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Week Ending March 2, 2006

S.CON.RES.16 A concurrent resolution calling on the Government of Uganda and the Lord's Resistance Army (LRA) to recommit to a political solution to the conflict in northern Uganda and to recommence vital peace talks, and urging immediate and substantial support for the ongoing peace process from the United States and the international community.

<< Click flag for map and country data, Uganda.

This resolution preamble bring to light again the ongoing humanitarian crisis in Uganda, Africa where for twenty years the Uganda Government has battled the Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA) resulting thus far in 200,000 deaths from violence and disease and the displacement of 1.6 million civilians from east and north Uganda.

LRA leader Joseph Kony and his associates have been indicted by the UN international Criminal Court fro war crimes and crimes against humanity including rape, murder, enslavement, sexual enslavement and forced recruitment of an estimated 66,000 children, the preamble said.

Congress has declared its support for a peaceful resolution in Uganda and a cessation of hostilities agreement signed in 2006 promised to bring the parties together but neither party has shown a willingness to continue peace talks and appear to be gearing up for more war. More war, the preamble asserts, would yield ‘disastrous results’ in the region.

The Senate goes on record of disapproving with the LRA leadership’s inconsistent commitment to peace and urges them to return to negotiations.

Sponsor:  Senator Russell D. Feingold (D-WI)

Vote: Passed Senate by Unanimous Consent march 1, 2007

Cost to the taxpayers: No discernible cost.

Earmark Certification:   Not applicable to this resolution.

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Whereas for nearly two decades, the Government of Uganda has been engaged in an armed conflict with the Lord's Resistance Army (LRA) that has resulted in up to 200,000 deaths from violence and disease and the displacement of more than 1,600,000 civilians from eastern and northern Uganda.

Whereas former United Nations Undersecretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator Jan Egeland has called the crisis in northern Uganda `the biggest forgotten, neglected humanitarian emergency in the world today';

Whereas Joseph Kony, the leader of the LRA, and several of his associates have been indicted by the International Criminal Court for war crimes and crimes against humanity, including rape, murder, enslavement, sexual enslavement, and the forced recruitment of an estimated 66,000 children;

Whereas the LRA is a severe and repeat violator of human rights and has continued to attack civilians and humanitarian aid workers despite a succession of ceasefire agreements;

Whereas the Secretary of State has labeled the LRA `vicious and cult-like' and designates it as a terrorist organization;

Whereas the 2005 Department of State report on the human rights record of the Government of Uganda found that `security forces committed unlawful killings... and were responsible for deaths as a result of torture' along with other `serious problems,' including repression of political opposition, official impunity, and violence against women and children;

Whereas, in the 2004 Northern Uganda Crisis Response Act (Public Law 108-283; 118 Stat. 912), Congress declared its support for a peaceful resolution of the conflict in northern and eastern Uganda and called for the United States and the international community to assist in rehabilitation, reconstruction, and demobilization efforts;

Whereas the Cessation of Hostilities Agreement, which was mediated by the Government of Southern Sudan and signed by representatives of the Government of Uganda and the LRA on August 20, 2006, and extended on November 1, 2006, requires both parties to cease all hostile military and media offensives and asks the Sudan People's Liberation Army to facilitate the safe assembly of LRA fighters in designated areas for the duration of the peace talks;

Whereas the Cessation of Hostilities Agreement is set to expire on February 28, 2007, and although both parties to the agreement have indicated that they are willing to continue with the peace talks, no date has been set for resumption of the talks, and recent reports have suggested that both rebel and Government forces are preparing to return to war;

Whereas a return to civil war would yield disastrous results for the people of northern Uganda and for regional stability, while peace in Uganda will bolster the fragile Comprehensive Peace Agreement in Sudan and de-escalate tensions in the Democratic Republic of the Congo;

Whereas continuing violence and instability obstruct the delivery of humanitarian assistance to the people of northern Uganda and impede national and regional trade, development and democratization efforts, and counter-terrorism initiatives; and

Whereas the Senate unanimously passed Senate Resolution 366, 109th Congress, agreed to February 6, 2006, and Senate Resolution 573, 109th Congress, agreed to September 19, 2006, calling on Uganda, Sudan, the United States, and the international community to bring justice and provide humanitarian assistance to northern Uganda and to support the successful transition from conflict to sustainable peace, while the House of Representatives has not yet considered comparable legislation: Now, therefore, be it

Resolved by the Senate (the House of Representatives concurring), That Congress--

(1) disapproves of the LRA leadership's inconsistent commitment to resolving the conflict in Uganda peacefully;

(2) urges the Lord's Resistance Army (LRA) and the Government of Uganda to return to negotiations in order to extend and expand upon the existing ceasefire and to recommit to pursuing a political solution to this conflict;

(3) entreats all parties in the region to immediately cease human rights violations and address, within the context of a broader national reconciliation process in Uganda, issues of accountability and impunity for those crimes against humanity already committed;

(4) presses leaders on both sides of the conflict in Uganda to renounce any intentions and halt any preparations to resume violence and to ensure that this message is clearly conveyed to armed elements under their control; and

(5) calls on the Secretary of State, the Administrator of the United States Agency for International Development, and the heads of other similar governmental agencies and nongovernmental organizations within the international community to continue and augment efforts to alleviate the humanitarian crisis in northern Uganda and to support a peaceful resolution to this crisis by publicly and forcefully reiterating the preceding demands.

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