IV 
115TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION 
H. RES. 651 
Expressing the sense of the House of Representatives that Burundi is at 
risk of mass atrocities, and that the Government of Burundi should 
comply with constitutional limits on presidential terms and re-engage 
in regionally-brokered peace talks. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
DECEMBER 7, 2017 
Mr. ENGEL (for himself, Mr. HULTGREN, and Ms. BASS) submitted the 
following resolution; which was referred to the Committee on Foreign Affairs 
RESOLUTION 
Expressing the sense of the House of Representatives that 
Burundi is at risk of mass atrocities, and that the Gov-
ernment of Burundi should comply with constitutional 
limits on presidential terms and re-engage in regionally- 
brokered peace talks. 
Whereas President Nkurunziza of Burundi was elected for a 
third term in July 2015, which was regarded by many as 
violating the 2000 Arusha Peace Agreement, which ended 
a civil war that claimed over 300,000 lives between 1993 
and 2005; 
Whereas, on September 4, 2017, the United Nations Com-
mission of Inquiry on Burundi announced that it had 
reasonable grounds to believe that crimes against human-
ity have been committed and continue to be committed by 
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individuals associated with the government in Burundi 
since April 2015; 
Whereas since April 2015, more than 2,000 people have been 
killed in politically inspired violence while an unknown 
number of individuals have been the victim of enforced 
disappearances, extrajudicial killings, gender-based vio-
lence, arbitrary arrests, and torture, which have left pop-
ulations in Burundi at risk of mass atrocities and con-
tributed to a pervasive climate of fear and insecurity; 
Whereas opposition elements have been accused of perpe-
trating grenade attacks in Bujumbura and ruling party 
and opposition supporters have been engaged in a series 
of tit-for-tat assassinations; 
Whereas, on April 18, 2017, the United Nations High Com-
missioner for Human Rights expressed deep alarm over 
hate speech and ‘‘grotesque rape chants’’ by members of 
the Imbonerakure, the youth militia of the ruling party, 
stating that ‘‘this type of organized incitement rings very 
loud alarm bells’’; 
Whereas President Nkurunziza has suggested he may run for 
a fourth term in 2020, and has appointed a 15-member 
commission to propose draft amendments to the constitu-
tion; 
Whereas according to the United Nations High Commissioner 
for Refugees (UNHCR), more than 420,000 Burundians 
are refugees in neighboring countries, and the Inter-
national Organization for Migration (IOM) has estimated 
that nearly 210,000 Burundians are internally displaced; 
and 
Whereas the government’s refusal to cooperate with the 
United Nations Security Council, African Union mon-
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itors, and the United Nations Human Rights Council’s 
Commission of Inquiry for Burundi is a disturbing indi-
cation of its unwillingness to work with the international 
community to resolve the political crisis peacefully: Now, 
therefore, be it 
Resolved, That the House of Representatives— 
(1) calls upon Government of Burundi to— 
(A) accept the 228 unarmed United Na-
tions police authorized by UNSC Resolution 
2303 (2016) to monitor the security and 
human rights situation; 
(B) disarm all those engaged in political vi-
olence and illegally possessing weapons includ-
ing youth wings of political parties such as the 
Imbornerakure; 
(C) investigate allegations of human rights 
violations, including those attributed to state 
security forces, and hold perpetrators account-
able; 
(D) allow the full deployment of African 
Union human rights observers and military ex-
perts and permit them to operate throughout 
the country as mandated; and 
(E) participate in the political dialogue led 
by the East African Community without pre-
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conditions, and ensure an atmosphere conducive 
to free expression and civic space; 
(2) calls on the political opposition in Burundi 
to renounce violence and armed rebellion; 
(3) calls on Burundian stakeholders to partici-
pate in the Inter-Burundian Dialogue under the 
aegis of the East African Community (EAC) without 
preconditions and to use this as a forum to peace-
fully resolve contentious issues relating to the situa-
tion in the country; 
(4) calls on the East African Community to 
guarantee the inclusiveness of the dialogue process 
and issue an agenda for discussions aiming to deal 
with the core issues of the Burundi crisis; 
(5) calls on the African Union to impose tar-
geted sanctions on those perpetuating violence in 
Burundi, as decided by its Peace and Security Coun-
cil on October 17, 2015; 
(6) calls on the United Nations Security Coun-
cil to impose targeted sanctions against all persons 
or entities who threaten the peace and security of 
Burundi; 
(7) calls on the President of the United States, 
in coordination with regional and international part-
ners, to impose additional targeted sanctions under 
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Executive Order 13712, including against any indi-
viduals responsible for or complicit in— 
(A) actions or policies that threaten the 
peace, security, or stability of Burundi; 
(B) actions or policies that undermine 
democratic processes or institutions in Burundi; 
(C) human rights abuses; 
(D) the targeting of women, children, or 
any civilians through the commission of acts of 
violence, abduction, enforced displacement, or 
attacks on schools, hospitals, religious sites, or 
locations where civilians are seeking refuge, or 
through other conduct that may constitute a se-
rious abuse or violation of human rights or a 
violation of international humanitarian law; 
(E) actions or policies that prohibit, limit, 
or penalize the exercise of freedom of expression 
or freedom of peaceful assembly; 
(F) the use or recruitment of children by 
armed groups or armed forces; 
(G) the obstruction of the delivery or dis-
tribution of, or access to, humanitarian assist-
ance; or 
(H) attacks, attempted attacks, or threats 
against United Nations missions, international 
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security presences, or other peacekeeping oper-
ations; and 
(8) calls on the Secretary of State and the Ad-
ministrator of the United States Agency for Inter-
national Development to use funds authorized and 
appropriated for— 
(A) the continuance of United States hu-
manitarian assistance and food aid for Burun-
dians affected by the ongoing political and hu-
manitarian crisis; 
(B) support to media, civil society, and 
human rights actors on the ground, to create 
opportunities for inclusive citizen participation 
in political dialogue; 
(C) the development of a strategy and pro-
gramming to address the medium-term risk of 
political violence, with a particular focus on en-
gaging youth and supporting conflict resolution 
actors; and 
(D) to ensure that the United States Agen-
cy for International Development and State De-
partment are adequately staffed to monitor and 
develop strategies to rapidly respond to contin-
gencies on the ground. 
Æ 
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