Below are some examples of Congressman Smith's efforts to expose and end the cruelty committed by Joseph Kony and the LRA.

At one of Smith's congressional hearings-- The Endangered Children of Northern Uganda (2006)--Grace Grall Akallo, a former child soldier abducted by the LRA told her personal story and described the exploitation she and others endured. (Click here to read hearing testimony)

Subcommittee Hearings Chaired by Rep. Chris

Smith Involving the Lord’s Resistance Army

Subcommittee on International Operations and Human Rights

December 4, 1996- Refugees in Eastern Zaire and Rwanda
Witnesses:

• Ms. Phyllis E. Oakley, Assistant Secretary of State, Bureau of Population, Refugees, and Migration, U.S. Department of State
• Hon. Richard W. Bogosian, Special Coordinator for Rwanda and Burundi, U.S. Department of State
• Mr. Michael Mahdesian, Deputy Assistant Administrator for Humanitarian Response, U.S. Agency for International Development
• Mr. Vincent D. Kern, Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for African Affairs, U.S. Department of Defense
• Mr. Roger P. Winter, Executive Director, U.S. Committee for Refugees
• Mr. Lionel A. Rosenblatt, President, Refugees International
• Dr. Chester A. Crocker, Chairman of the Board, U.S. Institute for Peace
• Dr. Alison L. Des Forges, Consultant, Human Rights Watch/Africa

March 5, 1998- The Ongoing Crisis in the Great Lakes (joint w/ Africa Subcommittee)
Witnesses:

• Hon. Howard Wolpe, Special Envoy, Bureau of African Affairs, Department of State
• Mr. Salih Booker, Senior Fellow and Director, African Studies Program, Council on Foreign Relations
• Dr. Alison L. Des Forges, Consultant, Human Rights Watch/Africa
• Mr. Roger Winter, Executive Director, U.S. Committee for Refugees
• Mr. Adotei Akwei, African Advocacy Director, Amnesty
  International

July 29, 1998- Crises in Sudan and Northern Uganda (joint hearing with Africa Subcommittee)
Witnesses:

• Ms. Susan Rice, Assistant Secretary for African Affairs, U.S. Department of State
• Ms. Carol Bellamy, Executive Director, UNICEF
• Ms. Catherine Bertini, Executive Director, World Food Programme
• Ms. Jemera Rone, Counsel, Human Rights Watch
• Mr. Daniel Eiffe, Liaison Officer, Norwegian Peoples Aid
• Sister Mary Rose Atuu, Little Sisters of Mary Immaculate of Gulu, Northern Uganda

Subcommittee on Africa, Human Rights and International Operations

March 1, 2005- United Nations Organization Mission in the Democratic Republic of the Congo: A Case for Peacekeeping Reform

Witnesses:

• Hon. Kim R. Holmes, Assistant Secretary, Bureau of International Organization Affairs, U.S. Department of State
• Hon. Princeton L. Lyman, Ralph Bunche Senior Fellow and Director of Africa Policy Studies, Council on Foreign Relations
• Nile Gardiner, Ph.D., Fellow in Anglo-American Security Policy, The Heritage Foundation
• Ms. Anneke Van Woudenberg, Senior Researcher on the Democratic Republic of Congo, Human Rights Watch

April 26, 2006- The Endangered Children of Northern Uganda (ex-abducted child soldier for LRA)

Witnesses:

• Mr. Jeffrey Krilla, Deputy Assistant Secretary, Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights and Labor, U.S. Department of State
• Mr. Leonard Rogers, Senior Deputy Assistant Administrator, U.S. Agency for International Development
• Ms. Grace Grall Akallo, former Abducted Child Soldier for the LRA, World Vision
• Ronald Waldman, M.D., Professor of Clinical, Population and Family Health, Mailman School of Policy, Columbia University
• Ms. Michelle Brown, U.N. Advocate, Refugees International
• (Click here to read a transcript of hearing testimony) 

Subcommittee on Africa, Global Health and Human Rights

March 8, 2011- The Democratic Republic of the Congo: Securing Peace in the Midst of Tragedy (includes testimony from actor Ben Affleck)

Witnesses:

• Hon. Donald Y. Yamamoto, Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for African Affairs
• Ms. Rajakumari Jandhyala, Deputy Assistant Administrator for Africa, USAID
• Mr. Ben Affleck, Founder of the Eastern Congo Initiative
• Ms. Francisca Vigaud-Walsh, Sexual and Gender-Based Violence Advisor, Catholic Relief Services
• Mr. John Prendergast, Co-Founder, Enough Project
• To view a webcast of the hearing click here.
• To read a transcript of the hearing click here.

July 26, 2011 - Coordinating Africa Policy on Security, Counterterrorism, Humanitarian Operations and Development

Witnesses:

• Hon. Donald Y. Yamamoto, Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for African Affairs
• The Honorable Vicki Huddleston, Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for African Affairs
• Ms. Sharon Cromer, Senior Deputy Assistant Administrator for Africa, USAID
• To view the webcast click here. (advance approx. 28.5 minutes to the strat of the hearing at the 2:11 p.m. mark)
• To read a transcript of the hearing click here. 

Legislation Supported by Rep. Chris Smith
 
Involving the Lord’s Resistance Army

• H.R. 3028 Child Soldiers Protection Act of 2007 (passed Congress on December 10, 2008 and became Public Law 110-457)
• S. 1067 Lord’s Resistance Army Disarmament and Northern Uganda Recovery Act of 2009 (passed Congress on May 12, 2010 and became Public Law 111-172)
• H.R. 4128 Conflict Minerals Trade Act (passed Congress on July 15, 2010 and became Public Law 111-203)
• H.Res. 583 Expressing support for robust efforts by the United States to see Joseph Kony, the leader of the Lord’s Resistance Army, and his top commanders brought to justice and the group’s atrocities permanently ended (introduced on March 13, 2012 – passage pending)