[Congressional Bills 106th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. Res. 309 Introduced in Senate (IS)]







106th CONGRESS
  2d Session
S. RES. 309

    Expressing the sense of the Senate regarding conditions in Laos.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                              May 23, 2000

 Mr. Feingold (for himself, Mrs. Boxer, Mr. Kohl, Mr. Wellstone, Mrs. 
Feinstein, and Mr. Grams) submitted the following resolution; which was 
     read twice and referred to the Committee on Foreign Relations

_______________________________________________________________________

                               RESOLUTION


 
    Expressing the sense of the Senate regarding conditions in Laos.

Whereas Laos was devastated by civil war from 1955 to 1974;
Whereas the people of Laos have lived under the authoritarian, one-party 
        government of the Lao People's Revolutionary Party since the overthrow 
        of the existing Royal Lao government in 1975;
Whereas the communist government of the Lao People's Democratic Republic sharply 
        curtails basic human rights, including freedom of speech, assembly, 
        association, and religion;
Whereas political dissent is not allowed in Laos and those who express their 
        political will are severely punished;
Whereas the Lao constitution protects freedom of religion but the Government of 
        Laos in practice restricts this right;
Whereas Laos is not a signatory of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights or 
        the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights;
Whereas Laos is a party to international human rights treaties, including the 
        International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial 
        Discrimination and the Convention on the Political Rights of Women;
Whereas the 1999 State Department Report on Human Rights Practices in Laos finds 
        that ``societal discrimination against women and minorities persist'';
Whereas the State Department's report also finds that the Lao government 
        ``discriminates in its treatment of prisoners'' and uses ``degrading 
        treatment, solitary confinement, and incommunicado detention against 
        perceived problem prisoners'';
Whereas two American citizens, Houa Ly and Michael Vang, were last seen on the 
        border between Laos and Thailand in April 1999 and may be in Laos; and
Whereas many Americans of Hmong and Lao descent are deeply troubled by the 
        conditions in Laos: Now, therefore, be it
    Resolved, That the Senate calls on the Government of the Lao 
People's Democratic Republic to--
            (1) respect the basic human rights of all of its citizens, 
        including freedom of speech, assembly, association, and 
        religion;
            (2) ratify the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and 
        the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights;
            (3) fulfill its obligations under the international human 
        rights treaties to which it is a party, including the 
        International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of 
        Racial Discrimination and the Convention on the Political 
        Rights of Women;
            (4) take demonstrable steps to ensure that Hmong and other 
        ethnic minorities who have been returned to Laos from Thailand 
        and elsewhere in Southeast Asia are--
                    (A) accepted into Lao society on an equal par with 
                other Lao citizens;
                    (B) allowed to practice freely their ethnic and 
                religious traditions and to preserve their language and 
                culture without threat of fear or intimidation; and
                    (C) afforded the same educational, economic, and 
                professional opportunities as other residents of Laos;
            (5) allow international humanitarian organizations, 
        including the International Red Cross, to gain unrestricted 
        access to areas in which Hmong and other ethnic minorities have 
        been resettled;
            (6) allow independent monitoring of prison conditions;
            (7) release from prison those who have been arbitrarily 
        arrested on the basis of their political or religious beliefs; 
        and
            (8) cooperate fully with the United States Government in 
        the ongoing investigation into the whereabouts of Houa Ly and 
        Michael Vang, two United States citizens who were last seen 
        near the border between Laos and Thailand in April 1999.
                                 <all>