[Congressional Bills 109th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H. Con. Res. 102 Introduced in House (IH)]






109th CONGRESS
  1st Session
H. CON. RES. 102

Urging the appropriate representative of the United States to the 61st 
session of the United Nations Commission on Human Rights to introduce a 
 resolution calling upon the Government of the Republic of Belarus to 
       cease its human rights violations, and for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                             March 16, 2005

  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


 
Urging the appropriate representative of the United States to the 61st 
session of the United Nations Commission on Human Rights to introduce a 
 resolution calling upon the Government of the Republic of Belarus to 
       cease its human rights violations, and for other purposes.

Whereas the Government of the Republic of Belarus has engaged in a pattern of 
        clear, gross, and uncorrected violations of human rights and fundamental 
        freedoms;
Whereas the Government of Belarus continues to allow public officials and law 
        enforcement officers to act with impunity against democratic forces, 
        independent journalists and media, independent trade union members, and 
        human rights activists;
Whereas on April 8, 2004, the United Nations Commission on Human Rights approved 
        a resolution, urging impartial, credible and full investigation into 
        forced disappearances in Belarus, and summary executions on the 
        disappearances, urging the Government of Belarus to conduct an impartial 
        investigation;
Whereas the Government of Belarus has made no credible effort to solve the cases 
        of Yuri Zakharenka, Viktor Gonchar, and Anatoly Krasovsky in 1999 and 
        journalist Dmitry Zavadsky in 2000, even though former officials of the 
        Government of Belarus have come forward with credible allegations and 
        evidence that top officials of the Lukashenka regime were involved in 
        these disappearances;
Whereas the United Nations Commission on Human Rights appointed as Special 
        Rapporteur Adrian Severin to examine the situation of human rights in 
        Belarus and report on efforts to develop human rights education for all 
        sectors of society, including law enforcement, the judiciary, prison 
        officials, and civil society;
Whereas Belarusian authorities denied Mr. Severin a visa to visit Belarus in his 
        capacity as Special Rapporteur in December 2004;
Whereas Belarusian authorities have subjected opposition political parties and 
        movements to increased pressure through both judicial and extrajudicial 
        measures;
Whereas political opposition figure Mikhail Marynich was sentenced in December 
        2004 and remains in prison on politically-motivated charges, and 
        opposition activists Valery Levonevskiy and Aleksandr Vasilev were 
        sentenced in September 2004 to 2 years imprisonment for authoring a poem 
        ``insulting President Lukashenka'';
Whereas the October 17, 2004, parliamentary elections and referendum removing 
        term limits for the office of the President in Belarus failed to meet 
        Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) and other 
        international democratic standards and is the latest in a series of 
        flawed elections;
Whereas Belarusian authorities have mounted a major systematic crackdown on 
        civil society through the closure, harassment, and repression of 
        nongovernmental organizations and independent trade unions and through 
        beatings and detentions of peaceful demonstrators;
Whereas the International Labor Organization's Commission of Inquiry has 
        concluded that several trade unions in Belarus have been denied the 
        right to bargain collectively because of the deregistration and non-
        registration of independent unions;
Whereas Belarusian authorities actively suppress freedom of speech and 
        expression, including engaging in systematic reprisals against 
        independent media;
Whereas police abuse and torture of prisoners and detainees continues in 
        Belarus;
Whereas Belarusian authorities restrict in practice the right to freedom of 
        religion and have increased their harassment of some religious groups; 
        and
Whereas Congress passed the Belarus Democracy Act of 2004 and the President 
        signed the measure into law on October 24, 2004 (Public Law 108-347): 
        Now, therefore, be it
    Resolved by the House of Representatives (the Senate concurring), 
That it is the sense of Congress that --
            (1) the Government of the Republic of Belarus should 
        immediately cease its clear, gross, and uncorrected violations 
        of human rights and fundamental freedoms, including persecution 
        of political opponents and independent journalists, and release 
        those individuals who have been imprisoned for opposing the 
        regime in Belarus or for exercising their right to freedom of 
        speech;
            (2) the Government of Belarus should immediately release 
        political prisoners Mikhail Marynich, Valery Levonevskiy, and 
        Aleksandr Vasilev;
            (3) the Government of Belarus should thoroughly and 
        transparently investigate the disappearance of Victor Gonchar, 
        Anatoly Krasovsky, Yuri Zakharenka, and Dmitry Zavadsky;
            (4) the Government of the United States should continue to 
        insist that the Republic of Belarus respect the fundamental 
        human rights of its citizens;
            (5) at the 61st Session of the United Nations Human Rights 
        Commission in Geneva, Switzerland, the appropriate 
        representative of the United States should introduce a 
        resolution detailing the human rights situation within the 
        Republic of Belarus and urging the Government of Belarus to 
        abide by internationally recognized human rights standards;
            (6) the Government of the United States should work with 
        other members of the United Nations Human Rights Commission in 
        organizing multilateral support to obtain passage of the 
        resolution referred to in paragraph (5); and
            (7) United States Government officials and officials from 
        other governments should continue to speak out in international 
        fora, including the Organization for Security and Cooperation 
        in Europe (OSCE), against the Belarusian Government's 
        suppression of human rights and political freedoms in keeping 
        with that country's obligations as a participating State of the 
        OSCE.
                                 <all>