[Congressional Bills 107th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H. Con. Res. 202 Introduced in House (IH)]







107th CONGRESS
  1st Session
H. CON. RES. 202

     Condemning the Palestinian Authority and various Palestinian 
 organizations for using children as soldiers and inciting children to 
                       acts of violence and war.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                             July 27, 2001

   Mr. Engel (for himself, Mr. Cantor, Mr. McNulty, Mr. Sherman, Mr. 
  Frost, Mr. Weiner, Ms. Ros-Lehtinen, and Mr. Platts) submitted the 
following concurrent resolution; which was referred to the Committee on 
International Relations, and in addition to the Committee on Financial 
Services, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in 
   each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the 
                jurisdiction of the committee concerned

_______________________________________________________________________

                         CONCURRENT RESOLUTION


 
     Condemning the Palestinian Authority and various Palestinian 
 organizations for using children as soldiers and inciting children to 
                       acts of violence and war.

Whereas the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (1989) provides 
        that persons who have not attained the age of fifteen years shall not 
        take a direct part in hostilities;
Whereas the Palestinian Authority and various Palestinian organizations have 
        interspersed children with fighting units during hostilities;
Whereas the Palestinian Authority established and trained units, called the 
        Fatah Youth cadres, or ``Shabiba'', to fight in the current 
        ``Intifada'';
Whereas the Palestinian national media have encouraged the children to become 
        martyrs;
Whereas the Palestinian educational system uses an anti-Israeli curriculum which 
        endorses fighting against Israel and promotes the martyrdom of children;
Whereas the Palestinian Authority has incited and continues to incite its 
        children to acts of violence against the State of Israel;
Whereas Yasir Arafat has called Palestinian children ``generals of the 
        Intifada'' and those ``who throw the stones to defend Jerusalem, the 
        Muslims, and the holy places'';
Whereas the Palestinian Authority Ministry of Information has commended the 
        Palestinian children's ``unique example for resistance'' stating that it 
        forms ``the first defense line against the Israeli military arsenal'';
Whereas Sheik Ikrima Sabri, the Mufti of Jerusalem appointed by Yasir Arafat, 
        stated that ``the younger the martyr, the greater and the more I respect 
        him'';
Whereas during the summer of 2000, approximately 25,000 Palestinian children 
        attended military-style summer camps run by Yasir Arafat's Palestine 
        Liberation Organization Fatah Movement to indoctrinate them in anti-
        Israeli militancy;
Whereas the American Academy of Pediatrics states that ``governments that 
        encourage or permit children to participate in violence, to further 
        political aims, are practicing a form of societal abuse'';
Whereas Doctors Opposed to Child Sacrifice, an organization of American 
        pediatricians, has strongly condemned the use and encouragement of child 
        soldiers by Palestinian families and community leaders;
Whereas the Tulkarm Women's Union has urged Yasir Arafat ``to issue instructions 
        to your police force to stop sending innocent children to their death''; 
        and
Whereas Carol Bellamy, the Executive Director of the United Nations Children's 
        Fund (UNICEF), has called on the Palestinian Authority ``to take 
        energetic measures to discourage those underage from participating in 
        any violent action because such action places them at risk'': Now, 
        therefore, be it
    Resolved by the House of Representatives (the Senate concurring), 
That Congress--
            (1) considers the Palestinian Authority in violation of the 
        principles embodied in the United Nations Convention on the 
        Rights of the Child (1989) for its use of children as soldiers 
        and inciting children to acts of violence and war;
            (2) strongly urges the Palestinian Council to immediately 
        declare its commitment to the United Nations Convention on the 
        Rights of the Child and to adopt legislation to implement the 
        Convention as soon as possible;
            (3) while reaffirming the continued applicability of all 
        existing prohibitions, restrictions, limitations, and 
        directives that otherwise apply to the Palestinian Authority--
                    (A) urges the President to withhold any future 
                United States assistance to the Palestinian Authority 
                until the Authority stops the use of children in armed 
                conflict; and
                    (B) urges the Secretary of the Treasury to instruct 
                the United States executive director of each 
                international financial institution to use the voice 
                and vote of the United States to oppose any assistance 
                from that financial institution to the Palestinian 
                Authority until the Palestinian Authority discontinues 
                its use of children as soldiers;
            (4) requests the Secretary of State to submit to the 
        Committee on International Relations of the House of 
        Representatives and the Committee on Foreign Relations of the 
        Senate--
                    (A) a report on the degree to which Palestinian 
                children are encouraged by the Palestinian Authority to 
                participate in organized acts of violence and acts of 
                terror, and the degree to which the Palestinian 
                education system, religious structures, and media play 
                a role in the participation of Palestinian children in 
                violence; and
                    (B) periodic reports every 6 months on efforts by 
                the Palestinian Authority to discourage, prevent, and 
                halt the involvement of children in organized 
                Palestinian violence and acts of terror; and
            (5) requests the Secretary of State to transmit a copy of 
        this concurrent resolution to the Palestinian Authority.
                                 <all>