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[Congressional Bills 109th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H. Res. 554 Introduced in House (IH)]

109th CONGRESS
  1st Session
H. RES. 554

    Urging the Government of the Gabonese Republic to hold orderly, 
  peaceful, and free and fair presidential elections in November 2005.

_______________________________________________________________________

                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                           November 15, 2005

     Mr. Payne (for himself and Mr. Wynn) submitted the following 
   resolution; which was referred to the Committee on International 
                               Relations

_______________________________________________________________________

                               RESOLUTION

 
    Urging the Government of the Gabonese Republic to hold orderly, 
  peaceful, and free and fair presidential elections in November 2005.

Whereas the Gabonese Republic is a heavily forested and oil-rich country on the 
        west coast of Central Africa, which produces nearly 270,000 barrels of 
        oil per day;
Whereas Gabon gained independence from France in 1960, was subject to single-
        party rule until 1990, and has demonstrated its support for the 
        democratic process through the formation of numerous political parties 
        since 1990 and the strong participation of its people in prior 
        elections;
Whereas Gabon is scheduled to hold national elections in November 2005 for the 
        purpose of electing a President;
Whereas the Government of Gabon is a signatory to the ``Paris Accords'' of 1994, 
        approved by national referendum in July 1995, which provides for a state 
        of law guaranteeing basic individual freedoms and the organization of 
        free and fair elections under an independent national election 
        commission;
Whereas Gabon has enjoyed a strong relationship with the United States, as 
        demonstrated by Secretary of State Colin Powell's historic visit to 
        Gabon in September 2002, the President of Gabon's visit to the White 
        House in May 2004, and cooperative business and trade relations between 
        the two countries;
Whereas the Department of State's 2005 Country Reports on Human Rights Practices 
        states with respect to Gabon that the last presidential election in 
        1998, the legislative elections in 2001, and the senatorial elections in 
        2003 were marred with serious administrative problems and 
        irregularities, including incomplete and inaccurate electoral lists and 
        the use of false documents to cast multiple votes;
Whereas in July 2003, the Gabonese Constitution was amended to remove any 
        references to presidential term limits;
Whereas the President of Gabon has been the leader of that country since 1967 
        and is the longest serving leader on the continent of Africa;
Whereas the judiciary of Gabon is widely viewed to be inefficient and subject to 
        government influence;
Whereas the President of the National Electoral Commission in Gabon issued a 
        decree that permits the military to vote in their barracks on November 
        25 and the general population to vote on November 27, 2005;
Whereas this decree potentially raises the possibility that, in the absence of 
        proper safeguards, military personnel might vote more than once and that 
        other voting irregularities might occur since military barracks are not 
        generally open to public observation;
Whereas the Gabonese Minister of Immigration threatened to invalidate the 
        passports of members of opposition political parties seeking to travel 
        outside of Gabon in response to their alleged criticism of the President 
        of Gabon overseas, which can only be viewed as a threat to the freedoms 
        of speech and of assembly;
Whereas, according to press reports, in some locales, electoral lists have not 
        been posted, and in others, voter registries may have been inflated; and
Whereas it is in the interest of the United States to promote political and 
        economic freedom in Africa and throughout the world: Now, therefore, be 
        it
    Resolved, That the House of Representatives--
            (1) recognizes and commends the mediation efforts of the 
        Government of the Gabonese Republic in Angola, Burundi, the 
        Central African Republic, Chad, Congo (Brazzaville), Congo 
        (Kinshasa), and Cote d'Ivoire;
            (2) recognizes and commends those Gabonese who have 
        demonstrated their desire for free and fair elections;
            (3) believes it is critical that the November 2005 
        presidential elections be conducted in a fair and transparent 
        manner, and that the elections be viewed by the people of Gabon 
        as such so that the winner of the election can claim a clear 
        and legitimate mandate to govern the country;
            (4) calls on the Government of Gabon and opposition parties 
        to continue their peaceful dialogue and to fairly and 
        transparently resolve any elections-related disputes between 
        them;
            (5) calls on the Gabonese Government--
                    (A) to hold orderly, peaceful, free, and fair 
                presidential elections in November 2005 in order to 
                ensure the long-term growth and stability of Gabon;
                    (B) to guarantee the full, free, and open 
                participation of opposition parties in the upcoming 
                elections; and
                    (C) to guarantee all Gabonese citizens the freedom 
                of speech and the freedom of assembly; and
            (6) calls on the Government of the United States and the 
        international community to continue to encourage and support 
        the institutionalization of democratic processes and the 
        establishment of conditions for good governance in Gabon and 
        the sub-region.
                                 <all>
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