FOLLOWING THE DANFORTH REPORT: DEFINING THE NEXT STEP ON THE PATH TO HEARING BEFORE THE COMMITTEE ON INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES ONE HUNDRED SEVENTH CONGRESS SECOND SESSION JUNE 5, 2002 Serial No. 107-100 Printed for the use of the Committee on International Relations Available via the World Wide Web: http://www.house.gov/international_relations 80-060PDF U.S. GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE For sale by the Superintendent of Documents, U.S. Government Printing Office COMMITTEE ON INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS HENRY J. HYDE, Illinois, Chairman BENJAMIN A. GILMAN, New York ELTON GALLEGLY, California THOMAS G. TANCREDO, Colorado NICK SMITH, Michigan JOSEPH R. PITTS, Pennsylvania JEFF FLAKE, Arizona BRIAN D. KERNS, Indiana JO ANN DAVIS, Virginia MARK GREEN, Wisconsin TOM LANTOS, California DONALD M. PAYNE, New Jersey CYNTHIA A. MCKINNEY, Georgia EARL F. HILLIARD, Alabama ELIOT L. ENGEL, New York WILLIAM D. DELAHUNT, Massachusetts GREGORY W. MEEKS, New York BARBARA LEE, California ADAM B. SCHIFF, California DIANE E. WATSON, California The Honorable Walter Kansteiner, Assistant Secretary, Bureau of African Affairs, U.S. Department of State Roger P. Winter, Assistant Administrator, Bureau of Democracy, Conflict and Humanitarian Assistance, U.S. Agency for International Development Michael K. Young, Chairman, U.S. Commission on International Religious Francis Deng, Senior Fellow, Foreign Policy Studies, The Brookings Institu- John Prendergast, Co-Director, Africa Program, International Crisis Group Ken Isaacs, International Director of Projects, Samaritan's Purse LETTERS, STATEMENTS, ETC., SUBMITTED FOR THE HEARING The Honorable Walter Kansteiner, Assistant Secretary, Bureau of African Questions for the record submitted to the Honorable Walter Kansteiner by the Honorable Joseph Crowley, a Representative in Congress from the State of New York and responses (III) FOLLOWING THE DANFORTH REPORT: DEFINING THE NEXT STEP ON THE PATH TO PEACE IN SUDAN WEDNESDAY, JUNE 5, 2002 HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES, COMMITTEE ON INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS, Washington, DC. The Committee met, pursuant to call, at 10:57 a.m. in Room 2172, Rayburn House Office Building, Hon. Henry Hyde (Chairman of the Committee) presiding. Chairman HYDE. The Committee will come to order. As a result of the bloodiest war on the African continent somewhere in that land of misery today a child will die, a mother will lose a limb, and a young woman will be enslaved. This is the reality in Sudan, a country at war, a terrible war. You have heard the numbers-2 million dead, and more than 5 million displaced. Despite these frightening numbers very little is being done to end the suffering of the helpless and the innocent. Today's hearing is another effort, one of many in the past decade, to help push the quest for peace in Sudan. We cannot turn a blind eye to the suffering of the weak and the helpless civilians in southern Sudan, and we cannot pretend we do not know. We witness the suffering every day. It is incumbent upon us to do something, to do the right thing. For almost 4 decades the East African country with a population of 35 million people has been the scene of intermittent conflict. The Sudanese conflict, Africa's longest running civil war, shows no sign of ending. The National Islamic Front Regime, which came to power by ousting a democratically elected government in 1989, continues to mount a brutal military campaign against its powerless masses in the south. Unfortunately, a new generation of southern Sudanese are growing up in the midst of war and hopelessness; children are being killed and maimed by a government determined to exterminate its own people. In February, government helicopter gunships mowed down scores of civilians who were waiting in line for food at a United Nations feeding center. Seventeen people were killed and scores wounded. This Committee processed the Sudan Peace Act. The House passed the bill by 422 to two in June 2001, and appointed conferees several months later. The act is an effort to address some of the problems facing Sudan and to provide assistance to those fighting for democracy and freedom, and to punish those who trade in blood (1) |