Lord's Resistance Army Disarmament and Northern Uganda Recovery Act of 2009
Bill Number:
S. 1067
Bill Status:
Bill Location:
Date of Last Action:
Saturday, May 24, 2014
Country(s):
Uganda
Relevant Text:
[Congressional Bills 111th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Printing Office]
[S. 1067 Enrolled Bill (ENR)]
S.1067
One Hundred Eleventh Congress
of the
United States of America
AT THE SECOND SESSION
Begun and held at the City of Washington on Tuesday,
the fifth day of January, two thousand and ten
An Act
To support stabilization and lasting peace in northern Uganda and areas
affected by the Lord's Resistance Army through development of a regional
strategy to support multilateral efforts to successfully protect
civilians and eliminate the threat posed by the Lord's Resistance Army
and to authorize funds for humanitarian relief and reconstruction,
reconciliation, and transitional justice, and for other purposes.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the
United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``Lord's Resistance Army Disarmament
and Northern Uganda Recovery Act of 2009''.
SEC. 2. FINDINGS.
Congress makes the following findings:
(1) For over 2 decades, the Government of Uganda engaged in an
armed conflict with the Lord's Resistance Army (LRA) in northern
Uganda that led to the internal displacement of more than 2,000,000
Ugandans from their homes.
(2) The members of the Lord's Resistance Army used brutal
tactics in northern Uganda, including mutilating, abducting and
forcing individuals into sexual servitude and forcing a large
number of children and youth in Uganda, estimated by the Survey for
War Affected Youth to be over 66,000, to fight as part of the rebel
force.
(3) The Secretary of State has placed the Lord's Resistance
Army on the Terrorist Exclusion list pursuant to section 212(a)(3)
of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1182(a)(3)), and
LRA leader Joseph Kony has been designated a ``specially designated
global terrorist'' pursuant to Executive Order 13224.
(4) In late 2005, according to the United Nations Office for
Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, the Lord's Resistance Army
shifted their primary base of operations from southern Sudan to
northeastern Democratic Republic of Congo, and the rebels have
since withdrawn from northern Uganda.
(5) Representatives of the Government of Uganda and the Lord's
Resistance Army began peace negotiations in 2006, mediated by the
Government of Southern Sudan in Juba, Sudan, and signed the
Cessation of Hostilities Agreement on August 20, 2006, which
provided for hundreds of thousands of internally displaced people
to return home in safety.
(6) After nearly 2 years of negotiations, representatives from
the parties reached the Final Peace Agreement in April 2008, but
Joseph Kony, the leader of the Lord's Resistance Army, refused to
sign the Final Peace Agreement in May 2008 and his forces launched
new attacks in northeastern Congo.
(7) According to the United Nations Office for the Coordination
of Humanitarian Relief and the United Nations High Commissioner for
Refugees, the new activity of the Lord's Resistance Army in
northeastern Congo and southern Sudan since September 2008 has led
to the abduction of at least 1,500 civilians, including hundreds of
children, and the displacement of more than 540,000 people.
(8) In December 2008, the military forces of Uganda, the
Democratic Republic of Congo, and southern Sudan launched a joint
operation against the Lord's Resistance Army's bases in
northeastern Congo, but the operation failed to apprehend Joseph
Kony, and his forces retaliated with a series of new attacks and
massacres in Congo and southern Sudan, killing an estimated 900
people in 2 months alone.
(9) Despite the refusal of Joseph Kony to sign the Final Peace
Agreement, the Government of Uganda has committed to continue
reconstruction plans for northern Uganda, and to implement those
mechanisms of the Final Peace Agreement not conditional on the
compliance of the Lord's Resistance Army.
(10) Since 2008, recovery efforts in northern Uganda have moved
forward with the financial support of the United States and other
donors, but have been hampered by a lack of strategic coordination,
logistical delays, and limited leadership from the Government of
Uganda.
SEC. 3. STATEMENT OF POLICY.
It is the policy of the United States to work with regional
governments toward a comprehensive and lasting resolution to the
conflict in northern Uganda and other affected areas by--
(1) providing political, economic, military, and intelligence
support for viable multilateral efforts to protect civilians from
the Lord's Resistance Army, to apprehend or remove Joseph Kony and
his top commanders from the battlefield in the continued absence of
a negotiated solution, and to disarm and demobilize the remaining
Lord's Resistance Army fighters;
(2) targeting assistance to respond to the humanitarian needs
of populations in northeastern Congo, southern Sudan, and Central
African Republic currently affected by the activity of the Lord's
Resistance Army; and
(3) further supporting and encouraging efforts of the
Government of Uganda and civil society to promote comprehensive
reconstruction, transitional justice, and reconciliation in
northern Uganda as affirmed in the Northern Uganda Crisis Response
Act of 2004 (Public Law 108-283) and subsequent resolutions,
including Senate Resolution 366, 109th Congress, agreed to February
2, 2006, Senate Resolution 573, 109th Congress, agreed to September
19, 2006, Senate Concurrent Resolution 16, 110th Congress, agreed
to in the Senate March 1, 2007, and House Concurrent Resolution 80,
110th Congress, agreed to in the House of Representatives June 18,
2007.
SEC. 4. REQUIREMENT OF A STRATEGY TO SUPPORT THE DISARMAMENT OF THE
LORD'S RESISTANCE ARMY.
(a) Requirement for Strategy.--Not later than 180 days after the
date of the enactment of this Act, the President shall develop and
submit to the appropriate committees of Congress a strategy to guide
future United States support across the region for viable multilateral
efforts to mitigate and eliminate the threat to civilians and regional
stability posed by the Lord's Resistance Army.
(b) Content of Strategy.--The strategy shall include the following:
(1) A plan to help strengthen efforts by the United Nations and
regional governments to protect civilians from attacks by the
Lord's Resistance Army while supporting the development of
institutions in affected areas that can help to maintain the rule
of law and prevent conflict in the long term.
(2) An assessment of viable options through which the United
States, working with regional governments, could help develop and
support multilateral efforts to eliminate the threat posed by the
Lord's Resistance Army.
(3) An interagency framework to plan, coordinate, and review
diplomatic, economic, intelligence, and military elements of United
States policy across the region regarding the Lord's Resistance
Army.
(4) A description of the type and form of diplomatic engagement
across the region undertaken to coordinate and implement United
States policy regarding the Lord's Resistance Army and to work
multilaterally with regional mechanisms, including the Tripartite
Plus Commission and the Great Lakes Pact.
(5) A description of how this engagement will fit within the
context of broader efforts and policy objectives in the Great Lakes
Region.
(c) Form.--The strategy under this section shall be submitted in
unclassified form, but may include a classified annex.
SEC. 5. HUMANITARIAN ASSISTANCE FOR AREAS OUTSIDE UGANDA AFFECTED BY
THE LORD'S RESISTANCE ARMY.
In accordance with section 491 of the Foreign Assistance Act of
1961 (22 U.S.C. 2292) and section 2 of the Migration and Refugee
Assistance Act of 1962 (22 U.S.C. 2601), the President is authorized to
provide additional assistance to the Democratic Republic of Congo,
southern Sudan, and Central African Republic to respond to the
humanitarian needs of populations directly affected by the activity of
the Lord's Resistance Army.
SEC. 6. ASSISTANCE FOR RECOVERY AND RECONSTRUCTION IN NORTHERN UGANDA.
(a) Authority.--It is the sense of Congress that the President
should support efforts by the people of northern Uganda and the
Government of Uganda--
(1) to assist internally displaced people in transition and
returnees to secure durable solutions by spurring economic
revitalization, supporting livelihoods, helping to alleviate
poverty, and advancing access to basic services at return sites,
specifically clean water, health care, and schools;
(2) to enhance the accountability and administrative competency
of local governance institutions and public agencies in northern
Uganda with regard to budget management, provision of public goods
and services, and related oversight functions;
(3) to strengthen the operational capacity of the civilian
police in northern Uganda to enhance public safety, prevent crime,
and deal sensitively with gender-based violence, while
strengthening accountability measures to prevent corruption and
abuses;
(4) to rebuild and improve the capacity of the justice system
in northern Uganda, including the courts and penal systems, with
particular sensitivity to the needs and rights of women and
children;
(5) to establish mechanisms for the disarmament,
demobilization, and reintegration of former combatants and those
abducted by the LRA, including vocational education and employment
opportunities, with attention given to the roles and needs of men,
women and children; and
(6) to promote programs to address psychosocial trauma,
particularly post-traumatic stress disorder.
(b) Future Year Funding.--It is the sense of Congress that the
Secretary of State and Administrator of the United States Agency for
International Development should work with the appropriate committees
of Congress to increase assistance in future fiscal years to support
activities described in this section if the Government of Uganda
demonstrates a commitment to transparent and accountable reconstruction
in war-affected areas of northern Uganda, specifically by--
(1) finalizing the establishment of mechanisms within the
Office of the Prime Minister to sufficiently manage and coordinate
the programs under the framework of the Peace Recovery and
Development Plan for Northern Uganda (PRDP);
(2) increasing oversight activities and reporting, at the local
and national level in Uganda, to ensure funds under the Peace
Recovery and Development Plan for Northern Uganda framework are
used efficiently and with minimal waste; and
(3) committing substantial funds of its own, above and beyond
standard budget allocations to local governments, to the task of
implementing the Peace Recovery and Development Plan for Northern
Uganda such that communities affected by the war can recover.
(c) Coordination With Other Donor Nations.--The United States
should work with other donor nations to increase contributions for
recovery efforts in northern Uganda and better leverage those
contributions to enhance the capacity and encourage the leadership of
the Government of Uganda in promoting transparent and accountable
reconstruction in northern Uganda.
(d) Termination of Assistance.--It is the sense of Congress that
the Secretary of State should withhold non-humanitarian bilateral
assistance to the Republic of Uganda if the Secretary determines that
the Government of Uganda is not committed to reconstruction and
reconciliation in the war-affected areas of northern Uganda and is not
taking proactive steps to ensure this process moves forward in a
transparent and accountable manner.
SEC. 7. ASSISTANCE FOR RECONCILIATION AND TRANSITIONAL JUSTICE IN
NORTHERN UGANDA.
(a) Sense of Congress.--It is the sense of Congress that, despite
reconstruction and development efforts, a continued failure to take
meaningful steps toward national reconciliation and accountability
risks perpetuating longstanding political grievances and fueling new
conflicts.
(b) Authority.--In accordance with section 531 of the Foreign
Assistance Act of 1961 (22 U.S.C. 2346), the President is authorized to
support efforts by the people of northern Uganda and the Government of
Uganda to advance efforts to promote transitional justice and
reconciliation on both local and national levels, including to
encourage implementation of the mechanisms outlined in the Annexure to
the Agreement on Accountability and Reconciliation between the
Government of Uganda and the Lord's Resistance Army/Movement, signed at
Juba February 19, 2008, namely--
(1) a body to investigate the history of the conflict, inquire
into human rights violations committed during the conflict by all
sides, promote truth-telling in communities, and encourage the
preservation of the memory of events and victims of the conflict
through memorials, archives, commemorations, and other forms of
preservation;
(2) a special division of the High Court of Uganda to try
individuals alleged to have committed serious crimes during the
conflict, and a special unit to carry out investigations and
prosecutions in support of trials;
(3) a system for making reparations to victims of the conflict;
and
(4) a review and strategy for supporting transitional justice
mechanisms in affected areas to promote reconciliation and
encourage individuals to take personal responsibility for their
conduct during the war.
SEC. 8. REPORT.
(a) Report Required.--Not later than 1 year after the submission of
the strategy required under section 4, the Secretary of State shall
prepare and submit to the appropriate committees of Congress a report
on the progress made toward the implementation of the strategy required
under section 4 and a description and evaluation of the assistance
provided under this Act toward the policy objectives described in
section 3.
(b) Contents.--The report required under section (a) shall
include--
(1) a description and evaluation of actions taken toward the
implementation of the strategy required under section 4;
(2) a description of assistance provided under sections 5, 6,
and 7;
(3) an evaluation of bilateral assistance provided to the
Republic of Uganda and associated programs in light of stated
policy objectives;
(4) a description of the status of the Peace Recovery and
Development Plan for Northern Uganda and the progress of the
Government of Uganda in fulfilling the steps outlined in section
6(b); and
(5) a description of amounts of assistance committed, and
amounts provided, to northern Uganda during the reporting period by
the Government of Uganda and each donor country.
(c) Form.--The report under this section shall be submitted in
unclassified form, but may include a classified annex.
SEC. 9. SENSE OF CONGRESS ON FUNDING.
It is the sense of Congress that--
(1) of the total amounts to be appropriated for fiscal year
2011 for the Department of State and foreign operations, up to
$10,000,000 should be used to carry out activities under section 5;
and
(2) of the total amounts to be appropriated for fiscal year
2011 through 2013 for the Department of State and foreign
operations, up to $10,000,000 in each such fiscal year should be
used to carry out activities under section 7.
SEC. 10. DEFINITIONS.
In this Act:
(1) Appropriate committees of congress.--The term ``appropriate
committees of Congress'' means the Committee on Appropriations and
the Committee on Foreign Relations of the Senate and the Committee
on Appropriations and the Committee on Foreign Affairs of the House
of Representatives.
(2) Great lakes region.--The term ``Great Lakes Region'' means
the region comprising Burundi, Democratic Republic of Congo,
Rwanda, southern Sudan, and Uganda.
(3) LRA-affected areas.--The term ``LRA-affected areas'' means
those portions of northern Uganda, southern Sudan, northeastern
Democratic Republic of Congo, and southeastern Central African
Republic determined by the Secretary of State to be affected by the
Lord's Resistance Army as of the date of the enactment of this Act.
Speaker of the House of Representatives.
Vice President of the United States and
President of the Senate.