[Congressional Record Volume 167, Number 194 (Thursday, November 4, 2021)]
[Senate]
[Page S7801]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




   SENATE CONCURRENT RESOLUTION 20--CONDEMNING THE OCTOBER 25, 2021, 
      MILITARY COUP IN SUDAN AND STANDING WITH THE PEOPLE OF SUDAN

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

                             S. Con Res. 20

       Whereas the people of the Republic of Sudan suffered for 
     three decades under the despotic rule of President Omar 
     Hassan Ahmad al-Bashir, whose government was responsible for 
     the suppression of civil liberties, grand corruption, support 
     for international terrorism, and the commission of crimes 
     against humanity and genocide;
       Whereas, throughout 2019, a coalition of Sudanese civic 
     groups, including professional associations, labor unions, 
     community groups, democracy activists, and opposition 
     parties, led a mass protest movement to demand the end of 
     Bashir's reign and the transition to democracy in Sudan;
       Whereas, on April 11, 2019, Sudanese military officers 
     deposed Bashir, and, following continued protests, agreed to 
     form a transitional government in partnership with a civilian 
     pro-democracy coalition on July 17, 2019;
       Whereas, on June 3, 2019, Sudanese forces led by the Rapid 
     Support Forces (RSF), largely comprised of Janjaweed militia 
     involved in genocidal campaigns across Darfur for decades, 
     opened fire on protesters at an army command headquarters in 
     Khartoum, killing at least 127 people, at least 40 of whom 
     were found in the Nile River;
       Whereas the military and civilian elements agreed to a 39-
     month transition to democracy, with a Civilian-Led 
     Transitional Government (CLTG) comprised of a predominantly 
     civilian cabinet led by Prime Minister Abdallah Hamdok, a 
     Sovereign Council, an executive body with civilian and 
     military members chaired for the first half of the 
     transitional period by Lieutenant General Abdel Fattah al-
     Burhan, and a Transitional Legislative Council, which has yet 
     to be formed;
       Whereas the United States and the international community 
     supported Sudan's transition to democracy, with the United 
     States identifying more than $1,000,000,000 in foreign 
     assistance, and the multilateral Friends of Sudan group 
     pledging $1,800,000,000 from roughly 50 countries and 
     international organizations;
       Whereas the CLTG made progress in human rights reforms, 
     including guaranteeing the people of Sudan freedom of 
     religion and gender equality under the transitional 
     constitution, banning female genital mutilation, and 
     decriminalizing apostasy;
       Whereas, in August 2021, when the Sudanese Cabinet ratified 
     the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court (ICC), 
     the CLTG made progress towards ending impunity for abusers of 
     human rights, stating its intention to deliver Omar al-Bashir 
     to the ICC to stand trial for genocide, war crimes, and 
     crimes against humanity, and formed civilian committees to 
     investigate corruption and crimes against humanity 
     perpetrated by the Bashir regime;
       Whereas the transitional government negotiated a peace 
     agreement with several rebel groups, a step towards ending 
     decades of conflict in the regions of Darfur, South Kordofan, 
     and Blue Nile, which killed hundreds of thousands of 
     civilians and left more than 3,000,000 people displaced 
     within Sudan;
       Whereas Sudan continues to face a serious humanitarian 
     situation, with an estimated 13,400,000 people, or 29 percent 
     of the population, in need of humanitarian assistance in 
     2021;
       Whereas Sudan faces a severe economic crisis, exacerbated 
     by the COVID-19 pandemic, which caused the price of food and 
     consumer goods to increase significantly, while austerity 
     measures imposed to stabilize the economy resulted in the 
     reduction or elimination of subsidies for commodities 
     including wheat and fuel;
       Whereas the political tensions between the civilian and 
     military elements and within factions of the civilian 
     coalition undermined the CLTG and contributed to widespread 
     unrest within the Sudanese population relating to a range of 
     issues, including the economic crisis, ethnic and tribal 
     conflict in peripheral regions, and the unsatisfactory pace 
     of reforms;
       Whereas, on September 21, 2021, some members of the 
     military reportedly attempted a coup d'etat against the 
     transitional government, which failed to depose the 
     government but succeeded in precipitating the most serious 
     political crisis of the transition period;
       Whereas, on October 21, 2021, hundreds of thousands of 
     people across Sudan demonstrated in support of democratic 
     civilian rule, to counter a smaller protest days prior 
     demanding the military take complete control of the 
     government;
       Whereas, on October 25, 2021, Lieutenant General Burhan, 
     with the support of General Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo, also known 
     as ``Hemedti'', seized control of the government, deployed 
     the military to the streets of Khartoum and Omdurman, and 
     arrested and detained Prime Minister Hamdok and other 
     civilian officials;
       Whereas the African Union Peace and Security Council 
     convened on October 27, 2021, strongly condemned the coup, 
     reaffirmed the mandate of the CLTG, and subsequently 
     suspended Sudan from the regional body ``with immediate 
     effect. . . until the effective restoration'' of the CLTG;
       Whereas the actions of Lieutenant General Burhan and the 
     Sudanese military violate Sudan's Constitutional Charter and 
     threaten to plunge Sudan into isolation and instability;
       Whereas the United States Government publicly condemned the 
     coup, suspended its foreign assistance to Sudan, and urged 
     Lieutenant General Burhan and his accomplices to restore the 
     CLTG and return Sudan to the path to democracy; and
       Whereas, the Troika (the United States, United Kingdom, 
     Norway), the European Union, and Switzerland ``continue to 
     recognize the Prime Minister and his cabinet as the 
     constitutional leaders of the transitional government'' and 
     ``confirm once again the international calls for the 
     immediate return to the roadmap for democratic transition of 
     Sudan'': Now, therefore, be it
       Resolved by the Senate (the House of Representatives 
     concurring), That Congress--
       (1) condemns the October 25, 2021, coup in Sudan;
       (2) stands with the people of Sudan in their democratic 
     aspirations;
       (3) recognizes the Prime Minister and his cabinet as the 
     constitutional leaders of Sudan's transitional government;
       (4) calls for Sudan's military junta to--
       (A) immediately release all civilian government officials, 
     civil society members, and other individuals detained in 
     connection with the coup;
       (B) return to constitutional rule under the transitional 
     constitution as the starting point for negotiations with 
     civilians toward full civilian rule;
       (C) lift the state of emergency, including complete 
     restoration of all means of communication;
       (D) remove all roadblocks and checkpoints, and order the 
     Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) and RSF to stand down and comply 
     with international recognized rules of engagement;
       (E) ensure security forces respect the right to peaceful 
     protest and hold those who used excessive force and committed 
     other abuses accountable in a transparent, credible process;
       (F) cease all attempts to change the civilian composition 
     of the cabinet, Sovereign Council, and other government 
     bodies; and
       (G) transfer leadership of the Sovereign Council to a 
     civilian member of the Sovereign Council in keeping with the 
     transitional constitution;
       (5) calls on the Secretary of State to--
       (A) immediately identify coup leaders, their accomplices, 
     and enablers for consideration for targeted sanctions;
       (B) urge junta leaders to return immediately to the rule of 
     law as set forth by the transitional constitution;
       (C) monitor, discourage, and deter any effort by external 
     parties to support the coup and the military junta;
       (D) coordinate with--
       (i) the Administrator of the United States Agency for 
     International Development and other Federal Government 
     agencies to pause all non-humanitarian bilateral assistance 
     to Sudan until restoration of the transitional constitutional 
     order;
       (ii) the Department of the Treasury to use the voice and 
     vote of the United States in international financial 
     institutions to suspend all actions related to non-
     humanitarian loans or debt relief to Sudan until restoration 
     of the transitional constitutional order; and
       (iii) the United States Permanent Representative to the 
     United Nations to ensure the United Nations Security Council 
     is seized of the matter on an ongoing basis; and
       (E) work with the Troika to engage members of the 
     international community to join these United States actions; 
     and
       (6) calls on international partners to--
       (A) join United States efforts to impose targeted sanctions 
     on the junta and other accomplices to the coup, monitor, 
     discourage, and deter any effort by external parties to 
     support the junta, and urge junta leaders to return to the 
     rule of law as set forth by the transitional constitution; 
     and
       (B) suspend Sudan's participation in all regional 
     multilateral organizations until Sudan is returned to 
     constitutional rule under the transitional constitution.

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