[Congressional Record Volume 154, Number 177 (Thursday, November 20, 2008)]
[Senate]
[Pages S10773-S10775]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




   CALLING FOR A CEASEFIRE AND LASTING SOLUTION TO THE CRISIS IN THE 
                      DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC OF CONGO

  Mr. DORGAN. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Senate 
proceed to the immediate consideration of S. Res. 713, which was 
introduced earlier today.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will report the resolution by title.
  The legislative clerk read as follows:

       A resolution (S. Res. 713) calling on all parties to the 
     escalating violence in the eastern Democratic Republic of 
     Congo to implement an immediate ceasefire and work with the 
     support of the international community toward a comprehensive 
     and lasting solution to this crisis.

  There being no objection, the Senate proceeded to consider the 
resolution.
  Mr. FEINGOLD. Mr. President, I wish to express my deep concern about 
the rapidly deteriorating situation in the eastern region of the 
Democratic Republic of Congo. Over recent weeks, eastern Congo has been 
making international headlines since new fighting broke out between the 
Congolese military and rebels loyal to General Laurent Nkunda. The 
rebels overran several government military bases and major towns as 
they surrounded the strategic city of Goma. Meanwhile, the Congolese 
military--a feckless force that often rapes and pillages the very 
people it is meant to protect--retreated, leaving UN peacekeepers to 
fend off the rebels' advance and attempt to protect civilians. 
Fortunately, the rebels stopped before marching on Goma, but the 
situation remains extremely volatile.
  I traveled last year to the very region, North Kivu Province, where 
this violence is taking place and saw firsthand the grave suffering of 
people who have lived through a decade of conflict and humanitarian 
crisis. The numbers are staggering: an estimated 5.4 million deaths 
over the last decade and 1,500 people still dying each day. In 
addition, millions have been displaced from their homes, living in 
squalid camps where children are subject to forced recruitment and 
women suffer unspeakable levels of sexual violence.
  In my travels to many parts of Africa over the years, the suffering 
of women and girls in eastern Congo particularly stands out. I met with 
women and girls who had been gang raped, often leaving them with 
irreparable physical and psychological damage. I met with women who had 
lost their husbands, their homes, and their livelihoods and yet against 
all odds they refused to give up--if only for the sake of their 
children. There may be no worse place to be female than eastern Congo. 
And yet it is the strength of these women that continues to give hope.
  The renewed fighting in eastern Congo is worrisome not only because 
it will further exacerbate this humanitarian tragedy, but also because 
it risks engulfing the neighboring countries in a new regional war. 
Last month, the Congolese Government accused Rwanda of sending troops 
across the border in support of Nkunda's forces. The rebels in turn 
have recently alleged that Angolan and even Zimbabwean troops are 
supporting the Congolese military. Despite vows by these governments to 
avoid another regional conflict, tensions remain high. It is not hard 
to imagine a minor incident sparking a repeat of 1998 when at least six 
neighboring countries were drawn into Congo's war.
  Such a scenario would destabilize the Great Lakes region of Africa. 
Over recent years, the United States and our international partners 
have made significant investments--both financial and diplomatic--to 
assist in consolidating peace and restoring the rule of law in this 
region. No one wants to see those investments lost and the progress 
made reversed, and we may not have to. If we take bold and strategic 
action now, we can prevent a new regional conflict and revive the peace 
process in eastern Congo.
  I was pleased that our top diplomat for Africa, Jendayi Frazer, 
traveled to the region with high-level diplomats from the UK and France 
2 weeks ago. In addition, UN Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon convened an 
emergency summit of regional leaders in Nairobi. But this diplomatic 
engagement must remain consistent and get all key actors, including 
Rwanda, to commit to a clear roadmap for implementing the already 
signed peace agreements. To be successful, we must also establish 
monitoring and verification mechanisms to hold the parties accountable 
and challenge the continued culture of impunity.

[[Page S10774]]

  At the same time, while achieving a political solution is vital to 
ending the crisis in eastern Congo, the international community should 
also take measures to help protect civilians and enforce a ceasefire in 
the short term. The UN Secretary General has called for an additional 
3,000 troops and police specially trained and equipped for rapid 
response to reinforce the peacekeeping force in Congo, known by its 
French acronym MONUC. The United States and other Security Council 
members should act immediately to fulfill those requests. In addition, 
the Security Council should clarify MONUC's mandate to prioritize 
civilian protection and conflict prevention in the east and ensure it 
is implemented equally by all brigades. A renewed MONUC will not only 
save lives, but can also deter military involvement from neighboring 
countries.
  Ultimately though, lasting peace in eastern Congo and the wider 
region will require measures to transform the underlying causes of 
conflict. The continued exploitation of Congo's rich mineral base, 
particularly cassiterite, coltan, and gold, makes war a profitable 
enterprise. The international community should work with governments in 
the region to bring greater transparency and regulation to the trade in 
these minerals. The next administration and Congress must look 
seriously at how the United States can contribute meaningfully to this 
process as it is a critical step toward the larger goal of reforming 
Congo's economic and political institutions.
  Congo has vast potential and its stability can have a positive impact 
across Africa. We have made notable progress in that direction over 
recent years, but we are once again standing at a precipice. In the 
face of a potential regional war, we can no longer rely on piecemeal 
tactics and half-measures. It is time for a comprehensive and concerted 
international effort to ensure protection and basic rights for all 
Congo's people. It is for that reason that
I am today introducing a resolution calling for an immediate ceasefire 
in eastern Congo and a comprehensive solution to this crisis. I am 
pleased to introduce this resolution with the distinguished senior 
Senator from Kansas, who has long been a champion on this issue, and I 
hope our colleagues will join us in this urgent plea for peace.
  Mr. DORGAN. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the 
resolution be agreed to, the preamble be agreed to, and the motions to 
reconsider be laid upon the table, with no intervening action or 
debate, and that any statements related to the measure be printed in 
the Record.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
  The resolution (S. Res. 713) was agreed to.
  The preamble was agreed to.
  The resolution, with its preamble, reads as follows:

                              S. Res. 713

       Whereas the Democratic Republic of Congo was devastated by 
     civil wars lasting from 1996 to 1997 and 1998 to 2003, 
     spawning some of the world's worst human rights violations 
     and involving at least 6 neighboring countries;
       Whereas, despite the signing of a peace agreement and 
     subsequent withdrawal of foreign forces in 2003, eastern 
     Congo has continued to suffer from high levels of poverty, 
     insecurity, and absent or inadequate institutions, allowing 
     armed and criminal groups to operate freely;
       Whereas continuing abuses committed by the national 
     military against civilians in Congo and apparent ties between 
     the military and armed groups in the region have tainted 
     attempts to restore the rule of law in the eastern region of 
     the country;
       Whereas, according to a study by the International Rescue 
     Committee released in January 2008, the conflict and related 
     humanitarian crises in the Democratic Republic of Congo have 
     taken the lives of an estimated 5,400,000 people since 1998 
     and continue to cause as many as 45,000 deaths each month;
       Whereas sexual violence and rape remain a pervasive tool of 
     warfare used by all parties in eastern Congo to terrorize 
     communities, affecting hundreds of thousands of women and 
     girls and frequently resulting in traumatic fistula and other 
     severe genital injuries;
       Whereas the continued plunder and trade of eastern Congo's 
     rich mineral base, notably cassiterite, coltan, and gold, by 
     armed groups and members of the national military make war 
     profitable and undermine peace efforts;
       Whereas the Governments of the Democratic Republic of Congo 
     and Rwanda signed the Nairobi Communique in November 2007, 
     committing to work together to address the continued activity 
     of the Democratic Forces for the Liberation of Rwanda and 
     other armed groups operating in their shared border region;
       Whereas, on January 23, 2008, with the active support of 
     the international community, the Government of the Democratic 
     Republic of Congo, and 22 armed groups in the eastern region 
     signed the Goma accord, committing to an immediate ceasefire 
     and buffer zones for troop disengagement and ultimately 
     disarmament;
       Whereas these agreements together provided the first 
     working framework in years for peace and lasting stability in 
     eastern Congo, but a continued culture of impunity and 
     suspicion has impeded their implementation;
       Whereas the United Nations reported more than 200 
     violations of these agreements between January and July of 
     2008, as well as 2,000 cases of rape and hundreds of people 
     killed;
       Whereas hate speech inciting ethnic violence by local and 
     national leaders in Congo continued during this period, 
     feeding the concerns and perceived insecurity of minority 
     Tutsi communities;
       Whereas, since August 28, 2008, fighting has resumed in 
     North Kivu Province between the national military and the 
     forces of General Laurent Nkunda, known as the National 
     Congress for the Defense of the People, the latter of which 
     has taken control of several government military bases and 
     major towns around the city of Goma;
       Whereas, according to Human Rights Watch, an estimated 
     250,000 people have been forced to flee their homes as a 
     result of this renewed fighting in eastern Congo, often 
     without access to shelter, water, food, and medicine, and 
     adding to the over 1,000,000 people already displaced from 
     North and South Kivu;
       Whereas the United Nations Mission in Congo, known by its 
     French acronym MONUC, has proven unable to protect civilians 
     in light of this new offensive by General Nkunda's forces, 
     causing resentment and protests by local communities;
       Whereas allegations of troops from Angola, Rwanda, and 
     Zimbabwe crossing into eastern Congo have strained existing 
     regional tensions and increased fears of a wider war that 
     could draw other countries from the region into the fighting, 
     as happened in 1998;
       Whereas the United Nations' Special Representative of the 
     Secretary-General for the Democratic Republic of Congo, Alan 
     Doss, and United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon have 
     called for more troops and better capabilities for MONUC to 
     stop the rebel offensive and protect civilians;
       Whereas United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon 
     traveled to Nairobi, Kenya, on November 7, 2008, and convened 
     a summit of regional leaders, including the heads of state of 
     the Democratic Republic of Congo and Rwanda, which led to a 
     joint statement calling for an immediate ceasefire and the 
     creation of humanitarian corridors; and
       Whereas, in 2006, Congress passed the Democratic Republic 
     of the Congo Relief, Security, and Democracy Promotion Act of 
     2006, which was signed into law by President George W. Bush 
     on December 22, 2006 (Public Law 109-456), stating that it is 
     the policy of the United States to work for peace and 
     security throughout the Democratic Republic of Congo by 
     supporting efforts to protect civilians, to disarm illegal 
     armed groups, and to hold accountable individuals, entities, 
     and countries working to destabilize the country: Now, 
     therefore, be it
       Resolved, That the Senate--
       (1) condemns the continuing violence, forcible recruitment 
     of children as soldiers, and abuses against civilians in 
     eastern Democratic Republic of Congo;
       (2) calls on the national military in Congo, the National 
     Congress for the Defense of the People, and all armed groups 
     operating in eastern Congo to cease hostilities, end all 
     human rights abuses, and respect an immediate ceasefire based 
     on the principles of the Goma agreement;
       (3) calls on the Government of the Democratic Republic of 
     Congo to meet its obligations under the Lusaka Agreement of 
     1999, the Pretoria Agreement of 2002, and the Nairobi 
     Communique of 2007 to take action to end the threat posed by 
     the Democratic Forces for the Liberation of Rwanda;
       (4) calls on the Governments of the Democratic Republic of 
     Congo and Rwanda--
       (A) to fully restore bilateral relations;
       (B) to work together to mitigate escalating tensions in the 
     region; and
       (C) to break any ties that still exist between them and 
     illegal armed groups in eastern Congo;
       (5) calls on all governments in the Great Lakes region of 
     Africa and those of the Southern African Development 
     Community to support a peaceful resolution to the crisis 
     while ensuring that the volatile situation does not spark a 
     wider regional war;
       (6) supports the efforts of the United Nations Secretary-
     General, his newly appointed United Nations Special Envoy, 
     former President of Nigeria Olusegun Obasanjo, and the 
     international facilitation team to bring all parties to the 
     negotiating table and establish a clear roadmap to implement 
     the signed peace agreements;
       (7) encourages the international community to take 
     immediate measures to enhance the effectiveness of the United 
     Nations Mission in Congo to protect civilians, specifically 
     through increased troops and additional capabilities as 
     requested by the Secretary-General;

[[Page S10775]]

       (8) urges the President to sustain high-level diplomatic 
     engagement together with the African Union, the European 
     Union, and the United Nations to avert a wider regional war 
     and revive a comprehensive peace process in eastern Congo;
       (9) urges the United States and the international community 
     to develop and support monitoring and verification mechanisms 
     that can hold the parties in Congo accountable to the signed 
     peace agreements, investigate alleged ceasefire violations, 
     and ultimately challenge the continued culture of impunity in 
     Congo; and
       (10) urges the President and the international community to 
     adopt measures to help the regional governments to identify 
     and ultimately address the factors underlying the conflict in 
     eastern Congo, especially weak governance and the 
     exploitation of the region's lucrative minerals.

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