[Congressional Record Volume 142, Number 18 (Friday, February 9, 1996)]
[Senate]
[Pages S1182-S1187]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




  SENATE CONCURRENT RESOLUTION 42--CONCERNING THE EMANCIPATION OF THE 
                        IRANIAN BAHA'I COMMUNITY

  Mrs. KASSEBAUM (for herself, Mr. Dodd, Mr. Lieberman, Mr. McCain, Mr. 
Mack, Mr. D'Amato, Mrs. Feinstein, Mr. Sarbanes, Mr. Simon, Mr. Glenn, 
Mr. Cohen, Mr. Specter, Mr. Pell, Mr. Cochran, Ms. Snowe, Mr. Levin, 
Mr. Kohl, Mr. Jeffords, Mr. Helms, Mr. Simpson, Mr. Kennedy, Mr. 
Inouye, Mr. Stevens, Mr. Craig, Mr. Hollings, Mr. Chafee, and Mr. 
Grassley) submitted the following concurrent resolution; which was 
referred to the Committee on Foreign Relations:

                            S. Con. Res. 42

       Whereas in 1982, 1984, 1988, 1990, 1992, and 1994 the 
     Congress, by concurrent resolution, declared that it holds 
     the Government of Iran responsible for upholding the rights 
     of all its nationals, including members of the Baha'i Faith, 
     Iran's largest religious minority;
       Whereas the Congress has deplored the Government of Iran's 
     religious persecution of the Baha'i community in such 
     resolutions and in numerous other appeals, and has condemned 
     Iran's execution of more than 200 Baha'is and the 
     imprisonment of thousands of others solely on account of 
     their religious beliefs;
       Whereas the Government of Iran continues to deny individual 
     Baha'is access to higher education and government employment 
     and denies recognition and religious rights to the Baha'i 
     community, according to the policy set forth in a 
     confidential Iranian Government document which was revealed 
     by the United Nations Commission on Human Rights in 1993;
       Whereas all Baha'i community properties in Iran have been 
     confiscated by the government and Iranian Baha'is are not 
     permitted to elect their leaders, organize as a community, 
     operate religious schools or conduct other religious 
     community activities guaranteed by the Universal Declaration 
     of Human Rights; and
       Whereas on February 22, 1993, the United Nations Commission 
     on Human Rights published a formerly confidential Iranian 
     Government document that constitutes a blueprint for the 
     destruction of the Baha'i community and reveals that these 
     repressive actions are the result of a deliberate policy 
     designed and approved by the highest officials of the 
     Government of Iran: Now, therefore, be it
       Resolved by the Senate (the House of Representatives 
     concurring), That the Congress--
       (1) continues to hold the Government of Iran responsible 
     for upholding the rights of all its nationals, including 
     members of the Baha'i community, in a manner consistent with 
     Iran's obligations under the Universal Declaration of Human 
     Rights and other international agreements guaranteeing the 
     civil and political rights of its citizens;
       (2) condemns the repressive anti-Baha'i policies and 
     actions of the Government of Iran, including the denial of 
     legal recognition to the Baha'i community and the basic 
     rights to organize, elect it leaders, educate its youth, and 
     conduct the normal activities of a law-abiding religious 
     community;
       (3) expresses concern that individual Baha'is continue to 
     suffer from severely repressive and discriminatory government 
     actions, solely on account of their religion;
       (4) urges the Government of Iran to extend to the Baha'i 
     community the rights guaranteed by the Universal Declaration 
     of Human Rights and the international covenants of 

[[Page S1186]]
     human rights, including the freedom of thought, conscience, and 
     religion, and equal protection of the law; and
       (5) calls upon the President to continue--
       (A) to assert the United States Government's concern 
     regarding Iran's violations of the rights of its citizens, 
     including members of the Baha'i community, along with 
     expressions of its concern regarding the Iranian Government's 
     support for international terrorism and its efforts to 
     acquire weapons of mass destruction;
       (B) to emphasize that the United States regards the human 
     rights practices of the Government of Iran, particularly its 
     treatment of the Baha'i community and other religious 
     minorities, as a significant factor in the development of the 
     United States Government's relations with the Government of 
     Iran;
       (C) to urge the Government of Iran to emancipate the Baha'i 
     community by granting those rights guaranteed by the 
     Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the international 
     covenants on human rights; and
       (D) to encourage other governments to continue to appeal to 
     the Government of Iran, and to cooperate with other 
     governments and international organizations, including the 
     United Nations and its agencies, in efforts to protect the 
     religious rights of the Baha'is and other minorities through 
     joint appeals to the Government of Iran and through other 
     appropriate actions.

 Mrs. KASSEBAUM. Mr. President, today I am submitting a 
concurrent resolution condemning the persecution of the Baha'i 
community that has been carried out systematically by the Government of 
Iran over the past two decades. I am joined in this effort by Senator 
Dodd, Senator Lieberman, Senator McCain, and 23 other cosponsors.
  Six times in the past, Congress has passed similar legislation, most 
recently in 1994. While Iran's repression of Baha'is appears less 
bloody today than during the 1980's, that persecution nevertheless 
continues. None of us has forgotten the confidential documents from 
1991, drafted and signed by Iran's highest government and clerical 
authorities, which revealed a deliberate policy to destroy the Baha'is.
  We believe it is important that Congress again raise its voice in 
protest of the Iranian Government's persecution of Baha'is. While 
American Baha'is reside in every State and are deeply concerned about 
the fate of more than 300,000 Baha'is in Iran, our legislation is not 
motivated by constituent pressure. Rather, it rests on broader 
principles. Ours is a Nation founded in an unwavering belief in the 
importance of religious freedom, and all Americans--whatever their 
religious convictions may be--believe strongly that no government 
should condemn and persecute a people because of their faith.
  Yet, this is what the Government of Iran has done to the Baha'is for 
many years. Iran's constitution does not recognize Baha'is as a 
religious group but as unprotected infidels whose civil rights can be 
ignored at will. The Baha'i cannot legally marry or divorce in Iran, 
nor can they travel freely outside Iran. They cannot inherit property. 
They are not free to assemble and cannot elect community leaders or 
maintain their community institutions.
  Since 1979, 201 Baha'is have been killed and 15 others have 
disappeared and are presumed dead. Arbitrary arrests of Baha'is 
continue. From January 1990 to June 1993, 43 Baha'is were arrested and 
detained for varying periods of time, and as of January this year 5 
Baha'is were being held in prison because of their religious beliefs.
  Baha'i cemeteries, holy places, historical sites, administrative 
centers, and other assets, most of which were seized in 1979, remain 
confiscated or have been destroyed. Baha'i property rights generally 
are disregarded, and many homes and businesses have been arbitrarily 
confiscated. More than 10,000 Baha'is were dismissed from positions in 
government and education in the early 1980's because of their religious 
beliefs, and many remain unemployed without benefits or pensions. 
Baha'i youth are systematically barred from institutions of higher 
learning.
  Perhaps we cannot, from the U.S. Congress, end the terrible 
oppression of the Baha'is in Iran. But by submitting this concurrent 
resolution, we can send a clear message to all who will listen: We have 
not forgotten.
 Mr. LIEBERMAN. Mr. President, on a number of occasions over 
the past several years, many of my colleagues and I have condemned the 
government of Iran for its repressive policies and actions toward its 
Baha'i community. Today, I join with Senator Kassebaum, Senator Dodd, 
Senator McCain, and others in submitting another concurrent resolution 
calling on Iran to change its repressive anti-Baha'i policies and to 
protect the rights of all its people including minorities such as the 
Baha'is.
  Since the Senate passed its first concurrent resolution on the 
Iranian Baha'is in 1982, we have seen some improvement in the 
situation. Persecution of individual Baha'is seems to be less severe 
than in past years. Expressions of international outrage and the 
application of diplomatic pressure have had some effect, even on the 
isolated and close-minded regime in Iran.
  But the progress we have seen is not enough. It is not enough to say 
that the government is not persecuting these people as much as they 
used to. It is not enough to say that only a few Baha'is are being held 
in Iran's prisons because of their religious beliefs. It is not enough 
to say that the Government of Iran is willing, in the words of a 1991 
policy document, to ``permit them a modest livelihood.'' It is not 
enough that the Government of Iran is willing to allow Baha'is to ``be 
enrolled in schools.'' It is not enough when all of these rights are 
dependent on citizens NOT identifying themselves as Baha'is.
  The real thrust of Iranian policy is seen in the provisions of the 
1991 policy document that say Baha'is ``must be expelled from 
universities * * * once it becomes known that they are Baha'is'' or 
that the Government will ``deny them employment if they identify 
themselves as Baha'is.'' A policy which calls for a plan to ``be 
devised to confront and destroy their cultural roots outside the 
country'' and to ``deny them any position of influence, such as in the 
educational sector, etc'' is a policy of repression and denial of 
fundamental human rights. Such a policy violates the obligations of 
sovereign states to uphold the Universal Declaration of Human Rights 
and other international agreements guaranteeing the civil and political 
rights of citizens. Such a policy must change if Iran is ever to rejoin 
the community of nations.
  Our action today in passing this resolution is consistent with the 
actions of the U.S. Government and responsible international bodies for 
many years. The Reagan and Bush administrations worked to gain 
international support for the Baha'i community. President Clinton has 
cited ``the abusive treatment of the Baha'i in Iran'' as a critical 
human rights concern and his administration has remained attentive to 
the fate of this community. The State Department has worked diligently 
to secure passage of U.N. resolutions condemning Iran for its 
persecution of the Baha'is and to raise the issue at all relevant 
international fora. The U.N. General Assembly has adopted numerous 
resolutions condemning Iran's human rights abuses with specific 
reference to the Baha'is. The German Bundestag and the European 
Parliament have also adopted resolutions condemning Iran's treatment of 
its Baha'i community.
  And so we come before the Senate once again with a concurrent 
resolution which will keep this critical issue in the public eye and 
will maintain international pressure on Iran to change its ways. The 
American people understand very well that if the rights of all members 
of a society are not protected, then the rights of no one in the 
society are secure. We do not expect Iran to become a Jeffersonian 
democracy. But we and the entire world community have a right to expect 
and to demand that it not persecute any of its peoples solely for their 
religious preferences. How can a society consider itself to be just and 
based on the law of God when it persecutes in a broad and systematic 
fashion 300,000 of its citizens who constitute the largest religious 
minority in Iran? Iran must end its hypocrisy and extend to the Baha'i 
community the rights guaranteed by the Universal Declaration of Human 
Rights and international covenants on human rights.
  I urge my colleagues to support this concurrent resolution and our 
continuing effort to bring about change in Iran.
 Mr. McCAIN. Mr. President, it is an honor once again to join 
my colleagues, Senators Kassebaum, Dodd, and Lieberman in submitting 
the seventh concurrent resolution since 1982 condemning the abuses 
endured by the Baha'i faithful in Iran. It is, however, an honor which 
I would prefer to be relieved of by an Iranian Government 

[[Page S1187]]
that respects the rights of religious minorities.
  There has been some limited progress since 1982, but the situation 
for the Baha'is remains far from tolerable. Since 1979, 201 Baha'is 
have been killed and thousands have been jailed. Tens of thousands have 
been dismissed from jobs and denied the means to provide for themselves 
and their families. Baha'is, severely persecuted in life, are not even 
afforded peace in death. Fifteen thousand graves in the Baha'i cemetery 
in Tehran were recently desecrated as a result of an excavation to make 
way for a city cultural project.
  The scope of this persecution would seem ample proof of systematic 
persecution. But if there were any doubt in the international community 
that the suffering of the Baha'is is a result of deliberate government 
policy, the United Nations dispelled it in 1993 by publishing a secret 
Iranian Government document. The secret code of oppression which came 
to light that year outlined Iran's design for the destruction of the 
Baha'i faith.
  It ordered the expulsion of known Baha'is from universities. A common 
strategy of tyrannies--this process has succeeded in depriving higher 
education to an entire generation.
  The document emphasizes that Baha'is should be punished for false 
allegations of ``political espionage.''
  It calls for a multifaceted effort to stop the growth of the Baha'i 
religion.
  And most frighteningly, it urges the destruction of the Baha'is 
``cultural roots outside their country.''
  The Baha'is suffer oppression not because they pose a threat to the 
power of the Iranian Government or the order of Iranian society, but 
because they refuse to recant their religious beliefs and accept the 
Islam of the mullahs.
  There is perhaps no nation in the world with which we have as many 
differences as we do with Iran. Its quest for weapons of mass 
destruction and its support for international subversion pose direct 
threats to its neighbors, U.S. interests, and the interests of our 
allies.
  If Iran is ever to enjoy normal relations with the free world, it 
must demonstrate a commitment to abide by the basic rules of relations 
among civilized nations. This must be made clear to Iran. But we must 
also communicate to the Government of Iran that Americans and, indeed, 
all the ever expanding free world, consider religious tolerance to be a 
minimal requirement for entry into the community of nations. A Baha'i, 
no less than any other human being, is entitled to the right to life, 
liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.
  For Baha'is, as for many people, happiness is pursued through 
religious devotion. If the theocracy that rules Iran cannot accept that 
enduring truth, it has no right to consider itself a worthy member of 
the civilized world.

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