[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 156 (2010), Part 3]
[Senate]
[Pages 3019-3022]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




LORD'S RESISTANCE ARMY DISARMAMENT AND NORTHERN UGANDA RECOVERY ACT OF 
                                  2009

  Mr. DORGAN. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent the Senate proceed 
to the immediate consideration of Calendar No. 228, S. 1067.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will report the bill by title.
  The legislative clerk read as follows:

       A bill (S. 1067) to support stabilization and lasting peace 
     in northern Uganda and areas affected by the Lord's 
     Resistance Army through development of a regional strategy to 
     support multilateral efforts to successfully protect 
     civilians and eliminate the threat posed by the Lord's 
     Resistance Army and to authorize funds for humanitarian 
     relief and reconstruction, reconciliation, and transitional 
     justice, and for other purposes.

  There being no objection, the Senate proceeded to consider the bill 
(S. 1067) to support stabilization and lasting peace in northern Uganda 
and areas affected by the Lord's Resistance Army through development of 
a regional strategy to support multilateral efforts to successfully 
protect civilians and eliminate the threat posed by the Lord's 
Resistance Army and to authorize funds for humanitarian relief and 
reconstruction, reconciliation, and transitional justice, and for other 
purposes, which had been reported from the Committee on Foreign 
Relations, with an amendment to strike all after the enacting clause 
and insert in lieu thereof the following:

     SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

       This Act may be cited as the ``Lord's Resistance Army 
     Disarmament and Northern Uganda Recovery Act of 2009''.

     SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

       Congress makes the following findings:
       (1) For over 2 decades, the Government of Uganda engaged in 
     an armed conflict with the Lord's Resistance Army (LRA) in 
     northern Uganda that led to the internal displacement of more 
     than 2,000,000 Ugandans from their homes.
       (2) The members of the Lord's Resistance Army used brutal 
     tactics in northern Uganda, including mutilating, abducting 
     and forcing individuals into sexual servitude and forcing a 
     large number of children and youth in Uganda, estimated by 
     the Survey for War Affected Youth to be over 66,000, to fight 
     as part of the rebel force.
       (3) The Secretary of State has placed the Lord's Resistance 
     Army on the Terrorist Exclusion list pursuant to section 
     212(a)(3) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 
     1182(a)(3)), and LRA leader Joseph Kony has been designated a 
     ``specially designated global terrorist'' pursuant to 
     Executive Order 13224.
       (4) In late 2005, according to the United Nations Office 
     for Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, the Lord's 
     Resistance Army shifted their primary base of operations from 
     southern Sudan to northeastern Democratic Republic of Congo, 
     and the rebels have since withdrawn from northern Uganda.
       (5) Representatives of the Government of Uganda and the 
     Lord's Resistance Army began peace negotiations in 2006, 
     mediated by the Government of Southern Sudan in Juba, Sudan, 
     and signed the Cessation of Hostilities Agreement on August 
     20, 2006, which provided for hundreds of thousands of 
     internally displaced people to return home in safety.
       (6) After nearly 2 years of negotiations, representatives 
     from the parties reached the Final Peace Agreement in April 
     2008, but Joseph Kony, the leader of the Lord's Resistance 
     Army, refused to sign the Final Peace Agreement in May 2008 
     and his forces launched new attacks in northeastern Congo.
       (7) According to the United Nations Office for the 
     Coordination of Humanitarian Relief and the United Nations 
     High Commissioner for Refugees, the new activity of the 
     Lord's Resistance Army in northeastern Congo and southern 
     Sudan since September 2008 has led to the abduction of at 
     least 1,500 civilians, including hundreds of children, and 
     the displacement of more than 540,000 people.
       (8) In December 2008, the military forces of Uganda, the 
     Democratic Republic of Congo, and southern Sudan launched a 
     joint operation against the Lord's Resistance Army's bases in 
     northeastern Congo, but the operation failed to apprehend 
     Joseph Kony, and his forces retaliated with a series of new 
     attacks and massacres in Congo and southern Sudan, killing an 
     estimated 900 people in 2 months alone.
       (9) Despite the refusal of Joseph Kony to sign the Final 
     Peace Agreement, the Government of Uganda has committed to 
     continue reconstruction plans for northern Uganda, and to 
     implement those mechanisms of the Final Peace Agreement not 
     conditional on the compliance of the Lord's Resistance Army.
       (10) Since 2008, recovery efforts in northern Uganda have 
     moved forward with the financial support of the United States 
     and other donors, but have been hampered by a lack of 
     strategic coordination, logistical delays, and limited 
     leadership from the Government of Uganda.

     SEC. 3. STATEMENT OF POLICY.

       It is the policy of the United States to work with regional 
     governments toward a comprehensive and lasting resolution to 
     the conflict in northern Uganda and other affected areas by--
       (1) providing political, economic, military, and 
     intelligence support for viable multilateral efforts to 
     protect civilians from the Lord's Resistance Army, to 
     apprehend or remove Joseph Kony and his top commanders from 
     the battlefield in the continued absence of a negotiated 
     solution, and to disarm and demobilize the remaining Lord's 
     Resistance Army fighters;
       (2) targeting assistance to respond to the humanitarian 
     needs of populations in northeastern Congo, southern Sudan, 
     and Central African Republic currently affected by the 
     activity of the Lord's Resistance Army; and
       (3) further supporting and encouraging efforts of the 
     Government of Uganda and civil society to promote 
     comprehensive reconstruction, transitional justice, and 
     reconciliation in northern Uganda as affirmed in the Northern 
     Uganda Crisis Response Act of 2004 (Public Law 108-283) and 
     subsequent resolutions, including Senate Resolution 366, 
     109th Congress, agreed to February 2, 2006, Senate Resolution 
     573, 109th Congress, agreed to September 19, 2006, Senate 
     Concurrent Resolution 16, 110th Congress, agreed to in the 
     Senate March 1, 2007, and House Concurrent Resolution 80, 
     110th Congress, agreed to in the House of Representatives 
     June 18, 2007.

     SEC. 4. REQUIREMENT OF A STRATEGY TO SUPPORT THE DISARMAMENT 
                   OF THE LORD'S RESISTANCE ARMY.

       (a) Requirement for Strategy.--Not later than 180 days 
     after the date of the enactment of this Act, the President 
     shall develop and submit to the appropriate committees of 
     Congress a strategy to guide future United States support 
     across the region for viable multilateral efforts to mitigate 
     and eliminate the threat to civilians and regional stability 
     posed by the Lord's Resistance Army.
       (b) Content of Strategy.--The strategy shall include the 
     following:
       (1) A plan to help strengthen efforts by the United Nations 
     and regional governments to protect civilians from attacks by 
     the Lord's Resistance Army while supporting the development 
     of institutions in affected areas that can help to maintain 
     the rule of law and prevent conflict in the long term.
       (2) An assessment of viable options through which the 
     United States, working with regional governments, could help 
     develop and support multilateral efforts to eliminate the 
     threat posed by the Lord's Resistance Army.
       (3) An interagency framework to plan, coordinate, and 
     review diplomatic, economic, intelligence, and military 
     elements of United States policy across the region regarding 
     the Lord's Resistance Army.
       (4) A description of the type and form of diplomatic 
     engagement across the region undertaken to coordinate and 
     implement United States policy regarding the Lord's 
     Resistance Army and to work multilaterally with regional 
     mechanisms, including the Tripartite Plus Commission and the 
     Great Lakes Pact.
       (5) A description of how this engagement will fit within 
     the context of broader efforts and policy objectives in the 
     Great Lakes Region.
       (c) Form.--The strategy under this section shall be 
     submitted in unclassified form, but may include a classified 
     annex.

[[Page 3020]]



     SEC. 5. HUMANITARIAN ASSISTANCE FOR AREAS OUTSIDE UGANDA 
                   AFFECTED BY THE LORD'S RESISTANCE ARMY.

       (a) Authority.--In accordance with section 491 of the 
     Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 (22 U.S.C. 2292) and section 2 
     of the Migration and Refugee Assistance Act of 1962 (22 
     U.S.C. 2601), the President is authorized to provide 
     additional assistance to the Democratic Republic of Congo, 
     southern Sudan, and Central African Republic to respond to 
     the humanitarian needs of populations directly affected by 
     the activity of the Lord's Resistance Army.
       (b) Authorization of Appropriations.--There is authorized 
     to be appropriated $10,000,000 for fiscal year 2011 to carry 
     out this section.

     SEC. 6. ASSISTANCE FOR RECOVERY AND RECONSTRUCTION IN 
                   NORTHERN UGANDA.

       (a) Authority.--It is the sense of Congress that the 
     President should support efforts by the people of northern 
     Uganda and the Government of Uganda--
       (1) to assist internally displaced people in transition and 
     returnees to secure durable solutions by spurring economic 
     revitalization, supporting livelihoods, helping to alleviate 
     poverty, and advancing access to basic services at return 
     sites, specifically clean water, health care, and schools;
       (2) to enhance the accountability and administrative 
     competency of local governance institutions and public 
     agencies in northern Uganda with regard to budget management, 
     provision of public goods and services, and related oversight 
     functions;
       (3) to strengthen the operational capacity of the civilian 
     police in northern Uganda to enhance public safety, prevent 
     crime, and deal sensitively with gender-based violence, while 
     strengthening accountability measures to prevent corruption 
     and abuses;
       (4) to rebuild and improve the capacity of the justice 
     system in northern Uganda, including the courts and penal 
     systems, with particular sensitivity to the needs and rights 
     of women and children;
       (5) to establish mechanisms for the disarmament, 
     demobilization, and reintegration of former combatants and 
     those abducted by the LRA, including vocational education and 
     employment opportunities, with attention given to the roles 
     and needs of men, women and children; and
       (6) to promote programs to address psychosocial trauma, 
     particularly post-traumatic stress disorder.
       (b) Future Year Funding.--It is the sense of Congress that 
     the Secretary of State and Administrator of the United States 
     Agency for International Development should work with the 
     appropriate committees of Congress to increase assistance in 
     future fiscal years to support activities described in this 
     section if the Government of Uganda demonstrates a commitment 
     to transparent and accountable reconstruction in war-affected 
     areas of northern Uganda, specifically by--
       (1) finalizing the establishment of mechanisms within the 
     Office of the Prime Minister to sufficiently manage and 
     coordinate the programs under the framework of the Peace 
     Recovery and Development Plan for Northern Uganda (PRDP);
       (2) increasing oversight activities and reporting, at the 
     local and national level in Uganda, to ensure funds under the 
     Peace Recovery and Development Plan for Northern Uganda 
     framework are used efficiently and with minimal waste; and
       (3) committing substantial funds of its own, above and 
     beyond standard budget allocations to local governments, to 
     the task of implementing the Peace Recovery and Development 
     Plan for Northern Uganda such that communities affected by 
     the war can recover.
       (c) Coordination With Other Donor Nations.--The United 
     States should work with other donor nations to increase 
     contributions for recovery efforts in northern Uganda and 
     better leverage those contributions to enhance the capacity 
     and encourage the leadership of the Government of Uganda in 
     promoting transparent and accountable reconstruction in 
     northern Uganda.
       (d) Termination of Assistance.--It is the sense of Congress 
     that the Secretary of State should withhold non-humanitarian 
     bilateral assistance to the Republic of Uganda if the 
     Secretary determines that the Government of Uganda is not 
     committed to reconstruction and reconciliation in the war-
     affected areas of northern Uganda and is not taking proactive 
     steps to ensure this process moves forward in a transparent 
     and accountable manner.

     SEC. 7. ASSISTANCE FOR RECONCILIATION AND TRANSITIONAL 
                   JUSTICE IN NORTHERN UGANDA.

       (a) Sense of Congress.--It is the sense of Congress that, 
     despite reconstruction and development efforts, a continued 
     failure to take meaningful steps toward national 
     reconciliation and accountability risks perpetuating 
     longstanding political grievances and fueling new conflicts.
       (b) Authority.--In accordance with section 531 of the 
     Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 (22 U.S.C. 2346), the 
     President is authorized to support efforts by the people of 
     northern Uganda and the Government of Uganda to advance 
     efforts to promote transitional justice and reconciliation on 
     both local and national levels, including to encourage 
     implementation of the mechanisms outlined in the Annexure to 
     the Agreement on Accountability and Reconciliation between 
     the Government of Uganda and the Lord's Resistance Army/
     Movement, signed at Juba February 19, 2008, namely--
       (1) a body to investigate the history of the conflict, 
     inquire into human rights violations committed during the 
     conflict by all sides, promote truth-telling in communities, 
     and encourage the preservation of the memory of events and 
     victims of the conflict through memorials, archives, 
     commemorations, and other forms of preservation;
       (2) a special division of the High Court of Uganda to try 
     individuals alleged to have committed serious crimes during 
     the conflict, and a special unit to carry out investigations 
     and prosecutions in support of trials;
       (3) a system for making reparations to victims of the 
     conflict; and
       (4) a review and strategy for supporting transitional 
     justice mechanisms in affected areas to promote 
     reconciliation and encourage individuals to take personal 
     responsibility for their conduct during the war.
       (c) Authorization of Appropriations.--There is authorized 
     to be appropriated $10,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2011 
     through 2013 to carry out this section.

     SEC. 8. REPORT.

       (a) Report Required.--Not later than 1 year after the 
     submission of the strategy required under section 4, the 
     Secretary of State shall prepare and submit to the 
     appropriate committees of Congress a report on the progress 
     made toward the implementation of the strategy required under 
     section 4 and a description and evaluation of the assistance 
     provided under this Act toward the policy objectives 
     described in section 3.
       (b) Contents.--The report required under section (a) shall 
     include--
       (1) a description and evaluation of actions taken toward 
     the implementation of the strategy required under section 4;
       (2) a description of assistance provided under sections 5, 
     6, and 7;
       (3) an evaluation of bilateral assistance provided to the 
     Republic of Uganda and associated programs in light of stated 
     policy objectives;
       (4) a description of the status of the Peace Recovery and 
     Development Plan for Northern Uganda and the progress of the 
     Government of Uganda in fulfilling the steps outlined in 
     section 6(b); and
       (5) a description of amounts of assistance committed, and 
     amounts provided, to northern Uganda during the reporting 
     period by the Government of Uganda and each donor country.
       (c) Form.--The report under this section shall be submitted 
     in unclassified form, but may include a classified annex.

     SEC. 9. DEFINITIONS.

       In this Act:
       (1) Appropriate committees of congress.--The term 
     ``appropriate committees of Congress'' means the Committee on 
     Appropriations and the Committee on Foreign Relations of the 
     Senate and the Committee on Appropriations and the Committee 
     on Foreign Affairs of the House of Representatives.
       (2) Great lakes region.--The term ``Great Lakes Region'' 
     means the region comprising Burundi, Democratic Republic of 
     Congo, Rwanda, southern Sudan, and Uganda.
       (3) LRA-affected areas.--The term ``LRA-affected areas'' 
     means those portions of northern Uganda, southern Sudan, 
     northeastern Democratic Republic of Congo, and southeastern 
     Central African Republic determined by the Secretary of State 
     to be affected by the Lord's Resistance Army as of the date 
     of the enactment of this Act.

  Mr. DORGAN. I ask unanimous consent the committee-reported substitute 
amendment be considered; that a Feingold amendment which is at the desk 
be agreed to; the substitute amendment, as amended, be agreed to; the 
bill as amended be read a third time and passed, the motions to 
reconsider be laid on the table, with no intervening action or debate, 
and any statements be printed in the Record.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
  The amendment (No. 3461) was agreed to, as follows:

  (Purpose: To express the sense of Congress regarding the funding of 
                       activities under this Act)

       On page 21, line 4, strike ``(a) Authority.--''.
       On page 21, strike lines 12 through 14.
       On page 26, strike lines 1 through 3.
       On page 27, strike line 10 and insert the following:

     SEC. 9. SENSE OF CONGRESS ON FUNDING.

       It is the sense of Congress that--
       (1) of the total amounts to be appropriated for fiscal year 
     2011 for the Department of State and foreign operations, up 
     to $10,000,000 should be used to carry out activities under 
     section 5; and
       (2) of the total amounts to be appropriated for fiscal year 
     2011 through 2013 for the Department of State and foreign 
     operations, up to $10,000,000 in each such fiscal year should 
     be used to carry out activities under section 7.

     SEC. 10. DEFINITIONS.

  The committee amendment in the nature of a substitute, as amended, 
was agreed to.
  The bill (S. 1067), as amended, was ordered to be engrossed for a 
third reading, was read the third time, and passed, as follows:

[[Page 3021]]



                                S. 1067

       Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of 
     the United States of America in Congress assembled,

     SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

       This Act may be cited as the ``Lord's Resistance Army 
     Disarmament and Northern Uganda Recovery Act of 2009''.

     SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

       Congress makes the following findings:
       (1) For over 2 decades, the Government of Uganda engaged in 
     an armed conflict with the Lord's Resistance Army (LRA) in 
     northern Uganda that led to the internal displacement of more 
     than 2,000,000 Ugandans from their homes.
       (2) The members of the Lord's Resistance Army used brutal 
     tactics in northern Uganda, including mutilating, abducting 
     and forcing individuals into sexual servitude and forcing a 
     large number of children and youth in Uganda, estimated by 
     the Survey for War Affected Youth to be over 66,000, to fight 
     as part of the rebel force.
       (3) The Secretary of State has placed the Lord's Resistance 
     Army on the Terrorist Exclusion list pursuant to section 
     212(a)(3) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 
     1182(a)(3)), and LRA leader Joseph Kony has been designated a 
     ``specially designated global terrorist'' pursuant to 
     Executive Order 13224.
       (4) In late 2005, according to the United Nations Office 
     for Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, the Lord's 
     Resistance Army shifted their primary base of operations from 
     southern Sudan to northeastern Democratic Republic of Congo, 
     and the rebels have since withdrawn from northern Uganda.
       (5) Representatives of the Government of Uganda and the 
     Lord's Resistance Army began peace negotiations in 2006, 
     mediated by the Government of Southern Sudan in Juba, Sudan, 
     and signed the Cessation of Hostilities Agreement on August 
     20, 2006, which provided for hundreds of thousands of 
     internally displaced people to return home in safety.
       (6) After nearly 2 years of negotiations, representatives 
     from the parties reached the Final Peace Agreement in April 
     2008, but Joseph Kony, the leader of the Lord's Resistance 
     Army, refused to sign the Final Peace Agreement in May 2008 
     and his forces launched new attacks in northeastern Congo.
       (7) According to the United Nations Office for the 
     Coordination of Humanitarian Relief and the United Nations 
     High Commissioner for Refugees, the new activity of the 
     Lord's Resistance Army in northeastern Congo and southern 
     Sudan since September 2008 has led to the abduction of at 
     least 1,500 civilians, including hundreds of children, and 
     the displacement of more than 540,000 people.
       (8) In December 2008, the military forces of Uganda, the 
     Democratic Republic of Congo, and southern Sudan launched a 
     joint operation against the Lord's Resistance Army's bases in 
     northeastern Congo, but the operation failed to apprehend 
     Joseph Kony, and his forces retaliated with a series of new 
     attacks and massacres in Congo and southern Sudan, killing an 
     estimated 900 people in 2 months alone.
       (9) Despite the refusal of Joseph Kony to sign the Final 
     Peace Agreement, the Government of Uganda has committed to 
     continue reconstruction plans for northern Uganda, and to 
     implement those mechanisms of the Final Peace Agreement not 
     conditional on the compliance of the Lord's Resistance Army.
       (10) Since 2008, recovery efforts in northern Uganda have 
     moved forward with the financial support of the United States 
     and other donors, but have been hampered by a lack of 
     strategic coordination, logistical delays, and limited 
     leadership from the Government of Uganda.

     SEC. 3. STATEMENT OF POLICY.

       It is the policy of the United States to work with regional 
     governments toward a comprehensive and lasting resolution to 
     the conflict in northern Uganda and other affected areas by--
       (1) providing political, economic, military, and 
     intelligence support for viable multilateral efforts to 
     protect civilians from the Lord's Resistance Army, to 
     apprehend or remove Joseph Kony and his top commanders from 
     the battlefield in the continued absence of a negotiated 
     solution, and to disarm and demobilize the remaining Lord's 
     Resistance Army fighters;
       (2) targeting assistance to respond to the humanitarian 
     needs of populations in northeastern Congo, southern Sudan, 
     and Central African Republic currently affected by the 
     activity of the Lord's Resistance Army; and
       (3) further supporting and encouraging efforts of the 
     Government of Uganda and civil society to promote 
     comprehensive reconstruction, transitional justice, and 
     reconciliation in northern Uganda as affirmed in the Northern 
     Uganda Crisis Response Act of 2004 (Public Law 108-283) and 
     subsequent resolutions, including Senate Resolution 366, 
     109th Congress, agreed to February 2, 2006, Senate Resolution 
     573, 109th Congress, agreed to September 19, 2006, Senate 
     Concurrent Resolution 16, 110th Congress, agreed to in the 
     Senate March 1, 2007, and House Concurrent Resolution 80, 
     110th Congress, agreed to in the House of Representatives 
     June 18, 2007.

     SEC. 4. REQUIREMENT OF A STRATEGY TO SUPPORT THE DISARMAMENT 
                   OF THE LORD'S RESISTANCE ARMY.

       (a) Requirement for Strategy.--Not later than 180 days 
     after the date of the enactment of this Act, the President 
     shall develop and submit to the appropriate committees of 
     Congress a strategy to guide future United States support 
     across the region for viable multilateral efforts to mitigate 
     and eliminate the threat to civilians and regional stability 
     posed by the Lord's Resistance Army.
       (b) Content of Strategy.--The strategy shall include the 
     following:
       (1) A plan to help strengthen efforts by the United Nations 
     and regional governments to protect civilians from attacks by 
     the Lord's Resistance Army while supporting the development 
     of institutions in affected areas that can help to maintain 
     the rule of law and prevent conflict in the long term.
       (2) An assessment of viable options through which the 
     United States, working with regional governments, could help 
     develop and support multilateral efforts to eliminate the 
     threat posed by the Lord's Resistance Army.
       (3) An interagency framework to plan, coordinate, and 
     review diplomatic, economic, intelligence, and military 
     elements of United States policy across the region regarding 
     the Lord's Resistance Army.
       (4) A description of the type and form of diplomatic 
     engagement across the region undertaken to coordinate and 
     implement United States policy regarding the Lord's 
     Resistance Army and to work multilaterally with regional 
     mechanisms, including the Tripartite Plus Commission and the 
     Great Lakes Pact.
       (5) A description of how this engagement will fit within 
     the context of broader efforts and policy objectives in the 
     Great Lakes Region.
       (c) Form.--The strategy under this section shall be 
     submitted in unclassified form, but may include a classified 
     annex.

     SEC. 5. HUMANITARIAN ASSISTANCE FOR AREAS OUTSIDE UGANDA 
                   AFFECTED BY THE LORD'S RESISTANCE ARMY.

       In accordance with section 491 of the Foreign Assistance 
     Act of 1961 (22 U.S.C. 2292) and section 2 of the Migration 
     and Refugee Assistance Act of 1962 (22 U.S.C. 2601), the 
     President is authorized to provide additional assistance to 
     the Democratic Republic of Congo, southern Sudan, and Central 
     African Republic to respond to the humanitarian needs of 
     populations directly affected by the activity of the Lord's 
     Resistance Army.

     SEC. 6. ASSISTANCE FOR RECOVERY AND RECONSTRUCTION IN 
                   NORTHERN UGANDA.

       (a) Authority.--It is the sense of Congress that the 
     President should support efforts by the people of northern 
     Uganda and the Government of Uganda--
       (1) to assist internally displaced people in transition and 
     returnees to secure durable solutions by spurring economic 
     revitalization, supporting livelihoods, helping to alleviate 
     poverty, and advancing access to basic services at return 
     sites, specifically clean water, health care, and schools;
       (2) to enhance the accountability and administrative 
     competency of local governance institutions and public 
     agencies in northern Uganda with regard to budget management, 
     provision of public goods and services, and related oversight 
     functions;
       (3) to strengthen the operational capacity of the civilian 
     police in northern Uganda to enhance public safety, prevent 
     crime, and deal sensitively with gender-based violence, while 
     strengthening accountability measures to prevent corruption 
     and abuses;
       (4) to rebuild and improve the capacity of the justice 
     system in northern Uganda, including the courts and penal 
     systems, with particular sensitivity to the needs and rights 
     of women and children;
       (5) to establish mechanisms for the disarmament, 
     demobilization, and reintegration of former combatants and 
     those abducted by the LRA, including vocational education and 
     employment opportunities, with attention given to the roles 
     and needs of men, women and children; and
       (6) to promote programs to address psychosocial trauma, 
     particularly post-traumatic stress disorder.
       (b) Future Year Funding.--It is the sense of Congress that 
     the Secretary of State and Administrator of the United States 
     Agency for International Development should work with the 
     appropriate committees of Congress to increase assistance in 
     future fiscal years to support activities described in this 
     section if the Government of Uganda demonstrates a commitment 
     to transparent and accountable reconstruction in war-affected 
     areas of northern Uganda, specifically by--
       (1) finalizing the establishment of mechanisms within the 
     Office of the Prime Minister to sufficiently manage and 
     coordinate the programs under the framework of the Peace 
     Recovery and Development Plan for Northern Uganda (PRDP);
       (2) increasing oversight activities and reporting, at the 
     local and national level in Uganda, to ensure funds under the 
     Peace Recovery and Development Plan for Northern Uganda 
     framework are used efficiently and with minimal waste; and
       (3) committing substantial funds of its own, above and 
     beyond standard budget allocations to local governments, to 
     the task of implementing the Peace Recovery and Development 
     Plan for Northern Uganda such

[[Page 3022]]

     that communities affected by the war can recover.
       (c) Coordination With Other Donor Nations.--The United 
     States should work with other donor nations to increase 
     contributions for recovery efforts in northern Uganda and 
     better leverage those contributions to enhance the capacity 
     and encourage the leadership of the Government of Uganda in 
     promoting transparent and accountable reconstruction in 
     northern Uganda.
       (d) Termination of Assistance.--It is the sense of Congress 
     that the Secretary of State should withhold non-humanitarian 
     bilateral assistance to the Republic of Uganda if the 
     Secretary determines that the Government of Uganda is not 
     committed to reconstruction and reconciliation in the war-
     affected areas of northern Uganda and is not taking proactive 
     steps to ensure this process moves forward in a transparent 
     and accountable manner.

     SEC. 7. ASSISTANCE FOR RECONCILIATION AND TRANSITIONAL 
                   JUSTICE IN NORTHERN UGANDA.

       (a) Sense of Congress.--It is the sense of Congress that, 
     despite reconstruction and development efforts, a continued 
     failure to take meaningful steps toward national 
     reconciliation and accountability risks perpetuating 
     longstanding political grievances and fueling new conflicts.
       (b) Authority.--In accordance with section 531 of the 
     Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 (22 U.S.C. 2346), the 
     President is authorized to support efforts by the people of 
     northern Uganda and the Government of Uganda to advance 
     efforts to promote transitional justice and reconciliation on 
     both local and national levels, including to encourage 
     implementation of the mechanisms outlined in the Annexure to 
     the Agreement on Accountability and Reconciliation between 
     the Government of Uganda and the Lord's Resistance Army/
     Movement, signed at Juba February 19, 2008, namely--
       (1) a body to investigate the history of the conflict, 
     inquire into human rights violations committed during the 
     conflict by all sides, promote truth-telling in communities, 
     and encourage the preservation of the memory of events and 
     victims of the conflict through memorials, archives, 
     commemorations, and other forms of preservation;
       (2) a special division of the High Court of Uganda to try 
     individuals alleged to have committed serious crimes during 
     the conflict, and a special unit to carry out investigations 
     and prosecutions in support of trials;
       (3) a system for making reparations to victims of the 
     conflict; and
       (4) a review and strategy for supporting transitional 
     justice mechanisms in affected areas to promote 
     reconciliation and encourage individuals to take personal 
     responsibility for their conduct during the war.

     SEC. 8. REPORT.

       (a) Report Required.--Not later than 1 year after the 
     submission of the strategy required under section 4, the 
     Secretary of State shall prepare and submit to the 
     appropriate committees of Congress a report on the progress 
     made toward the implementation of the strategy required under 
     section 4 and a description and evaluation of the assistance 
     provided under this Act toward the policy objectives 
     described in section 3.
       (b) Contents.--The report required under section (a) shall 
     include--
       (1) a description and evaluation of actions taken toward 
     the implementation of the strategy required under section 4;
       (2) a description of assistance provided under sections 5, 
     6, and 7;
       (3) an evaluation of bilateral assistance provided to the 
     Republic of Uganda and associated programs in light of stated 
     policy objectives;
       (4) a description of the status of the Peace Recovery and 
     Development Plan for Northern Uganda and the progress of the 
     Government of Uganda in fulfilling the steps outlined in 
     section 6(b); and
       (5) a description of amounts of assistance committed, and 
     amounts provided, to northern Uganda during the reporting 
     period by the Government of Uganda and each donor country.
       (c) Form.--The report under this section shall be submitted 
     in unclassified form, but may include a classified annex.

     SEC. 9. SENSE OF CONGRESS ON FUNDING.

       It is the sense of Congress that--
       (1) of the total amounts to be appropriated for fiscal year 
     2011 for the Department of State and foreign operations, up 
     to $10,000,000 should be used to carry out activities under 
     section 5; and
       (2) of the total amounts to be appropriated for fiscal year 
     2011 through 2013 for the Department of State and foreign 
     operations, up to $10,000,000 in each such fiscal year should 
     be used to carry out activities under section 7.

     SEC. 10. DEFINITIONS.

       In this Act:
       (1) Appropriate committees of congress.--The term 
     ``appropriate committees of Congress'' means the Committee on 
     Appropriations and the Committee on Foreign Relations of the 
     Senate and the Committee on Appropriations and the Committee 
     on Foreign Affairs of the House of Representatives.
       (2) Great lakes region.--The term ``Great Lakes Region'' 
     means the region comprising Burundi, Democratic Republic of 
     Congo, Rwanda, southern Sudan, and Uganda.
       (3) LRA-affected areas.--The term ``LRA-affected areas'' 
     means those portions of northern Uganda, southern Sudan, 
     northeastern Democratic Republic of Congo, and southeastern 
     Central African Republic determined by the Secretary of State 
     to be affected by the Lord's Resistance Army as of the date 
     of the enactment of this Act.

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