Whereas, on January 9, 2005, the Government of the
Republic of the Sudan and the Sudan People’s Liberation Movement/Army (SPLM/A)
signed the Comprehensive Peace Agreement (CPA) for Sudan in Nairobi,
Kenya;
Whereas the CPA ostensibly ended a war between the
government in the north and former rebels in the south of Sudan that lasted
over 20 years and resulted in the deaths of over 2,000,000 people and the
displacement of over 4,000,000 people;
Whereas the CPA acknowledges that the Sudan war was the
longest running conflict in Africa and “caused tragic loss of life, destroyed
the country’s infrastructure, eroded its economic resources and caused
suffering to the Sudanese people”;
Whereas the CPA recognizes the “urgent need to bring peace
and security to the people of the Sudan who have endured this conflict for far
too long”;
Whereas the CPA states the commitment of the parties to a
negotiated settlement on the basis of a democratic system of governance which,
on the one hand, recognizes the right of the people of Southern Sudan to
self-determination, while at the same time “is founded on the values of
justice, democracy, good governance, respect for fundamental rights and
freedoms of the individual, mutual understanding and tolerance of diversity
within the realities of the Sudan”;
Whereas the CPA sets forth important political and
security arrangements, including the establishment of an interim government of
national unity and an autonomous Government of Southern Sudan, wealth sharing
between the north and the south, legal protections for non-Muslims living in
the Capital, demarcation of the north-south boundary, a permanent ceasefire,
redeployment of forces and establishment of Joint Integrated Units, a national
census and national elections, and a 2011 referendum on possible secession for
Southern Sudan;
Whereas the United States played a key role in the
negotiation of the CPA, was one of the four observer countries, together with
Italy, Norway, and the United Kingdom, to witness the signing of the CPA, and
is represented on the Assessment and Evaluation Commission established to
monitor the implementation of the CPA;
Whereas a major factor in the successful negotiation of
the CPA was the coordinated and aggressive effort by the international
community, led by the United States, to urge the parties to reach a peace
agreement;
Whereas the United States continues to lead
diplomatic efforts bilaterally and multilaterally to help bring about a truly
comprehensive and lasting peace in Sudan and has provided nearly $9,000,000,000
in humanitarian, development, and peacekeeping assistance toward this end since
2004;
Whereas not all the parties to the conflict in Sudan were
a party to the CPA;
Whereas in 2003, even as the CPA was being negotiated, the
Sudanese regime unleashed a genocidal campaign in the Darfur region of Sudan,
in which over 300,000 Darfuris have died and nearly 3,000,000 have been
displaced;
Whereas the National Congress Party (NCP), formerly the
National Islamic Front (NIF), which controls the government in Khartoum, has
announced its intention to forcibly return or relocate the internally displaced
persons in Darfur, thereby threatening to deny them access to humanitarian
assistance;
Whereas the conflicts in Darfur and southern Sudan are
inextricably linked, and if the CPA fails there can be little hope for peace in
Darfur;
Whereas numerous key aspects of the CPA have not been
implemented in the timeframe specified, with elections scheduled for April 2010
and the referendum on independence for southern Sudan scheduled for January
2011;
Whereas the NCP, to date, has blocked passage of legal
reforms that are necessary to ensure free and fair elections, including
safeguards to prevent the arrest and detention of members of the political
opposition;
Whereas while expectations for peace dividends in the
south are high, the Government of Southern Sudan faces the greatest
post-conflict reconstruction challenges in modern times, including basic
infrastructure, executive leadership, financial, natural and human resources
management, and equitable social service access;
Whereas it is reported that over 2,000 Sudanese were
killed and 250,000 were displaced in southern Sudan due to intercommunal
violence in 2009, thus threatening peace within southern Sudan;
Whereas a coalition of aid agencies working in southern
Sudan issued a briefing paper on January 7, 2010, stating that the CPA is
“extremely fragile and violence is again increasing. The humanitarian
situation, already one of the worst in the world, is deteriorating; and in the
eyes of most ordinary southerners, meaningful post-war development has been
absent”, adding that the next 12 months are crucial, and that “with concerted
and immediate action, the parties to the CPA and the international community
can, and must, prevent a return to a devastating conflict.”;
Whereas a return to war in Sudan would likely spread
violence into Chad, the Central African Republic, the Democratic Republic of
the Congo, Uganda, and beyond, thereby raising extreme concern of a regional
conflagration; and
Whereas the international community has a short and
critically important time period in which to pressure the parties to the CPA,
and particularly the Bashir regime, to uphold their commitments under the CPA
and more importantly, to avert another war in Sudan and establish the
foundations for a lasting and stable peace throughout the country: Now,
therefore, be it
That the House of
Representatives—
(1)recognizes the fifth anniversary of the
signing of the Comprehensive Peace Agreement (CPA) between the Government of
the Republic of the Sudan and the Sudan People’s Liberation Movement/Army on
January 9, 2005;
(2)calls on both
parties to implement immediately their respective obligations under the CPA, in
accordance with the terms and timeline established therein;
(3)urges the United
States to establish and adhere to specified measures to be taken against the
respective parties if and when they fail to implement the CPA in accordance
with the terms and timeline established therein, and to implement a more robust
set of multilateral measures against those individuals who act as
obstructionists to peace, including those who continue to sell arms to
belligerents in Sudan;
(4)urges the
President of the United States and the Secretary of State to intervene at the
highest levels within the international community, both multilaterally and
bilaterally with key governments including China, India, and certain members of
the Arab League, to reinvigorate international support and pressure on all
parties for the establishment of a durable peace in Sudan;
(5)urges the United
States to reinvigorate the international commitment to achieving peace in Sudan
that contributed to the signing of the CPA by engaging relevant parties at all
levels on an urgent basis through political and diplomatic means;
(6)urges the United
States to pursue a broader, carefully calibrated engagement within Sudan to
include key players who were not parties to the CPA;
(7)urges the United
States to actively encourage greater international support for
capacity-building in southern Sudan, with appropriate measures to ensure
accountability and transparency;
(8)urges the United
States to insist that the National Congress Party (NCP) guarantee secure
humanitarian access to all areas of Darfur and to ensure the ability of
humanitarian organizations to publicize their assessments without
reprisals;
(9)urges the United
States to impress upon the NCP that internally displaced persons in Darfur are
not to be forcibly returned to their villages or relocated;
(10)urges the United
States to ensure that all peace processes within Sudan respect the rights and
dignity of all Sudanese, including those in northern Sudan, eastern Sudan,
southern Kordofan, Abyei, and Blue Nile regions;
(11)recognizes the
critical role of religious communities in providing peace education and
facilitating reconciliation at all levels of Sudanese society, as well as the
important contribution of faith-based organizations in the provision of
humanitarian assistance throughout Sudan; and
(12)urges all parties
in Sudan to cease all hostile activities and to fully commit to establishing a
durable peace throughout the country.