[Congressional Bills 113th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. Res. 144 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

113th CONGRESS
  1st Session
S. RES. 144

Concerning the ongoing conflict in the Democratic Republic of the Congo 
  and the need for international efforts supporting long-term peace, 
               stability, and observance of human rights.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                              May 16, 2013

   Mr. Coons (for himself, Mr. Durbin, Mr. Boozman, and Mr. Isakson) 
submitted the following resolution; which was referred to the Committee 
                          on Foreign Relations

_______________________________________________________________________

                               RESOLUTION


 
Concerning the ongoing conflict in the Democratic Republic of the Congo 
  and the need for international efforts supporting long-term peace, 
               stability, and observance of human rights.

Whereas, since the 1990s, an estimated 5,000,000 people have died due to 
        repeated cycles of conflict, lack of governance, and atrocities in the 
        Democratic Republic of the Congo, particularly those in North and South 
        Kivu provinces, and, since the beginning of 2012, more than 2,000,000 
        people have been displaced;
Whereas the United Nations and humanitarian groups have reported staggering 
        rates of sexual violence indicating tens of thousands of cases 
        perpetrated by security forces of the Government of the Democratic 
        Republic of the Congo and non-state armed groups, which continue to 
        operate with nearly total impunity;
Whereas human rights defenders in the Democratic Republic of the Congo have been 
        subject to intimidation and attack;
Whereas the Democratic Republic of the Congo's wealth of natural resources, 
        including minerals, have been a key driver of instability and violence;
Whereas the deeply flawed November 2011 presidential election in the Democratic 
        Republic of the Congo presented significant political, economic, and 
        social challenges, and provincial and local elections still have not 
        been conducted despite plans to hold such elections in 2012;
Whereas the Democratic Republic of the Congo remains subject to recurring 
        conflict despite one of the world's longest-running, largest, and most 
        expensive international peacekeeping operations and extensive bilateral 
        and multilateral efforts to address longstanding humanitarian crises, 
        forge lasting peace, and pursue security sector reform and 
        accountability;
Whereas members of civil society and political parties from both the majority 
        and the opposition in the Democratic Republic of the Congo created the 
        National Preparatory Committee (Comite National Preparatoire or CNP) to 
        lay the groundwork for convening a national forum and dialogue with the 
        goal of putting an end to the multifaceted crisis that afflicts the 
        Democratic Republic of the Congo;
Whereas, on November 15, 2012, the United Nations Group of Experts provided 
        compelling evidence that the crisis in eastern Congo had been fueled and 
        exacerbated by regional actors, including through provision of 
        significant military and logistical assistance and of operational and 
        political support to the armed group known as the M23;
Whereas the United Nations and United States Government have imposed sanctions 
        on the M23 and its leaders for human rights atrocities including rape, 
        massacres, and the recruitment and physical and psychological torture of 
        child soldiers;
Whereas, on March 18, 2013, International Criminal Court (ICC) indictee and 
        leader of a faction of the M23 rebel group, Bosco Ntaganda, turned 
        himself in to the United States Embassy in Kigali, asking to be 
        transferred to the ICC in The Hague, where he voluntarily surrendered on 
        March 22, 2013;
Whereas the Lord's Resistance Army continues to perpetrate attacks against 
        civilian populations in affected areas of northeastern Congo, creating 
        widespread insecurity and displacement;
Whereas the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Rwanda, and 9 other countries on 
        February 24, 2013, signed the Peace, Security and Cooperation Framework 
        that provides for a comprehensive approach to the ongoing conflict;
Whereas the United Nations Security Council adopted Resolution 2098 on March 28, 
        2013, extending the mandate of the United Nations Organization 
        Stabilization Mission (MONUSCO) and authorizing the creation of an 
        intervention brigade tasked with neutralizing armed groups; and
Whereas, on March 18, 2013, United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-Moon 
        appointed former President of Ireland and High Commissioner for Human 
        Rights, Mary Robinson, to serve as Special Envoy for the Great Lakes 
        region: Now, therefore, be it
    Resolved, That the Senate--
            (1) commends United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-Moon's 
        commitment and leadership to resolving the crisis in the 
        Democratic Republic of the Congo and his appointment of Mary 
        Robinson as United Nations Special Envoy to the Great Lakes;
            (2) supports the commitments agreed to by the signatories 
        of the Peace, Security and Cooperation Framework (in this 
        resolution, the ``Framework''), and encourages them to work 
        closely with the United Nations, the African Union, the 
        International Conference on the Great Lakes Region, the 
        Southern African Development Community, as guarantors of the 
        Framework, and the United Nations Special Envoy, MONUSCO, and 
        relevant international bodies and governments to develop, 
        implement, and enforce a comprehensive peace process for the 
        region;
            (3) notes that the adoption of the Framework, the 
        appointment of Mary Robinson as United Nations Special Envoy to 
        the Great Lakes, and the expanded MONUSCO mandate provide an 
        opportunity to make meaningful and sustained progress toward 
        ending the recurrent cycles of violence in the Democratic 
        Republic of the Congo, especially in eastern Congo;
            (4) urges the signatories of the Framework and the 
        international community to engage and consult with 
        representatives of the Government of the Democratic Republic of 
        the Congo and civil society representatives engaged in the 
        ongoing effort to convene an inclusive national forum and 
        dialogue;
            (5) urges the President to appoint a Special Envoy to the 
        Great Lakes in the near-term in order to represent the United 
        States in international and regional efforts to end the 
        conflict and secure sustainable peace, stability, and safety 
        for the people of the Democratic Republic of the Congo by--
                    (A) working with United Nations Special Envoy Mary 
                Robinson and the broader international community to 
                promote a transparent and inclusive process to 
                implement the regional and national commitments under 
                the Framework, including the development of clear 
                benchmarks for progress and appropriate follow-on 
                measures;
                    (B) strengthening international efforts to mobilize 
                and support justice for victims and accountability for 
                perpetrators of sexual and gender based violence and 
                other human rights abuses in the Democratic Republic of 
                the Congo;
                    (C) expanding efforts to develop conflict-free and 
                responsible mining and supply chains for the region's 
                vast mineral resources, in coordination with other 
                government, private industry, and international and 
                local organizations;
                    (D) coordinating with international and regional 
                partners to expand unhindered access to life-saving 
                humanitarian assistance to populations in need, 
                particularly displaced persons and conflict-affected 
                communities;
                    (E) pressing for fulfillment of the commitment of 
                the Government of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, 
                as well as other regional actors, to ending the threat 
                posed by the M23, the Lord's Resistance Army (LRA), the 
                Democratic Forces for the Liberation of Rwanda (FDLR), 
                and other armed groups in the Great Lakes region, and 
                to facilitate enhanced coordination of regional efforts 
                to counter these groups; and
                    (F) mobilizing and facilitating United States and 
                international support for electoral reforms in the 
                Democratic Republic of the Congo, with the goal of 
                encouraging free, fair, and credible provincial and 
                local elections in the near-term, and presidential 
                elections in 2016;
            (6) calls on the President to support the creation of a 
        World Bank Fund for the Great Lakes Region, as part of a 
        coordinated international investment and development strategy 
        aimed at deepening regional economic integration and stability 
        and leveraging reform;
            (7) calls on the President, in close coordination with 
        international and regional partners, to work with the 
        Government of the Democratic Republic of the Congo to develop 
        and implement recommendations to improve accountability for 
        serious violations of international humanitarian law and human 
        rights abuses in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, 
        including by considering imposition of sanctions authorized 
        under section 1284 of the National Defense Authorization Act 
        for Fiscal Year 2013 (Public Law 112-239; 50 U.S.C. 1701 note);
            (8) calls on governments of the Great Lakes region of 
        Africa to immediately halt and prevent any and all forms of 
        support to non-state armed groups, including support provided 
        by individuals independent of government policy;
            (9) calls on all relevant nations, including destination 
        and transit countries, to increase cooperation on ending the 
        illicit trade in conflict minerals, wildlife, and wildlife 
        parts, which continues to fuel and fund violence and to deprive 
        citizens of economic opportunity in the Democratic Republic of 
        the Congo and the broader region;
            (10) calls on the signatories of the Framework to cooperate 
        in the arrest and prosecution of those responsible for 
        violating international humanitarian law and for serious human 
        rights violations, including gender-based violence;
            (11) calls on the Government of the Democratic Republic of 
        the Congo to engage in meaningful and inclusive electoral 
        reforms, prepare and hold impartially administered local and 
        provincial elections as soon as technically possible, continue 
        to participate in ongoing efforts to provide a platform for 
        inclusive dialogue within the Democratic Republic of the Congo 
        to address critical internal political issues, and strengthen 
        processes of state institution building;
            (12) calls on the Government of the Democratic Republic of 
        the Congo, in coordination with the international community, to 
        undertake significant security sector reform, which is a 
        necessary component for lasting stability, and renewed 
        disarmament, demobilization, and reintegration (DDR) efforts 
        that ensure that any rebel troops, especially commanders, 
        responsible for human rights violations are held accountable 
        and not reintegrated into the Armed Forces of the Democratic 
        Republic of the Congo (FARDC); and
            (13) urges the Government of the Democratic Republic of the 
        Congo to improve efforts to protect civilians from armed 
        groups, in cooperation with MONUSCO and the African Union's 
        Regional Cooperation Initiative on the LRA.
                                 <all>