109TH CONGRESS

2D SESSION S. 2125

AN ACT

To promote relief, security, and democracy in the Democratic

Republic of the Congo.

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Democratic Republic

5 of the Congo Relief, Security, and Democracy Promotion

6 Act of 2006’’.
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1 TITLE I—BILATERAL ACTION ON

2 ADDRESSING URGENT NEEDS

3 IN THE DEMOCRATIC REPUB4 LIC OF THE CONGO

5 SEC. 101. FINDINGS.

6 Congress makes the following findings:

7 (1) The National Security Strategy of the

8 United States, dated September 17, 2002, concludes

9 that ‘‘[i]n Africa, promise and opportunity sit side10 by-side with disease, war, and desperate poverty.

11 This threatens both a core value of the United

12 States preserving human dignity and our strategic

13 priority combating global terror. American interests

14 and American principles, therefore, lead in the same

15 direction: we will work with others for an African

16 continent that lives in liberty, peace, and growing

17 prosperity.’’

18 (2) On February 16, 2005, the Director of the

19 Central Intelligence Agency testified, ‘‘In Africa,

20 chronic instability will continue to hamper

21 counterterrorism efforts and pose heavy humani22 tarian and peacekeeping burdens.’’

23 (3) According to the United States Agency for

24 International Development, ‘‘Given its size, popu25 lation, and resources, the Congo is an important
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1 player in Africa and of long-term interest to the

2 United States.’’

3 (4) The Democratic Republic of Congo is

2,345,410 square miles (approximately 1 4 ⁄4 the size of

5 the United States), lies at the heart of Africa, and

6 touches every major region of sub-Saharan Africa.

7 Therefore, a secure, peaceful, and prosperous Demo8 cratic Republic of the Congo would have a profound

9 impact on progress throughout Africa.

10 (5) A mortality study completed in December

11 2004 by the International Rescue Committee found

12 that 31,000 people were dying monthly and

13 3,800,000 people had died in the previous 6 years

14 because of the conflict in the Democratic Republic of

15 the Congo and resulting disintegration of the social

16 service infrastructure and that ‘‘improving and

17 maintaining security and increasing simple, proven

18 and cost-effective interventions such as basic medical

19 care, immunizations and clean water would save

20 hundreds of thousands of lives in the Congo. There’s

21 no shortage of evidence. It’s sustained compassion

22 and political will that’s lacking.’’

23 (6) The International Crisis Group concluded,

24 ‘‘The conflict in the Democratic Republic of the

25 Congo remains one of the deadliest conflicts since
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1 World War II and has resulted in the loss of nearly

2 4 million lives since 1998. . . . The international com3 munity, and the United Nations Security Council in

4 particular, must take strong and urgent action to

5 support the transition, establish a national army and

6 secure lasting peace in the Democratic Republic of

7 the Congo, if it is to live up to its responsibility to

8 protect those in need.’’

9 (7) According to the Department of State, ‘‘re10 turning one of Africa’s largest countries [the Demo11 cratic Republic of the Congo] to full peace and sta12 bility will require significant United States invest13 ments in support of national elections, the reintegra14 tion of former combatants, the return and reintegra15 tion of refugees and [internally displaced persons],

16 establishment of central government control over

17 vast territories, and promotion of national reconcili18 ation and good governance’’.

19 (8) According to the 2005 Department of State

20 report on human rights practices in the Democratic

21 Republic of the Congo, ‘‘In all areas of the country,

22 the human rights record remained poor, and numer23 ous serious abuses were committed; however, there

24 were some improvements during the year.’’.
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1 SEC. 102. STATEMENT OF POLICY.

2 It is the policy of the United States—

3 (1) to promote, reinvigorate, and support the

4 political process in the Democratic Republic of the

5 Congo in order to press all parties in the Transi6 tional National Government to move forward with

7 approval of an electoral law and put in place mecha8 nisms, including national and international election

9 observers, fair and transparent voter registration

10 procedures, and a significant civic awareness and

11 public education campaign, to ensure that the elec12 tions scheduled to be held on July 30, 2006, and fu13 ture elections in the Democratic Republic of the

14 Congo are carried out in a fair and democratic man15 ner;

16 (2) to ensure that, once a stable national gov17 ernment is established in the Democratic Republic of

18 the Congo, it is committed to multiparty democracy,

19 open and transparent governance, respect for human

20 rights and religious freedom, ending the violence

21 throughout the country, promoting peace and sta22 bility with its neighbors, rehabilitating the national

23 judicial system and enhancing the rule of law, and

24 combating corruption;

25 (3) to assist the Government of the Democratic

26 Republic of the Congo in meeting the basic needs of
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1 its citizens, including security, safety, and access to

2 health care, education, food, shelter, and clean

3 drinking water;

4 (4) to engage in security sector reform by help5 ing the Government of the Democratic Republic of

6 the Congo establish through the provision of nec7 essary equipment and training a viable and profes8 sional national army and police force that respects

9 human rights and the rule of law, is under effective

10 civilian control, and possesses a viable presence

11 throughout the entire country, including by contrib12 uting to the provision of necessary equipment and

13 training;

14 (5) to expedite planning and implementation of

15 programs associated with the disarmament, demobi16 lization, repatriation, reintegration, and rehabilita17 tion process in the Democratic Republic of the

18 Congo;

19 (6) to support efforts of the Government of the

20 Democratic Republic of the Congo, the United Na21 tions Peacekeeping Mission in the Democratic Re22 public of the Congo (MONUC), and other entities,

23 as appropriate, to disarm, demobilize, and repatriate

24 the Democratic Forces for the Liberation of Rwanda

25 and other illegally armed groups;
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1 (7) to ensure that the Government of the

2 Democratic Republic of the Congo—

3 (A) is committed to responsible and trans4 parent management of natural resources across

5 the country; and

6 (B) takes active measures—

7 (i) to promote economic development;

8 (ii) to hold accountable individuals

9 who misuse the country’s natural resources

10 for personal gain; and

11 (iii) to implement the Extractive In12 dustries Transparency Initiative by enact13 ing laws requiring disclosure and inde14 pendent auditing of company payments

15 and government receipts for natural re16 source extraction;

17 (8) to promote a viable civil society and to en18 hance nongovernmental organizations and institu19 tions, including religious organizations, the media,

20 political parties, trade unions, and trade and busi21 ness associations, that can act as a stabilizing force

22 and effective check on the government;

23 (9) to rebuild and enhance infrastructure, com24 munications, and other mechanisms that will in25 crease the ability of the central government to man-
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1 age internal affairs, encourage economic develop2 ment, and facilitate relief efforts of humanitarian or3 ganizations;

4 (10) to halt the high prevalence of sexual abuse

5 and violence perpetrated against women and children

6 in the Democratic Republic of the Congo and miti7 gate the detrimental effects from acts of this type of

8 violence by undertaking a number of health, edu9 cation, and financial support measures, including

10 psycho-social programs, counseling, and HIV/AIDS

11 testing and treatment, and providing financial sup12 port;

13 (11) to work aggressively on a bilateral basis to

14 urge governments of countries contributing troops to

15 the United Nations Peacekeeping Mission in the

16 Democratic Republic of the Congo (MONUC) to

17 enact and enforce laws on trafficking in persons and

18 sexual abuse that meet international standards, pro19 mote codes of conduct for troops serving as part of

20 United Nations peacekeeping missions, and imme21 diately investigate and punish citizens who are re22 sponsible for abuses in the Democratic Republic of

23 the Congo;

24 (12) to undertake steps that—
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1 (A) protect internally displaced persons

2 and refugees in the Democratic Republic of the

3 Congo and border regions from all forms of vio4 lence, including gender-based violence and other

5 human rights abuses;

6 (B) address other basic needs of vulnerable

7 populations with the goal of allowing these con8 flict-affected individuals to ultimately return to

9 their homes; and

10 (C) assess the magnitude of the problem in

11 the Democratic Republic of the Congo of or12 phans from conflict and HIV/AIDS, and work

13 to establish a program of national support;

14 (13) to engage with governments working to

15 promote peace and security throughout the Demo16 cratic Republic of the Congo and hold accountable

17 individuals, entities, and countries working to desta18 bilize the country; and

19 (14) to promote appropriate use of the forests

20 of the Democratic Republic of the Congo in a man21 ner that benefits the rural population in that coun22 try that depends on the forests for their livelihoods

23 and protects national and environmental interests.
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1 SEC. 103. BILATERAL ASSISTANCE TO THE DEMOCRATIC

2 REPUBLIC OF THE CONGO.

3 (a) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—

4 (1) IN GENERAL.—In addition to amounts oth5 erwise available for such purposes, including

6 amounts from regional funds, there is authorized to

7 be appropriated $52,000,000 for fiscal year 2006 for

8 bilateral assistance programs in the Democratic Re9 public of the Congo under the Foreign Assistance

10 Act of 1961 (22 U.S.C. 2151 et seq.), the Agricul11 tural Trade Development and Assistance Act of

12 1954 (68 Stat. 454, chapter 469), and the Arms Ex13 port Control Act (22 U.S.C. 2751 et seq.).

14 (2) AVAILABILITY OF FUNDS.—Amounts appro15 priated pursuant to paragraph (1) are authorized to

16 remain available until expended.

17 (b) USES OF ASSISTANCE.—Amounts appropriated

18 pursuant to subsection (a) shall be used to accomplish the

19 policy objectives in section 102.

20 (c) FUTURE YEAR FUNDING.—The Department of

21 State should submit budget requests in fiscal years 2007,

22 2008, and 2009 that contain increases in bilateral assist23 ance for the Democratic Republic of the Congo that are

24 appropriate and similar to the increase authorized under

25 subsection (a) for fiscal year 2006 if progress is being

26 made, particularly cooperation by the Government of the
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1 Democratic Republic of the Congo, toward accomplishing

2 the objectives in section 102.

3 (d) OFFSETS.—Not later than 30 days after the date

4 of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of State should

5 consult with the Chairmen and Ranking Members of the

6 Committee on Foreign Relations, the Committee on Ap7 propriations, and the Committee on the Budget of the

8 Senate and the Committee on International Relations, the

9 Committee on Appropriations, and the Committee on the

10 Budget of the House of Representatives to determine ap11 propriate reductions in funding, especially redundant or

12 duplicative programs, to offset the increase in funding au13 thorized in subsection (a).

14 (e) USES OF SECURITY ASSISTANCE.—Security as15 sistance that is authorized to be appropriated under this

16 section shall be made available consistent with section 551

17 of the Foreign Operations, Export Financing, and Related

18 Programs Appropriations Act, 2006 (Public Law 109–

19 102; 119 Stat. 2218) and other provisions of law related

20 to eligibility.

21 (f) COORDINATION WITH OTHER DONOR NA22 TIONS.—The United States should work with other donor

23 nations, on a bilateral and multilateral basis, to increase

24 international contributions to the Democratic Republic of
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1 the Congo and accomplish the policy objectives described

2 in section 102.

3 SEC. 104. ACCOUNTABILITY FOR THE GOVERNMENT OF

4 THE DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC OF THE CONGO.

5 (a) SENSE OF CONGRESS.—It is the sense of Con6 gress that—

7 (1) the Government of the Democratic Republic

8 of the Congo must be committed to achieving the

9 policy objectives described in this Act if the efforts

10 of the United States and other members of the

11 international community are to be effective in bring12 ing relief, security, and democracy to the country;

13 and

14 (2) the international community, through the

15 United Nations peacekeeping mission, humanitarian

16 and development relief, and other forms of assist17 ance, is providing a substantial amount of funding

18 that is giving the Government of the Democratic Re19 public of the Congo an opportunity to make progress

20 towards accomplishing the policy objectives in sec21 tion 102, but this assistance cannot continue in per22 petuity.

23 (b) REPORT ON PROGRESS.—

24 (1) REPORT REQUIRED.—Not later than one

25 year after the date of the enactment of this Act, the
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1 Comptroller General of the United States shall sub2 mit to Congress a report on the progress made to3 ward accomplishing the policy objectives described in

4 section 102.

5 (2) CONTENT.—The report required under

6 paragraph (1) shall include—

7 (A) a description of any major impedi8 ments that prevent the accomplishment of the

9 policy objectives described in section 102;

10 (B) an evaluation of United States policies

11 and foreign assistance programs designed to ac12 complish such policy objectives; and

13 (C) recommendations for—

14 (i) improving these policies and pro15 grams; and

16 (ii) any additional bilateral or multi17 lateral actions necessary to promote peace

18 and prosperity in the Democratic Republic

19 of the Congo.

20 (c) TERMINATION OF ASSISTANCE.—The Secretary

21 of State may withhold assistance otherwise available under

22 this Act if the Secretary determines and reports to Con23 gress that the Government of the Democratic Republic of

24 the Congo is not making sufficient progress towards ac25 complishing the policy objectives described in section 102.
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1 SEC. 105. STRATEGY ON PROMOTING HUMANITARIAN RE2 LIEF, SECURITY, AND DEMOCRACY IN THE

3 DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC OF THE CONGO.

4 Not later than 180 days after the date of the enact5 ment of this Act, the President shall submit to the Com6 mittee on Foreign Relations and the Committee on Appro7 priations of the Senate and the Committee on Inter8 national Relations and the Committee on Appropriations

9 of the House of Representatives a report setting forth a

10 strategy for achieving the policy objectives described in

11 section 102, including a description of an effective mecha12 nism for coordination of United States Government efforts

13 to implement this strategy.

14 SEC. 106. SPECIAL ENVOY FOR THE GREAT LAKES REGION.

15 (a) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 60 days after the

16 date of the enactment of this Act, the President should

17 appoint a Special Envoy for the Great Lakes Region to

18 resolve the instability and insecurity in Eastern Congo,

19 which is the result of multiple international and domestic

20 factors, and to enhance the regional harmonization of

21 United States policies and assistance programs.

22 (b) CONSULTATION.—In appointing the Special

23 Envoy, the President should consult with the Majority

24 Leader and Minority Leader of the Senate, the Speaker

25 and Minority Leader of the House of Representatives, and

26 the Chairmen and Ranking Members of the Committee on
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1 Foreign Relations of the Senate and the Committee on

2 International Relations of the House of Representatives.

3 (c) ELIGIBILITY OF DEPARTMENT OF STATE EM4 PLOYEES.—The individual designated to serve as the Spe5 cial Envoy may be an employee of the Department of

6 State with the rank of Deputy Assistant Secretary or

7 higher.

8 TITLE II—MULTILATERAL AC9 TIONS TO ADDRESS URGENT

10 NEEDS IN THE DEMOCRATIC

11 REPUBLIC OF THE CONGO

12 SEC. 201. PROMOTION OF UNITED STATES POLICY TOWARD

13 THE DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC OF THE CONGO

14 IN THE UNITED NATIONS SECURITY COUN15 CIL.

16 The United States shall use its voice and vote in the

17 United Nations Security Council—

18 (1) to address exploitation at the United Na19 tions Peacekeeping Mission in the Democratic Re20 public of the Congo (MONUC) by urging, when

21 credible allegations exist, appropriate investigation

22 of alleged perpetrators and, as necessary, prosecu23 tion of United Nations personnel responsible for sex24 ual abuses in the Democratic Republic of the Congo;
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1 (2) to ensure that appropriate guidelines, codes

2 of conduct, and programs for the prevention of sex3 ual abuse and trafficking in persons are undertaken

4 by the United Nations;

5 (3) to strengthen the authority and capacity of

6 MONUC by—

7 (A) providing specific authority and obliga8 tion to prevent and effectively counter imminent

9 threats;

10 (B) clarifying and strengthening

11 MONUC’s rules of engagement to enhance the

12 protection of vulnerable civilian populations;

13 (C) enhancing the surveillance and intel14 ligence-gathering capabilities available to

15 MONUC;

16 (D) where consistent with United States

17 policy, making available personnel, communica18 tions, and military assets that improve the ef19 fectiveness of robust peacekeeping, mobility,

20 and command and control capabilities of

21 MONUC; and

22 (E) providing MONUC with the authority

23 and resources needed to support efforts sur24 rounding national elections and the referendum

25 on the constitution, and to monitor arms traf-
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1 ficking and natural resource exploitation at key

2 border posts and airfields in the eastern part of

3 the Democratic Republic of the Congo;

4 (4) to encourage regular visits of the United

5 Nations Security Council to monitor the situation in

6 the Democratic Republic of the Congo;

7 (5) to ensure that the practice of recruiting and

8 arming children in the Democratic Republic of the

9 Congo is immediately halted pursuant to Security

10 Council Resolutions 1460 (2003) and 1539 (2004);

11 (6) to strengthen the arms embargo imposed

12 pursuant to Security Council Resolution 1493

13 (2003) and ensure that violators are held account14 able through appropriate measures, including the

15 possible imposition of sanctions;

16 (7) to allow for the more effective protection

17 and monitoring of natural resources in the Demo18 cratic Republic of the Congo, especially in the east19 ern part of the country, and for public disclosure

20 and independent auditing of natural resource reve21 nues to help ensure transparent and accountable

22 management of these revenues;

23 (8) to press countries in the Congo region to

24 help facilitate an end to the violence in the Demo-
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1 cratic Republic of the Congo and promote relief, se2 curity, and democracy throughout the region; and

3 (9) to encourage the United Nations Secretary4 General to become more involved in completing the

5 policy objectives described in paragraphs (1) and (2)

6 of section 102 and ensure that recent fighting in

7 North Kivu, which displaced over 150,000 people, as

8 well as fighting in Ituri and other areas, does not

9 create widespread instability throughout the country.

10 SEC. 202. INCREASING CONTRIBUTIONS AND OTHER HU11 MANITARIAN AND DEVELOPMENT ASSIST12 ANCE THROUGH INTERNATIONAL ORGANIZA13 TIONS.

14 (a) IN GENERAL.—The President shall instruct the

15 United States permanent representative or executive direc16 tor, as the case may be, to the United Nations voluntary

17 agencies, including the World Food Program, the United

18 Nations Development Program, and the United Nations

19 High Commissioner for Refugees, international financial

20 institutions, and other appropriate international organiza21 tions to use the voice and vote of the United States to

22 support additional humanitarian and development assist23 ance for the Democratic Republic of the Congo in order

24 to accomplish the objectives described in section 102.
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1 (b) SUPPORT CONTINGENT ON PROGRESS.—If the

2 Secretary of State determines that the Government of the

3 Democratic Republic of the Congo is not making sufficient

4 progress towards accomplishing the policy objectives in

5 section 102, the President shall consider withdrawing

6 United States support for the assistance described in sub7 section (a) when future funding decisions are considered.

Passed the Senate June 29, 2006.

Attest:

Secretary.
109TH CONGRESS

2D SESSION S. 2125

AN ACT

To promote relief, security, and democracy in the

Democratic Republic of the Congo.