[Congressional Bills 109th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H. Con. Res. 32 Referred in Senate (RFS)]

  1st Session
H. CON. RES. 32


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                             March 17, 2005

      Received and referred to the Committee on Foreign Relations

_______________________________________________________________________

                         CONCURRENT RESOLUTION


 
 Expressing the grave concern of Congress regarding the occupation of 
           the Lebanese Republic by the Syrian Arab Republic.

Whereas since its invasion of the Lebanese Republic in 1976, the regime of the 
        Syrian Arab Republic has implemented a systematic policy of occupation 
        over Lebanon that has transformed the political, social, and economic 
        character of Lebanon;
Whereas on July 20, 1976, President Hafez al-Assad of Syria stated that ``Syria 
        and Lebanon were one state and one people'';
Whereas, on October 13, 1990, the Syrian occupation of Lebanon was complete, 
        when Syrian troops launched aerial and ground attacks and occupied the 
        Lebanese presidential palace and the Ministry of Defense, ousting the 
        constitutional government of Prime Minister Michel Aoun of Lebanon;
Whereas the Syrian regime appointed their own proxy government and president in 
        occupied Lebanon, and started a large-scale persecution operation 
        against the Lebanese people by arresting, abducting, torturing, and 
        killing opponents of the occupation;
Whereas, on May 22, 1991, following the occupation of Beirut, Lebanon, Syria 
        concluded the Brotherhood Treaty for Coordination and Cooperation with 
        Lebanon;
Whereas this treaty solidified the integration of the two countries in matters 
        of security and intelligence, finance and trade, and industry and 
        agriculture, by establishing the mechanism for Syrian command under the 
        cover of ``joint'' decisionmaking;
Whereas the Syrian regime has continued to employ a wide range of policy means 
        to transform Lebanon into a ``client state'' and a Syrian political 
        satellite;
Whereas Syria clearly tampered with the Lebanese parliamentary elections of 
        1992, 1996, and 2000, by amending electoral laws which delineated voting 
        districts and laid down intricate procedures for the elections, which 
        were rigged in a way to guarantee results favorable to Syria;
Whereas Syrian-backed ad-hoc modifications to the Lebanese constitution extended 
        by three years the presidential tenure of Lebanese president Elias 
        Harawi, allowed Emile Lahoud, commander of the Lebanese army, to become 
        president, and extended Lahoud's term in contravention of United Nations 
        Security Council Resolution 1559;
Whereas Lebanese judicial institutions have been utilized and mobilized to 
        impose Syrian control, including the routine issuance of death sentences 
        in abstentia against expatriates and opposition leaders;
Whereas Lebanese Broadcasting Law No. 382 of 1994 provided the legislative 
        framework for controlling and restricting Lebanese radio and television;
Whereas the restrictions on the free flow of information and opinion in Lebanon 
        is in sharp contrast to the legacy of journalism in that country;
Whereas it is widely reported that Syria has utilized the practices of 
        kidnapping and arresting Lebanese citizens, using torture against them, 
        and causing their virtual disappearance;
Whereas Human Rights Watch reported that in November 1999 Syrian authorities in 
        Damascus, Syria, offering no explanation whatsoever, returned to his 
        family the dead body of Lebanese citizen Adel Khalaf Ajouri, aged 52, 
        who had ``disappeared'' in 1990;
Whereas within Lebanon itself, Syria reportedly operated detention facilities in 
        Tripoli, Beirut, Shtaura in the Bekka Valley, and Anjar on the Lebanese-
        Syrian border;
Whereas ``Syrian order'' in Lebanon was institutionalized when Damascus led the 
        process of disarming the Lebanese militias, except for Hezbollah, which 
        Syria retains as a terrorist proxy engaged against the State of Israel;
Whereas Lebanon, under the control of Syria, continues to serve as a major 
        training center for terrorist organizations such as Hezbollah, 
        Palestinian Islamic Jihad, Hamas, and the Popular Front for the 
        Liberation of Palestine-General Command;
Whereas a number of Lebanese government officials have actively facilitated and 
        contributed to the Syrian occupation and its activities, thereby 
        threatening regional and global security;
Whereas United Nations Security Council Resolution 1559 calls for the ``strict 
        respect of the sovereignty, territorial integrity, unity, and political 
        independence of Lebanon under the sole and exclusive authority of the 
        Government of Lebanon throughout Lebanon'', the withdrawal from Lebanon 
        of ``all remaining foreign forces'', ``the disbanding and disarmament of 
        all Lebanese and non-Lebanese militias'', and ``the extension of the 
        control of the Government of Lebanon over all Lebanese territory'';
Whereas, on February 14, 2005, a bomb exploded in Beirut, Lebanon, killing at 
        least 15 people, including Rafik Hariri, former Prime Minister of 
        Lebanon, and wounding approximately 100 other innocent victims;
Whereas after the bombing, President George W. Bush stated during an address in 
        Brussels that ``Our shared commitment to democratic progress is being 
        tested in Lebanon, a once-thriving country that now suffers under the 
        influence of an oppressive neighbor'', called on Syria to ``end its 
        occupation of Lebanon'', and reiterated the provisions of United Nations 
        Security Council Resolution 1559;
Whereas Lebanese opposition leaders gathered after Hariri was killed and issued 
        a statement demanding Syrian troop withdrawal from Lebanon within the 
        next three months, calling for the resignation of the current Lebanese 
        cabinet, and declaring that ``we will fight the current regime and 
        demand our right for a neutral government that makes sure Lebanon steps 
        forward from being a captive state to regaining its full independence 
        and sovereignty''; and
Whereas the ongoing mass demonstrations by the Lebanese people resulted in the 
        dramatic resignation of the Lebanese Cabinet on February 28, 2005: Now, 
        therefore, be it
    Resolved by the House of Representatives (the Senate concurring), 
That it is the sense of Congress that--
            (1) the Lebanese Republic is a captive country;
            (2) the occupation of Lebanon represents a long-term threat 
        to the security of the Middle East and United States efforts to 
        promote political and economic liberalization in the region, 
        and this issue should be raised by the President and the 
        Secretary of State in all appropriate bilateral and 
        multilateral forums;
            (3) the President should direct the United States Permanent 
        Representative to the United Nations to present and secure 
        support for a United Nations Security Council Resolution 
        classifying Lebanon as a captive country and calling for the 
        immediate release of all Lebanese detainees in Syria and 
        Lebanon;
            (4) the President should freeze all assets in the United 
        States belonging to Lebanese government officials who are found 
        to support and aid the occupation of Lebanon by the Syrian Arab 
        Republic;
            (5) all countries should fully and immediately implement 
        United Nations Security Council Resolution 1559;
            (6) it should be the policy of the United States to--
                    (A) support independent human rights and pro-
                democracy advocates in Lebanon; and
                    (B) seek the full restoration of sovereign 
                democratic rule in Lebanon; and
            (7) the United States should provide assistance through the 
        Middle East Partnership Initiative and the Broader Middle East 
        and North Africa Initiative for broadcasts and civil society 
        efforts to assist individuals, organizations, and entities that 
        support

        Lebanese sovereignty and the promotion of democracy in Lebanon.

            Passed the House of Representatives March 17, 2005.

            Attest:

                                                 JEFF TRANDAHL,

                                                                 Clerk.