[Congressional Record Volume 150, Number 97 (Wednesday, July 14, 2004)]
[House]
[Pages H5765-H5767]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                  NORTHERN UGANDA CRISIS RESPONSE ACT

  Mr. ROYCE. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the 
Senate bill (S. 2264) to require a report on the conflict in Uganda, 
and for other purposes.
  The Clerk read as follows:

                                S. 2264

       Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of 
     the United States of America in Congress assembled,

     SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

       This Act may be cited as the ``Northern Uganda Crisis 
     Response Act''.

     SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

       Congress makes the following findings:
       (1) The United States and the Republic of Uganda enjoy a 
     strong bilateral relationship and continue to work closely 
     together in fighting the human immunodeficiency virus and 
     acquired immune deficiency syndrome (``HIV/AIDS'') pandemic 
     and combating international terrorism.
       (2) For more than 17 years, the Government of Uganda has 
     been engaged in a conflict with the Lord's Resistance Army 
     that has inflicted hardship and suffering on the people of 
     northern and eastern Uganda.
       (3) The members of the Lord's Resistance Army have used 
     brutal tactics during this conflict, including abducting and 
     forcing individuals into sexual servitude, and forcing a 
     large number of children, estimated to be between 16,000 and 
     26,000 children, in Uganda to serve in such Army's military 
     forces.
       (4) The Secretary of State has designated the Lord's 
     Resistance Army as a terrorist organization and placed the 
     Lord's Resistance Army on the Terrorist Exclusion list 
     pursuant to section 212(a)(3) of the Immigration and 
     Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1182(a)(3)).
       (5) According to Human Rights Watch, since the mid-1990s 
     the only known sponsor of the Lord's Resistance Army has been 
     the Government of Sudan, though such Government denies 
     providing assistance to the Lord's Resistance Army.
       (6) More than 1,000,000 people have been displaced from 
     their homes in Uganda as a result of the conflict.
       (7) The conflict has resulted in a lack of security for the 
     people of Uganda, and as a result of such lack, each night 
     more than 18,000 children leave their homes and flee to the 
     relative safety of town centers, creating a massive ``night 
     commuter'' phenomenon that leaves already vulnerable children 
     subject to exploitation and abuse.
       (8) Individuals who have been displaced by the conflict in 
     Uganda often suffer from acute malnutrition and the mortality 
     rate for children in northern Uganda who have been displaced 
     is very high.
       (9) In the latter part of 2003, humanitarian and human 
     rights organizations operating in northern Uganda reported an 
     increase in violence directed at their efforts and at 
     civilians, including a sharp increase in child abductions.
       (10) The Government of Uganda's military efforts to resolve 
     this conflict, including the arming and training of local 
     militia forces, have not ensured the security of civilian 
     populations in the region to date.
       (11) The continued instability and lack of security in 
     Uganda has severely hindered the ability of any organization 
     or governmental entity to deliver regular humanitarian 
     assistance and services to individuals who have been 
     displaced or otherwise negatively affected by the conflict.

     SEC. 3. SENSE OF CONGRESS.

       It is the sense of Congress that the Government of the 
     United States should--
       (1) work vigorously to support ongoing efforts to explore 
     the prospects for a peaceful resolution of the conflict in 
     northern and eastern Uganda;
       (2) work with the Government of Uganda and the 
     international community to make available sufficient 
     resources to meet the immediate relief and development needs 
     of the towns and cities in Uganda that are supporting large 
     numbers of people who have been displaced by the conflict;
       (3) urge the Government of Uganda and the international 
     community to assume greater responsibility for the protection 
     of civilians and economic development in regions in Uganda 
     affected by the conflict, and to place a high priority on 
     providing security, economic development, and humanitarian 
     assistance to the people of Uganda;
       (4) work with the international community, the Government 
     of Uganda, and civil society in northern and eastern Uganda 
     to develop a plan whereby those now displaced may return to 
     their homes or to other locations where they may become 
     economically productive;
       (5) urge the leaders and members of the Lord's Resistance 
     Army to stop the abduction of children, and urge all armed 
     forces in Uganda to stop the use of child soldiers, and seek 
     the release of all individuals who have been abducted;
       (6) make available increased resources for assistance to 
     individuals who were abducted during the conflict, child 
     soldiers, and other children affected by the conflict;
       (7) work with the Government of Uganda, other countries, 
     and international organizations to ensure that sufficient 
     resources and technical support are devoted to the 
     demobilization and reintegration of rebel combatants and 
     abductees forced by their captors to serve in non-combatant 
     support roles;
       (8) cooperate with the international community to support 
     civil society organizations and leaders in Uganda, including 
     Acholi religious leaders, who are working toward a just and 
     lasting resolution to the conflict;
       (9) urge the Government of Uganda to improve the 
     professionalism of Ugandan military personnel currently 
     stationed in northern and eastern Uganda, with an emphasis on 
     respect for human rights, accountability for abuses, and 
     effective civilian protection;
       (10) work with the international community to assist 
     institutions of civil society in Uganda to increase the 
     capacity of such institutions to monitor the human rights 
     situation in northern Uganda and to raise awareness of abuses 
     of human rights that occur in that area;
       (11) urge the Government of Uganda to permit international 
     human rights monitors to establish a presence in northern and 
     eastern Uganda;
       (12) monitor the creation of civilian militia forces in 
     northern and eastern Uganda and publicize any concerns 
     regarding the recruitment of children into such forces or the 
     potential that the establishment of such forces will invite 
     increased targeting of civilians in the conflict or 
     exacerbate ethnic tension and violence; and
       (13) make clear that the relationship between the 
     Government of Sudan and the Government of the United States 
     cannot improve unless no credible evidence indicates that 
     authorities of the Government of Sudan are complicit in 
     efforts to provide weapons or other support to the Lord's 
     Resistance Army.

     SEC. 4. REPORT.

       (a) Requirements.--Not later than 6 months after the date 
     of enactment of this Act, the Secretary of State shall submit 
     a report to the appropriate congressional committees on the 
     conflict in Uganda.
       (b) Content.--The report required by subsection (a) shall 
     include a description of the following:
       (1) The individuals or entities that are providing 
     financial and material support for the Lord's Resistance 
     Army, including a description of any such support provided by 
     the Government of Sudan or by senior officials of such 
     Government.
       (2) The activities of the Lord's Resistance Army that 
     create obstacles that prohibit the provision of humanitarian 
     assistance or the protection of the civilian population in 
     Uganda.
       (3) The practices employed by the Ugandan People's Defense 
     Forces in northern and eastern Uganda to ensure that children 
     and civilians are protected, that civilian complaints are 
     addressed, and that any member of the armed forces that 
     abuses a civilian is held accountable for such abuse.
       (4) The actions carried out by the Government of the United 
     States, the Government

[[Page H5766]]

     of Uganda, or the international community to protect 
     civilians, especially women and children, who have been 
     displaced by the conflict in Uganda, including women and 
     children that leave their homes and flee to cities and towns 
     at night in search of security from sexual exploitation and 
     gender-based violence.
       (c) Form of Report.--The report under subsection (a) shall 
     be submitted in unclassified form, but may include a 
     classified annex.
       (d) Appropriate Congressional Committees Defined.--In this 
     section, the term ``appropriate congressional committees'' 
     means the Committee on Foreign Relations of the Senate and 
     the Committee on International Relations of the House of 
     Representatives.

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from 
California (Mr. Royce) and the gentleman from California (Mr. Lantos) 
each will control 20 minutes.
  The Chair recognizes the gentleman from California (Mr. Lantos).


                             General Leave

  Mr. ROYCE. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may 
have 5 legislative days within which to revise and extend their remarks 
and include extraneous material on S. 2264.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the 
gentleman from California?
  There was no objection.
  Mr. ROYCE. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
  We are urging support for S. 2264, the Northern Uganda Crisis 
Response Act, and we are doing that because for the past 18 years 
Northern Uganda has been embroiled in a particularly vicious conflict, 
one which pits Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni's efforts at 
governance against a group called the Lord's Resistance Army. And the 
Lord's Resistance Army, designated as a terrorist organization by the 
Secretary of State, moves in small, well-coordinated groups from bases 
in southern Sudan, launching brutal attacks against civilian 
populations. They launch these attacks at night.
  Members of the Lord's Resistance Army have no clear political agenda; 
and, frankly, they make no attempts to hold territory. But what they do 
do and have done for these last 18 years is to murder and rape and loot 
with impunity.
  The devastation inflicted upon the civilian population during this 
war cannot be overstated. Frankly, it is unknown how many people have 
been killed, but we do know that more than 1.2 million people, 80 
percent of the local population, have been displaced by the Lord's 
Resistance Army. Over 1.8 million people depend on food aid in an area 
that once served as the breadbasket of Uganda, and acute malnutrition 
of children under the age of 5 has risen 30 percent since December, 
2002.
  Humanitarian operations have been severely hampered by the 
increasingly tenuous security situation there in Northern Uganda. Aid 
convoys regularly come under attack; and, according to the United 
Nations, they can now only deliver materials under heavy military 
escort. Up to 90 percent of the schools in affected districts have been 
closed.
  The HIV/AIDS prevalence rate in the Gulu District, a district 
particularly hard-hit by the crisis, is 30 percent, while the national 
average is just 5 percent. Many of us are aware of the progress made 
under President Museveni in fighting HIV/AIDS nationwide in Uganda 
where it has been reduced.

                              {time}  2115

  But not in this district where the Lord's Resistance Army operates at 
night.
  Perhaps the most heart-wrenching aspect of this conflict has been the 
impact it has had on the children. Up to 20,000 children have been 
abducted since the start of this conflict. Many have been killed while 
others have been beaten and tortured and maimed and forced to be 
soldiers or sexual slaves.
  Between 20,000 to 30,000 other children are forced every evening to 
seek refuge on the streets of Gulu and Pader and Kitgum. They walk up 
to 15 kilometers from their villages to spend the night sleeping under 
grossly overcrowded tents on concrete floors, before giving up at dawn 
to make the return to their village. These children have never known 
peace. They have never known stability. They have never had the luxury 
of being a child and experiencing the joys of childhood.
  According to Jan Egeland, the United Nations Under Secretary General 
for Humanitarian Affairs, the conflict in northern Uganda ``is 
characterized by a level of cruelty seldom seen and few conflicts rival 
it for sheer brutality.'' Given the horrific nature of the crimes 
perpetrated by the Lord's Resistance Army, I have no doubt that that 
statement is true. Despite this, the magnitude of the crisis is not 
well grasped outside of the region, and international response, 
frankly, has been underwhelming.
  The Northern Ugandan Crisis Response Act, this bill, draws much-
needed attention to the forgotten war in northern Uganda. It reaffirms 
the strong relationship which exists between the United States and 
Uganda while recognizing that the government of Uganda's military 
efforts to resolve the conflict have not effectively ensured the 
security of civilian populations.
  The bill calls on the government of Uganda to improve the level of 
professionalism within the Ugandan People's Defense Force and to permit 
international human rights monitors to establish a presence in northern 
and eastern Uganda.
  The bill acknowledges that, according to Human Rights Watch, the 
government of Sudan has been the only known supporter of the Lord's 
Resistance Army since the early 1990s. To this end, it calls on the 
administration to investigate the sources of support for the Lord's 
Resistance Army and to make it clear to the government of Sudan that 
normalization of relations will not be possible if credible evidence 
against these sources again emerges.
  S. 2264 asserts that the United States should work vigorously to 
support peace initiatives in northern Uganda. It urges the United 
States Government, the international community, and the government of 
Uganda to make resources available to meet immediate relief and 
development needs and to provide civilian protection and to develop 
reintegration plans for displaced persons to integrate them back into 
society, and for combatants and for abductees and to provide support in 
general for civil society.
  Finally, the bill requires the Secretary of State to submit a report 
to the Congress which describes not only the sources of support for the 
Lord's Resistance Army but also the activities undertaken by the Lord's 
Resistance Army which obstruct humanitarian assistance, the practices 
employed by the UPDF to ensure civilian protection, and to punish 
soldiers who are themselves guilty of abuse, and the actions taken by 
the Ugandan government, the United States and the international 
community to ensure civilian protection.
  This bill is the result of a collaborative effort and enjoys strong 
bipartisan, bicameral support; and we thank the gentleman from 
Wisconsin in the Senate, Mr. Feingold, for introducing this timely and 
important measure; and here on the House floor, we urge full support.
  Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. LANTOS. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I might consume, 
and I rise in strong support of this legislation.
  First, I want to commend my good friend and colleague, the gentleman 
from California (Mr. Royce), for his leadership on this issue, and 
indeed on so many other matters.
  Mr. Speaker, the terrorist organization known as the Lord's 
Resistance Army has turned northern Uganda into a living hell for the 
Acholi people, and particularly their children, for years now. Under 
the ruthless and delusional leadership of Joseph Kony, this terrorist 
organization maintains a vicious hit-and-run guerrilla war with the 
Ugandan government where the overwhelming casualties are the Acholi 
people, particularly kidnapped boys and girls.
  While Kony invokes the name of God in his unholy war against innocent 
civilians, it has been the backing of the Sudanese government in 
Khartoum that has kept this war going for so many years.
  Several months ago, our committee hosted a young woman, Grace Akallo, 
who was abducted by this terrorist group at age 13 and was forced to 
live as a sex slave. As part of her induction,

[[Page H5767]]

she, along with other girls, were forced to beat an old woman to death. 
After living that nightmare, she then was taken to southern Sudan, 
trained by the Arabs, as she called them, and forced to fight for 
Khartoum against the Sudanese People's Liberation Army.
  Grace escaped this terrorist group and the Sudanese forces, and on 
her own made her way to a safe place in Uganda. She will be going to 
school next year here in the United States. However, as moving and 
heroic as Grace's story is, it is the extreme exception. The more 
common and familiar story for a young Acholi girl captured by this 
terrorist outfit is rape, other physical brutality, slavery, and a 
broken life.
  Mr. Speaker, with approval of this resolution today, Congress will 
stand fast in the face of the horrors perpetrated directly or 
indirectly by Khartoum by demanding an end to the conflict in northern 
Uganda. We will also strongly signal to the administration and to the 
international community that every possible step must be taken to 
protect peace and the security of these children.
  Mr. Speaker, I urge all of my colleagues to support this important 
bill.
  Mr. Speaker, we have no further speakers on this side, and I yield 
back the balance of my time.
  Mr. ROYCE. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume, 
and I will conclude.
  The conflict in northern Uganda does not receive much attention in 
the press; and, frankly, it does not receive the attention it deserves.
  Today, the U.S. Congress is speaking out, going on record in saying 
that we have an interest in helping to stop the savagery that is 
devastating so many lives.
  I want to just take a moment and thank my colleague, the gentleman 
from California (Mr. Lantos), for his support on this resolution, but 
wider than that, for his leadership on so many of the most vexing and 
troublesome of gross human rights violations around the world which he 
has consistently brought to the world's attention.
  Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore (Mr. Franks of Arizona). The question is on 
the motion offered by the gentleman from California (Mr. Royce) that 
the House suspend the rules and pass the Senate bill, S. 2264.
  The question was taken.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. In the opinion of the Chair, two-thirds of 
those present have voted in the affirmative.
  Mr. LANTOS. Mr. Speaker, on that I demand the yeas and nays.
  The yeas and nays were ordered.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to clause 8 of rule XX and the 
Chair's prior announcement, further proceedings on this motion will be 
postponed.

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