Darfur Peace and Accountability Act
Encyclopedia
The Darfur Peace and Accountability Act (H.R. 3127/S. 1462) or DPAA restates the United States government's position that the Darfur conflict
constitutes genocide
, asks the government to expand the African Union
peacekeeping force in Darfur (AMIS
) and give the force a stronger mandate, including more generous logistical support. It also directs the government to assist the International Criminal Court
to bring justice to those guilty of war crimes in Darfur
, Sudan
. It was passed by the House
and Senate
and signed into law by President Bush
on 13 October 2006 along with a companion executive order.
's DPAA bill (H.R. 3127) was introduced on June 30, 2005, by Rep. Henry Hyde
(R
-IL
). There were 162 co-sponsors of the bill. H.R. 3127 passed in the House 416 to 3 on 5 April 2006.
The Senate
's DPAA bill (S. 1462) was introduced on 21 July 2005, by Sen. Sam Brownback
(R
-KS
). There were 38 senators who co-sponsored the bill. S. 1462 was passed by the Senate by unanimous consent on 18 November 2005, with some alterations.
The bill then went to conference committee
, as the House and Senate attempted to reconcile the differences between their two versions of the bills. Sen. Richard Lugar (R
-IN
), chair of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, held the bill in this committee over concerns relating to divestment
. The bill was approved by the Senate in revised form on 21 September and passed the House in revised form on 25 September. Shortly thereafter, California
Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger
issued a public letter to President Bush urging him to sign the bill, and many members of Congress did the same.
On 13 October 2006, President Bush signed the bill into law. He also signed a companion executive order (see "Provisions," below).
(D
-NJ
). There were 40 senators who co-sponsored the bill. The Darfur Accountability Act was the first piece of binding Darfur-related legislation introduced in the Senate. The bill directed the president to identify and target individuals responsible for the genocide in Darfur. The United States would freeze assets and deny visas to these individuals.
The Darfur Genocide Accountability Act (H.R. 1424) was introduced on March 17, 2005, by Rep. Donald Payne
(D
-NJ
). There were 133 co-sponsors of the bill. The Darfur Genocide Accountability Act was the first piece of binding Darfur-related legislation introduced in the House. The bill was not taken up for a vote and ultimately died, though elements of the bill showed up in the DPAA. The provisions of the Darfur Genocide Accountability Act included targeted sanctions against Sudanese governmental officials, restricted functionality of the Sudanese embassy in the United States, authorization for the president to use force to stop the genocide, and denial of port entry to ships conducting business with Sudan.
, Rep. Barbara Lee
introduced a new bill (H.R. 6140) containing the stripped provision.
The second item refers to granting AMIS a Chapter VII mandate
as opposed to a Chapter VI mandate, allowing it to intervene regardless of permission from the government of Sudan. The final item, which would have protected individual U.S. states from lawsuits arising from divestment
, was stripped when the original House bill reached the Senate.
In his letter to the Speaker of the House and the United States Senate
, Bush wrote:
's congressional scorecard for the 109th Congress, and its companion House bill was one of five pieces of legislation. Sen. Brownback, one of the bill's chief sponsors, was named a "champion of Darfur."
Darfur conflict
The Darfur Conflict was a guerrilla conflict or civil war centered on the Darfur region of Sudan. It began in February 2003 when the Sudan Liberation Movement/Army and Justice and Equality Movement groups in Darfur took up arms, accusing the Sudanese government of oppressing non-Arab Sudanese in...
constitutes genocide
Genocide
Genocide is defined as "the deliberate and systematic destruction, in whole or in part, of an ethnic, racial, religious, or national group", though what constitutes enough of a "part" to qualify as genocide has been subject to much debate by legal scholars...
, asks the government to expand the African Union
African Union
The African Union is a union consisting of 54 African states. The only all-African state not in the AU is Morocco. Established on 9 July 2002, the AU was formed as a successor to the Organisation of African Unity...
peacekeeping force in Darfur (AMIS
African Union Mission in Sudan
The African Union Mission in Sudan was an African Union peacekeeping force operating primarily in the country's western region of Darfur with the aim of performing peacekeeping operations related to the Darfur conflict. Originally founded in 2004, with a force of 150 troops, by mid-2005, its...
) and give the force a stronger mandate, including more generous logistical support. It also directs the government to assist the International Criminal Court
International Criminal Court
The International Criminal Court is a permanent tribunal to prosecute individuals for genocide, crimes against humanity, war crimes, and the crime of aggression .It came into being on 1 July 2002—the date its founding treaty, the Rome Statute of the...
to bring justice to those guilty of war crimes in Darfur
Darfur
Darfur is a region in western Sudan. An independent sultanate for several hundred years, it was incorporated into Sudan by Anglo-Egyptian forces in 1916. The region is divided into three federal states: West Darfur, South Darfur, and North Darfur...
, Sudan
Sudan
Sudan , officially the Republic of the Sudan , is a country in North Africa, sometimes considered part of the Middle East politically. It is bordered by Egypt to the north, the Red Sea to the northeast, Eritrea and Ethiopia to the east, South Sudan to the south, the Central African Republic to the...
. It was passed by the House
United States House of Representatives
The United States House of Representatives is one of the two Houses of the United States Congress, the bicameral legislature which also includes the Senate.The composition and powers of the House are established in Article One of the Constitution...
and Senate
United States Senate
The United States Senate is the upper house of the bicameral legislature of the United States, and together with the United States House of Representatives comprises the United States Congress. The composition and powers of the Senate are established in Article One of the U.S. Constitution. Each...
and signed into law by President Bush
George W. Bush
George Walker Bush is an American politician who served as the 43rd President of the United States, from 2001 to 2009. Before that, he was the 46th Governor of Texas, having served from 1995 to 2000....
on 13 October 2006 along with a companion executive order.
Legislative history
The HouseUnited States House of Representatives
The United States House of Representatives is one of the two Houses of the United States Congress, the bicameral legislature which also includes the Senate.The composition and powers of the House are established in Article One of the Constitution...
's DPAA bill (H.R. 3127) was introduced on June 30, 2005, by Rep. Henry Hyde
Henry Hyde
Henry John Hyde , an American politician, was a Republican member of the United States House of Representatives from 1975 to 2007, representing the 6th District of Illinois, an area of Chicago's northwestern suburbs which included O'Hare International Airport...
(R
Republican Party (United States)
The Republican Party is one of the two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Democratic Party. Founded by anti-slavery expansion activists in 1854, it is often called the GOP . The party's platform generally reflects American conservatism in the U.S...
-IL
Illinois
Illinois is the fifth-most populous state of the United States of America, and is often noted for being a microcosm of the entire country. With Chicago in the northeast, small industrial cities and great agricultural productivity in central and northern Illinois, and natural resources like coal,...
). There were 162 co-sponsors of the bill. H.R. 3127 passed in the House 416 to 3 on 5 April 2006.
The Senate
United States Senate
The United States Senate is the upper house of the bicameral legislature of the United States, and together with the United States House of Representatives comprises the United States Congress. The composition and powers of the Senate are established in Article One of the U.S. Constitution. Each...
's DPAA bill (S. 1462) was introduced on 21 July 2005, by Sen. Sam Brownback
Sam Brownback
Samuel Dale "Sam" Brownback is the 46th and current Governor of Kansas. A member of the Republican Party, he served as a U.S. Senator from Kansas from 1996 to 2011, and as a U.S. Representative for Kansas's 2nd congressional district from 1995 to 1996...
(R
Republican Party (United States)
The Republican Party is one of the two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Democratic Party. Founded by anti-slavery expansion activists in 1854, it is often called the GOP . The party's platform generally reflects American conservatism in the U.S...
-KS
Kansas
Kansas is a US state located in the Midwestern United States. It is named after the Kansas River which flows through it, which in turn was named after the Kansa Native American tribe, which inhabited the area. The tribe's name is often said to mean "people of the wind" or "people of the south...
). There were 38 senators who co-sponsored the bill. S. 1462 was passed by the Senate by unanimous consent on 18 November 2005, with some alterations.
The bill then went to conference committee
United States Congress Conference committee
A conference committee is a committee of the Congress appointed by the House of Representatives and Senate to resolve disagreements on a particular bill...
, as the House and Senate attempted to reconcile the differences between their two versions of the bills. Sen. Richard Lugar (R
Republican Party (United States)
The Republican Party is one of the two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Democratic Party. Founded by anti-slavery expansion activists in 1854, it is often called the GOP . The party's platform generally reflects American conservatism in the U.S...
-IN
Indiana
Indiana is a US state, admitted to the United States as the 19th on December 11, 1816. It is located in the Midwestern United States and Great Lakes Region. With 6,483,802 residents, the state is ranked 15th in population and 16th in population density. Indiana is ranked 38th in land area and is...
), chair of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, held the bill in this committee over concerns relating to divestment
Divestment
In finance and economics, divestment or divestiture is the reduction of some kind of asset for either financial or ethical objectives or sale of an existing business by a firm...
. The bill was approved by the Senate in revised form on 21 September and passed the House in revised form on 25 September. Shortly thereafter, California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger
Arnold Schwarzenegger
Arnold Alois Schwarzenegger is an Austrian-American former professional bodybuilder, actor, businessman, investor, and politician. Schwarzenegger served as the 38th Governor of California from 2003 until 2011....
issued a public letter to President Bush urging him to sign the bill, and many members of Congress did the same.
On 13 October 2006, President Bush signed the bill into law. He also signed a companion executive order (see "Provisions," below).
Forerunners to the DPAA
The Darfur Accountability Act (S. 495) was introduced on 2 March 2005, by former Sen. Jon CorzineJon Corzine
Jon Stevens Corzine is the former CEO of Goldman Sachs and of MF Global, and a one time American politician, who served as the 54th Governor of New Jersey from 2006 to 2010. A Democrat, Corzine served five years of a six-year U.S. Senate term representing New Jersey before being elected Governor...
(D
Democratic Party (United States)
The Democratic Party is one of two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Republican Party. The party's socially liberal and progressive platform is largely considered center-left in the U.S. political spectrum. The party has the lengthiest record of continuous...
-NJ
New Jersey
New Jersey is a state in the Northeastern and Middle Atlantic regions of the United States. , its population was 8,791,894. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York, on the southeast and south by the Atlantic Ocean, on the west by Pennsylvania and on the southwest by Delaware...
). There were 40 senators who co-sponsored the bill. The Darfur Accountability Act was the first piece of binding Darfur-related legislation introduced in the Senate. The bill directed the president to identify and target individuals responsible for the genocide in Darfur. The United States would freeze assets and deny visas to these individuals.
The Darfur Genocide Accountability Act (H.R. 1424) was introduced on March 17, 2005, by Rep. Donald Payne
Donald M. Payne
Donald Milford "Don" Payne is the U.S. Representative for , serving since 1989. He is a member of the Democratic Party. The district encompasses most of the city of Newark, parts of Jersey City and Elizabeth, and some suburban communities in Essex and Union counties...
(D
Democratic Party (United States)
The Democratic Party is one of two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Republican Party. The party's socially liberal and progressive platform is largely considered center-left in the U.S. political spectrum. The party has the lengthiest record of continuous...
-NJ
New Jersey
New Jersey is a state in the Northeastern and Middle Atlantic regions of the United States. , its population was 8,791,894. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York, on the southeast and south by the Atlantic Ocean, on the west by Pennsylvania and on the southwest by Delaware...
). There were 133 co-sponsors of the bill. The Darfur Genocide Accountability Act was the first piece of binding Darfur-related legislation introduced in the House. The bill was not taken up for a vote and ultimately died, though elements of the bill showed up in the DPAA. The provisions of the Darfur Genocide Accountability Act included targeted sanctions against Sudanese governmental officials, restricted functionality of the Sudanese embassy in the United States, authorization for the president to use force to stop the genocide, and denial of port entry to ships conducting business with Sudan.
Subsequent Bills
As a result of the removal of "Section 11," protecting individual U.S. states from lawsuits arising from divestmentDivestment
In finance and economics, divestment or divestiture is the reduction of some kind of asset for either financial or ethical objectives or sale of an existing business by a firm...
, Rep. Barbara Lee
Barbara Lee
Barbara Jean Lee is the U.S. Representative for , serving since 1998. She is a member of the Democratic Party. She is the first woman to represent that district. Lee was the Chair of the Congressional Black Caucus and was the Co-Chair of the Congressional Progressive Caucus...
introduced a new bill (H.R. 6140) containing the stripped provision.
Provisions of the DPAA
As described in the text of the bill, the DPAA:
- imposes travel bans and asset freezes on individuals determined by the president
President of the United StatesThe President of the United States of America is the head of state and head of government of the United States. The president leads the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United States Armed Forces....
to be complicit in atrocities in Darfur (with a conditional presidential waiver);- authorizes US assistance to strengthen and expand AMIS
African Union Mission in SudanThe African Union Mission in Sudan was an African Union peacekeeping force operating primarily in the country's western region of Darfur with the aim of performing peacekeeping operations related to the Darfur conflict. Originally founded in 2004, with a force of 150 troops, by mid-2005, its...
;- urges the Bush administration
George W. Bush administrationThe presidency of George W. Bush began on January 20, 2001, when he was inaugurated as the 43rd President of the United States of America. The oldest son of former president George H. W. Bush, George W...
to use the voice, vote, and influence of the US at NATO to advocate greater NATO reinforcement of AMIS;- urges the administration to deny the government of Sudan access to oil revenues, including by prohibiting entry at US ports to cargo ships carrying Sudanese oil;
- lays out benchmarks that must be met before the US lifts any sanctions
International sanctionsInternational sanctions are actions taken by countries against others for political reasons, either unilaterally or multilaterally.There are several types of sanctions....
currently imposed on the government of Sudan, with a presidential waiver Senate version lays out non-binding benchmarks;states that nothing in this Act shall be construed to preempt any state law prohibiting investment of funds, including state pension funds, in or relating to the Republic of Sudan.
The second item refers to granting AMIS a Chapter VII mandate
Chapter VII of the United Nations Charter
Chapter VII of the United Nations Charter sets out the UN Security Council's powers to maintain peace. It allows the Council to "determine the existence of any threat to the peace, breach of the peace, or act of aggression" and to take military and nonmilitary action to "restore international peace...
as opposed to a Chapter VI mandate, allowing it to intervene regardless of permission from the government of Sudan. The final item, which would have protected individual U.S. states from lawsuits arising from divestment
Divestment
In finance and economics, divestment or divestiture is the reduction of some kind of asset for either financial or ethical objectives or sale of an existing business by a firm...
, was stripped when the original House bill reached the Senate.
Companion Executive Order
In signing the DPAA, Bush also issued Executive Order 13412 strengthening some sanctions on the government of Sudan but loosening restrictions on Southern Sudan.In his letter to the Speaker of the House and the United States Senate
United States Senate
The United States Senate is the upper house of the bicameral legislature of the United States, and together with the United States House of Representatives comprises the United States Congress. The composition and powers of the Senate are established in Article One of the U.S. Constitution. Each...
, Bush wrote:
Pursuant to IEEPA and the NEA, I determined that the Government of Sudan continues to implement policies and actions that violate human rights, in particular with respect to the conflict in Darfur, where the Government of Sudan exercises administrative and legal authority and pervasive practical influence, and that the Government of Sudan has a pervasive role in the petroleum and petrochemical industries in Sudan. In light of these determinations, and in order to reconcile sections 7 and 8 of the DPAA, I issued this order to continue the country wide blocking of the Government of Sudan's property and to prohibit transactions relating to the petroleum and petrochemical industries in Sudan.
Voting records
The DPAA was one of three Senate bills scored in the Genocide Intervention NetworkGenocide Intervention Network
thumb|right|300px|Genocide Intervention Network logoThe Genocide Intervention Network is a non-profit organization that "envisions a world in which the global community is willing and able to protect civilians from genocide and mass atrocities...
's congressional scorecard for the 109th Congress, and its companion House bill was one of five pieces of legislation. Sen. Brownback, one of the bill's chief sponsors, was named a "champion of Darfur."
External links
- Summary from the Genocide Intervention NetworkGenocide Intervention Networkthumb|right|300px|Genocide Intervention Network logoThe Genocide Intervention Network is a non-profit organization that "envisions a world in which the global community is willing and able to protect civilians from genocide and mass atrocities...
's Darfur scorecard - Summary from the Genocide Intervention NetworkGenocide Intervention Networkthumb|right|300px|Genocide Intervention Network logoThe Genocide Intervention Network is a non-profit organization that "envisions a world in which the global community is willing and able to protect civilians from genocide and mass atrocities...
main website - PDF document of the House bill (H.R. 3127)
- PDF document of the Senate bill (S. 1462)
- Executive Order: Blocking Property of and Prohibiting Transactions with the Government of Sudan
- Letter from Bush to Congress describing a companion executive order to his signature of the DPAA.