House Panel Passes Lee Resolution to Pressure China on Darfur
(Washington, DC) – The House Foreign Affairs Committee today approved a resolution introduced by Congresswoman Barbara Lee (D-Oakland) calling on China to use its “unique influence and economic leverage” with the Sudan regime to help stop the ongoing genocide in Darfur, clearing the way for a vote on the House floor.
“China is uniquely positioned to help end the genocide in Darfur and the fact is that they have been unwilling to do so,” said Rep. Lee. “This resolution sends a clear message that China needs to join the international community in working to end this genocide.”
Lee’s resolution, which has the bipartisan support of 42 cosponsors, points out that the government of China “has long-standing economic and military ties with Sudan and continues to strengthen these ties in spite of the on-going genocide in Darfur.” For example, China reportedly purchases as much as 70 percent of Sudan's oil and has reportedly cancelled approximately $100 million in debt owed by the Sudanese government. China also recently provided funds for a presidential palace in Sudan at a reported cost of approximately $20 million. In addition, the human rights organization Amnesty International recently accused China and Russia of selling weapons to Sudan that are used in violence in Darfur.
The measure calls on China to acknowledge and condemn the atrocities in Darfur, cease all military arms and related sales and suspend economic cooperation with the Government of Sudan and investment in the country. It also calls on China to urge Sudan to allow the entry of the U.N. sanctioned peacekeeping force and to comply with U.N. resolutions demanding that the Government of Sudan disarm militias operating in Darfur, to recommit a renewed peace process and to ensure the safety of civilians and humanitarian organizations.
The resolution comes as China prepares to host the 2008 Olympic games in Beijing, and Chinese diplomats have begun trying to head off efforts to tie the games to the genocide in Darfur. The resolution recognizes that the spirit of the Olympics is “incompatible with any actions supporting acts of genocide.”
“By hosting the Olympics, China puts itself in the international spotlight and invites questions about their commitment to human rights, particularly with their ongoing support for the government of Sudan, despite its campaign of genocide in Darfur,” said Rep. Lee. “To suggest that somehow it is unfair to ask those questions is ridiculous. If China doesn't like the scrutiny, they can stop tacitly supporting genocide.”
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