[Congressional Record Volume 160, Number 37 (Wednesday, March 5, 2014)]
[Senate]
[Pages S1325-S1326]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




  SENATE RESOLUTION 375--CONCERNING THE CRISIS IN THE CENTRAL AFRICAN 
REPUBLIC AND SUPPORTING UNITED STATES AND INTERNATIONAL EFFORTS TO END 
    THE VIOLENCE, PROTECT CIVILIANS, AND ADDRESS ROOT CAUSES OF THE 
                                CONFLICT

  Mr. COONS (for himself and Mr. Flake) submitted the following 
resolution; which was referred to the Committee on Foreign Relations:

                              S. Res. 375

       Whereas, for more than 50 years, successive governments in 
     the Central African Republic have struggled to build a 
     durable system of democratic institutions, to effectively 
     secure and control the country's territory and borders, and 
     to ensure a basic level of socio-economic development for the 
     country's people;
       Whereas, despite its natural resource wealth, the Central 
     African Republic remains one of the poorest countries in the 
     world and one of the lowest ranking countries in terms of a 
     human development index according to the United Nations 
     Development Program;
       Whereas, in January 2013, regional leaders brokered the 
     Libreville Agreements between the government of then-
     President Francois Bozize and the loosely allied rebel 
     militia known as Seleka, which resulted in the formation of a 
     government of national unity;
       Whereas, despite the Libreville Agreements, President 
     Bozize was ousted in March 2013 by the Seleka coalition, and 
     the Seleka leader, Michel Djotodia, declared himself 
     president;
       Whereas, in April 2013, regional leaders issued the 
     N'djamena Declaration in an effort to pursue a return to 
     constitutional order based on the Libreville Agreements;
       Whereas an influx of foreign fighters, especially from Chad 
     and Sudan, has been a major factor in the increased number of 
     Seleka fighters, from approximately 5,000 in March 2013, to 
     an estimated 20,000 as of December 2013;
       Whereas both Seleka forces and armed militia groups known 
     as ``anti-balakas'', which formed initially as a means of 
     protecting communities against Seleka, have been implicated 
     in ethnically-motivated violence and grave and systemic human 
     rights abuses against civilians;
       Whereas, over the course of the crisis, Seleka and anti-
     balaka groups have displayed weak control and command 
     structures, and committed war crimes with impunity;
       Whereas, according to UNICEF, thousands of child soldiers 
     are involved in armed groups in the Central African Republic, 
     amid the near-total collapse of the country's primary 
     education system;
       Whereas interethnic, intercommunal, and interreligious 
     tensions and violence have risen to alarming levels and led 
     to systematic human rights abuses in the Central African 
     Republic, including targeted killings, rapes, acts of 
     torture, looting, and arbitrary detention;
       Whereas the United States Embassy in Bangui closed on 
     December 25, 2012, and the ordered departure of country team 
     staff has temporarily suspended the diplomatic presence and 
     consular services of the United States in the Central African 
     Republic;
       Whereas more than 700,000 civilians have been internally 
     displaced; another 230,000 have recently sought refuge in 
     neighboring countries, including the Democratic Republic of 
     the Congo, Chad, Cameroon, and South Sudan; 2,600,000 people, 
     or over half of the population of the Central African 
     Republic, are in need of humanitarian assistance; and 60 
     percent of households have no available food stocks;
       Whereas a failure of the international community to 
     appropriately respond to and address the rapidly 
     deteriorating situation in the Central African Republic could 
     result in further atrocities, mass displacement, and 
     protracted instability with significant repercussions for 
     regional and international security;
       Whereas United Nations Security Council Resolution 2127 
     (2013) called for urgent and increased international 
     assistance to the African Union International Support Mission 
     in the Central African Republic (MISCA) to ensure that the 
     force can fulfill its mandate to restore security and protect 
     civilians, and placed an arms embargo on the Central African 
     Republic;
       Whereas United Nations Security Council Resolution 2127 
     requested the Secretary-General to establish an international 
     commission of inquiry to investigate reports of human rights 
     abuses in the Central African Republic in order to ensure 
     accountability for perpetrators of violence;
       Whereas the United Nations Integrated Peacebuilding Office 
     in the Central African Republic has been hindered by a lack 
     of resources and constrained by insecurity;
       Whereas, consistent with United Nations Security Council 
     Resolution 2127, the Government of France launched a 
     peacekeeping operation, Operation Sangaris, in the Central 
     African Republic to assist MISCA in fulfilling its mandate;
       Whereas, on March 3, 2014, United Nations Secretary-General 
     Ban Ki-moon recommended to the United Nations Security 
     Council a transition to a United Nations peacekeeping mission 
     with a primary mandate to protect civilians; and
       Whereas the United States Government is providing support 
     for conflict resolution efforts, humanitarian assistance to 
     refugees and internally displaced persons, and assistance to 
     troop contributing countries to MISCA in order to restore 
     security in the Central African Republic, primarily by 
     providing airlift, non-lethal equipment, military logistics, 
     and training, as well as logistical support for France: Now, 
     therefore, be it
       Resolved, That the Senate--
       (1) condemns the violence, atrocities, abuses, and human 
     rights violations committed by all parties to the conflict in 
     the Central African Republic;
       (2) commends the efforts of religious and community leaders 
     in the Central African Republic condemning violence and 
     engaging in conflict prevention and conflict resolution 
     activities;
       (3) welcomes the mobilization of international 
     peacekeeping, conflict mitigation, humanitarian, and 
     diplomatic resources, and encourages continued efforts to 
     help address humanitarian needs, bring an end to the 
     violence, and develop sustainable democratic institutions in 
     the Central African Republic;
       (4) welcomes the January 2014 decision of the Transitional 
     National Council on the election of Catherine Samba-Panza as 
     the Central African Republic's new transitional president;
       (5) commends the African Union and its troop and police 
     contributing countries for their work establishing and 
     supporting MISCA;
       (6) recognizes the Economic Community of Central African 
     States (CEEAS) for its leadership in the political transition 
     process;
       (7) commends France for its swift intervention under United 
     Nations Security Council Resolution 2127, and for its 
     contributions to stabilization efforts and other forms of 
     assistance;
       (8) welcomes the United Nations Security Council support 
     for MISCA and the Department of Peacekeeping Operation's 
     ongoing contingency planning for a possible transition to a 
     United Nations peacekeeping operation;
       (9) affirms support for multilateral peacekeeping and 
     policing capacities and recognizes the important 
     contributions these efforts have made in protecting civilians 
     in the Central African Republic and promoting international 
     peace and stability;
       (10) calls on the President to work with international 
     partners to develop a short-term strategy to support a full 
     and immediate cessation of armed conflict in the Central 
     African Republic, including attacks targeting civilians and 
     the recruitment of child soldiers;
       (11) calls on the President to develop a long-term United 
     States strategy, in support of international and domestic 
     efforts, to establish a durable peace and greater security 
     for the Central African Republic and to enhance regional 
     stability, including--
       (A) engagement and coordination with the international 
     community, including the African Union, the Economic 
     Community of Central African States, the United Nations, and 
     other partners;
       (B) appropriate assistance to help provide emergency relief 
     and reconciliation for the people of the Central African 
     Republic;
       (C) technical, logistical and other forms of assistance, as 
     appropriate, in support of effective disarmament, 
     demobilization, and reintegration of fighters; and
       (D) support for appropriate mechanisms to ensure 
     accountability for perpetrators of human rights abuses and 
     violence; and
       (12) urges the Secretary of State to consider the 
     expeditious reestablishment of a United States diplomatic 
     presence in the Central African Republic.

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