Good afternoon. Today, the African Affairs Subcommittee will focus its attention on the Central African Republic, or “CAR.” CAR is a resource-rich but desperately poor country that seldom catches the attention of international policy makers, but today is in the midst of an appalling manmade crisis. The violent crisis is a stark reminder of the very real human cost of fragile states, weak governance and corruption.
To this sobering discussion, I would like to welcome my partner on the subcommittee, Senator Jeff Flake of Arizona. Senator Flake brings a deep commitment to Africa and I look forward to working with him to promote lasting solutions to this multi-faceted crisis.
I would also like to welcome other members of the Committee, as well as our distinguished witnesses: Linda Thomas-Greenfield, Assistant Secretary of State for Africa; Earl Gast, Assistant Administrator for Africa at USAID; Alexis Arieff, Africa Analyst at the Congressional Research Service; Lisabeth List, Medical Coordinator, Medecin sans Frontieres; and Mark Schneider, Senior Vice President, International Crisis Group. I look forward to hearing your insights and thank you all for being here.
The voices of the Central Africans must also inform our policy decisions, and I am grateful to have recently spoken with Central African officials for a firsthand account, which helped to inform my perspective. While I regret that no Central Africans could join us today, I would like to enter into the record a joint statement from Archbishop Dieudonne NzapalaingaImam Omar Kabine Layama, and Rev. Nicolas Guerekoyame-Bgangou from Bangui. I would also like to enter into the record statements from Catholic Relief Services and Mercy Corps, which reflect recommendations from their experiences working in CAR.
CAR has a long history of instability and conflict, and has been the focus of periodic United Nations and regional efforts to support peace and security, with little lasting effect. As difficult as CAR’s history has been, the current crisis is far different in terms of brutality and scope. Following a March 2013 coup by a loose coalition of rebels collectively known as Seleka, little more than a façade of a transitional government exists in CAR, and the already-weak national security forces have all but disintegrated. The people of CAR have been left nearly powerless against a multitude of violent armed groups.
Opportunists, many from Chad and Sudan and seemingly motivated by little more than greed, have swelled the ranks of Seleka factions from 4,000 to 20,000, engaging in horrific violence across the country. In response to Seleka attacks, local defense groups, known as “anti-balaka,” have retaliated spurring a vicious cycle of murder, maiming, rape, and destruction of property and livelihoods. More than 500,000 people, a tenth of CAR’s population have been displaced and at least half are in need of humanitarian assistance, but many are beyond the reach of help due to insecurity.
We lack reliable and comprehensive data on the deaths and injuries, but civil society groups on the ground have provided chilling evidence of entire families slashed to death by perpetrators wielding machetes, babies suffering gunshot wounds, and villages burned to the ground.
Compounding the crisis is the growing interreligious nature of the violence. Seleka rebels are primarily Muslim and have reportedly targeted Christians, and the anti-balaka are primarily Christian and are reportedly targeting Muslims. Civilians are seeking refuge around churches and mosques. While ethnic divisions are not new in CAR, open interreligious violence, significant participation of foreigners in attacks, and the large-scale targeting of civilians are unprecedented. They increase the risk of regional spillover and may create deeper, long-lasting societal divisions.
Today’s hearing will look at the how the United States and international partners can deepen their engagement in order to help stop the violence, prevent regional spillover, and begin the process of establishing sustainable democratic governance.
There are clearly no easy solutions, but we cannot stand aside as innocent civilians are targeted for slaughter. The recent UN Security Council decision to impose an arms embargo on CAR, create a commission to investigate human rights violations, and authorize France to provide military support to the African-led International Support Mission in CAR was a welcome and necessary step. France has very helpfully moved quickly to bolster its troop presence in CAR. I am interested to hear from witnesses about what more the United States can do to support multilateral efforts to ensure the AU troops have the capacity necessary to end the violence and sustain security.
I look forward to working with the Administration and civil society to ensure that we do everything we can to stop the suffering in CAR, hold perpetrators accountable for atrocities, and help CAR’s people build a stable and democratic future. I strongly support ongoing efforts by the Administration to increase security assistance to MISCA troop contributing countries and look forward to hearing about next steps for the U.S. role, including the possibility of U.S. support for a UN peacekeeping operation.