[Congressional Bills 117th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. Res. 513 Introduced in Senate (IS)]
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117th CONGRESS
2d Session
S. RES. 513
Recognizing the growing threats against women and children, religious
and ethnic minorities, and LGBTQI persons in Afghanistan and against
allies of such individuals, such as civil society leaders and
activists, scholars, former government officials, journalists, and
media workers, and expressing solidarity with and reaffirming the dire
need to protect vulnerable and minority populations and their allies in
Afghanistan under Taliban rule.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES
February 15, 2022
Mr. Markey (for himself, Mrs. Feinstein, Mr. Van Hollen, Mr. Booker,
Mr. Schatz, Mr. Casey, Ms. Smith, Ms. Warren, and Mr. Blumenthal)
submitted the following resolution; which was referred to the Committee
on Foreign Relations
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RESOLUTION
Recognizing the growing threats against women and children, religious
and ethnic minorities, and LGBTQI persons in Afghanistan and against
allies of such individuals, such as civil society leaders and
activists, scholars, former government officials, journalists, and
media workers, and expressing solidarity with and reaffirming the dire
need to protect vulnerable and minority populations and their allies in
Afghanistan under Taliban rule.
Whereas the Taliban have a history of prohibiting women from receiving an
education and pursuing jobs outside their homes and have publicly
executed women who were accused of adultery;
Whereas a 2001 report by the Department of State noted that, from 1996 to 2001,
the Taliban ``perpetrated egregious acts of violence against women'' as
part of a ``war against women'';
Whereas, in some Afghan provinces taken over by the Taliban beginning in May
2021, there are reports that the Taliban have forced women into marriage
with Taliban fighters and have led targeted killings against women;
Whereas United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights Michelle Bachelet has
expressed concern with the Taliban's contradiction of ``stated
commitments,'' their exclusion of women from the public sector, and
their restrictions on women, such as not allowing women to appear in
public without a male chaperone;
Whereas, since 2018, the Secretary of State has designated the Taliban as an
entity of particular concern for religious freedom pursuant to section
301 of the Frank R. Wolf International Religious Freedom Act (22 U.S.C.
6442a) for having engaged in ``particularly severe violations of
religious freedom'';
Whereas, in October 2021, the United States Commission on International
Religious Freedom reported on deteriorating conditions for religious
minorities in Afghanistan, noting growing fear among Hazara Shi'a
Muslims, Hindus, Sikhs, Christians, Ahmadi Muslims, Baha'is, and
nonbelievers, and stating, ``Afghans who do not adhere to the Taliban's
harsh and strict interpretation of Sunni Islam and adherents of other
faiths or beliefs are at grave threat'';
Whereas the Hazaras constitute approximately 10 to 15 percent of the national
population in Afghanistan and are considered a minority religious group;
Whereas the Hazaras specifically, along with other religious and ethnic
minorities, have historically been explicitly targeted by the Taliban
and have been abused with impunity;
Whereas Amnesty International reported that on August 30, 2021, 13 Hazaras were
unlawfully killed in the village of Kahor in the Khider district by
Taliban fighters, with one of the victims being a 17-year-old girl;
Whereas, in 2021, the Taliban forcibly displaced approximately 4,000 Hazaras
from their homes and ancestral lands in Daykundi province while a
Taliban court expelled approximately 2,000 families from the city of
Mazar-e-Sharif;
Whereas, in 2021, more than 30 instances of violence and threats of violence
against Afghan journalists were recorded;
Whereas activists, journalists, civil society actors, and scholars face threats
and intimidation and risk being unlawfully detained or tortured or
becoming a victim of targeted killings by the Taliban;
Whereas adherence to the rule of law and protection of human rights is rapidly
deteriorating under the Taliban, which are reportedly targeting judges,
prosecutors, lawyers, human rights defenders, journalists, former
parliamentarians, and individuals who previously advocated for human
rights and the rule of law, particularly women;
Whereas there are reports of the Taliban conducting house-to-house searches and
tracking individuals who served the previous authorities and then
carrying out targeted revenge killings;
Whereas, during the previous period of rule of the Taliban, the Taliban
reportedly executed Afghan men alleged to have engaged in sexual
activity with other men;
Whereas the current Acting Prime Minister of the Taliban reportedly stated in
1996 that ``homosexuality is a great sin'' and ``some say we should take
these sinners to a high roof and throw them down, while others say we
should dig a hole beside a wall, bury them, then push the wall down on
top of them'';
Whereas a Taliban judge, Gul Rahim, stated in July 2021 that ``[f]or
homosexuals, there can only be two punishments: either stoning or he
must stand behind a wall that will fall down on him,'' and a spokesman
for the Ministry of Finance of Afghanistan noted that LGBT rights would
not be respected under the Taliban's interpretation of Sharia law; and
Whereas, in 2022, many LGBTQI individuals in Afghanistan are forced to live in
hiding due to reports of threats and attacks against such individuals in
the community: Now, therefore, be it
Resolved, That the Senate--
(1) stands in solidarity with the people of Afghanistan and
with vulnerable groups including women and children, religious
and ethnic minorities, lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender,
queer, and intersex (LGBTQI) persons, civil society actors,
journalists, and other at-risk populations in Afghanistan;
(2) reaffirms the longstanding commitment of the United
States to advance human rights worldwide;
(3) calls on the Taliban to uphold the protection of
universal human rights, including the commitments set forth in
the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and enshrined in the
International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, to which
Afghanistan is a party;
(4) encourages the executive branch to continue to call for
the protection of women and children, religious and ethnic
minorities, civil society actors, journalists, and LGBTQI
persons under Taliban rule;
(5) calls for the international community to condemn human
rights violations committed by the Taliban;
(6) reaffirms the commitment of the United States to
support Afghan civil society, individuals who assisted with the
war efforts of the United States and allies of the United
States, and individuals who advocate for universal human
rights; and
(7) calls on the United States Government to work closely
with the international community and nongovernmental
organizations, particularly such organizations based in
Afghanistan, to support at-risk Afghan minority populations and
other vulnerable communities, including through efforts to stem
the growing humanitarian crisis that will disproportionately
impact already vulnerable groups.
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