[Congressional Bills 108th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H. Res. 501 Introduced in House (IH)]






108th CONGRESS
  2d Session
H. RES. 501

    Recognizing and supporting Iranians in their daily struggle for 
   democracy and reform, encouraging the Islamic Republic of Iran to 
conduct open and fair elections, and urging the President of the United 
   States to engage with and support Iranians in their struggle for 
                         freedom and democracy.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                            January 23, 2004

Mr. Tancredo submitted the following resolution; which was referred to 
                the Committee on International Relations

_______________________________________________________________________

                               RESOLUTION


 
    Recognizing and supporting Iranians in their daily struggle for 
   democracy and reform, encouraging the Islamic Republic of Iran to 
conduct open and fair elections, and urging the President of the United 
   States to engage with and support Iranians in their struggle for 
                         freedom and democracy.

Whereas politics in the Islamic Republic of Iran remains almost entirely the 
        province of the clerical authorities who assumed control of the country 
        after the ouster of Mohammad Reza Shah Pahlavi in 1979;
Whereas the Supreme Leader of the Islamic Republic of Iran appoints the head of 
        the judiciary, the clergy members on the powerful Council of Guardians, 
        the commanders of all the armed forces, Friday prayer leaders, and the 
        head of radio and television, and also confirms the president's 
        election, thus rendering him the most powerful person in Iranian 
        politics with little accountability within the political system;
Whereas members of the Council of Guardians, who are chosen by the Supreme 
        Leader, must vet all candidates for election based on their political 
        predispositions, as well as all legislation before it can be entered 
        into law;
Whereas one of the leaders of the reformist coalition, former Interior Minister 
        Hojjatoleslam Abdollah Nouri, was jailed on religious dissent charges in 
        November 1999, preventing him from leading the reformist movement in the 
        2001 elections;
Whereas several prominent figures in the Islamist Iran Freedom Movement were 
        barred from running in the 2000 parliamentary elections, including Dr. 
        Ibrahim Yazdi, who was excluded from standing as a candidate in Tehran 
        on the spurious grounds that he did not hold a higher education degree, 
        even though he in fact holds a Ph.D.; Ezatollah Sahabi, a former 
        minister and an outspoken critic of the government who was excluded for 
        being a member of a prohibited political party, but was in fact not a 
        member of any political party; and Parviz Varjavand, also a former 
        minister and a member of the National Front party, who was excluded on 
        the grounds that the National Front party was an illegal organization, 
        even though there have been no legal proceedings establishing the 
        illegality of this party;
Whereas conservatives in the judiciary have closed more than 60 reformist 
        newspapers and imprisoned or questioned several editors and even some 
        members of the parliament;
Whereas the Council of Guardians, in anticipation of the February 2004 
        parliamentary elections, warned that they would disqualify candidates 
        whom they deemed to oppose the Supreme Leader's absolute rule;
Whereas, although the Supreme Leader later stated that they should be permitted 
        to seek reelection, more than 80 incumbents, all reformists, were 
        initially disqualified by the Council of Guardians from seeking another 
        term in the February 2004 parliamentary elections, according to the 
        official Islamic Republic News Agency;
Whereas members of parliament have said that, in all, about 900 of the 1,700 
        candidates who wanted to contest seats in the parliament have been 
        disqualified;
Whereas the disqualified legislators include two deputy speakers of parliament, 
        Mohammad Reza Khatami, the younger brother of the president and leader 
        of the reformist Islamic Iran Participation Front, and Behzad Nabavi;
Whereas the Council of Guardians also disqualified Fatemeh Haqiqatjou and Elaheh 
        Koulaee, two female legislators who have fought for women's rights;
Whereas Article 2 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights 
        guarantees certain rights ``without distinction of any kind, such as 
        race, colour, sex, language, religion, political or other opinion, 
        national or social origin, property, birth or other status'';
Whereas the Council of Guardians' practice of disqualifying candidates on the 
        basis of their political proclivities runs directly contrary to the 
        Islamic Republic of Iran's obligations under Article 25 of the 
        International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, which states: 
        ``Every citizen shall have the right and the opportunity, without any of 
        the distinctions mentioned in article 2 and without unreasonable 
        restrictions: (a) To take part in the conduct of public affairs, 
        directly or through freely chosen representatives; (b) To vote and to be 
        elected at genuine periodic elections which shall be by universal and 
        equal suffrage and shall be held by secret ballot, guaranteeing the free 
        expression of the will of the electors'';
Whereas there exists a broad-based movement and desire for political change in 
        the Islamic Republic of Iran that represents all sectors of Iranian 
        society, including youth, women, students, military personnel, and 
        religious figures, and that is prodemocratic, seeking freedom and 
        economic opportunity; and
Whereas the Iranian people have increasingly expressed frustration at the slow 
        pace of reform, while still pursuing nonviolent change in their society: 
        Now, therefore, be it
    Resolved, That the House of Representatives--
            (1) recognizes and supports the people of the Islamic 
        Republic of Iran in their daily struggle for democracy, reform, 
        human rights, and the rule of law;
            (2) makes a clear distinction between peace-loving 
        Iranians, who desire a free and open democracy, and unelected 
        Iranian officials;
            (3) encourages the Islamic Republic of Iran, in all of its 
        institutions of government, to do everything in its power to 
        ensure open and fair elections, and conduct the elections with 
        transparency and integrity; and
            (4) urges the President of the United States to engage with 
        and support the people of the Islamic Republic of Iran and 
        their legitimate aspiration for freedom and democracy, to 
        continue to pursue areas of common interest with Iranians while 
        taking an uncompromising stance on terrorism, weapons of mass 
        destruction, and the human rights of Iranian citizens, and to 
        use all available diplomatic means to support the Iranian 
        people's demand for an immediate release of all political 
        prisoners and for removal of the ban on freedom of the press.
                                 <all>