IV 
113TH CONGRESS 
2D SESSION 
H. RES. 588 
Concerning the suspension of exit permit issuance by the Government of 
the Democratic Republic of Congo for adopted Congolese children seeking 
to depart the country with their adoptive parents. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
MAY 19, 2014 
Mr. PETERSON (for himself, Mr. BARR, Mrs. BEATTY, Mr. BRALEY of Iowa, 
Mr. BURGESS, Mr. COHEN, Ms. DELBENE, Mr. ELLISON, Mr. FARR, Mr. 
HASTINGS of Florida, Mr. JOHNSON of Georgia, Mr. LAMBORN, Mr. LAR-
SON of Connecticut, Ms. MCCOLLUM, Mr. MCDERMOTT, Mr. MCHENRY, 
Mr. NOLAN, Mr. POCAN, Mr. POMPEO, Mr. RIBBLE, Mr. SHIMKUS, Mr. 
SMITH of Washington, and Mr. TIBERI) submitted the following resolu-
tion; which was referred to the Committee on Foreign Affairs 
RESOLUTION 
Concerning the suspension of exit permit issuance by the 
Government of the Democratic Republic of Congo for 
adopted Congolese children seeking to depart the country 
with their adoptive parents. 
Whereas according to UNICEF, over 4,000,000 orphans are 
estimated to be living in the Democratic Republic of 
Congo; 
Whereas cyclical and violent conflict has plagued the Demo-
cratic Republic of Congo since the mid-1990s; 
Whereas the United States has made significant financial in-
vestments in the Democratic Republic of Congo, pro-
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•HRES 588 IH 
viding an estimated $274,000,000 bilateral aid to the 
Democratic Republic of Congo in fiscal year 2013 and an 
additional $165,000,000 in emergency humanitarian as-
sistance; 
Whereas the policy of the Administration toward the Demo-
cratic Republic of Congo is ‘‘focused on helping the coun-
try become a nation that . . . provides for the basic 
needs of its citizens’’; 
Whereas the United Nations, the Hague Conference on Pri-
vate International Law, and other international organiza-
tions have recognized a child’s right to a family as a 
basic human right worthy of protection; 
Whereas adoption, both domestic and international, is an im-
portant child protection tool and an integral part of child 
welfare best practices around the world, along with fam-
ily reunification and prevention of abandonment; 
Whereas, on September 27, 2013, the Congolese Ministry of 
Interior and Security, General Direction of Migration, in-
formed the United States Embassy in Kinshasa that ef-
fective September 25, 2013, they had suspended issuance 
of exit permits to adopted Congolese children seeking to 
depart the country with their adoptive parents; 
Whereas there are United States families with finalized adop-
tions in the Democratic Republic of the Congo and the 
necessary legal paperwork and visas ready to travel home 
with these children but are currently unable to do so; and 
Whereas, on December 19, 2013, the Congolese Minister of 
Justice, Minister of Interior and Security, and the Gen-
eral Direction of Migration confirmed to members of the 
United States Department of State that the current sus-
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•HRES 588 IH 
pension on the issuance of exit permits continues: Now, 
therefore, be it 
Resolved, That the House of Representatives— 
(1) affirms that all children deserve a safe, lov-
ing, and permanent family; 
(2) recognizes the importance of ensuring that 
international adoptions of all children are conducted 
in an ethical and transparent manner; 
(3) expresses concern over the impact on chil-
dren and families caused by the current suspension 
of exit permit issuance within the Democratic Re-
public of Congo; 
(4) respectfully requests that the Congolese 
Government— 
(A) resume processing adoption cases and 
issuing exit permits via the Ministry of Gender 
and Family’s Interministerial Adoption Com-
mittee; 
(B) prioritize the processing of inter-
country adoptions which were initiated before 
the suspension; and 
(C) expedite the processing of those adop-
tions which involve medically fragile children; 
and 
(5) encourages continued dialogue and coopera-
tion between the United States Department of State 
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and the Democratic Republic of the Congo’s Min-
istry of Foreign Affairs to improve the intercountry 
adoption process and ensure the welfare of all chil-
dren adopted from the Democratic Republic of 
Congo. 
Æ 
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