[Congressional Bills 108th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. Res. 146 Introduced in Senate (IS)]







108th CONGRESS
  1st Session
S. RES. 146

 Expressing the sense of the Senate regarding the establishment of an 
 international tribunal to prosecute crimes against humanity committed 
  by Fidel Castro Ruz and other Cuban political and military leaders.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                              May 20, 2003

     Mr. Reid (for himself and Mr. Ensign) submitted the following 
  resolution; which was referred to the Committee on Foreign Relations

_______________________________________________________________________

                               RESOLUTION


 
 Expressing the sense of the Senate regarding the establishment of an 
 international tribunal to prosecute crimes against humanity committed 
  by Fidel Castro Ruz and other Cuban political and military leaders.

Whereas since 1959, Fidel Castro Ruz has led a tyrannical regime that restricts 
        basic human rights, including freedom of expression, association, 
        assembly, and movement;
Whereas Fidel Castro's brother, Raul Castro Ruz, controls the Ministry of 
        Interior, the primary instrument of totalitarian control in Cuba that is 
        responsible for many of the most egregious human rights violations that 
        occur in that country;
Whereas the regime of Fidel Castro dominates all facets of public life, forcing 
        all associations to meet in the presence of state officials and 
        requiring government approval of any material a person or association 
        wishes to publish prior to its publication;
Whereas the Department of State has concluded that the Government of Cuba 
        continues to ``harass, threaten, arbitrarily arrest, detain, imprison, 
        and defame human rights advocates,'' and that the ``Interior Ministry 
        Department of State Security investigated and actively suppressed 
        political opposition and dissent'';
Whereas the Government of Cuba continues to repress peaceful attempts by the 
        Cuban people to bring democracy to Cuba;
Whereas in 2002, when members of the Varela Project, a democracy and human 
        rights initiative in Cuba, collected more than 11,000 signatures on a 
        petition calling for a national referendum on democratic reforms in 
        accordance with the Constitution of Cuba, the regime of Fidel Castro 
        orchestrated a constitutional amendment that declared Cuba's socialist 
        system irrevocable;
Whereas several human rights groups have estimated that the Government of Cuba 
        is holding hundreds of political prisoners on charges such as 
        dissemination of enemy propaganda, illicit association, clandestine 
        printing, contempt for the authorities (which often means criticism of 
        Castro), and rebellion;
Whereas Cuban police are permitted to arrest any person they believe exhibits 
        signs of ``dangerousness'' and subject such person to therapy or 
        political reeducation;
Whereas, in March 2003, the Government of Cuba began a massive crackdown on 
        leaders of independent labor unions, opposition parties, and the pro-
        democracy movement that led to the arrest of 80 dissidents;
Whereas the Government of Cuba subjected the dissidents arrested in March 2003 
        to unfair, closed-door trials, did not provide the dissidents with due 
        process protections during the trials, and sentenced 50 of the 
        dissidents to prison for terms of up to 28 years;
Whereas the regime of Fidel Castro has trampled the human rights of journalists, 
        killing 25 and threatening, harassing, or detaining 1,420 in 2002, 
        detaining an additional 27 in the March 2003 crackdown, and holding 120 
        as political prisoners as of May 2003;
Whereas prisoners in Cuba endure inhumane treatment, including psychological and 
        physical torture, malnourishment, and sexual abuse, despite the fact 
        that the Constitution of Cuba forbids abusive treatment of prisoners;
Whereas the Ministry of Interior regularly harasses religious leaders and 
        practitioners, despite the fact that the Constitution of Cuba allows for 
        freedom of religion;
Whereas the Government of Cuba engages in active surveillance of people's homes 
        and correspondence, despite the fact that the Constitution of Cuba 
        establishes the right to privacy;
Whereas the Government of Cuba encourages, condones, and tolerates racial 
        discrimination, especially against blacks, violence against women, and 
        child prostitution;
Whereas the Government of Cuba requires children to perform uncompensated farm 
        work;
Whereas on April 11, 2003, the Government of Cuba summarily tried 3 men who 
        hijacked a ferry in an attempt to escape from Cuba in unfair, closed-
        door trials, after which all 3 were found guilty and executed by firing 
        squad;
Whereas the Department of State has concluded that Cuba is a state sponsor of 
        terrorism that continues to harbor terrorists and fugitives from the 
        United States, including harboring members of 2 Colombian terrorist 
        organizations, the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) and the 
        National Liberation Army (ELN);
Whereas the Government of Cuba has consistently ignored resolutions from the 
        United Nations, the Organization of American States, and Congress 
        condemning the human rights abuses;
Whereas since 1959, the regime of Fidel Castro has persecuted more than 100,000 
        Cubans, of which more than 18,000 either were murdered or have 
        disappeared; and
Whereas actions taken by the Government of Cuba during 2002 and 2003 have 
        demonstrated that even after 44 years, the campaign of terror by the 
        regime of Fidel Castro shows no signs of waning: Now, therefore, be it
    Resolved, That it is the sense of the Senate that--
            (1) Fidel Castro Ruz and Raul Castro Ruz--
                    (A) are guilty of grave violations of international 
                law and crimes against humanity; and
                    (B) should be held legally and financially 
                accountable for such violations and crimes;
            (2) the President and Secretary of State should work with 
        the members of the Organization of American States, the Inter-
        American Commission on Human Rights, and other international 
        organizations to establish a special international tribunal 
        with jurisdiction to prosecute Fidel Castro Ruz, Raul Castro 
        Ruz, and other political and military leaders of Cuba who have 
        committed crimes against humanity;
            (3) the President should not agree, under any 
        circumstances, to an arrangement whereby Fidel Castro Ruz and 
        Raul Castro Ruz would relinquish control in Cuba in exchange 
        for immunity from prosecution for crimes against humanity; and
            (4) the United States should continue to strengthen 
        programs and groups that foster democratic progress and the 
        development of a civil society in Cuba.
                                 <all>