[Congressional Bills 116th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. Res. 188 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

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116th CONGRESS
  1st Session
S. RES. 188

Encouraging a swift transfer of power by the military to a civilian-led 
    political authority in the Republic of the Sudan, and for other 
                               purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                              May 2, 2019

   Mr. Cruz (for himself, Mr. Durbin, Mr. Risch, Mr. Van Hollen, Mr. 
  Cramer, Mr. Blumenthal, Mr. Isakson, Mr. Merkley, Mr. Boozman, Ms. 
Harris, Mr. Young, Mr. Coons, Mr. Roberts, Mr. Cardin, Mr. Hawley, Ms. 
Klobuchar, Mr. Rubio, Mr. Graham, Mr. Peters, and Ms. Smith) submitted 
   the following resolution; which was referred to the Committee on 
                           Foreign Relations

_______________________________________________________________________

                               RESOLUTION


 
Encouraging a swift transfer of power by the military to a civilian-led 
    political authority in the Republic of the Sudan, and for other 
                               purposes.

Whereas the nation of Sudan has endured corrupt and brutal dictatorships for 
        most of its post-independence period since 1956;
Whereas President Omar al-Bashir came to power through a military coup in 1989, 
        and for the next three decades his government was responsible for 
        horrendous crimes in Sudan, especially Darfur, South Kordofan, Blue 
        Nile, and in what is now the Republic of South Sudan;
Whereas the United States Government designated Sudan a State Sponsor of 
        Terrorism on August 12, 1993, for its support to international terrorist 
        organizations and extremists, including elements of what would later be 
        known as al Qaeda;
Whereas more than two decades of civil war between President al-Bashir's 
        government and insurgents in southern Sudan resulted in more than 
        2,000,000 deaths and led to the eventual independence of South Sudan in 
        2011;
Whereas in 2003, President al-Bashir's government launched a ruthless crackdown 
        against insurgents and civilians in Darfur that killed at least 300,000 
        Sudanese and displaced 2,500,000 more, resulting in Congress and the 
        Administration of President George W. Bush in 2004 describing as 
        genocide the Government of Sudan's actions in Darfur;
Whereas in 2011, when conflict resumed in South Kordofan and Blue Nile states, 
        President al-Bashir's government conducted indiscriminate bombings and 
        raided villages, raping and killing civilians, and waged a campaign of 
        forced starvation in the Nuba Mountains region of South Kordofan that 
        displaced as many as 2,000,000 people;
Whereas, while the fighting between government forces and insurgents in Darfur 
        has subsided since 2016, when the government waged a large-scale 
        offensive before declaring a ceasefire, violent attacks against 
        civilians continue and humanitarian access remains restricted in some 
        opposition stronghold areas of Darfur, South Kordofan, and Blue Nile;
Whereas President al-Bashir remains the subject of two outstanding arrest 
        warrants from the International Criminal Court based on charges 
        including five counts of crimes against humanity, two counts of war 
        crimes, and three counts of genocide;
Whereas Sudan's economic crisis risks bringing the national economy to total 
        collapse, further raising the possibility of state failure and broader 
        regional destabilization that could threaten a wide array of United 
        States interests in East and North Africa and the Red Sea regions;
Whereas the people of Sudan have engaged since December 2018 in a wave of 
        peaceful protests throughout the country demanding an end to the 
        hegemony of President al-Bashir's brutal regime;
Whereas President al-Bashir's government unlawfully detained and tortured 
        hundreds of Sudanese during the protests, including political leaders, 
        journalists, doctors, unionists, and youth and women leaders, in 
        violation of the country's constitutional provisions guaranteeing free 
        speech, association, and assembly;
Whereas, on February 22, 2019, President al-Bashir declared a year-long 
        nationwide state of emergency and curfew, dissolving his government and 
        replacing state governors with senior security officers and expanding 
        the powers of Sudan's security forces;
Whereas when protesters in early April challenged President al-Bashir's decrees 
        and gathered in the tens of thousands in front of Sudan's military 
        headquarters in Khartoum to call for an end to the regime, some elements 
        of the security forces tried to disperse the crowds with violence, 
        leading to clashes between internal security forces and the military as 
        some soldiers sought to protect the protesters;
Whereas, on April 11, 2019, after five days of mass protests in front of their 
        headquarters, Sudan's military removed President al-Bashir from office 
        and the country's First Vice President and Minister of Defense, Lt. 
        General Awad Ibn Auf, announced he would lead a Transitional Military 
        Committee (``TMC'') that would rule the country for a two-year 
        transition period, in addition to the suspension of the Constitution, 
        dissolution of the National Assembly, and the imposition of a three-
        month State of Emergency and nightly curfew;
Whereas Lt. General Abdel-Fattah Burnhan, former general inspector of the 
        Sudanese Armed Forces, who replaced Ibn Auf on April 12, 2019, as the 
        Chairman of the Transitional Military Council, said on April 21, 2019, 
        that the council was ``ready to hand over power tomorrow to a civilian 
        government agreed by political forces''; and
Whereas, the African Union Peace and Security Council convened on April 30, 
        2019, and reiterated its conviction that ``a military-led transition in 
        Sudan will be totally unacceptable and contrary to the will and 
        legitimate aspirations'' of the Sudanese people, expressed ``deep 
        regret'' that the military had not stepped aside, and, noting 
        negotiations were underway, demanded that the military hand over power 
        to a civilian-led transitional authority within 60 days: Now, therefore, 
        be it
    Resolved, That the Senate--
            (1) encourages a swift transfer of power by the military to 
        a civilian-led political authority in Sudan that--
                    (A) respects and reflects the legitimate democratic 
                aspirations of the people of Sudan; and
                    (B) engages in a credible process of 
                democratization, governance, and security sector 
                reforms, and is transparent in how it measures such 
                progress;
            (2) calls on the ruling authorities in Sudan to take 
        measurable steps to--
                    (A) respect the right to freedom of association and 
                expression;
                    (B) protect the rights of opposition political 
                parties, journalists, human rights defenders, religious 
                minorities, and nongovernmental organizations to 
                operate without interference;
                    (C) lift the bureaucratic restrictions on and 
                facilitate access for humanitarian relief operations;
                    (D) introduce strong measures to create 
                transparency and address the structural corruption and 
                kleptocracy of the state; and
                    (E) pursue accountability for serious crimes and 
                human rights abuses;
            (3) expresses solidarity with the people of Sudan, and 
        urges the United States Government to provide diplomatic, 
        technical, and targeted financial assistance for efforts to 
        advance a peaceful transfer of power and a civilian-led 
        transition period that allows for the peaceful resolution of 
        Sudan's conflicts and creates the conditions under which timely 
        democratic elections can be held that will meet international 
        standards and be overseen by credible domestic and 
        international electoral observers;
            (4) encourages the African Union to continue supporting the 
        Sudanese people's aspirations for democracy, justice, and 
        peace; and
            (5) emphasizes that until a transition to a credible 
        civilian-led government that reflects the aspirations of the 
        Sudanese people is established, the process to consider 
        removing Sudan from the State Sponsor of Terrorism List, 
        lifting any other remaining sanctions on Sudan, or normalizing 
        relations with the Government of Sudan will continue to be 
        suspended.
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