[115th Congress Public Law 441]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]



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       ELIE WIESEL GENOCIDE AND ATROCITIES PREVENTION ACT OF 2018

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Public Law 115-441
115th Congress

                                 An Act


 
   To help prevent acts of genocide and other atrocity crimes, which 
threaten national and international security, by enhancing United States 
    Government capacities to prevent, mitigate, and respond to such 
              crises. <<NOTE: Jan. 14, 2019 -  [S. 1158]>> 

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled, <<NOTE: Elie Wiesel 
Genocide and Atrocities Prevention Act of 2018. 22 USC 2651 note.>> 
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Elie Wiesel Genocide and Atrocities 
Prevention Act of 2018''.
SEC. 2. SENSE OF CONGRESS.

    It is the sense of Congress that the United States Government's 
efforts at atrocity prevention and response through interagency 
coordination, such as the Atrocities Prevention Board (referred to in 
this Act as the ``Board'') or successor entity are critically important, 
and that appropriate officials of the United States Government should--
            (1) meet regularly to monitor developments throughout the 
        world that heighten the risk of atrocities;
            (2) identify any gaps in United States foreign policy 
        concerning regions or particular countries related to atrocity 
        prevention and response;
            (3) facilitate the development and implementation of 
        policies to enhance the capacity of the United States to prevent 
        and respond to atrocities worldwide;
            (4) provide the President and Congress with recommendations 
        to improve policies, programs, resources, and tools related to 
        atrocity prevention and response;
            (5) conduct outreach, including consultations, not less 
        frequently than biannually, with representatives of 
        nongovernmental organizations and civil society dedicated to 
        atrocity prevention and response;
            (6) operate with regular consultation and participation of 
        designated interagency representatives of relevant Federal 
        agencies, executive departments, or offices; and
            (7) ensure resources are made available for the policies, 
        programs, and tools related to atrocity prevention and response.
SEC. 3. <<NOTE: 22 USC 2656 note.>>  STATEMENT OF POLICY.

    It shall be the policy of the United States to--
            (1) regard the prevention of atrocities as in its national 
        interest;
            (2) work with partners and allies, including to build their 
        capacity, and enhance the capacity of the United States, to

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        identify, prevent, and respond to the causes of atrocities, 
        including insecurity, mass displacement, violent conflict, and 
        other conditions that may lead to such atrocities; and
            (3) pursue a United States Government-wide strategy to 
        identify, prevent, and respond to the risk of atrocities by--
                    (A) strengthening the diplomatic, risk analysis and 
                monitoring, strategic planning, early warning, and 
                response capacities of the Government;
                    (B) improving the use of foreign assistance to 
                respond early, effectively, and urgently in order to 
                address the causes of atrocities;
                    (C) strengthening diplomatic response and the 
                effective use of foreign assistance to support 
                appropriate transitional justice measures, including 
                criminal accountability, for past atrocities;
                    (D) supporting and strengthening local civil 
                society, including human rights defenders and others 
                working to help prevent and respond to atrocities;
                    (E) promoting financial transparency and enhancing 
                anti-corruption initiatives as part of addressing causes 
                of conditions that may lead to atrocities; and
                    (F) employing a variety of unilateral, bilateral, 
                and multilateral means to prevent and respond to 
                atrocities by--
                          (i) placing a high priority on timely, 
                      preventive diplomatic efforts; and
                          (ii) exercising leadership in promoting 
                      international efforts to prevent atrocities.
SEC. 4. TRAINING OF FOREIGN SERVICE OFFICERS IN CONFLICT AND 
                    ATROCITIES PREVENTION.

    Section 708 of the Foreign Service Act of 1980 (22 U.S.C. 4028) is 
amended in subsection (a)(1)--
            (1) in subparagraph (B), by striking ``and'' at the end;
            (2) in subparagraph (C), by striking the period at the end 
        and inserting ``; and''; and
            (3) by adding at the end the following new subparagraph:
                    ``(D) <<NOTE: Determination. Consultation.>>  for 
                Foreign Service Officers who will be assigned to a 
                country experiencing or at risk of mass atrocities, as 
                determined by the Secretary of State, in consultation 
                with the Director of National Intelligence and relevant 
                civil society organizations, instruction on recognizing 
                patterns of escalation and early warning signs of 
                potential atrocities, and methods of preventing and 
                responding to atrocities, including conflict assessment 
                methods, peacebuilding, mediation for prevention, early 
                action and response, and appropriate transitional 
                justice measures to address atrocities.''.
SEC. 5. REPORTS.

    (a) In General <<NOTE: President.>> .--Not later than 180 days after 
the date of the enactment of this Act and annually thereafter for the 
following six years, the President shall transmit to the Committee on 
Foreign Affairs and the Committee on Appropriations of the House of 
Representatives and the Committee on Foreign Relations and the Committee 
on Appropriations of the Senate a report, with a classified annex if 
necessary, that includes--

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            (1) <<NOTE: Review. Consultation.>>  a review, in 
        consultation with appropriate interagency representatives, 
        including the Board, consisting of a detailed description of--
                    (A) <<NOTE: Analysis.>>  current efforts to prevent 
                and respond to atrocities, based on United States and 
                locally identified indicators, including an analysis of 
                capacities and constraints for interagency detection, 
                early warning and response, information-sharing, 
                contingency planning, and coordination;
                    (B) <<NOTE: Recommenda- tions.>>  recommendations to 
                further strengthen United States capabilities described 
                in subparagraph (A);
                    (C) funding expended by relevant Federal departments 
                and agencies on atrocities prevention activities, 
                including appropriate transitional justice measures and 
                the legal, procedural, and resource constraints faced by 
                the Department of State and the United States Agency for 
                International Development throughout respective 
                budgeting, strategic planning, and management cycles 
                regarding support for atrocity prevention activities;
                    (D) <<NOTE: Assessment.>>  a global assessment of 
                ongoing atrocities, including the findings of such 
                assessment and, where relevant, the efficacy of any 
                steps taken by the Board or relevant Federal agency to 
                respond to such atrocities;
                    (E) countries and regions at risk of atrocities, 
                including a description of specific risk factors, at-
                risk groups, and likely scenarios in which atrocities 
                would occur; and
                    (F) the atrocities prevention training for Foreign 
                Service officers authorized under subparagraph (D) of 
                section 708(a)(1) of the Foreign Service Act of 1980, as 
                added by section 4;
            (2) <<NOTE: Recommenda- tions.>>  recommendations to ensure 
        shared responsibility by--
                    (A) enhancing multilateral mechanisms for preventing 
                atrocities, including strengthening the role of 
                international organizations and international financial 
                institutions in conflict prevention, mitigation, and 
                response; and
                    (B) strengthening relevant regional organizations;
            (3) the implementation status of the recommendations 
        contained in the previous review required by this section; and
            (4) identification of the Federal agencies and civil 
        society, academic, and nongovernmental organizations and 
        institutions consulted for preparation of such report.

    (b) Consideration of Recommendations.--The preparation of the report 
required by subsection (a) shall include a consideration of analysis, 
reporting, and policy recommendations to prevent and respond to 
atrocities produced by civil society, academic, and other 
nongovernmental organizations and institutions.
    (c) Availability to Congress.--The report required by subsection (a) 
shall be made available to all members of Congress.
SEC. 6. <<NOTE: 22 USC 2656 note.>>  DEFINITIONS.

    In this Act--
            (1) the term ``genocide'' means an offense under subsection 
        (a) of section 1091 of title 18, United States Code;
            (2) the term ``atrocities'' means war crimes, crimes against 
        humanity, and genocide;
            (3) the term ``transitional justice'' means the range of 
        judicial, nonjudicial, formal, informal, retributive, and 
        restorative measures employed by countries transitioning out of 
        armed

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        conflict or repressive regimes to redress legacies of atrocities 
        and to promote long-term, sustainable peace; and
            (4) the term ``war crime'' has the meaning given the term in 
        section 2441(c) of title 18, United States Code.
SEC. 7. <<NOTE: 22 USC 2656 note.>>  RULE OF CONSTRUCTION.

    Nothing in this Act shall be construed as authorizing the use of 
military force.

    Approved January 14, 2019.

LEGISLATIVE HISTORY--S. 1158 (H.R. 3030):
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CONGRESSIONAL RECORD, Vol. 164 (2018):
            Dec. 12, considered and passed Senate.
            Dec. 21, considered and passed House.

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