President William Jefferson Clinton
The White House
1600 Pennsylvania Avenue
Washington, DC 20500
Dear Mr. President:
I am contacting you regarding a matter of urgent and immediate concern.
Fighting between Ugandan and Rwandan troops in the Democratic Republic of Congo is continuing for the fifth day, despite attempts by the United Nations to broker a lasting cease-fire agreement.
The conflict includes heavy exchanges of artillery fire in and around the city of Kisangani in blatant disregard of international law. The indiscriminate shelling of the civilian population has left over 100 dead with thousands fleeing for their lives, prompting the head of the UN team in Kisangani, Colonel Danilo Paiva to accuse both the Ugandan and Rwandan leaders of "committing a genocide against the city."
The reported genocide is corroborated by a report released today by the International Rescue Committee revealing that, by conservative estimates, more than 1.7 million people in eastern Congo have died as a result of the two year old conflict.
It has only been a few short years since another U.N. officer, General Dallaire of Canada, warned of impending genocide in southern Africa. At that time, the international community stood by and did little to prevent the tragedy that became known as the Rwandan Genocide.
Mr. President, I urge you in the strongest terms to do all in your power to bring about an end to the bloody conflict in the Democratic Republic of Congo beginning with a clear condemnation of the violations of the cease-fire agreement by Ugandan and Rwanda forces followed by the full application of the diplomatic resources available to you to compel U.S. allies Rwanda and Uganda to withdraw their forces.
We must not stand idly by once again as the horrors of genocide are visited upon the people of another African Great Lakes nation.
Sincerely,
Cynthia A. McKinney
Member of Congress