Expressing the sense of Congress that the Government of the United States should support democracy, the rule of law, and human rights in the Republic of Nicaragua and work cooperatively with regional and international organizations to bolster Nicaraguan efforts to establish the requisite conditions for free, fair, transparent, and inclusive presidential and legislative elections in 2006.

        [Congressional Bills 109th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H. Con. Res. 252 Referred in Senate (RFS)]

109th CONGRESS
2d Session
H. CON. RES. 252

_______________________________________________________________________

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

December 15, 2005

Received

January 27, 2006

Referred to the Committee on Foreign Relations

_______________________________________________________________________

CONCURRENT RESOLUTION

Expressing the sense of Congress that the Government of the United
States should support democracy, the rule of law, and human rights in
the Republic of Nicaragua and work cooperatively with regional and
international organizations to bolster Nicaraguan efforts to establish
the requisite conditions for free, fair, transparent, and inclusive
presidential and legislative elections in 2006.

Whereas the United States is strongly committed to promoting democracy and the
rule of law through the democratically elected government and the civil
society of Nicaragua;
Whereas the Democratic Charter of the Organization of American States, of which
the United States and Nicaragua are signatories, stipulates that ``[t]he
peoples of

the Americas have a right to democracy and their governments have an
obligation to promote and defend it'';

Whereas after experiencing a revolution, loss of personal liberties, destruction
of property, and economic instability a quarter century ago, the people
of Nicaragua are committed to maintaining a democratic form of
government that functions democratically and whose branches of
government respect the rule of law and human rights;
Whereas in November 2001, during the last national election, approximately 90
percent of voters in Nicaragua turned out to vote, indicating a strong
commitment to a free electoral process and self determination;
Whereas international observers, including representatives from the National
Democratic Institute, the International Republican Institute, the Carter
Center, and the Organization of American States, monitored the
Nicaraguan elections of November 2001 and determined that the elections
met minimum international standards and that the outcome reflected the
will of the Nicaraguan people;
Whereas ex-President Arnoldo Aleman and Sandinista Liberation Front (FSLN)
leader Daniel Ortega entered into an agreement, which is widely known
throughout Nicaragua as ``the Pact,'' to exploit the legislative powers
of the National Assembly to undermine the Nicaraguan Constitution, the
Presidency of Enrique Bolanos Geyer, and key institutions of
representative democratic governance;
Whereas polls indicate that an overwhelming percentage of Nicaraguans oppose the
Aleman-Ortega Pact, and tens of thousands of Nicaraguans have taken to
the streets in the past year to call for an end to the Pact;
Whereas in September 2005, the Secretary General of the Organization of American
States warned that the attempt by the Nicaraguan national legislature to
strip President Enrique Bolanos Geyer's ministers and other senior
government officials of their official immunity had created
circumstances that would have made the country ungovernable and
generated endless conflict;
Whereas with regard to the attempt by the National Assembly through the
operation of the Aleman-Ortega Pact to undermine the privileges of the
Nicaraguan executive branch, the Organization of American States urged,
in the strongest possible terms, that ``the parties concerned enter into
a broad and constructive dialogue, free of pressures and threats'' and
that the parties ``respect the mandate freely conferred upon President
Enrique Bolanos Geyer and the other elected officials by the Nicaraguan
people'';
Whereas the National Assembly, in reaction to pressure from the international
community, in October 2005, voted unanimously to delay until after the
term of President Enrique Bolanos Geyer expires in January 2007, the
enactment of these constitutional amendments by approving the Framework
Law for the Stability and Governability of the Country (Framework Law);
Whereas, although the enactment and implementation of the Framework Law has
reduced the political tensions in Nicaragua, the practical effect of the
Pact remains largely intact as Arnoldo Aleman and Daniel Ortega continue
to wield near total control over the National Assembly, the Supreme
Court, the Electoral Council, and the Comptroller's Office, and the
Human Rights ombudsman's office;
Whereas free, fair, transparent, and inclusive electoral processes, in
conjunction with strong adherence to the constitution and democratic
institutions, are the bulwark against anti-democratic forces;
Whereas presidential and legislative elections in Nicaragua are scheduled to be
held in October 2006; and
Whereas the prerequisites for free, fair, transparent, and inclusive elections
have not yet been met, including securing a sufficient number of
credible national and international observers, completing the
distribution of voter identification cards, and ensuring that all
qualified and willing candidates are permitted to contest the elections:
Now, therefore, be it
Resolved by the House of Representatives (the Senate concurring),
That--
(1) Congress--
(A) condemns the continued operation of the Aleman-
Ortega Pact as detrimental to democracy in the Republic
of Nicaragua, the future of democracy in Nicaragua, and
the stability of the entire region;
(B) denounces the previous attempts by the National
Assembly to encroach unconstitutionally upon the powers
of the executive branch, undermine the governability of
the country, and advance the personal ambitions of some
of its current and former members;
(C) applauds the diplomatic efforts of the
Organization of American States (OAS) and the
Secretary-General of the OAS for demonstrating the
viability of the Inter-American Charter as an
increasingly effective instrument in the Western
Hemisphere for overcoming obstacles that impede
institutions, whether such institutions are executive,
legislative, or judicial in nature, from governing
democratically;
(D) concurs with the convening of a broad National
Dialogue to address the challenges that confront the
Nicaraguan people as they attempt to build a more
effective democracy; and
(E) supports the efforts of the Government of
Nicaragua and civil society to create the necessary
conditions for free, fair, transparent, and inclusive
elections in 2006, including by having effective and
robust monitoring missions by the Organization of
American States and other international observers,
supporting the training of domestic election observers,
assisting in the auditing of voter rolls to ensure
accuracy, promoting the complete distribution without
discrimination of proper voter identification
documents, and encouraging the lawful inclusion of all
qualified candidates in the electoral contests; and
(2) it is the sense of Congress that--
(A) it should be the policy of the United States to
support democracy, the rule of law, and human rights in
Nicaragua and work cooperatively with regional and
international organizations to bolster Nicaraguan
efforts to establish the requisite conditions for free,
fair, transparent, and inclusive presidential and
legislative elections in 2006;
(B) it should be the policy of the United States to
work through the Organization of American States and
other regional and international organizations to
encourage political elements within Nicaragua to
preserve, protect, and defend the letter and spirit of
that country's constitution; and
(C) to the extent that electoral or democracy and
governance assistance is provided, the President of the
United States should ensure that such assistance is
provided only for the purposes of training election
observers and ensuring the integrity of the electoral
process as requested by the President of Nicaragua,
that such assistance be provided through
nongovernmental organizations on a non-partisan basis
in the United States and Nicaragua, and that the
details of such assistance be made public on a timely
basis to promote transparency and accountability in
both countries.

Passed the House of Representatives December 14, 2005.

Attest:

KAREN L. HAAS,

Clerk.