SRES 632 ISCommentsClose CommentsPermalink

Calling on the Governments of the People’s Republic of China and the international community to use the upcoming Olympic Games as an opportunity to push for the parties to the conflicts in Sudan, Chad, and the Central African Republic to cease hostilities and revive efforts toward a peaceful resolution of their national and regional conflicts.CommentsClose CommentsPermalink

July 30, 2008CommentsClose CommentsPermalink

Mr. FEINGOLD (for himself, Mr. COLEMAN, Mr. WHITEHOUSE, Mr. MENENDEZ, Mr. LIEBERMAN, Ms. KLOBUCHAR, Mr. CARDIN, Ms. LANDRIEU, Ms. SNOWE, Mr. KERRY, Mr. BROWNBACK, and Mr. JOHNSON) submitted the following resolution; which was referred to the Committee on Foreign RelationsCommentsClose CommentsPermalink

Calling on the Governments of the People’s Republic of China and the international community to use the upcoming Olympic Games as an opportunity to push for the parties to the conflicts in Sudan, Chad, and the Central African Republic to cease hostilities and revive efforts toward a peaceful resolution of their national and regional conflicts.CommentsClose CommentsPermalink

Whereas, since the conflict in Darfur, Sudan, began in 2003, hundreds of thousands of people across the region have been murdered, tortured, and raped, with more than 2,500,000 people driven from their homes as a result of ongoing violence, and all parties to the conflict continue to attack civilians throughout the region, while impeding access of humanitarian workers;CommentsClose CommentsPermalink

Whereas armed groups move freely among Sudan, Chad, and the Central African Republic, committing murder, banditry, forced recruitment, mass displacement, gender-based violence, and other crimes undermining regional security and exacerbating a cross-border humanitarian crisis;CommentsClose CommentsPermalink

Whereas, on July 31, 2007, the United Nations Security Council passed Security Council resolution 1769 (2007), authorizing a joint United Nations-African Union Mission in Darfur (UNAMID) to implement the Darfur Peace Agreement and protect civilians;CommentsClose CommentsPermalink

Whereas only one-third of UNAMID peacekeepers have been deployed to the region and those deployed remain under-equipped to protect civilians and are the target of deliberate attacks by armed militias;CommentsClose CommentsPermalink

Whereas a new joint African Union-United Nations chief mediator, Burkina Faso’s foreign minister, Djibril Bassole, has been appointed to reignite stalled peace talks between the parties in Darfur and help establish a cessation of hostilities;CommentsClose CommentsPermalink

Whereas fighting erupted in Sudan’s oil-rich Abyei region on May 13 and 21, 2008, leaving 18 civilians dead and giving rise to concerns about a breakdown of the Comprehensive Peace Agreement (CPA), which could ruin progress made over the last three years toward lasting peace in southern Sudan and ensnare the wider region into overlapping conflicts;CommentsClose CommentsPermalink

Whereas the Chief Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court charged the President of Sudan on July 14, 2008, with orchestrating genocide and crimes against humanity in Darfur, elevating hopes for accountability but also fears of retaliation against peacekeepers, humanitarian workers, and civilians;CommentsClose CommentsPermalink

Whereas the Government of the People’s Republic of China has long-standing economic and military ties with Sudan, giving it significant influence on the Government of Sudan;CommentsClose CommentsPermalink

Whereas, from August 8 to August 24, 2008, China will host the Olympic Summer Games, the most venerated and prestigious international sporting event;CommentsClose CommentsPermalink

Whereas there is a tradition of an Olympic Truce, originating in ancient Greece, to ensure the safety of athletes traveling to the ancient Olympic Games, the importance of which was reaffirmed in 2003 by the United Nations;CommentsClose CommentsPermalink

Whereas the Olympic Truce traditionally begins one week before the Olympic Games and extends one week after the end of the Paralympic Games;CommentsClose CommentsPermalink

Whereas, on October 16, 2007, the United Nations General Assembly passed resolution G/A 62/L.2, ‘Building a better and more peaceful world through sport,’ which urges Member States to observe, within the framework of the Charter of the United Nations, the Olympic Truce, individually and collectively, during the Games of the XXIX Olympiad in Beijing, and to cooperate with the International Olympic Committee in its efforts to use sport as an instrument to promote peace, dialogue, and reconciliation in areas of conflict during and beyond the Olympic Games period; andCommentsClose CommentsPermalink

Whereas the situation in Sudan and the neighboring region remains highly volatile as the Olympics approach: Now, therefore, be itCommentsClose CommentsPermalink

Resolved, That the Senate--CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





(1) expresses its continued support and sympathy for the hundreds of thousands of civilians of Sudan, Chad, and the Central African Republic who have been affected by the ongoing violence and regional instability;CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





(2) recognizes the unique opportunity presented by the Olympics and calls on the United Nations, the African Union, and other international leaders to use it to promote peace, dialogue, and reconciliation in areas of conflict and commends those Olympic and Paralympic athletes seeking to advance that cause;CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





(3) recognizes the close relationship between the Governments of People’s Republic of China and Sudan, and strongly urges the Government of the People’s Republic of China to use its full influence to press the Government of Sudan to commit to a cessation of hostilities, allow the full deployment of UNAMID peacekeeping forces, and engage in good faith in efforts to rejuvenate peace talks;CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





(4) calls upon the Government of Sudan and other armed actors in the region to immediately adopt a cessation of hostilities, during which they allow unfettered humanitarian access and the full deployment of UNAMID peacekeeping forces as well as engage in good faith efforts to rejuvenate peace talks;CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





(5) welcomes the efforts of the new joint African Union-United Nations mediator, Mr. Djibril Bassole, to revive a comprehensive peace process with all stakeholders to end the violence, demobilize militias, and promote voluntary return of internally displaced persons and refugees;CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





(6) urges the President and the international community to ensure that mediation efforts are supported and backed by credible leverage through targeted pressure and an enforced arms embargo;CommentsClose CommentsPermalink





(7) calls upon the United Nations and African Union to use the opportunity presented by a cessation of hostilities to fully deploy and equip UNAMID as well as strengthen the United Nations Mission in Sudan (UNMIS) to better monitor the Abyei region; andCommentsClose CommentsPermalink





(8) encourages the United Nations Secretary-General and other international leaders to publicly promote the principles reflected in the Olympic Truce among all the warring parties in Sudan, Chad, the Central African Republic, and other areas of conflict around the world.CommentsClose CommentsPermalink