[Congressional Bills 116th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H. Res. 752 Introduced in House (IH)]
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116th CONGRESS
1st Session
H. RES. 752
Supporting the rights of the people of Iran to free expression,
condemning the Iranian regime for its crackdown on legitimate protests,
and for other purposes.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
December 9, 2019
Mr. Deutch (for himself and Mr. Wilson of South Carolina) submitted the
following resolution; which was referred to the Committee on Foreign
Affairs
_______________________________________________________________________
RESOLUTION
Supporting the rights of the people of Iran to free expression,
condemning the Iranian regime for its crackdown on legitimate protests,
and for other purposes.
Whereas, on November 15, 2019, popular protests against the Iranian regime began
and rapidly spread to at least 21 cities throughout the country, in the
most significant antigovernment protests in Iran since June 2009;
Whereas the protests began in response to an announced increase on the price of
fuel and protesters have expressed numerous economic grievances, while
also calling for the structural reform of the political system and
condemning current and former Iranian leaders;
Whereas reports indicate that Iranian security forces have used lethal force in
arresting more than 7,000 people and killed at least 208 in connection
with the protests;
Whereas reports indicate that Iranian Government authorities have, in many
instances, refused to return victims' bodies to their families and that
security forces have removed bodies from morgues and transferred them to
unknown locations;
Whereas, on November 16, 2019, Iranian authorities began implementing a near-
total shutdown of internet services, stopping nearly all means of online
communications for people inside Iran, to preclude the sharing of images
and videos of deadly violence being used by security forces;
Whereas section 103(b)(2)(B) of the Comprehensive Iran Sanctions,
Accountability, and Divestment Act of 2010 (22 U.S.C. 8512(b)(2)(B))
authorizes licensing services relating to personal communications over
the internet, to improve the ability of the Iranian people to speak
freely;
Whereas, on November 16, 2019, Iran's Interior Minister Abdolreza Rahmani Fazli
said that the Iranian regime will no longer show ``tolerance'' and
``self-control'' toward the protesters;
Whereas, on November 17, 2019, Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei
called the demonstrators ``villains'' galvanized by foreign enemies and
domestic insurgents and ordered Iranian security services to ``implement
their duties'' to end the protests;
Whereas, on November 18, 2019, Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps deployed
to the city of Mahshahr and engaged in mass repression, reportedly
killing as many as 100 people;
Whereas several laws provide authorities to designate and sanction elements of
the Iranian regime involved in significant corruption or serious human
rights abuses, including the Comprehensive Iran Sanctions,
Accountability, and Divestment Act of 2010, the Countering America's
Adversaries Through Sanctions Act, and the Iran Threat Reduction and
Syria Human Rights Act of 2012;
Whereas the Iranian regime was implicated in a June 2018 terrorist plot against
a meeting of Iranian opposition activists in Paris;
Whereas Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps and its Basij militia have been
sanctioned by the United States for planning and carrying out serious
human rights abuses against the Iranian people, including for the cruel
and prolonged torture of political dissidents;
Whereas the regime has routinely violated the human rights of Iranian citizens,
including by implementing ongoing, systematic, and serious restrictions
of freedom of peaceful assembly and association and freedom of opinion
and expression, including the continuing closures of media outlets,
arrests of journalists, and the censorship of expression in online
forums such as blogs and websites;
Whereas the Department of State's 2018 Human Rights Report on Iran noted
``severe restrictions on free expression, the press, and the internet,
including censorship, site blocking, and criminalization of libel;
substantial interference with the rights of peaceful assembly and
freedom of association, such as overly restrictive nongovernmental
organization (NGO) laws; egregious restrictions of religious freedom;
restrictions on political participation; widespread corruption at all
levels of government'';
Whereas, on November 18, 2019, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo stated that, ``The
United States is monitoring the ongoing protests in Iran closely. We
condemn strongly any acts of violence committed by this regime against
the Iranian people and are deeply concerned by reports of several
fatalities . . . The Islamic Republic must cease violence against its
own people and should immediately restore the ability of all Iranians to
access a free and open internet.'';
Whereas, on November 22, 2019, the United States imposed sanctions on Iran's
Minister of Information and Communications Technology for his role in
shutting down internet access in Iran;
Whereas, on November 18, 2019, the Office of the German Chancellor stated that,
``It is legitimate and deserving of our respect when people courageously
air their economic and political grievances, as is currently happening
in Iran. The Iranian Government should respond to the current protests
with a willingness to engage in dialogue . . . We urge the government in
Tehran to respect freedom of assembly and expression.'';
Whereas, on November 20, 2019, the French Foreign Ministry stated that, ``France
is following the demonstrations taking place in Iran with concern. It
expresses its deep concern at reports that a large number of
demonstrators have been killed in the last few days. It reaffirms its
attachment to respect for the freedom of expression and to access to
means of communication, as well as to the right to demonstrate
peacefully. France calls on Iran to comply with its international human
rights obligations, in particular the International Covenant on Civil
and Political Rights.'';
Whereas, on November 21, 2019, the European Union stated that, ``The protests in
several Iranian cities over the past days have, according to reports,
led to serious loss of life and left many people injured. We convey our
condolences to the families of victims and wish a speedy recovery to
those injured. Socio-economic challenges should be addressed through
inclusive dialogue and not through the use of violence. We expect Iran's
security forces to exercise maximum restraint in handling the protests
and for protestors to demonstrate peacefully. Any violence is
unacceptable. The rights to freedom of expression and assembly must be
guaranteed. We also expect the Iranian authorities to ensure the free
flow of information and access to the internet.'';
Whereas Iran is a member of the United Nations, voted for the Universal
Declaration of Human Rights, and is a signatory to the International
Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, among other international human
rights treaties;
Whereas in violation of these and other international obligations, Iranian
regime officials continue to violate the fundamental human rights of the
Iranian people;
Whereas the Iranian regime has a long history of violent repression of dissent,
including--
(1) in 1988, the Iranian regime carrying out the barbaric mass
executions of thousands of political prisoners by hanging and firing squad
for refusing to renounce their political affiliations and in some cases for
possessing political reading material, including prisoners of conscience,
teenagers, and pregnant women;
(2) in 1999, the Iranian regime brutally suppressing a student revolt
that was one of the largest mass uprisings up until that point in the
country since 1979;
(3) following voting irregularities that resulted in the 2009 election
of President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, the Iranian regime brutally suppressing
peaceful political dissent from wide segments of civil society during the
Green Revolution in a cynical attempt to retain its undemocratic grip on
power; and
(4) beginning in December 2017, and continuing for several months after
protests erupted in more than 80 cities, the Iranian regime suppressing
such protests with repressive force that resulted in at least 25 deaths and
4,000 arrests;
Whereas, on January 9, 2018, the House of Representatives overwhelmingly passed
H. Res. 676, a resolution supporting the rights of the people of Iran to
free expression and condemning the Iranian regime for its crackdown on
legitimate protests; and
Whereas, on December 5, 2019, the Department of State identified the Great
Tehran Penitentiary (Fashafuyeh) and Qarchack Prison as entities
responsible for gross violations of internationally recognized human
rights in Iran and subject to the imposition of sanctions under section
106 of the Countering America's Adversaries Through Sanctions Act (22
U.S.C. 9405): Now, therefore, be it
Resolved, That the House of Representatives--
(1) stands with the people of Iran that are engaged in
legitimate and peaceful protests against an oppressive, corrupt
regime;
(2) condemns the Iranian regime's serious human rights
abuses against the Iranian people, significant corruption, and
destabilizing activities abroad;
(3) commends the statements of support for the protesters
from the executive branch and key allies;
(4) calls on all democratic governments and institutions to
clearly support the Iranian people's right to live in a free
society;
(5) demands that the Iranian regime abide by its
international obligations with respect to human rights and
civil liberties, including freedoms of assembly, speech, and
press;
(6) urges the Administration to work to convene emergency
sessions of the United Nations Security Council and the United
Nations Human Rights Council to condemn the ongoing human
rights violations perpetrated by the Iranian regime and
establish a mechanism by which the Security Council can monitor
such violations;
(7) encourages the Administration to expedite the license
of communications technology to Iran to improve the ability of
the Iranian people to speak freely;
(8) calls on companies to reject requests by the regime to
cut off the Iranian people from social media and other
communications platforms;
(9) respects the proud history and rich culture of the
Iranian nation and fully supports efforts by the people of Iran
to promote the establishment of basic freedoms that build the
foundation for the emergence of a freely elected, open, and
democratic political system;
(10) supports the right of Iranian dissidents to assemble,
without fear of persecution and violence, whether in Iran or
internationally; and
(11) urges the President and the Secretary of State to work
with the international community to ensure that violations of
human rights are part of all formal and informal multilateral
or bilateral discussions with and regarding Iran.
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