III 

116TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION S. RES. 188 

Encouraging a swift transfer of power by the military to a civilian-led political 

authority in the Republic of the Sudan, and for other purposes. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

MAY 2, 2019 

Mr. CRUZ (for himself, Mr. DURBIN, Mr. RISCH, Mr. VAN HOLLEN, Mr. 

CRAMER, Mr. BLUMENTHAL, Mr. ISAKSON, Mr. MERKLEY, Mr. BOOZMAN, Ms. HARRIS, Mr. YOUNG, Mr. COONS, Mr. ROBERTS, Mr. CARDIN, 

Mr. HAWLEY, Ms. KLOBUCHAR, Mr. RUBIO, Mr. GRAHAM, Mr. PETERS, 

Ms. SMITH, Mrs. FEINSTEIN, Ms. WARREN, Ms. BALDWIN, Mr. BOOKER, 

Mr. BRAUN, Mrs. GILLIBRAND, Mr. KAINE, Mr. WYDEN, Mr. WARNER, 

Mr. CRAPO, and Mr. MARKEY) submitted the following resolution; which 

was referred to the Committee on Foreign Relations 

JUNE 3, 2019 

Reported by Mr. RISCH, with an amendment and an amendment to the 

preamble 

JULY 9, 2019 

Considered, amended, and agreed to with an amended preamble 

RESOLUTION 

Encouraging a swift transfer of power by the military to 

a civilian-led political authority in the Republic of the 

Sudan, and for other purposes. 

Whereas the nation of Sudan has endured corrupt and brutal 

dictatorships for most of its post-independence period 

since 1956; 


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Whereas President Omar al-Bashir came to power through a 

military coup in 1989, and for the next 3 decades his 

government was responsible for horrendous crimes in 

Sudan, especially in Darfur, South Kordofan, Blue Nile, 

and in what is now the Republic of South Sudan; 

Whereas the United States Government designated Sudan as 

a State Sponsor of Terrorism on August 12, 1993, for 

its support to international terrorist organizations and 

extremists, including elements of what would later be 

known as al Qaeda; 

Whereas more than 2 decades of civil war between President 

al-Bashir’s government and insurgents in southern Sudan 

resulted in more than 2,000,000 deaths and led to the 

eventual independence of South Sudan in 2011; 

Whereas in 2003, President al-Bashir’s government launched 

a ruthless crackdown against insurgents and civilians in 

Darfur, which killed at least 300,000 Sudanese and displaced 2,500,000 more people, prompting Congress and 

the Administration of President George W. Bush, in 

2004, to describe the Government of Sudan’s actions in 

Darfur as genocide; 

Whereas in 2011, when conflict resumed in South Kordofan 

and Blue Nile states, President al-Bashir’s government 

conducted indiscriminate bombings, raided villages, raped 

and killed civilians, and waged a campaign of forced starvation in the Nuba Mountains region of South Kordofan 

that displaced as many as 2,000,000 people; 

Whereas, while the fighting between government forces and 

insurgents in Darfur has subsided since 2016, violent attacks against civilians continue and humanitarian access 


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remains restricted in some opposition stronghold areas of 

Darfur, South Kordofan, and Blue Nile; 

Whereas President al-Bashir remains the subject of 2 outstanding arrest warrants from the International Criminal 

Court based on charges that include 5 counts of crimes 

against humanity, 2 counts of war crimes, and 3 counts 

of genocide; 

Whereas Sudan’s economic crisis risks bringing the national 

economy to total collapse, further increasing the possibility of state failure and broader regional destabilization 

that could threaten a wide array of United States’ interests in East and North Africa and the Red Sea regions; 

Whereas the people of Sudan have engaged since December 

2018 in a wave of peaceful protests throughout the country, demanding an end to President al-Bashir’s brutal regime and pressing for a citizen-centered democratic transition; 

Whereas women have played a prominent role in the protest 

movement and have helped to bring about the ouster of 

former President al-Bashir; 

Whereas President al-Bashir’s government unlawfully detained and tortured hundreds of Sudanese during the 

protests, including political leaders, journalists, doctors, 

unionists, and youth and women leaders, in gross violation of international civil and human rights, some of 

whom remain in detention; 

Whereas on February 22, 2019, President al-Bashir declared 

a year-long nationwide state of emergency and curfew, 

dissolved his government, replaced state governors with 

senior security officers, and expanded the powers of Sudan’s security forces; 


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Whereas when protesters in early April 2019 challenged 

President al-Bashir’s decrees and gathered in the tens of 

thousands in front of Sudan’s military headquarters in 

Khartoum to call for an end to the al-Bashir regime, 

some elements of the security forces tried to disperse the 

crowds with violence, leading to clashes between internal 

security forces and the military as some soldiers sought 

to protect the protesters; 

Whereas on April 11, 2019, after 5 days of mass protests in 

front of their headquarters, Sudan’s military removed 

President al-Bashir from office, and the country’s First 

Vice President and Minister of Defense, Lt. General 

Awad Ibn Auf— 

(1) announced that he would lead a Transitional 

Military Council that would rule the country for a 2-year 

period; 

(2) suspended the Constitution; 

(3) the dissolved the National Assembly; and 

(4) imposed a 3-month State of Emergency and 

nightly curfew; 

Whereas Lt. General Abdel-Fattah al-Burhan, former general 

inspector of the Sudanese Armed Forces, who replaced 

Lt. General Ibn Auf on April 12, 2019, as the chairman 

of the Transitional Military Council, said, on April 21, 

2019, that the council was ‘‘ready to hand over power tomorrow to a civilian government agreed by political 

forces’’; 

Whereas the Rapid Support Forces, paramilitary forces led 

by Lt. General Mohammed Hamdan Dagolo (also known 

as ‘‘Hemmeti’’), a former Janjaweed leader who currently 

serves as the deputy chairman of the Transitional Military Council— 


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(1) have been implicated by the United Nations 

Panel of Experts in widespread violations of international 

humanitarian law that human rights groups suggest may 

amount to war crimes; and 

(2) have been accused of killing protesters during 

the recent uprising; 

Whereas, the African Union Peace and Security Council convened on April 30, 2019, and reiterated its conviction 

that ‘‘a military-led transition in Sudan will be totally 

unacceptable and contrary to the will and legitimate aspirations’’ of the Sudanese people, expressed ‘‘deep regret’’ 

that the military had not stepped aside, and, noting negotiations were underway, demanded that the military hand 

over power to a civilian-led transitional authority within 

60 days; 

Whereas on June 3, 2019, the Rapid Support Forces led a 

brutal attack on peaceful protesters, with the aim of 

eradicating a large sit-in site in front of Sudan’s military 

headquarters in Khartoum, which resulted in more than 

100 deaths, hundreds of injuries, several cases of rape, 

indiscriminate beatings and shooting of unarmed protesters, and other human rights abuses; 

Whereas, the Khartoum massacre on June 3, 2019, was followed by a nationwide crackdown led by the Rapid Support Forces against peaceful protesters and civilians that 

included— 

(1) violent attacks on citizens in Khartoum and 

other major cities; 

(2) the brutal detention of protesters and opposition 

leaders like Yasir Arman, with many disappearances of 

those detained; 


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(3) the targeting of hospitals and medical workers 

caring for the injured; and 

(4) the overt attempts by Sudanese authorities to 

cover-up the scale of their atrocities by dumping bodies 

in the Nile river and shutting off access to the Internet; 

and 

Whereas, the international community has widely condemned 

the actions of the Rapid Support Forces, with the African Union’s Peace and Security Council voting on June 

6, 2019, to suspend Sudan from all African Union activities until a civilian government is formed, and United 

Nations’ experts appointed by the United Nations 

Human Rights Council, on June 12, 2019, calling for an 

independent investigation into the violence against protesters in Sudan: Now, therefore, be it 

1 Resolved, That the Senate— 

2 (1) supports the African Union Peace and Se3 curity Council’s initial 2-week deadline urging a 

4 swift transfer of power by the military to a civilian5 led political authority in Sudan that— 

6 (A) has a civilian character and composi7 tion reflecting the will of the Declaration of 

8 Freedom and Change Forces leading negotia9 tions on behalf of citizens; and 

10 (B) immediately begins a transparent proc11 ess leading to credible elections and security 

12 sector reforms; 

13 (2) calls on the ruling authorities in Sudan— 


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1 (A) to respect the right to freedom of asso2 ciation and expression; 

3 (B) to protect the rights of opposition po4 litical parties, journalists, human rights defend5 ers, religious minorities, nongovernmental orga6 nizations, and civic movements to operate with7 out interference; 

8 (C) to lift the bureaucratic restrictions on, 

9 and facilitate access for, humanitarian relief op10 erations; 

11 (D) to introduce strong measures to create 

12 transparency and address the structural corrup13 tion and kleptocracy of the state; 

14 (E) to pursue accountability for serious 

15 crimes and human rights abuses by former 

16 President al-Bashir’s regime and permit inter17 national human rights monitors to deploy in 

18 Sudan to examine the allegations of atrocities 

19 committed against protesters and civilians dur20 ing 2019; 

21 (F) to release remaining political prisoners 

22 and refrain from arbitrary arrest, detention, 

23 and torture; and 

24 (G) to immediately restore Internet access 

25 and avoid further denial of access to suppress 


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1 the fundamental human right of freedom of ex2 pression and association by Sudanese citizens; 

3 (3) urges the United States Government to lead 

4 in efforts that advance a peaceful transfer of power 

5 and a civilian-led transition period focused on cre6 ating the conditions under which timely democratic 

7 elections can be held that will meet international 

8 standards and be overseen by credible domestic and 

9 international electoral observers, and for the peace10 ful resolution of Sudan’s conflicts; 

11 (4) encourages the African Union and its mem12 ber states to continue supporting the Sudanese peo13 ple’s aspirations for democracy, justice, and peace; 

14 (5) expresses concern that the participation in 

15 the transitional government of individuals who have 

16 been implicated in possible war crimes would under17 mine efforts to restore peace and democracy and 

18 pursue justice and accountability in Sudan; 

19 (6) emphasizes that until a transition to a cred20 ible civilian-led government that reflects the aspira21 tions of the Sudanese people is established, the proc22 ess to consider removing Sudan from the State 

23 Sponsor of Terrorism List, lifting any other remain24 ing sanctions on Sudan, or normalizing relations 


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1 with the Government of Sudan will continue to be 

2 suspended; and 

3 (7) stands in solidarity with the people of 

4 Sudan and their aspirations for a democratic, 

5 participatory government. 

Æ 


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