WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Chris Coons (D-Del.), chair of the Senate Foreign Relations Subcommittee on African Affairs and lead sponsor of a bipartisan resolution introduced this week condemning the crimes against humanity committed by Joseph Kony and the Lord’s Resistance Army in central Africa, released the following statement on news that the African Union would deploy 5,000 soldiers to aid in the effort to “neutralize” Kony and the LRA:
“I welcome and strongly support the decision by the African Union to deploy 5,000 soldiers to join the multinational effort to capture Joseph Kony and stop the Lord’s Resistance Army. I congratulate the African Union for demonstrating leadership on this issue, and believe that African forces should continue to lead the multilateral effort to find Joseph Kony. I hope that this deployment, which augments the ongoing efforts of regional militaries, will expedite success in the difficult hunt for Kony and the LRA’s top commanders.
“I’m struck that the head of the United Nations’ office in central Africa affirmed that the unprecedented international attention on Kony and the LRA these last few weeks contributed to the African Union’s decision. It demonstrates the impact that the engagement of tens of millions of people in the U.S. and around the world can have, and proves that their voices are being heard by decision-makers around the world.”
Earlier this week, Senator Coons and Senator Jim Inhofe (R-Okla.) led a resolution (S. Res. 402) with 35 other senators condemning Kony and the LRA, and offering support for U.S. and international efforts to remove Kony from the battlefield. More on that resolution can be found here: http://bit.ly/GLfD8f
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