110 HRES 810 IH: Calling for an end to the state of U.S. House of Representatives 2007-11-08 text/xml EN Pursuant to Title 17 Section 105 of the United States Code, this file is not subject to copyright protection and is in the public domain.

IV 110th CONGRESS 1st Session H. RES. 810 IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES November 8, 2007 Ms. Jackson-Lee of Texas (for herself, Mr. Burton of Indiana, Mr. Delahunt, Mr. Crowley, Mr. Towns, Mr. Rush, Mr. Pascrell, Mr. Ellison, Mr. Honda, Mr. Hastings of Florida, Mr. Wu, Mr. Cummings, Ms. Watson, Mr. Al Green of Texas, Ms. Woolsey, Mr. Van Hollen, Mr. Meeks of New York, Mr. Butterfield, Mr. Chabot, Ms. Linda T. Sánchez of California, and Mr. Bilirakis) submitted the following resolution; which was referred to the Committee on Foreign Affairs RESOLUTION Calling for an end to the state of emergency in Pakistan.

Whereas, on November 3, 2007, Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf issued a proclamation of emergency, suspended Pakistan’s constitution, restricted the media, and reportedly made hundreds of preventative arrests; Whereas the proclamation cites a grave threat to the life and property of the citizens of Pakistan posed by a visible ascendancy in the activities of extremists and incidents of terrorist attacks, and it states that the Pakistani constitution shall remain in abeyance; Whereas this proclamation comes as the Supreme Court of Pakistan was due to rule on the legality of President Musharraf’s reelection last month, and as President Musharraf was due to give up his military post this month; Whereas opposition leaders and activists have been targeted for detention under the emergency rule, Pakistan’s Supreme Court chief justice was dismissed after he refused to endorse the emergency order and labeled it unconstitutional, senior lawyers were detained, and the active head of the party of exiled former Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif was arrested; Whereas President Musharraf defended his actions as a response to a rise in extremism in Pakistan, citing militant violence and a judiciary which has paralyzed the government; Whereas the Pakistani Government initially suggested that parliamentary elections, due in mid-January 2008, could be delayed by over a year, but Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz stated on November 5, 2007, that the elections would go forward as planned; Whereas Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice has stated that the Bush administration is reviewing United States aid to Pakistan in the aftermath of President Musharraf’s proclamation; Whereas all non-state television stations and some radio channels have been taken off the air, and while independent newspapers have been allowed to continue to publish, the media restrictions imposed by the emergency proclamation severely restrict what they can report; Whereas President Musharraf previously pledged to resign from his military post, but he told foreign diplomats on November 5, 2007, that he would not step down as head of the military until we correct these pillars in judiciary and the executive and the parliament; and Whereas Pakistan continues to be a key ally in the global struggle against terrorism, with Pakistan’s strategically important location and the support of President Musharraf playing a decisive role in helping to remove the Taliban regime from Afghanistan, and Pakistan capturing hundreds of suspected al-Qaeda terrorists: Now, therefore, be it

That the House of Representatives— (1)expresses its opposition to the declaration of a state of emergency by President Pervez Musharraf and calls for a return to constitutional order; (2)strongly urges the Government of Pakistan to ensure that elections are held in January 2008, as scheduled, and are not delayed by the emergency proclamation and calls on the Election Commission of Pakistan to take the basic steps needed to ensure that these elections are free and fair; (3)calls for security for the Pakistan’s opposition leaders, including former Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto; (4)urges the Government of Pakistan to immediately release those individuals who are being detained without being charged; (5)calls for the immediate restoration of Pakistan’s independent judiciary, including reinstating Chief Justice Iftikhar Chaudhry, ending the practice of arbitrary arrest and detention, and allowing suspects customary access to lawyers; (6)calls on the Government of Pakistan to end media restrictions, including bans on non-state television and radio stations and limitations on what independent newspapers can print; (7)calls for the President of the United States, the Department of State, and the United States Agency for International Development to review United States aid to Pakistan in the aftermath of President Musharaff’s proclamation; (8)calls for the administration to make aid to Pakistan conditional on the protection of human and constitutional rights during this state of emergency; (9)strongly supports the protection of human rights in Pakistan; and (10)calls for the appointment of a diplomatic team, comprised of high-ranking representatives of the Department of State and the Department of Defense, along with the appointment of a Presidential Special Envoy for Pakistan, to engage in detailed negotiations with President Musharraf and other Pakistani leaders on the restoration of constitutional order, democracy, and civil rights.