[Congressional Bills 110th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. Res. 611 Agreed to Senate (ATS)]







110th CONGRESS
  2d Session
S. RES. 611

 Expressing the sense of the Senate on the crisis in Zimbabwe, and for 
                            other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                             July 14, 2008

  Mr. Feingold (for himself, Mr. Isakson, Mr. Cardin, Mr. Harkin, Mr. 
 Whitehouse, Mr. Kerry, Mr. Nelson of Florida, Mr. Durbin, Mrs. Boxer, 
  Mr. Leahy, Mrs. Clinton, Mr. Sununu, Mr. Chambliss, Ms. Snowe, Mrs. 
   Dole, Mr. Inhofe, Mr. Specter, Mr. Stevens, Mr. Martinez, and Mr. 
  Smith) submitted the following resolution; which was considered and 
                               agreed to

_______________________________________________________________________

                               RESOLUTION


 
 Expressing the sense of the Senate on the crisis in Zimbabwe, and for 
                            other purposes.

Whereas, over the last eight years, the Zimbabwean African National Union-
        Patriotic Front (ZANU-PF), led by Robert Mugabe, has increasingly turned 
        to violence and intimidation to maintain power amidst a deteriorating 
        crisis;
Whereas the gross domestic product of Zimbabwe has decreased over 40 percent in 
        the last decade, inflation is estimated by United Nations Deputy 
        Secretary-General Asha-Rose Migiro at over 10,500,000 percent, 
        unemployment is now over 80 percent, and more than 4,000,000 people have 
        fled the country;
Whereas presidential and parliamentary elections were held on March 29, 2008, in 
        Zimbabwe amidst widespread reports of voting irregularities and 
        intimidation in favor of the ruling ZANU-PF party and Robert Mugabe;
Whereas the Zimbabwe Electoral Commission refused to release results, despite 
        calls to do so by the African Union (AU), the European Union (EU), the 
        Republic of South Africa, the Southern African Development Community 
        (SADC), United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-Moon, and the United 
        States;
Whereas the official results of the election, announced five weeks later, showed 
        that Robert Mugabe won 43.2 percent of the vote, while Morgan 
        Tsvangirai, leader of the opposition party Movement for Democratic 
        Change (MDC), won 47.9 percent of the vote;
Whereas, in the wake of the elections, Robert Mugabe launched a brutal campaign 
        of state-sponsored violence against opposition members, supporters, and 
        other civilians in an attempt to consolidate his power;
Whereas United States Ambassador to the United Nations Zalmay Khalilzad stated 
        on April 16, 2008, that he was ``gravely concerned about the escalating 
        politically motivated violence perpetrated by security forces and ruling 
        party militias'';
Whereas Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice stated on April 17, 2008, that 
        Robert Mugabe has ``done more harm to his country than would have been 
        imaginable'' and that ``the last years have been really an abomination'' 
        and called for the AU and SADC to strengthen efforts to achieve a 
        political resolution to the crisis;
Whereas Human Rights Watch reported on April 19, 2008, that the Mugabe regime 
        had developed a network of informal detention centers to intimidate, 
        torture, and detain political opponents;
Whereas the Mugabe regime has, in violation of the Vienna Convention on 
        Diplomatic Relations, done at Vienna April 18, 1961 (23 U.S.T. 3229), 
        harassed United States and other diplomats in retaliation for their 
        repeated protest of recent violence, including by detaining the United 
        States ambassador's vehicle for several hours on May 13, 2008, and 
        detaining five United States embassy staff and two local embassy workers 
        on June 5, 1998, one of whom was physically assaulted;
Whereas reports of killings, abductions, beatings, torture, and sexual violence 
        against civilians in Zimbabwe have continued, resulting in some 10,000 
        people being assaulted and at least 30,000 displaced;
Whereas the MDC and Presidential candidate Tsvangirai withdrew from the June 27, 
        2008, runoff presidential election, citing intensified political 
        repression and killings of their supporters;
Whereas the Mugabe regime persisted with the runoff election, despite the 
        protest of many leaders in Africa, the EU, SADC, the United Nations 
        Security Council, and the United States Government;
Whereas results from the runoff election unsurprisingly declared Robert Mugabe, 
        the only standing candidate, as the winner with 85 percent of the vote, 
        and he was sworn into office;
Whereas SADC, the Pan-African Parliament, and AU Observer missions to Zimbabwe 
        made statements on June 29 and 30, 2008, finding that the elections fell 
        short of accepted African Union standards, did not give rise to free, 
        fair, or credible elections, and did not reflect the will of the people 
        of Zimbabwe;
Whereas, on June 4, 2008, the Mugabe regime banned the operations of non-
        governmental organizations in Zimbabwe, including those who provide food 
        and aid to millions of Zimbabweans suffering at the result of a ZANU-
        PF's policies, exacerbating the humanitarian crisis and leaving newly 
        displaced victims of political violence without assistance;
Whereas Nelson Mandela has described the situation in Zimbabwe as a ``tragic 
        failure of leadership,'' while the Government of Botswana has refused to 
        recognize the election outcome as legitimate and has said that 
        representatives of the administration should be excluded from SADC and 
        African Union meetings;
Whereas the African Union passed a resolution on July 1, 2008, expressing 
        concern for the loss of life in Zimbabwe and the need to initiate 
        political dialogue to promote peace, democracy, and reconciliation;
Whereas the MDC reported on July 9, 2008, that 129 of its supporters have been 
        killed since the first round of elections, including 20 since the runoff 
        election, 1,500 of its activists and officials are in detention, and 
        5,000 are missing or unaccounted for; and
Whereas the Group of Eight (G8) industrialized nations, at their annual summit, 
        issued a joint statement on July 8, 2008, rejecting the June 27, 2008, 
        election and legitimacy of the Mugabe regime, as well as committing to 
        further measures against those responsible for the violence: Now, 
        therefore, be it
    Resolved, That it is the sense of the Senate--
            (1) to support the people of Zimbabwe, who continue to face 
        widespread violence, political repression, a humanitarian 
        emergency, and economic adversity;
            (2) to condemn the Mugabe regime for its manipulation of 
        the country's electoral process, including the March 29, 2008, 
        election and the June 27, 2008, runoff election and the 
        regime's continued attacks against, and intimidation of, 
        opposition members and supporters and civil society;
            (3) to reject the results of the June 27, 2008, 
        presidential runoff election in Zimbabwe as illegitimate 
        because of widespread irregularities, systematic violence by 
        the Mugabe regime, and the boycott of the MDC;
            (4) to encourage the President's continued efforts to 
        tighten and expand sanctions on those individuals responsible 
        for violations of human and political rights in Zimbabwe;
            (5) to applaud the Governments of Benin, Botswana, Liberia, 
        Kenya, Nigeria, Senegal, Sierra Leone, and Zambia for 
        condemning the violent derailment of the runoff election at the 
        African Union summit in Sharm El-Sheikh;
            (6) to encourage all members of the United Nations Security 
        Council to vote in favor of the proposed resolution that would 
        authorize a United Nations Special Representative to support 
        the negotiations process, impose an international arms embargo, 
        and strengthen financial penalties on those individuals most 
        responsible for undermining democratic processes;
            (7) to encourage the African Union to initiate an inclusive 
        political dialogue between both parties and deploy a protection 
        force to prevent attacks, assist victims, and prevent the 
        security situation from further deteriorating;
            (8) to urge leaders in Africa to engage directly in the 
        effort to achieve an expeditious political resolution to the 
        crisis;
            (9) to urge the United States Government and the 
        international community to assemble a comprehensive economic 
        and political recovery package for Zimbabwe in the event that a 
        political resolution is reached and a truly democratic 
        government is formed; and
            (10) to support a lasting democratic political solution 
        that reflects the will and respects the rights of the people of 
        Zimbabwe, including mechanisms to ensure that future elections 
        are free and fair, in accordance with regional and 
        international standards.
                                 <all>