding demands.

            Passed the Senate March 1, 2007.

            Attest:

                                                NANCY ERICKSON,

                                                             Secretary.