Should Preventing Genocide & Other Atrocities be a Core U.S. National Security Interest? (H.R. 3030)

What is H.R. 3030?

(Updated December 20, 2018)

This bill — the Elie Wiesel Genocide and Atrocities Prevention Act of 2018 — would state that it’s U.S. policy to regard the prevention of genocide and other atrocity crimes as a core national security interest and a core moral responsibility. The State Dept. would be instructed to establish a Mass Atrocities Task Force to strengthen the agency’s efforts and assist other agencies’ atrocity prevention prevention and response activities. Foreign Service Officers would receive training in conflict and atrocity crimes prevention.

The Director of National Intelligence would be encouraged to include in their annual testimony to Congress regarding threats to U.S. national security: 1) a review of countries and regions at risk of atrocity crimes; and 2) specific countries at immediate risk of atrocity crimes, including most likely pathways to violence, specific risk factors, potential perpetrators, and at-risk target groups.

Additionally, a Complex Crises Fund (CCF) would be established to help the State Dept. and the U.S. Agency for International Development to support programs and activities to prevent or respond to emerging or unforeseen complex crises overseas, including atrocity crimes. Funding couldn’t be dispensed from the CCF for lethal assistance or to respond to natural disasters.

The bill is named after Holocaust survivor Elie Wiesel, who went on to win the Nobel Peace Prize in 1986 for his work campaigning for the victims of oppression around the world.

Argument in favor

Genocide and other mass atrocity crimes have brought incomparable suffering to people around the world, and as a world-leader the U.S. should do all it can to ensure that crimes against humanity like the Holocaust never happen again.

Argument opposed

While it’s important to prevent genocide and other mass atrocity crimes around the world, it shouldn’t be a formal part of America’s core national security interests of considered a moral responsibility for the nation.

Impact

Actual and would-be victims of genocide and other mass atrocity crimes; regimes or groups that carry out such crimes; and the U.S. government.

Cost of H.R. 3030

The CBO estimates that enacting this bill would have an insignificant cost given the ease of adding to existing training materials.

Additional Info

In-Depth: Sponsoring Rep. Ann Wagner (R-MO) introduced this bill to improve and strengthen U.S. efforts to prevent genocide and other mass atrocity crimes around the world:

“From the Holocaust to South Sudan, from Burma to Syria, the world has witnessed far too many genocides and other mass atrocity crimes. The true horror is that most of these devastating crises are preventable. My heart aches for those whose lives are being torn apart, and the fact that over 65 million people are currently fleeing preventable crises makes clear that the U.S. Government must improve its response to these conflicts.”

Original cosponsor Rep. Joe Crowley (D-NY) added:

“Atrocities and violence committed over the last century and today, make it all the more important that our government and leaders take steps to detect and prevent atrocities before they start in the first place. Once major conflict breaks out it becomes much more difficult to address so developing the structures needed to prevent conflict is essential. We need a framework to stop violence before it spirals out of control and leads to more suffering.”

This legislation passed the House Foreign Affairs Committee on a voice vote and has the support of 117 bipartisan cosponsors, including 82 Democrats and 35 Republicans.

Media:

• Sponsoring Rep. Ann Wagner (R-MO) Press Release
  
• Republican Policy Committee
  
• CBO Cost Estimate
  
• BusinessWire
  
• Jewish World Watch