S. Res. 386 (Agreed to Senate) — Urging the Government of the Democratic Republic of the Congo to fulfill its agreement to hold credible elections, comply with constitutional limits on presidential terms, and fulfill its constitutional mandate for a democratic transition of power by taking concrete and measurable steps towards holding elections not later than December 2018 as outlined in the existing election calendar, and allowing for freedom of expression and association.

That the Senate—

(1)

expresses concern that the Government of the Democratic Republic of the Congo failed to hold elections in 2016 as required by its Constitution and later failed to fulfill its political commitment to hold elections in 2017;

(2)

expresses concern that the growing security, humanitarian, and human rights crisis in the DRC is exacerbated by the lack of a duly elected leadership;

(3)

recognizes that impunity and the lack of effective rule of law undermine democracy, and that the arrest and detention of civil society activists and the harassment of political opponents close political space and repress peaceful dissent;

(4)

calls on the Government of the Democratic Republic of the Congo to complete concrete steps towards holding elections, including—

(A)

issuance of district-level voter registration data;

(B)

completion of legislation to enable redistricting;

(C)

fulfillment of the constitutionally required step of “calling the electorate”;

(D)

publication of the final list of presidential and parliamentary candidates; and

(E)

holding presidential, parliamentary, and provincial elections by December 23, 2018;

(5)

calls on the opposition to take all steps possible within the DRC to support and promote immediate free, fair, and inclusive elections;

(6)

welcomes United States Government sanctions targeting several senior security officials and other individuals responsible for human rights abuses, impeding democracy, and gross corruption in the DRC;

(7)

encourages the careful vetting of all planned United States assistance to Congolese state security forces to ensure that its impact and importance to United States national security objectives outweigh the potential damage to United States interests that might result in working with the state security services of the DRC;

(8)

notes the importance of continued unity among the international community that untested, unpiloted technology, such as electronic voting machines, given their high cost, risk of failure, and potential for manipulation, should not be used if a credible election process is intended to benefit all Congolese citizens;

(9)

calls on the Government of the Democratic Republic of the Congo to cooperate with United States, Swedish, and United Nations officials to enable a credible and independent investigation of the killing of Michael Sharp and Zaida Catalán, and to identify and bring to justice those responsible for their murder;

(10)

calls on the Government of the Democratic Republic of the Congo to end political arrests and free political detainees, including youth activists, in support of a credible and inclusive electoral environment; and

(11)

urges the President of the United States, in close coordination with regional and other international partners, to use appropriate means—

(A)

to provide appropriate electoral assistance to support the organization of credible elections in the DRC by December 23, 2018; and

(B)

to deter further electoral calendar slippage and abuses against the people of Congo, including through the consideration of targeted sanctions against high-level DRC officials, including close associates of President Joseph Kabila responsible for further delay of or impediment to elections or otherwise maintaining President Kabila's rule beyond the constitution's two-term limit.

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