[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 150 (2004), Part 7]
[Senate]
[Pages 8625-8630]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




         CONDEMNING THE GOVERNMENT OF THE REPUBLIC OF THE SUDAN

  Mr. FRIST. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Senate 
proceed to the immediate consideration of Calendar No. 497, S. Con. 
Res. 99.
  The PRESIDENT pro tempore. The clerk will report the concurrent 
resolution by title.
  The legislative clerk read as follows:

       A concurrent resolution (S. Con. Res. 99) condemning the 
     Government of the Republic of the Sudan for its participation 
     and complicity in the attacks against innocent civilians in 
     the impoverished Darfur region of western Sudan.

  There being no objection, the Senate proceeded to consider the 
concurrent resolution, which had been reported from the Committee on 
Foreign Relations with an amendment and an amendment to the preamble:

       (Strike the parts shown in black brackets and insert the 
     parts printed in italic.)

                            S. Con. Res. 99

       [Whereas, since early 2003, a conflict between forces of 
     the Government of the Republic of the Sudan, including 
     militia forces backed by the Government, and rebel forces in 
     the impoverished Darfur region of western Sudan has resulted 
     in attacks by ground and air forces of the Government of 
     Sudan against innocent civilians and undefended villages in 
     the region;
       [Whereas the militia forces backed by the Government of 
     Sudan have also engaged in the use of rape as a weapon of 
     war, the abduction of children, the destruction of food and 
     water sources, and the deliberate and systematic manipulation 
     and denial of humanitarian assistance for the people of the 
     Darfur region;
       [Whereas United Nations officials and nongovernmental 
     organizations have indicated that the humanitarian situation 
     in the Darfur region is extremely urgent, particularly in 
     light of restrictions by the Government of Sudan on the 
     delivery of humanitarian assistance for the people of the 
     region;
       [Whereas, on December 18, 2003, United Nations 
     Undersecretary General for Humanitarian Affairs Jan Egeland 
     declared that the Darfur region was probably ``the world's 
     worst humanitarian catastrophe'';
       [Whereas, on February 17, 2004, Amnesty International 
     reported that it ``continues to receive details of horrifying 
     attacks against civilians in villages by government 
     warplanes, soldiers, and pro-government militia'';
       [Whereas, on February 18, 2004, United Nations Special 
     Envoy for Humanitarian Affairs in Sudan Tom Eric Vraalsen 
     declared, following a trip to the Darfur region, that ``aid 
     workers are unable to reach the vast majority [of the 
     displaced]'';
       [Whereas Doctors Without Borders, the Nobel Peace Prize-
     winning medical humanitarian relief organization and one of 
     the few aid groups on the ground in the Darfur region, 
     reported that the region is the scene of ``catastrophic 
     mortality rates''; and
       [Whereas nearly 3,000,000 people affected by the conflict 
     in the Darfur region have remained beyond the reach of aid 
     agencies trying to provide essential humanitarian assistance, 
     and United Nations aid agencies estimate that they have been 
     able to reach only 15 percent of people in need and that more 
     than 700,000 people have been displaced within Sudan in the 
     past year: Now, therefore, be it]
       Whereas, since early 2003, a conflict between forces of the 
     Government of the Republic of the Sudan, including militia 
     forces backed by the Government, and rebel forces in the 
     impoverished Darfur region of western Sudan has resulted in 
     attacks by ground and air forces of the Government of Sudan 
     against innocent civilians and undefended villages in the 
     region;
       Whereas the militia forces backed by the Government of 
     Sudan have also engaged in the use of rape as a weapon of 
     war, the abduction of children, the destruction of food and 
     water sources, and the deliberate and systematic manipulation 
     and denial of humanitarian assistance for the people of the 
     Darfur region;
       Whereas, on December 18, 2003, United Nations 
     Undersecretary General for Humanitarian

[[Page 8626]]

     Affairs Jan Egeland declared that the Darfur region was 
     probably ``the world's worst humanitarian catastrophe'', and 
     in April 2004 reported to the United Nations Security Council 
     that in Darfur, ``a sequence of deliberate actions has been 
     observed that seem aimed at achieving a specific objective: 
     the forcible and long-term displacement of the targeted 
     communities which may also be termed `ethnic cleansing''';
       Whereas, on February 17, 2004, Amnesty International 
     reported that it ``continues to receive details of horrifying 
     attacks against civilians in villages by government 
     warplanes, soldiers, and pro-government militia'';
       Whereas, on February 18, 2004, United Nations Special Envoy 
     for Humanitarian Affairs in Sudan Tom Eric Vraalsen declared, 
     following a trip to the Darfur region, that ``aid workers are 
     unable to reach the vast majority [of the displaced]'';
       Whereas Doctors Without Borders, the Nobel Peace Prize-
     winning medical humanitarian relief organization and one of 
     the few aid groups on the ground in the Darfur region, 
     reported that the region is the scene of ``catastrophic 
     mortality rates'';
       Whereas, on April 20, the United Nations Office of the High 
     Commissioner for Human Rights delayed the release of a report 
     citing gross human rights abuses, crimes against humanity, 
     and war crimes committed in Darfur in a bid to gain access to 
     Sudan for investigators;
       Whereas the Government of Sudan continues to deny 
     humanitarian assistance for the people of the Darfur region 
     by denying them unrestricted access to humanitarian aid 
     organizations;
       Whereas attacks on civilians in Darfur continue despite an 
     April 8, 2004, temporary cease-fire agreement; and
       Whereas nearly 3,000,000 people affected by the conflict in 
     the Darfur region have remained beyond the reach of aid 
     agencies trying to provide essential humanitarian assistance, 
     and United Nations aid agencies estimate that they have been 
     able to reach only 15 percent of people in need and that more 
     than 700,000 people have been displaced within Sudan in the 
     past year: Now, therefore, be it
       Resolved, [That Congress--
       [(1) strongly condemns the Government of the Republic of 
     the Sudan for its attacks against innocent civilians in the 
     impoverished Darfur region of western Sudan and for its 
     failure to take effective actions to stop militia attacks on 
     civilians in the region, and demands that the Government of 
     Sudan immediately take actions to cease these attacks;
       [(2) calls on the international community to strongly 
     condemn the Government of Sudan for its participation and 
     complicity in these attacks and demand that such attacks 
     cease;
       [(3) urges the Government of Sudan to allow the delivery of 
     humanitarian assistance to people in the Darfur region; and
       [(4) urges the President to direct the United States 
     Representative to the United Nations to seek an official 
     investigation by the United Nations to determine if crimes 
     against humanity have been committed by the Government of 
     Sudan in the Darfur region.]
     That Congress--
       (1) strongly condemns the Government of the Republic of the 
     Sudan and militia groups supported by the Government of Sudan 
     for attacks against innocent civilians in the impoverished 
     Darfur region of western Sudan, in violation of Article 3 of 
     the Geneva Conventions, done at Geneva August 12, 1949, and 
     entered into force October 21, 1950, which specifically 
     prohibit attacks on civilians, and demands that the 
     Government of Sudan immediately take actions to cease these 
     attacks;
       (2) calls on the Government of Sudan to grant full, 
     unconditional, and immediate access to Darfur to humanitarian 
     aid organizations, the human rights investigation and 
     humanitarian teams of the United Nations, and an 
     international monitoring team in compliance with the 
     temporary cease-fire agreement that is based in Darfur and 
     has the support of the United States and the European Union;
       (3) encourages the Administrator of the United States 
     Agency for International Development to work with donors to 
     develop a plan to pre-position and deliver humanitarian 
     assistance to Darfur, including a plan for delivery of food 
     by air if necessary;
       (4) calls on the Secretary of State to develop a plan for 
     further bilateral and multilateral action in the event the 
     Government of Sudan fails to immediately undertake the 
     actions called for in paragraph (2), including a plan to seek 
     a Security Council resolution addressing the Darfur 
     situation;
       (5) deplores the inaction of some member states of the 
     United Nations and the failure of the United Nations Human 
     Rights Commission to take strong action with respect to the 
     crisis in Darfur; and
       (6) urges the President to direct the United States 
     Representative to the United Nations to--
       (A) seek an official investigation by the United Nations to 
     determine if crimes against humanity have been committed by 
     the Government of Sudan in the Darfur region; and
       (B) work with the international community to ensure that 
     the individuals responsible for crimes against humanity in 
     Darfur are accountable for their actions.

  Mr. FRIST. Mr. President, I wish to make a brief comment. First, I 
ask unanimous consent that the committee-reported amendment be agreed 
to, the concurrent resolution, as amended, be agreed to, the amendment 
to the preamble be agreed to, the preamble, as amended, be agreed to, 
the motions to reconsider be laid upon the table en bloc, and that any 
statements relating thereto be printed in the Record, with no 
intervening action.
  The PRESIDENT pro tempore. Without objection, it is so ordered.
  The committee amendment, in the nature of a substitute, was agreed 
to.
  The concurrent resolution (S. Con. Res. 99), as amended, was agreed 
to.
  The amendment to the preamble, in the nature of a substitute, was 
agreed to.
  The preamble was agreed to.
  The concurrent resolution, with its preamble, reads as follows:

                            S. Con. Res. 99

       Whereas, since early 2003, a conflict between forces of the 
     Government of the Republic of the Sudan, including militia 
     forces backed by the Government, and rebel forces in the 
     impoverished Darfur region of western Sudan has resulted in 
     attacks by ground and air forces of the Government of Sudan 
     against innocent civilians and undefended villages in the 
     region;
       Whereas, the militia forces backed by the Government of 
     Sudan have also engaged in the use of rape as a weapon of 
     war, the abduction of children, the destruction of food and 
     water sources, and the deliberate and systematic manipulation 
     and denial of humanitarian assistance for the people of the 
     Darfur region;
       Whereas, on December 18, 2003, United Nations 
     Undersecretary General for Humanitarian Affairs Jan Egeland 
     declared that the Darfur region was probably ``the world's 
     worst humanitarian catastrophe'', and in April 2004 reported 
     to the United Nations Security Council that in Darfur, ``a 
     sequence of deliberate actions has been observed that seem 
     aimed at achieving a specific objective: the forcible and 
     long-term displacement of the targeted communities which may 
     also be termed `ethnic cleansing''';
       Whereas, on February 17, 2004, Amnesty International 
     reported that it ``continues to receive details of horrifying 
     attacks against civilians in villages by government 
     warplanes, soldiers, and pro-government militia'';
       Whereas, on February 18, 2004, United Nations Special Envoy 
     for Humanitarian Affairs in Sudan Tom Eric Vraalsen declared, 
     following a trip to the Darfur region, that ``aid workers are 
     unable to reach the vast majority [of the displaced]'';
       Whereas, Doctors Without Borders, the Nobel Peace Prize-
     winning medical humanitarian relief organization and one of 
     the few aid groups on the ground in the Darfur region, 
     reported that the region is the scene of ``catastrophic 
     mortality rates'';
       Whereas, on April 20, the United Nations Office of the High 
     Commissioner for Human Rights delayed the release of a report 
     citing gross human rights abuses, crimes against humanity, 
     and war crimes committed in Darfur in a bid to gain access to 
     Sudan for investigators;
       Whereas, the Government of Sudan continues to deny 
     humanitarian assistance for the people of the Darfur region 
     by denying them unrestricted access to humanitarian aid 
     organizations;
       Whereas, attacks on civilians in Darfur continue despite an 
     April 8, 2004, temporary cease-fire agreement; and
       Whereas, nearly 3,000,000 people affected by the conflict 
     in the Darfur region have remained beyond the reach of aid 
     agencies trying to provide essential humanitarian assistance, 
     and United Nations aid agencies estimate that they have been 
     able to reach only 15 percent of people in need and that more 
     than 700,000 people have been displaced within Sudan in the 
     past year: Now, therefore, be it
       Resolved by the Senate (the House of Representatives 
     concurring), That Congress--
       (1) strongly condemns the Government of the Republic of the 
     Sudan and militia groups supported by the Government of Sudan 
     for attacks against innocent civilians in the impoverished 
     Darfur region of western Sudan, in violation of Article 3 of 
     the Geneva Conventions, done at Geneva August 12, 1949, and 
     entered into force October 21, 1950, which specifically 
     prohibit attacks on civilians, and demands that the 
     Government of Sudan immediately take actions to cease these 
     attacks;
       (2) calls on the Government of Sudan to grant full, 
     unconditional, and immediate access to Darfur to humanitarian 
     aid organizations, the human rights investigation and 
     humanitarian teams of the United Nations, and an 
     international monitoring team in compliance with the 
     temporary cease-fire agreement that is based in Darfur and 
     has the support of the United States and the European Union;
       (3) encourages the Administrator of the United States 
     Agency for International Development to work with donors to 
     develop a plan to pre-position and deliver humanitarian 
     assistance to Darfur, including a plan for delivery of food 
     by air if necessary;

[[Page 8627]]

       (4) calls on the Secretary of State to develop a plan for 
     further bilateral and multilateral action in the event the 
     Government of Sudan fails to immediately undertake the 
     actions called for in paragraph (2), including a plan to seek 
     a Security Council resolution addressing the Darfur 
     situation;
       (5) deplores the inaction of some member states of the 
     United Nations and the failure of the United Nations Human 
     Rights Commission to take strong action with respect to the 
     crisis in Darfur; and
       (6) urges the President to direct the United States 
     Representative to the United Nations to--
       (A) seek an official investigation by the United Nations to 
     determine if crimes against humanity have been committed by 
     the Government of Sudan in the Darfur region; and
       (B) work with the international community to ensure that 
     the individuals responsible for crimes against humanity in 
     Darfur are accountable for their actions.

  The PRESIDENT pro tempore. The majority leader.
  Mr. FRIST. Mr. President, I do want to draw attention to this 
terrible tragedy unfolding in the Darfur region of Sudan. I have had 
the opportunity to travel to the Sudan a number of times, many times 
over the last several years, and care greatly for the people there, as 
do all of our colleagues who are in this Chamber today.
  I thank Senator Brownback for his tremendous leadership on this 
issue. He will come to the floor later today to comment on this 
important resolution. He has shown steadfast commitment throughout for 
the people of southern Sudan.
  I also thank Senator Feingold. He and I have had the opportunity to 
work together for many years on the Africa Subcommittee and have worked 
together to draw attention to the terrible civil war in Sudan, which 
has displaced millions of people. A million people have died over the 
last 20, 22 years.
  I also thank my colleague from Tennessee, Senator Alexander, who now 
chairs the African Subcommittee, as well as Chairman Lugar and Senator 
Biden, and all the colleagues who have worked on this issue.
  The international community estimates that 1 million--1 million--
Sudanese in the Darfur region have been displaced by the ongoing 
attacks by government-backed militias. At least 110,000 Darfur Sudanese 
have sought refuge in Chad. But even there the militias have been able 
to cross the border and attack the refugee camps. It is an ongoing 
tragedy.
  The outgoing United Nations humanitarian coordinator in Khartoum says 
the continuing atrocities are nothing short of genocide.
  Since the violence began in February of last year, up to 30,000 
Darfur natives have been killed. The U.N. coordinator warns that the 
raping, looting, and mass destruction being perpetuated is ``more than 
just a conflict.'' He warns that, ``It is an organized attempt to do 
away with a group of people.''
  On Monday, a U.N. mission returned from a 6-day inspection of Darfur. 
The team concludes that many of the violations they investigated may 
constitute war crimes and/or crimes against humanity. Their report, due 
to be completed by the end of this week, is expected to confirm many of 
the accounts of mass murder, multiple rapes, aerial bombings, and 
ground attacks.
  The crisis only threatens to worsen. Later this month, the rainy 
season will begin. Aid experts tell us the massive yearly flooding may 
seriously hinder their efforts to distribute desperately needed aid and 
medical supplies. Amnesty International warns that the impending rains 
are a ticking timebomb in the countdown to disaster.
  The situation in Darfur is dire. I take a special interest in the 
plight of the Darfur people because of my own contact with the 
Sudanese. I have traveled extensively throughout southern Sudan. I have 
had the opportunity to perform medical mission work in that part of the 
world in a hospital in a little village called Lui. I have visited the 
Nuba Mountains in central Sudan, the Blue Nile region north of there, 
as well as Pabong, which is one of the oil regions in which there has 
been a lot of displacement.
  Recently, in August, I was in southern Sudan, where I had the 
opportunity again to operate and perform surgery and serve the 
community there in this hospital in Lui, the only medical facility in 
about a 150-mile radius of that small village.
  Through these travels, I have had the opportunity to take care of 
patients who have come in with war-torn injuries, and who are suffering 
from the plight of this civil war, a brutal war--the innocent people 
there who are being shattered day in, day out, by civil war.
  I wanted to share with my colleagues the suffering of the people of 
southern Sudan and thus wholly endorse this resolution. We have all 
worked together--Senators Brownback, Feingold, Biden, Lugar, Helms, and 
many others--to enact a Sudan Peace Act in the past. That bill, indeed, 
provided a framework for peace negotiations in Sudan.
  This past September, shortly after we were in southern Sudan, I was 
heartened by the cease-fire by the Khartoum government and the Sudanese 
rebels. Peace, it seemed, at that point in time might finally come. But 
now my hopes are wearing thin. The government of Khartoum absolutely 
must take responsibility for its complicity in the systematic murders 
and atrocities being committed in Darfur by the Janjaweed.
  On Tuesday the U.S. Agency for International Development delivered 
the first of four aid airlifts planned for the week. The Agency is 
providing thousands of blankets and temporary shelter and medical 
supplies and food. But even with the best, the most hopeful, the most 
optimistic projections that the Darfur crisis can be controlled, the 
most optimistic say it will continue for another 18 months, even if 
Khartoum right now starts cracking down on the Janjaweed militias. 
Hence, there is not time to waste. Literally millions of lives are in 
the balance. We must draw the worlds's attention to the crisis in 
Sudan.
  This week's elections of Sudan to a third term on the United Nations 
Human Rights Commission is a travesty. It undermines the credibility of 
the Commission but, more importantly, it signals to the Sudanese people 
that the highest human rights body in the world has abandoned them and 
ignored their plight.
  I stand alongside the administration in its unqualified disapproval 
of Sudan's inclusion in the U.N. Human Rights Commission. By approving 
S. Con. Res. 99, however, this body rightly condemns the actions of 
Khartoum and Darfur. We put Khartoum on notice that the Senate will 
continue to scrutinize and hold accountable acts of commission or 
omission by the Khartoum government that violate their citizens' human 
rights.
  Mr. President, I yield the floor.
  The PRESIDENT pro tempore. Does the majority leader reserve the 
remainder of his time?
  Mr. FRIST. Mr. President, that completes leader time. That should not 
take away from morning business.
  The PRESIDENT pro tempore. The Democratic leader.
  Mr. DASCHLE. Mr. President, I, too, will use my leader time and 
reserve the remainder of the allocation for our Democratic colleagues 
to use the other time in morning business.
  I share the sentiment expressed by the majority leader with regard to 
S. Con. Res. 99, regarding the Sudan. It is past time that we were 
heard on this troubling situation. I commend Senators Feingold and 
Brownback as well for their leadership.
  Late last year, United Nations Under Secretary General for 
Humanitarian Affairs Jan Egeland called the developing situation in the 
Darfur region of Sudan, where two rebel groups have been locked in a 
battle with Sudanese government forces and government-backed militias 
since February 2003, ``the world's worst humanitarian catastrophe.''
  Mr. Egeland has seen a lot of disaster, and he does not use terms 
like catastrophe loosely. In a world increasingly torn asunder by 
ethnic and regional conflicts, calling Darfur the world's worst 
catastrophe is saying something. Unfortunately, it appears that Egeland 
has chosen the right word to describe this situation.
  Amnesty International has reported that it ``continues to receive 
details of

[[Page 8628]]

horrifying attacks against civilians in villages by government 
warplanes, soldiers, and pro-government militia.'' Doctors Without 
Borders reported that the regions is the scene of ``catastrophic 
mortality rates.''
  And American government and international estimates suggest that 
nearly 3 million people have been affected by the terrible fighting in 
Darfur; 700,000 have been displaced; 100,000 have fled to neighboring 
Chad, and 30,000 have been killed.
  Meanwhile, international aid agencies estimate that, as a result of 
this fighting, they have been able to help only 15 percent of the 
people who need it. The Sudanese Government has systematically and 
deliberately denied humanitarian assistance for, and international 
access to, this region.
  At the same time, credible reports suggest the militia forces backed 
by the Government of Sudan are engaged in the use of rape as a weapon 
of war, are abducting children, and are destroying food and water 
sources. If all this were not sad and outrageous enough, the Sudanese 
Government--the same one that is complicit in these atrocities--just 
Tuesday was chosen to serve on the United Nations Human Rights 
Commission. Nicholas Kristof of the New York Times recently described 
the situation in the Darfur region this way: I can't get the 
kaleidoscope of genocide out of my head since my trip last month to the 
Sudan-Chad border: the fresh graves, especially the extra-small mounds 
for children; the piles of branches on graves to keep wild animals from 
digging up corpses; the tales of women being first raped and then 
branded on the hand to stigmatize them forever; the isolated peasants, 
unfamiliar with electricity, who suddenly encounter the 21st century as 
helicopters machine-gun their children.
  Each of us hoped we would leave this hatred, violence and ethnic 
cleansing behind in the 20th century. At the very least, we must now 
ensure we do not repeat the mistakes of the past. I was heartened when 
the United States recently voted against a resolution backed by the 
United Nations Human Rights Commission because it didn't do enough to 
condemn ethnic cleansing in Darfur. And I am pleased that the President 
condemned the Sudanese Government's actions there. But that is just a 
first step.
  If the Government of Sudan ever wants to be welcomed into the 
community of nations, it must take concrete steps that befit a member 
of the United Nations Human Rights Commission. It must immediately take 
actions to cease the attacks in Darfur. It must allow the delivery of 
humanitarian assistance to people in the Darfur region. President Bush 
must direct the United States Representative to the United Nations to 
seek an official investigation by the United Nations to determine if 
crimes against humanity have been committed by the Government of Sudan 
in the Darfur region.
  This is the very least the international community must do, and we 
must do it now. Any delay will have a terrible cost in human lives.
  Mr. BROWNBACK. Mr. President, I rise with several of my colleagues 
today to bring to the attention of this body a severe situation in the 
western part of Sudan. The Darfur region is facing an acute 
humanitarian catastrophe, which has been cited by some individuals as 
the worst humanitarian crisis in the world today.
  For over a year now, government-backed militias have been carrying 
out savage attacks on innocent civilians and have engaged in the use of 
rape as a weapon, abducted children, destroyed food and irrigation 
systems and burned villages. We are gravely concerned about the 
violence that persists, despite the April 8 cease-fire agreement. 
Recent estimates report that 3 million people are beyond the reach of 
aid agencies trying to provide assistance in Sudan, and mortality rates 
in the Darfur region are catastrophic.
  The Darfur disaster has forced staggering numbers of people to flee 
their homes. More than 800,000 people have been displaced, with more 
than 100,000 of them crossing the border into neighboring Chad. Less 
than half of these refugees are living in UNHCR camps. Refugees 
International reported yesterday that 540 refugees in Chad are near 
death due to lack of food. To make matters worse, the rainy season is 
expected soon, at which time roads will be impassable and the delivery 
of aid extremely difficult.
  Human Rights investigators have finally been allowed into the region 
and we anticipate their findings later this week. However, initial 
reports indicate that their movements were severely restricted, despite 
numerous requests for full access to the region. The international 
community must continue to call on the Government of Sudan to grant 
visas to the humanitarian organizations who are ready and waiting to 
provide much-needed assistance in Darfur.
  Civil war has left carnage during the two decades of fighting in 
Sudan. The largely Arab-Islamic North had been fighting the 
predominantly African-Christian and animist South over issues of 
religion and Sharia law. Negotiations have included tough compromises 
over issues of power- and wealth-sharing. I believe that continued 
pressure on Sudan to end the suffering in Darfur can lead to a 
negotiated settlement between the North and the South, which we hope to 
see in the coming days. But we cannot wait for this agreement to 
address the current situation; the humanitarian crisis in Darfur 
warrants immediate attention by the international community.
  Today the Senate passed S. Con. Res. 99, condemning the Government of 
Sudan for their complicity in attacks against innocent civilians and 
calling on them to immediately end such brutality. It calls on Sudan to 
grant immediate and unconditional access to Darfur for humanitarian and 
human rights organizations and for a cease-fire monitoring team. In 
addition, it calls on the USAID Administrator to develop a plan for the 
delivery of humanitarian assistance, by air if necessary. Furthermore, 
the resolution urges the Secretary of State to develop a plan for 
further bilateral and multilateral action in the event that the 
Government of Sudan fails to immediately allow access, including a plan 
to seek a Security Council resolution addressing the Darfur situation. 
Finally, S. Con. Res. 99 urges the President to direct the U.S. 
Representative to the United Nations to seek an official investigation 
to determine if crimes against humanity have been committed by the 
Government of Sudan in Darfur and work with the international community 
to ensure that the individuals responsible for such crimes are 
accountable for their actions.
  I thank my colleagues for their support of this important resolution. 
The 10th anniversary of the Rwandan genocide was an important reminder 
of the devastating effects that international blindness can have on a 
population. Just this week, Sudan was voted back onto the U.N. Human 
Rights Commission, despite protests by the United States. How can a 
nation who allows for nearly 1 million displaced persons, catastrophic 
deaths, and the threat of continuing death and disease, remain on the 
very body of the United Nations which is responsible for preventing 
such atrocities?
  We have a moral responsibility to the people of Darfur, let us not 
wait until another life is lost.
  Mr. BIDEN. Mr. President, on Tuesday, the Foreign Relations Committee 
discharged a resolution which speaks to the situation in Darfur, Sudan. 
I am alarmed by reports of atrocities there. I am worried that genocide 
may be unfolding.
  We need to make a determination about what is going on in Darfur and 
respond accordingly. Administration officials have termed it ethnic 
cleansing. This would be horrific in and of itself. But we also have to 
ask whether or not Khartoum's actions are an intent to destroy in whole 
or in part a particular ethnic or racial group or groups. If so, what 
should we do about it? These are questions we must answer right away.
  As you know, the administration has been heavily involved in 
negotiations between the government in Khartoum and southern Sudanese 
rebels. If an agreement is reached, it will bring an

[[Page 8629]]

end to twenty years of civil war between the Muslim north, and non-
Muslim south.
  It will end 20 years of attacks against Muslims in the Nuba mountains 
and southern Sudanese; 20 years during which the government of Sudan 
targeted civilians either with its military forces, or through 
government allied militias; 20 years during which 2 million people have 
died; 20 years during which millions were displaced both within Sudan 
and beyond its borders.
  The war sparked outrage among members of the international community 
because of the brutality of attacks against men, women and children. 
Some cast the war as Muslim versus Christian. I think this captures 
only a fraction of the story. Arab militias took southern, non-Muslims, 
black Africans captive as slaves. They pursued a scorched earth policy 
in southern villages. Muslims living in the Nuba Mountains, who happen 
to be black, were victims of attacks as well. One is left to wonder if 
the real cause of the attacks wasn't good old fashioned racism. And 
while the United States continues to spend valuable diplomatic time and 
political capitol to bring an end to the north-south conflict, history 
is repeating itself in western Sudan.
  Early last year, ethnic minorities living in western Sudan took up 
arms to protest Khartoum's arming of Arab militias in the region, and 
what they believed was economic marginalization by the government in 
Khartoum. The wisdom of this course of action on the part of the rebels 
may be debatable. What is not debatable is the disproportionate 
response of the government--ethnic cleansing in Darfur by means of a 
well orchestrated campaign of attacks aimed specifically at non-
military persons who belong to the same ethnic groups as the rebels.
  Khartoum is employing the same tactics in Darfur that they used 
against those living in southern Sudan: Aerial bombardment of civilians 
with helicopter gun ships and planes, and attacks by government 
supported Arab militias known as janjaweed, which employ scorched earth 
tactics against villages inhabited by black Africans. We are receiving 
reports of a variety of abuses perpetrated by the janjaweed--routine 
rape of women, murder of men, the wanton burning of children--from 
credible sources working in Darfur. In my view, these deliberate 
attacks and atrocities against civilians constitute crimes against 
humanity.
  President Bush's statement on Sudan issued on April 7, while helpful, 
was inadequate. He condemned the atrocities in Darfur, but the 
statement does not speak to the ethnic nature of the attacks. We all 
know that ethnic cleansing has the potential to turn into genocide. By 
failing to highlight this very dangerous dimension of Khartoum's 
campaign, the president failed to speak to the most alarming aspects of 
the crisis.
  The statement says that President Bush expressed his views condemning 
the atrocities directly to Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir. Since 
U.S. officials have acknowledged that the actions constitute ethnic 
cleansing, describing them as well ``organized,'' and 
``comprehensive,'' I sincerely hope the President took Bashir to task 
about the particular evil of such actions. Given the vagueness 
President Bush's statement, however, one is left to wonder.
  Our Ambassador to the U.N. Human Rights Commission, Rich Williamson, 
has said that 30,000 people are dead as a result of the conflict. One 
million people--25 percent of the population--are displaced, according 
to the U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees, UNHCR.
  All of them are in dire need of assistance because on top of razing 
entire villages and firebombing civilians, in addition to burning 
crops, raping women, torturing men and throwing children into burning 
huts, on top of all the misery the government has heaped on the people 
of Darfur for months, Khartoum has refused to allow humanitarian relief 
organizations free, unfettered, regular access to the region. According 
to the State Department, it takes aid workers 2 months to get visas. 
And this is an improvement--it used to take 3 to 4 months.
  After pursuing a scorched earth policy in Darfur for months--burned 
crops, stolen cattle and poisoned wells--the government's latest 
outrage is cynically ordering people to return to their homes. The few 
agencies on the ground in the area indicate that people cannot venture 
even 100 yards outside the displaced persons camps without being 
attacked. Even if they are able to make it home safely, there is 
absolutely no likelihood of people surviving in communities that 
literally no longer exist. At this point, return is not an option and 
Khartoum is well aware of this.
  And the attacks by the janjaweed continue despite the April 8 cease-
fire agreement.
  Over 100,000 people have fled across the border into Chad. They too 
are still subject to attack from the janjaweed. UNHCR is in the midst 
of attempting to relocate refugees farther from the border to enhance 
their safety. Only half of refugees are living in camps in more secure 
locations. The other half are making do the best they can. A report 
issued by Refugees International indicates that many refugees are 
living in the open with no food, water or shelter.
  According to UNHCR's public documents, it needs $27 million to 
address the needs of refugees in Chad. It has less than half of that on 
hand. Soon the rainy season will make roads impassible, preventing the 
delivery of food and shelter materials. The World Food Program is 
attempting to stockpile food in advance of the rains, but they have a 
35 percent funding shortfall as well. We have contributed significant 
funds, but we and the rest of the international community need to do 
even more.
  Congress needs to do more as well. S. Con. Res. 99 speaks to the 
nature of the violence and urges the President to do two main things:
  First, develop a plan to deliver humanitarian aid to the nearly 1 
million people who have been driven from their homes that does not 
necessitate permission from the government of Sudan. I hope that this 
plan includes immediate use of the commodities we are holding in the 
Emerson Trust stockpiles. I would also encourage the administration to 
come up with a way to deliver food through neighboring countries, 
including Chad.
  Let me also say that I expect and welcome a request in the 
forthcoming supplemental for money to meet the humanitarian needs 
engendered by the crisis in Darfur.
  Second, it urges the Secretary of State to develop options to 
increase sanctions on Sudan if the attacks in Darfur do not stop 
immediately.
  I co-sponsored this resolution because I think that these are 
important steps. They are only steps however. If we do not see any 
change on the ground by the end of May, we should go even further than 
this resolution suggests.
  We should amend the Sudan Peace Act, which was aimed at jump-starting 
the north-south peace process, so that it is relevant to the situation 
in Darfur. Three changes are essential. First, the act, Public Law 107-
245, imposes sanctions on the government of Sudan if the President 
determines that it is not making a good faith effort to negotiate a 
peace agreement. The act should be amended to require that the 
President certify that neither the government nor government allied 
militias have attacked civilians in Sudan 30 days from the enactment of 
the act and every 90 days thereafter. If the President cannot certify 
such, then the sanctions in section 6, paragraph 2 should be triggered.
  The same certification should apply to humanitarian access. This is 
already in the legislation, however the requirement is obviously not 
explicit enough for the White House. Despite the restrictions placed on 
the non-governmental organizations attempting to go into Darfur, on 
April 21, the President certified the government of Sudan had not 
unreasonably interfered with humanitarian efforts. Making the law more 
explicit may prevent another such mistake.
  Finally, we should add a requirement that our permanent 
representative to the U.N. Security Council pursue a Security Council 
Resolution condemning

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the government of Sudan for its actions in Darfur, and calling for 
accountability for those who are found responsible for orchestrating 
and carrying out the atrocities.
  Mr. President, the administration has said that it will not attempt 
to secure the north-south peace agreement at the expense of the people 
in Darfur. I agree. In fact, a north-south agreement will be 
meaningless in the face of ethnic cleansing in western Sudan. I believe 
that we must ratchet up the pressure on the Government of Sudan, and 
our partners in the international community to bring an end to the 
criminal acts of the government in Khartoum.

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