[Congressional Bills 111th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H. Con. Res. 87 Introduced in House (IH)]
111th CONGRESS
1st Session
H. CON. RES. 87
Observing the 15th anniversary of the Rwandan genocide and calling on
all responsible nations to uphold the principles of the Convention on
the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
March 30, 2009
Ms. Ros-Lehtinen (for herself, Mr. Royce, Mr. Smith of New Jersey, Mr.
Burton of Indiana, Mr. Pence, Mr. Bilirakis, Mr. Inglis, and Ms.
Jackson-Lee of Texas) submitted the following concurrent resolution;
which was referred to the Committee on Foreign Affairs
_______________________________________________________________________
CONCURRENT RESOLUTION
Observing the 15th anniversary of the Rwandan genocide and calling on
all responsible nations to uphold the principles of the Convention on
the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide.
Whereas historically, ethnic Hutus and Tutsis in Rwanda followed the same
religion, intermarried, and lived intermingled, and through marriage and
clientage Hutus could become ``hereditary Tutsis'' and Tutsis could
become ``hereditary Hutus'';
Whereas the manipulation of ethnic identity by colonial powers, including the
issuance of ethnic identity cards and the introduction of an apartheid
system of governance favoring the Tutsi minority, exacerbated existing
tensions between Hutus and Tutsis and contributed to periodic episodes
of ethnic violence;
Whereas a revolt by Hutu political activists, supported by Belgium, resulted in
the overthrow of the Tutsi monarchy in November 1959, and the subsequent
fleeing of an estimated 160,000 Tutsi refugees to neighboring countries;
Whereas, on October 1, 1990, the Tutsi-led Rwandan Patriotic Front/Army (RPF/A)
invaded Rwanda from its base in Uganda;
Whereas after two years of fighting, the RPF/A signed a peace accord with the
government of President Juvenal Habyarimana in Arusha, Tanzania, in
August 1993, paving the way for the formation of a power-sharing
government, the return of Rwandan refugees, and the deployment of a
United Nations Mission in Rwanda (UNAMIR);
Whereas following the signing of the Arusha Accords, broadcasts of ``hate
radio'' directed against Tutsis and moderate Hutus intensified and
numerous credible reports confirmed the existence of government-run
training camps for militias, widespread killings of civilians, targeted
assassinations against senior members of the coalition government, and
massive influxes of weapons from France, Egypt, China, and South Africa;
Whereas the commander of UNAMIR, General Romeo Dallaire, repeatedly warned the
United Nations Department of Peacekeeping Operations (DPKO) about the
potential for mass slaughter in Rwanda, even sending an urgent fax to
DPKO headquarters explicitly describing the blueprint for genocide on
January 11, 1994;
Whereas DPKO responded to these warnings by informing General Dallaire that
UNAMIR did not have a mandate to seize weapons, to jam radio broadcasts,
or even to protect Dallaire's informant;
Whereas, on April 6, 1994, a plane carrying President Juvenal Habyarimana of
Rwanda and President Cyprien Ntaryamira of Burundi was shot down as it
approached Kigali International Airport;
Whereas the Rwandan Armed Forces, the presidential guard, and Interhamwe militia
immediately responded by unleashing a highly organized, systematic
campaign of genocide against Tutsi leaders and moderate Hutu politicians
who had been identified on ``hit lists'' months earlier;
Whereas consistent with the warning issued by General Dallaire three months
earlier, the Rwandan prime minister and her 10 Belgian bodyguards were
among the first victims, prompting Belgium to withdraw its forces from
UNAMIR on April 14, 1994;
Whereas the killing spree swiftly spread across the country as security forces
and Interhamwe militia armed with machetes, clubs, guns, and grenades
began slaughtering tens of thousands of Tutsi civilians, while
uninterrupted broadcasts of ``hate radio'' helped pinpoint the locations
of Tutsis and urged killers not to spare women or children;
Whereas ordinary Hutu citizens also were called upon, and often forced, to join
in the killing, and reportedly did so ``with a radio in one hand and a
machete in the other'';
Whereas many other Rwandans resisted the genocide and displayed amazing courage
while protecting civilians, including Paul Rusesabagina, who is credited
with saving over 1,200 Tutsis and moderate Hutus who took shelter at the
Mille Collines hotel in Kigali;
Whereas despite General Dallaire's assertion that he could halt the genocide
with 5,000 well-equipped troops and a robust mandate, the United Nations
Security Council reduced UNAMIR's strength from 2,548 to 270 on April
21, 1994;
Whereas while calls to neutralize Radio Mille Collines were growing, the State
Department Legal Advisor's Office reportedly issued a finding against
radio jamming in May 1994, citing international broadcasting agreements
and the United States commitment to free speech;
Whereas in response to irrefutable evidence of mass slaughter and mounting
pressure by some Member States and determined human rights advocates,
including the late Alison Des Forges, the United Nations Security
Council finally recognized that ``acts of genocide may have been
committed'' in Rwanda and authorized the deployment of 6,800
peacekeeping troops with a mandate to protect civilians on May 17, 1994;
Whereas the troops associated with UNAMIR II did not arrive until after the
genocide had been halted;
Whereas, on July 4, 1994, the RPF/A, led by General Paul Kagame, captured Kigali
and formed an interim government of national unity on July 17, 1994;
Whereas, over the course of just 100 days, an estimated 800,000 people were
killed in Rwanda and over 2,100,000 refugees, including members of the
Hutu-led government, fully armed contingents of the Armed Forces of
Rwanda (ex-FAR), Interhamwe militia, and other genocidaires poured into
neighboring Zaire, Burundi, and Tanzania;
Whereas the effects of the genocide in Rwanda were profound and far-reaching,
and the continued presence of ex-FAR/Interhamwe militias in eastern
Democratic Republic of Congo, formerly Zaire, remains a major source of
regional instability;
Whereas, in March 1998, former President Clinton expressed his regret for
failing to take action to halt the forces of genocide in Rwanda,
stating, ``[a]ll over the world there were people like me sitting in
offices who did not fully appreciate the depth and the speed with which
you were being engulfed by this unimaginable terror'';
Whereas, on April 7, 2004, as world leaders gathered in Kigali to commemorate
the 10th anniversary of the Rwandan genocide, former United Nations
Secretary-General Kofi Annan declared to the United Nations Human Rights
Commission that reports of ethnic cleansing from the Darfur region of
western Sudan had left him with ``a deep sense of foreboding''; and
Whereas given its own tragic experience in 1994, Rwanda responded to warnings of
genocide in Darfur by committing, with support from the United States,
three battalions to the African Union Mission in Sudan (AMIS) and its
successor, the United Nations-African Union Mission in Darfur (UNAMID)
with explicit orders to protect civilians: Now, therefore, be it
Resolved by the House of Representatives (the Senate concurring),
That Congress--
(1) solemnly observes the 15th anniversary of the Rwandan
genocide, which claimed the lives of an estimated 800,000
people over the course of just 100 days;
(2) remembers those who were lost in this senseless
campaign of mass slaughter and expresses sincere condolences to
the families of the victims;
(3) honors the heroic actions of those who sought to draw
attention to and stop the genocide;
(4) recognizes that despite countless pledges of ``never
again'', the forces of genocide have again been unleashed in
Darfur, Sudan;
(5) commends the commitment of Rwandan peacekeepers who
have taken effective action to protect civilians in Sudan; and
(6) urges all responsible nations to uphold the principles
of the Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime
of Genocide and seek to halt genocide wherever it may occur.
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