[Congressional Bills 114th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H. Res. 111 Introduced in House (IH)]

114th CONGRESS
  1st Session
H. RES. 111

Calling on the Government of Iran to immediately release Saeed Abedini 
   and all other individuals detained on account of their religious 
                                beliefs.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                           February 13, 2015

Mr. Pittenger (for himself, Mr. Walker, Mr. Vargas, and Ms. Frankel of 
Florida) submitted the following resolution; which was referred to the 
                      Committee on Foreign Affairs

_______________________________________________________________________

                               RESOLUTION


 
Calling on the Government of Iran to immediately release Saeed Abedini 
   and all other individuals detained on account of their religious 
                                beliefs.

Whereas, in September 2012, Saeed Abedini, a resident of the State of Idaho and 
        a minority Christian with dual Iranian-United States citizenship, was 
        arbitrarily detained in the Islamic Republic of Iran, held in solitary 
        confinement, physically beaten, denied access to necessary medical 
        treatment as a result of that abuse, and denied access to his lawyer 
        until just before his trial;
Whereas, in January 2013, an Iranian court accused Saeed Abedini of attempting 
        to undermine the national security of Iran by gathering with fellow 
        Christians in private homes;
Whereas Saeed Abedini was tried in a non-public trial before a judge who had 
        been sanctioned by the European Union for repeated violations of human 
        rights, including issuing long prison sentences to peaceful protestors 
        following the 2009 election;
Whereas, during the trial, Saeed Abedini and his Iranian attorney were barred 
        from attending portions of the trial in which the prosecution provided 
        and the judge received evidence through witness testimony;
Whereas the Iranian court sentenced Saeed Abedini to 8 years in prison;
Whereas, in August 2013, the 36th branch of the Tehran appeals court denied 
        Saeed Abedini's appeal and affirmed his 8-year sentence;
Whereas the Government of Iran continues to indefinitely imprison Saeed Abedini 
        for peacefully exercising his faith;
Whereas the United Nations Universal Declaration of Human Rights declares that 
        every individual has ``the right to freedom of thought, conscience and 
        religion'', which includes the ``freedom to change his religion or 
        belief, and freedom, either alone or in community with others and in 
        public or private, to manifest his religion or belief in teaching, 
        practice, worship and observance'', and the International Covenant on 
        Civil and Political Rights echoes that declaration;
Whereas the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights holds that 
        every individual shall be free from arbitrary arrest and detention, and 
        that every individual bears the right to have adequate time and 
        facilities for the preparation of his defense and to be present during 
        the duration of his trial;
Whereas the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights further 
        guarantees every individual the right to a fair and public hearing by a 
        competent, independent, and impartial tribunal;
Whereas Iran is a member of the United Nations and a signatory to both the 
        Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the International Covenant on 
        Civil and Political Rights without reservation;
Whereas articles 13 and 23 through 27 of the Constitution of the Islamic 
        Republic of Iran provide for freedom of expression, assembly, and 
        association, as well as the freedom to practice one's religion;
Whereas Iran is a religiously diverse society and the United Nations Special 
        Rapporteur on the Situation of Human Rights in the Islamic Republic of 
        Iran reports that religious minorities, including Nematullahi Sufi 
        Muslims, Sunnis, Baha'is, and Christians, face human rights violations 
        in Iran;
Whereas, in recent years, there has been an increase in the number of incidents 
        of Iranian authorities raiding religious services, detaining worshipers 
        and religious leaders, and harassing and threatening minority religious 
        members;
Whereas the United Nations Special Rapporteur reports that Iranian intelligence 
        officials are known to threaten Christian converts with arrest and 
        apostasy charges if they do not return to Islam;
Whereas the United Nations Working Group on Arbitrary Detention found that Iran 
        has arbitrarily detained Saeed Abedini in violation of its international 
        human rights obligations and ordered his immediate release; and
Whereas President Barack Obama has demonstrated his personal commitment to the 
        case of Saeed Abedini by meeting with his family and has called on 
        President Hassan Rouhani to demonstrate the commitment of Iran to 
        individual human rights through the release of all prisoners of 
        conscience: Now, therefore, be it
    Resolved, That the House of Representatives--
            (1) recognizes that freedom of religious belief and 
        practice is a universal human right and a fundamental freedom 
        of every individual, regardless of race, sex, country, creed, 
        or nationality, and should never be arbitrarily abridged by any 
        government;
            (2) recognizes that governments have a responsibility to 
        protect the fundamental rights of their citizens; and
            (3) calls on the Government of Iran to immediately release 
        Saeed Abedini and all other individuals detained on account of 
        their religious beliefs.
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