Mr. President, it is no secret that Africa has not been high on Congress’ priority list historically. This is due to a number of reasons including that African issues have not generated the same kind of public passion and constituent attention as closer-to-home subjects like health care or education. But this is beginning to change -- interest in Africa is at its highest level in recent memory – perhaps ever.

I am concerned, however, that because the bulk of this attention is focused on humanitarian tragedies and grave violence we are depicting a continent caught in a downward spiral, which offers little motivation for long-term U.S. engagement. Funding relief efforts in response to crises - while an important element of U.S. policy – does not address fundamental issues such as the development of democratic institutions and civil society, good governance, security and justice sector reform, and regional security arrangements. We must provide more focus on these underlying concerns -- and to do so requires consistent, long-term engagement, collaboration, and commitment from national governments, regional and international organizations and of course, bilateral donors like the United States.

Sporadic engagement that is devoid of a long-term strategy is like sticking a band aid on a gaping wound instead of taking a trip to the hospital. The abundant potential that exists in so many parts of Africa, and which the United States and others should be more actively promoting, is being stalled or even undermined by our quick-fix approach to problem-solving on the continent. Without identifying and developing the possibilities for more serious engagement, we may end up doing more harm than good.

At the end of our August recess I traveled to the Democratic Republic of Congo and Uganda, two countries that have made impressive gains since I was last there seven years ago. But today I want to talk about the Democratic Republic of Congo primarily, because the situation is gravely deteriorating and urgent steps much be taken to stop it from devolving further and threatening the region writ large.

Last year’s historic elections in the DRC injected hopeful momentum into the war-torn country, thanks in large part to generous funding from the U.S. and others and with critical support from a strong United Nations peacekeeping mission - the largest in fact in the world. During my visit, however, I was troubled to learn of the new government’s failure to consolidate and build upon this historic progress. A lack of capacity, political will, and democratic experience is reversing early gains and increasingly destabilizing an already fragile political situation. The local population is growing disenchanted with the government’s inability to follow through on its election promises as decisions on key issues -- including those on decentralization and the illegal exploitation of natural resources -- are slow-rolled.

One of the first promises President Kabila made after his election was to restore order in the war-ravaged provinces of his country. But violence in eastern DRC has only gotten worse in recent months, not better. More than 120,000 people -- many of whom voted in favor of Kabila -- have been forced from their homes because of increased fighting, with little attention or assistance from the capital.

There is no easy solution to the rapidly unfolding conflict in the restive east, but it is clear that the underlying drivers for this continued violence must be addressed at the same time that the more immediate emergency needs are dealt with.

On my trip, I visited a camp for internally displaced in eastern DRC. One Congolese man, living in a camp nestled in the rolling hills outside Goma spoke for many others when he told me, “We want to restart our normal agricultural work and resume our lives.

We want it to be stable enough so we can do that.” I met with a group of displaced Congolese women who had been sexually abused and in many cases raped. Extreme sexual violence and rape in the DRC is so pervasive because it is committed by all actors and with little consequence. To be frank, Mr. President, there may be no place worse in the world to be a female than the DRC and I’m afraid it isn’t getting any better. Just two days after I left, tens of thousands more civilians were forced to flee their homes because of renewed fighting the Congolese army and dissident General Laurent Nkunda’s rebel forces, whose ammunition, weapons, and fighters are likely supplied by Rwanda.

In early September, UN peacekeepers secured an informal, and I might add, already violated truce between the government and a main rebel leader. The UN Security Council has appealed for more dialogue between the two warring parties but this appeal needs to be significantly amplified and backed by incentives for peace. Neighboring countries -- and particularly Rwanda-- need to be part of this conversation, to ensure the current situation not worsen while also effectively addressing long-standing regional tensions.

In contrast, on a recent trip to Uganda, the U.S. Assistant Secretary for African Affairs signaled that the U.S. would support regional efforts for a more militarized policy towards all rebel groups. In fact Mr. President, Assistant Secretary Frazer said, and I quote: “We feel we have the basis to assist in efforts to mop up the LRA and to get them out of Congo, out of Garamba Park. And so we will not sit still and just let them live in Garamba Park and cultivate land and kill animals.” Mr. President, considering all options is important but we should not be sending a message that leans towards military action. This is not the time to start talking about our support for a military solution to these conflicts

Instead, we should seek to build upon current diplomatic initiatives - both in the region as well as those initiatives New York last week at the opening of the UN General Assembly.
We should be work to expand existing forums such as the Tripartite Plus Commission to become genuine opportunities for political solutions. The United States, a proud champion of building strong and independent institutions that create the space for lively debate and discussion, should be advocating for enriched dialogue and diplomacy to address the entrenched problems that have allowed these conflicts to fester -- or worsen. We should not be encouraging military operations if there are other legitimate avenues open -- or if they have not yet been explored. Military action should be the path of last resort, period.

The Great Lakes region is at a critical moment in its history and we run the risk of contributing to events that could have far-reaching and long-term repercussions if we do not engage responsibly. With its vast resources, the DRC could be an anchor of stability in an area that has been plagued by violence and destructive activity for decades. The changing nature of global threats could render sub-Saharan Africa -- and the Great Lakes region in particular-- ripe for exploitation by any number of rogue actors. We can stop this before it begins if we work to ensure stability for the long term.

Mr. President, our National Security Strategy states “we will work with others for an African continent that lives in liberty, peace, and growing prosperity…we must help strengthen Africa’s fragile states and help build indigenous capability to secure porous borders…” I know the United States has many priorities that compete for attention and resources, but if done right, and as part of a comprehensive long-term strategy, a little can go a long way towards achieving these lofty goals in Africa. The United States should increase engagement in and expand assistance to the eastern DRC.

We should work in concert with other allies and press all regional governments -- and in particular Rwanda - to adopt a renewed focus on a political solution for peace. It must be clear that the United States supports peaceful conflict-resolution, and that we are not a war-mongering country that prioritizes quick military fixes over more protracted, but also more likely to be sustainable, political dialogues.

First, we must increase our support for the DRC’s security sector reform initiatives by working with the Congolese government to downsize, discipline, and further transform its military. The national army must no longer be allowed to commit grave human rights abuses with abandon as this only contributes to the rampant impunity and public legitimacy deficit indicative of a weak state. Justice sector reform, within and outside the security sector, is essential in this regard.

Second, while Ambassador Bill Swing is doing an incredible job in the DRC as the Secretary General’s Special Representative, we must augment diplomatic attention to the east part of the country by calling for the appointment of a UN Special Envoy who will work in conjunction with the current Special Envoy for northern Uganda - former Mozambique President Chissano. Such an initiative will jump start a regional process for political engagement that can help to reverse the current deterioration and work towards resolving long standing grievances between a number of actors in the region. Time and time again on my recent trip I was pleased to learn of the credibility and integrity President Chissano has injected into the northern Uganda peace process; we need to see the same thing for eastern Congo.

Third, we need to significantly augment U.S. government efforts in the region. The U.S. government needs to be fully engaged to bring about stability in eastern Congo and to establish conditions for a sustainable peace throughout the region. The dearth of U.S. personnel in the DRC means we have little choice but to outsource our diplomacy to others, which should not become the norm. In the face of a steadily increasing conflict that could ignite tensions throughout the region, we should be looking to robustly increase our on-the-ground presence before it is too late.

It is the grim truth that our mission in Kinshasa is not equipped to handle the looming instability in the east and that we are limited in our engagement because we have no diplomatic presence in the conflict-affected areas.

Mr. President, I do not wish to insinuate that this is due to lack of interest, concern, or dedication from the committed embassy team we have on the ground in Kinshasa. On the contrary, I got to know those individuals on my recent visit and was very impressed with both their capacity and resourcefulness with the limited means available to them. It is because of this administration’s myopic focus elsewhere that we are not adequately able to respond in places like the Democratic Republic of Congo.

As a first step, the Secretary of State should dispatch a “booster” team to help prepare the embassy to deal with the diplomatic, humanitarian, and security work needed in order to exercise our influence and to participate in a broader international effort to prevent eastern DRC from deteriorating into complete chaos. At the same time, we need to begin looking at serious infrastructure change that will enable our front line diplomats to have the resources and flexibility they need not just in Africa, but throughout the world
The United States has much to offer beyond public statements to ensure that violence in the DRC does not escalate further and that those who have been displaced can look forward to returning home sooner rather than later.

We here in Congress need to send a strong signal that we are not going to turn a blind eye to the deteriorating situation in the east -- or to the administration’s inadequate response. In eastern DRC, as in other parts of Africa, we must take steps today to promote political solutions that truly address the underlying causes of conflict or else we will be grappling with these vicious crises for years to come.