Obama, Brownback, Durbin, and DeWine Introduce Comprehensive Legislation on the Congo
Friday, December 16, 2005
Printable FormatFOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Obama Contact: Robert Gibbs or Tommy Vietor, (202) 228-5511
Illinois Contact: Julian Green, (312) 886-0480
Date: December 16, 2005
Obama, Brownback, Durbin, and DeWine Introduce Comprehensive Legislation on the Congo
WASHINGTON - A bipartisan group of U.S. Senators today introduced legislation that would establish a clear, comprehensive U.S. policy toward the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). The Democratic Republic of the Congo Relief, Security, and Democracy Promotion Act would require the U.S. Government promote humanitarian relief, security, democracy and transparent management of natural resources to help end the conflict in the DRC and move the country towards peace and stability.
A 2004 study by International Rescue Committee found that 31,000 people in the DRC were dying each month and that 3.8 million people had died in the previous 6 years. The war has cost more lives than any other conflict since World War II.
"If Africa is to achieve its promise, resolving the problems in the Congo will be critical," said Obama. "Already, the region's overlapping ethnic identities, and abundant natural resources have made the country a magnet for fighters from a half-dozen neighboring countries. If left untended, Congo's bloodshed will continue to infect the entire region and the continent. This bill is an important step on the long road towards bringing peace and prosperity to the Congo, and I am proud to be a part of a collaborative, bipartisan effort with some of the Senate's leading voices - Brownback, Durbin, DeWine - on Africa."
The bill establishes 14 core principles of U.S. policy, across a range of issues; authorizes a 25 percent increase in U.S. assistance for the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC); calls for a Special Envoy to resolve the situation in Eastern Congo; and urges the Administration to use its voice and vote at the United Nations Security Council to strengthen the U.N. peacekeeping force that is providing security in parts of the Congo.
The legislation has been endorsed by a number of faith-based and humanitarian non-governmental organizations, including some with extensive field operations in DRC: CARE, Catholic Relief Services, Global Witness International Crisis Group, International Rescue Committee, and Oxfam America.
Ken Hackett, the President of Catholic Relief Services, in a letter to the lawmakers endorsing the bill, stated "An agency active on the Ground in the Democratic Republic of the Congo for many years, we support this legislation as a vehicle for elevating the priority of the DRC among law makers and policy makers. The bill advances key U.S. policy objectives for promoting peace, justice, democracy in the DRC..."