[Congressional Bills 114th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. Res. 529 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

<DOC>






114th CONGRESS
  2d Session
S. RES. 529

Calling upon the Government of the Islamic Republic of Iran to release 
     Iranian-Americans Siamak Namazi and his father, Baquer Namazi.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                             July 12, 2016

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

_______________________________________________________________________

                               RESOLUTION


 
Calling upon the Government of the Islamic Republic of Iran to release 
     Iranian-Americans Siamak Namazi and his father, Baquer Namazi.

Whereas dual citizen of the United States and Iran Siamak Namazi studied 
        international relations at Tufts University and urban planning at 
        Rutgers University;
Whereas Siamak Namazi was named as a Young Global Leader by the World Economic 
        Forum in 2007;
Whereas Siamak Namazi was a former Public Policy Fellow at the Woodrow Wilson 
        Center for International Scholars, was a business consultant, and most 
        recently worked in the petroleum industry for a company based in Dubai, 
        United Arab Emirates;
Whereas Siamak Namazi traveled from Dubai to Tehran to visit relatives in July 
        2015;
Whereas Siamak Namazi was prohibited from leaving Iran in mid-July 2015;
Whereas Siamak Namazi was interrogated for 3 months before he was detained on 
        October 15, 2015, without any charges;
Whereas Amnesty International has stated that detainees and prisoners in Iran 
        have reported ``acts of torture and other ill-treatment, particularly 
        during primary investigations mainly to force `confessions' or gather 
        other incriminatory evidence'' and ``were denied adequate medical care; 
        in some cases, the authorities withheld prescribed medications to punish 
        prisoners'';
Whereas, on March 14, 2016, the United Nations Special Rapporteur on the 
        situation of human rights in the Islamic Republic of Iran stated that 
        serious human rights abuses continue to be reported in Iran including 
        ``an alarming surge in the rate of unlawful executions in the country 
        and ongoing arbitrary arrests, detention and prosecution of individuals 
        for the exercise of their fundamental rights'' and at least 966 persons 
        were executed in Iran in 2015, which is the highest rate in more than 20 
        years;
Whereas Siamak Namazi remains under arrest in Evin Prison even though no charges 
        have been filed against him;
Whereas dual citizen of the United States and Iran, Baquer Namazi, who is the 
        father of Siamak Namazi was detained on February 22, 2016, and is also 
        being held in Evin Prison;
Whereas Baquer Namazi worked for UNICEF in New York and served as the UNICEF 
        Representative to Somalia, Kenya, and Egypt;
Whereas Baquer Namazi is a recognized leader of humanitarian causes, especially 
        poverty eradication, through his United Nations work and his post-
        retirement civil society activities;
Whereas Secretary of State John Kerry stated on February 25, 2016, in response 
        to a question about the detention of Siamak Namazi, ``I am very familiar 
        with this and I am engaged on it specifically''; and
Whereas, on January 16, 2016, the Government of the Islamic Republic of Iran 
        released United States citizens Jason Rezaian of California, Saeed 
        Abedini of Idaho, Amir Mirzaei Hekmati of Michigan, Matthew Trevithick 
        of Massachusetts, and Nosratollah Khosravi-Roodsari: Now, therefore, be 
        it
    Resolved, That the Senate--
            (1) calls upon the Government of the Islamic Republic of 
        Iran to unconditionally release Siamak and Baquer Namazi 
        immediately;
            (2) urges the Secretary of State, the allies of the United 
        States, and the United Nations to raise the cases of Siamak and 
        Baquer Namazi with officials of the Government of the Islamic 
        Republic of Iran at every opportunity and undertake efforts to 
        secure their immediate release;
            (3) encourages the President to utilize appropriate 
        measures against the Government of the Islamic Republic of Iran 
        if Siamak and Baquer Namazi are not released; and
            (4) expresses sympathy to the family of Siamak and Baquer 
        Namazi for their anguish and expresses hope that their ordeal 
        can be brought to an end in the near future.
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