[Congressional Bills 108th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H. Con. Res. 425 Introduced in House (IH)]






108th CONGRESS
  2d Session
H. CON. RES. 425

Expressing the sense of Congress in support of the ongoing work of the 
Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) in combating 
  anti-Semitism, racism, xenophobia, discrimination, intolerance, and 
                           related violence.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                              May 13, 2004

  Mr. Smith of New Jersey (for himself and Mr. Cardin) submitted the 
following concurrent resolution; which was referred to the Committee on 
                        International Relations

_______________________________________________________________________

                         CONCURRENT RESOLUTION


 
Expressing the sense of Congress in support of the ongoing work of the 
Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) in combating 
  anti-Semitism, racism, xenophobia, discrimination, intolerance, and 
                           related violence.

Whereas anti-Semitism is a unique evil and an affront to human rights that must 
        be unequivocally condemned, and a phenomenon that, when left unchecked, 
        has led to violence against members of the Jewish community and Jewish 
        institutions;
Whereas racism, xenophobia, and discrimination are also pernicious ills that 
        erode the dignity of the individual and such intolerance undermines the 
        achievement and preservation of stable democratic societies;
Whereas to be effective in combating these phenomena, governments must respond 
        to related violence while seeking to address the underlying sources of 
        anti-Semitism, racism, xenophobia, discrimination, intolerance, and 
        related violence through public denouncements by elected leaders, 
        vigorous law enforcement, and education;
Whereas all Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) 
        participating states must confront acts of anti-Semitism and 
        intolerance, and must deal effectively with acts of violence against 
        Jews and Jewish cultural sites, as well as against ethnic and religious 
        minority groups, in keeping with their OSCE commitments;
Whereas education is critical in overcoming intolerance and it is essential that 
        those responsible for formulating education policy recognize the 
        importance of teaching about the Holocaust and intolerance as a tool to 
        fight anti-Semitism, racism, xenophobia, and discrimination among young 
        people;
Whereas ensuring proper training of law enforcement officers and military forces 
        is vital in keeping alive the memory of the Holocaust and to the 
        importance of understanding and responding to incidents of anti-Semitism 
        and intolerance;
Whereas OSCE participating states have repeatedly committed to condemn anti-
        Semitism and intolerance, foremost in the historic 1990 Copenhagen 
        Concluding Document that, for the first time, declared ``participating 
        [s]tates clearly and unequivocally condemn totalitarianism, racial and 
        ethnic hatred, anti-Semitism, xenophobia and discrimination against 
        anyone,'' and stated their intent to ``take effective measures . . . to 
        provide protection against any acts that constitute incitement to 
        violence against persons or groups based on national, racial, ethnic or 
        religious discrimination, hostility or hatred, including anti-
        Semitism'';
Whereas the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly has demonstrated leadership by 
        unanimously passing resolutions at its annual sessions in 2002 and 2003 
        that condemn anti-Semitism, racial and ethnic hatred, xenophobia, and 
        discrimination and call upon participating states to speak out against 
        these acts and to ensure aggressive law enforcement by local and 
        national authorities;
Whereas the 2002 Porto OSCE Ministerial Council Decision committed participating 
        states to ``take strong public positions against . . . manifestations of 
        aggressive nationalism, racism, chauvinism, xenophobia, anti-Semitism 
        and violent extremism,'' specifically condemned the ``recent increase in 
        anti-Semitic incidents in the OSCE area, recognizing the role that the 
        existence of anti-Semitism has played throughout history as a major 
        threat to freedom,'' and urged for the ``convening of separately 
        designated human dimension events on issues addressed in this decision, 
        including on the topics of anti-Semitism, discrimination and racism and 
        xenophobia'';
Whereas the 2003 OSCE Vienna conferences on anti-Semitism and racism, xenophobia 
        and discrimination were groundbreaking, as the OSCE and its 
        participating states met to discuss ways to combat these destructive 
        forces;
Whereas the 2003 Maastricht Ministerial Council approved follow-up OSCE 
        conferences on anti-Semitism and on racism, xenophobia and 
        discrimination, and encouraged ``all participating [s]tates to collect 
        and keep records on reliable information and statistics on hate crimes, 
        including on forms of violent manifestations of racism, xenophobia, 
        discrimination, and anti Semitism,'' as well as to inform the OSCE 
        Office of Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR) ``about 
        existing legislation regarding crimes fuelled by intolerance and 
        discrimination'';
Whereas at the 2004 OSCE Conference on Anti-Semitism, hosted in the German 
        capital, the Bulgarian Chairman-in-Office issued the ``Berlin 
        Declaration'' which stated unambiguously that ``international 
        developments or political issues, including those in Israel or elsewhere 
        in the Middle East, never justify anti-Semitism'';
Whereas the Berlin Declaration advances the process of monitoring of anti-
        Semitic crimes and hate crimes, as all OSCE participating states 
        committed to ``collect and maintain'' statistics about these incidents 
        and to forward that information to the ODIHR for compilation;
Whereas during the closing conference plenary, the German Foreign Minister and 
        others highlighted the need to ensure all participating states follow 
        through with their commitments and initiate efforts to track anti-
        Semitic crimes and hate crimes; and
Whereas the Government of Spain offered to hold a follow up meeting in Cordoba 
        next year to review whether OSCE participating states are making every 
        effort to fulfill their OSCE commitments regarding data collection on 
        anti-Semitic crimes and hate crimes: Now, therefore, be it
    Resolved by the House of Representatives (the Senate concurring), 
That it is the sense of the Congress that--
            (1) the United States Government and Congress should 
        unequivocally condemn acts of anti-Semitism and intolerance 
        whenever and wherever they occur;
            (2) officials and elected leaders of all Organization for 
        Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) participating states, 
        including all OSCE Mediterranean Partner for Cooperation 
        countries, should also unequivocally condemn acts of anti-
        Semitism, racism, xenophobia, and discrimination whenever and 
        wherever they occur;
            (3) the participating states of the OSCE should be 
        commended for supporting the Berlin Declaration and for working 
        to bring increased attention to incidents of anti-Semitism and 
        intolerance in the OSCE region;
            (4) the United States Government, including Members of 
        Congress, recognizing that the fundamental job of combating 
        anti-Semitism and intolerance falls to governments, should work 
        with other OSCE participating states and their parliaments to 
        encourage the full compliance with OSCE commitments and, if 
        necessary, urge the creation of legal mechanisms to combat and 
        track acts of anti-Semitism and intolerance;
            (5) all participating states, including the United States, 
        should forward their respective laws and data on incidents of 
        anti-Semitism and other hate crimes to the OSCE Office for 
        Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR) for 
        compilation and provide adequate resources for the completion 
        of its duties;
            (6) the United States should encourage the Bulgarian 
        Chairman-in-Office, in consultation with the incoming Slovenian 
        Chairman-in-Office, to consider appointing a high level 
        ``personal envoy'' to ensure sustained attention with respect 
        to fulfilling OSCE commitments on reporting of anti-Semitic 
        crimes;
            (7) the United States should urge OSCE participating states 
        that have not already done so to join the Task Force for 
        International Cooperation on Holocaust Education, Remembrance, 
        and Research; and
            (8) all OSCE participating states should renew and 
        revitalize efforts to implement their existing commitments to 
        fight anti-Semitism and intolerance, and keep sharp focus on 
        these issues as part of the usual work of the OSCE Permanent 
        Council, the Human Dimension Implementation Review Meeting, the 
        Ministerial Council and summits.
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