Sudan Peace Act
Encyclopedia
The Sudan Peace Act is a United States federal law sponsored by Thomas Tancredo condemning Sudan
for genocide
. President George W. Bush
signed the Act into law on October 21, 2002.
The Act was passed to facilitate a comprehensive solution to the Second Sudanese Civil War
, and condemns violations of human rights on all sides of the conflict; the government's human rights record; the slave trade; government use of militia and other forces to support slaving, including enslavement and slave trading; and aerial bombardment of civilian targets.
It authorized the U.S. Government to spend $100 million in the years 2003, 2004, and 2005 to assist the population in areas of Sudan outside Sudanese government control.
The U.S. President must certify within 6 months of enactment, and each 6 months thereafter, that the Sudan Government and the Sudan People's Liberation Movement are negotiating in good faith and that negotiations should continue. If the Sudanese government did not do so or if it interfered with humanitarian efforts, the Act authorized the President of the U.S. to seek a UN Security Council resolution for an arms embargo
and to actively seek other financial and diplomatic methods to influence the conduct of the Sudanese Government. Various members of the U.S. Cabinet must report on a regular basis about any measures that U.S. federal departments takes to make the Sudanese Government comply with the measures in the Act.
The Act stated that the U.S. President should seek to end Sudanese veto power over and manipulation of United Nations humanitarian relief efforts carried out through Operation Lifeline Sudan, and that the U.S. administration should make contingency plans for relief through other channels.
The Act requires that the president should collect information about incidents which may constitute crimes against humanity, genocide, war crimes, and other violations of international humanitarian law by all parties to the conflict. The Secretary of State must report every six months on the steps taken to collect information and on the information collected including any findings or determinations made by the State Department.
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...
for 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...
. President George W. 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....
signed the Act into law on October 21, 2002.
The Act was passed to facilitate a comprehensive solution to the Second Sudanese Civil War
Second Sudanese Civil War
The Second Sudanese Civil War started in 1983, although it was largely a continuation of the First Sudanese Civil War of 1955 to 1972. Although it originated in southern Sudan, the civil war spread to the Nuba mountains and Blue Nile by the end of the 1980s....
, and condemns violations of human rights on all sides of the conflict; the government's human rights record; the slave trade; government use of militia and other forces to support slaving, including enslavement and slave trading; and aerial bombardment of civilian targets.
It authorized the U.S. Government to spend $100 million in the years 2003, 2004, and 2005 to assist the population in areas of Sudan outside Sudanese government control.
The U.S. President must certify within 6 months of enactment, and each 6 months thereafter, that the Sudan Government and the Sudan People's Liberation Movement are negotiating in good faith and that negotiations should continue. If the Sudanese government did not do so or if it interfered with humanitarian efforts, the Act authorized the President of the U.S. to seek a UN Security Council resolution for an arms embargo
Embargo
An embargo is the partial or complete prohibition of commerce and trade with a particular country, in order to isolate it. Embargoes are considered strong diplomatic measures imposed in an effort, by the imposing country, to elicit a given national-interest result from the country on which it is...
and to actively seek other financial and diplomatic methods to influence the conduct of the Sudanese Government. Various members of the U.S. Cabinet must report on a regular basis about any measures that U.S. federal departments takes to make the Sudanese Government comply with the measures in the Act.
The Act stated that the U.S. President should seek to end Sudanese veto power over and manipulation of United Nations humanitarian relief efforts carried out through Operation Lifeline Sudan, and that the U.S. administration should make contingency plans for relief through other channels.
The Act requires that the president should collect information about incidents which may constitute crimes against humanity, genocide, war crimes, and other violations of international humanitarian law by all parties to the conflict. The Secretary of State must report every six months on the steps taken to collect information and on the information collected including any findings or determinations made by the State Department.