[Congressional Record Volume 161, Number 122 (Thursday, July 30, 2015)]
[Senate]
[Pages S6192-S6193]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




SENATE RESOLUTION 237--CONDEMNING JOSEPH KONY AND THE LORD'S RESISTANCE 
ARMY FOR CONTINUING TO PERPETRATE CRIMES AGAINST HUMANITY, WAR CRIMES, 
   AND MASS ATROCITIES, AND SUPPORTING ONGOING EFFORTS BY THE UNITED 
  STATES GOVERNMENT, THE AFRICAN UNION, AND GOVERNMENTS AND REGIONAL 
   ORGANIZATIONS IN CENTRAL AFRICA TO REMOVE JOSEPH KONY AND LORD'S 
RESISTANCE ARMY COMMANDERS FROM THE BATTLEFIELD AND PROMOTE PROTECTION 
                  AND RECOVERY OF AFFECTED COMMUNITIES

  Mr. BOOZMAN (for himself, Mr. Durbin, Mr. Inhofe, Mr. Isakson, Mr. 
Rounds, Ms. Baldwin, Mr. Peters, Mr. Markey, and Mr. Hatch) submitted 
the following resolution; which was referred to the Committee on 
Foreign Relations:

                              S. Res. 237

       Whereas the Lord's Resistance Army, which first formed in 
     northern Uganda, continues its reign of terror in the 
     Democratic Republic of the Congo, the Central African 
     Republic, and South Sudan, destabilizing the region and 
     deliberately killing at least 2,400 civilians since 2008, 
     many of whom were targeted in schools and churches;
       Whereas atrocities committed by the Lord's Resistance Army 
     have resulted in the rape and brutal mutilation of countless 
     men, women, and children; the abduction of over 70,000 
     civilians, including at least 30,000 children, many of whom 
     were forced to become child soldiers or sex slaves; the 
     continued displacement of more than 200,000 civilians from 
     their homes, many of whom do not have access to essential 
     humanitarian assistance; and the general deterioration of 
     governance and security in affected areas;
       Whereas insecurity caused by the Lord's Resistance Army has 
     undermined efforts by the African Union and governments in 
     the region, which have been supported by the United States 
     and the international community, to consolidate peace and 
     stability in each of the countries affected by the Lord's 
     Resistance Army;
       Whereas the Lord's Resistance Army engages in elephant 
     poaching and the violent pillaging of natural resources in 
     the Democratic Republic of the Congo and the Central African 
     Republic, using the profits from its sales of ivory, gold, 
     and diamonds to fund its operations and the purchase of 
     munitions;
       Whereas the senior core command structure of the Lord's 
     Resistance Army remains functional and the 2005 arrest 
     warrant issued by the International Criminal Court against 
     Joseph Kony for war crimes and crimes against humanity 
     remains pending, as testimony to the continued threat faced 
     by the region;
       Whereas the Senate remains dedicated to the commitment 
     established in the Lord's Resistance Army Disarmament and 
     Northern Uganda Recovery Act of 2009 (Public Law 111-172; 22 
     U.S.C. 2151 note) by working with regional governments toward 
     a comprehensive and permanent resolution to the conflict in 
     northern Uganda and other affected areas through the 
     provision of political, economic, military, and intelligence 
     support to protect civilians, apprehend or remove Joseph Kony 
     and his top commanders from the battlefield, and disarm and 
     demobilize the remaining Lord's Resistance Army fighters;
       Whereas, in June 2012, the United Nations Security Council 
     endorsed the Regional Strategy of the United Nations to bring 
     an end to the Lord's Resistance Army by focusing on the 
     implementation of the Regional Cooperation Initiative of the 
     African Union and to support the governments affected by the 
     ongoing conflict;
       Whereas, on September 18 and 19, 2012, the Governments of 
     the Central African Republic, South Sudan, and the Republic 
     of Uganda dedicated contingents of their armed forces to a 
     unified African Union Regional Task Force mandated to 
     permanently end the Lord's Resistance Army threat, with the 
     Government of the Democratic Republic of the Congo following 
     suit on February 14, 2013;
       Whereas Joseph Kony remains a Specially Designated Global 
     Terrorist and, on January 15, 2013, the Department of State 
     under its Rewards for Justice Program announced a reward for 
     information leading to Kony's arrest or conviction;
       Whereas, on December 10, 2014, the United Nations Security 
     Council issued a presidential statement welcoming the 
     continued advisory and logistical support provided by the 
     United States to the African Union Regional Task Force, while 
     noting continued reports of the presence of senior Lord's 
     Resistance Army leaders in the disputed Kafia Kingi enclave 
     and reports of opportunistic collaboration between the Lord's 
     Resistance Army and ex-Seleka forces in the Central African 
     Republic;
       Whereas, on March 25, 2014, President Barack Obama notified 
     Congress of the increased commitment of approximately 250 
     members of the United States Armed Forces to the Regional 
     Task Force to assist regional forces in their efforts to 
     protect civilians, encourage defections from the Lord's 
     Resistance Army, and bring Joseph Kony and his senior 
     leadership to justice;
       Whereas reports from nongovernmental organizations 
     operating on the ground indicate that local communities and 
     civil society leaders in the region have welcomed and 
     continue to support the presence and continued assistance of 
     United States military advisors;
       Whereas, due to the continued efforts of the Regional Task 
     Force of the African Union and United States military 
     advisors, killings carried out by the Lord's Resistance Army 
     have dropped 90 percent since 2011 and approximately 25 
     percent of the core fighting force of the Lord's Resistance 
     Army has defected or been otherwise removed from the 
     battlefield since January 2013;
       Whereas over 120 women and children held in long-term 
     captivity by the Lord's Resistance Army escaped from the 
     rebel group in 2014;
       Whereas reports from nongovernmental organizations and the 
     United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian 
     Affairs demonstrate an increase in attacks and abductions by 
     the Lord's Resistance Army in 2014 compared to 2013, as well 
     as an increase in internally displaced persons in the 
     northeastern region of the Democratic Republic of the Congo 
     in late 2014;
       Whereas the African Union Regional Task Force reported in 
     January 2015 that Okot Odhiambo, a senior Lord's Resistance 
     Army officer indicted by the International Criminal Court on 
     charges of war crimes and crimes against humanity, was killed 
     in battle in 2013;
       Whereas, on January 5, 2015, Dominic Ongwen, a senior 
     Lord's Resistance Army officer indicted by the International 
     Criminal Court on charges of war crimes and crimes against 
     humanity, defected to forces from the United States and 
     African Union Regional Task Force;
       Whereas the inability of the Central African Republic and 
     the Democratic Republic of the Congo to defuse violence, 
     establish legitimate and effective governance, or achieve 
     basic development objectives throughout their countries has 
     provided safe haven for the Lord's Resistance Army and the 
     failure to immediately de-escalate and resolve the broader 
     national crisis risks eclipsing gains made by United States 
     efforts to prevent atrocities in the southeastern region of 
     the Central African Republic; and
       Whereas targeted United States assistance and leadership 
     has made a significant impact on preventing further mass 
     atrocities and curtailing humanitarian suffering in central 
     Africa and must be reinforced to maintain these gains: Now, 
     therefore, be it
       Resolved, That the Senate--
       (1) condemns Joseph Kony and the Lord's Resistance Army for 
     continuing to perpetrate crimes against humanity and mass 
     atrocities, and supports ongoing efforts by the United 
     States, the African Union, the international community, and 
     governments in central Africa to remove Joseph Kony and 
     Lord's Resistance Army commanders from the battlefield and 
     promote protection and recovery for affected communities;

[[Page S6193]]

       (2) commends the continued efforts by the African Union, 
     the United Nations, and regional partners to end the threat 
     posed by the Lord's Resistance Army;
       (3) supports efforts to provide the Regional Task Force 
     with the logistics support and authorizations needed to 
     access all areas of suspected Lord's Resistance Army activity 
     in the Central African Republic and the Democratic Republic 
     of the Congo;
       (4) urges the President to reauthorize the deployment of 
     United States Armed Forces personnel in support of Operation 
     Observant Compass until senior Lord's Resistance Army 
     commanders are removed from the battlefield and the group no 
     longer poses a significant threat to civilians;
       (5) urges the Secretary of State and the Secretary of 
     Defense to support the African Union and the Regional Task 
     Force, as well as regional partners, in their efforts to deny 
     the Lord's Resistance Army safe haven in Sudan and in the 
     disputed Kafia Kingi enclave, by expanding defection 
     messaging initiatives, urging the African Union to engage 
     more proactively in diplomatic outreach to the Government of 
     Sudan, and removing Joseph Kony and his top commanders from 
     the battlefield through the sharing of intelligence and other 
     military assistance;
       (6) urges the African Union and the Regional Task Force, 
     with the support of the European Union, as well as the 
     Governments of Uganda, South Sudan, the Central African 
     Republic, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo, to 
     implement the Regional Strategy of the United Nations by--
       (A) fully implementing the Regional Cooperation Initiative 
     developed by the African Union to bring an end to the Lord's 
     Resistance Army;
       (B) enhancing efforts to promote the protection of 
     civilians in all areas in which the Lord's Resistance Army 
     operates; and
       (C) broadening current efforts of disarmament, 
     demobilization, repatriation, resettlement, and reintegration 
     to all areas affected by the Lord's Resistance Army, as well 
     as humanitarian and child protection efforts;
       (7) welcomes the continued defections of men, women, and 
     children from the Lord's Resistance Army, and calls on 
     governments in the region and the international community to 
     support their demobilization and safe return;
       (8) calls on the Secretary of State, the Secretary of 
     Defense, the Administrator of the United States Agency for 
     International Development, and the heads of other relevant 
     United States Government agencies to utilize authorized and 
     appropriated funds--
       (A) to continue efforts to enhance intelligence, 
     surveillance, and reconnaissance support to the African Union 
     Regional Task Force, and specifically to encourage additional 
     enablers and actionable intelligence to increase the 
     effectiveness of partner operations;
       (B) to work with the United Nations, the African Union, and 
     regional government partners to encourage and help non-
     indicted Lord's Resistance Army members, abductees, and 
     noncombatants to defect safely from the group through the 
     distribution of aerial leaflets, the broadcast of ``come 
     home'' radio programs, and the continuation of flights 
     utilizing helicopter-based speaker systems over known areas 
     of Lord's Resistance Army operation;
       (C) to expand efforts to prevent the Lord's Resistance Army 
     from funding its operations through the theft and trade of 
     illicit ivory, gold, and diamonds; and
       (D) to support rehabilitation and reintegration programs 
     led by nongovernmental organizations and regional government 
     partners for children, youth, and adults that have been 
     abducted and indoctrinated by the Lord's Resistance Army;
       (9) commends those members of the United States Armed 
     Forces previously or currently deployed to serve in support 
     of Operation Observant Compass for their critical 
     contributions to efforts to remove Joseph Kony and Lord's 
     Resistance Army commanders from the battlefield, protect 
     civilians, and encourage members of the Lord's Resistance 
     Army to peacefully defect; and
       (10) urges the President, with input from United States 
     Government agencies, regional governments, multilateral 
     partners, and nongovernmental organizations, to develop a 
     strategy aimed at supporting sustainable recovery and 
     security within areas affected by the Lord's Resistance Army, 
     with existing resources, and in partnership with other donors 
     and multilateral bodies, including the World Bank, the 
     European Union, and others.

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