[Congressional Record Volume 147, Number 45 (Friday, March 30, 2001)]
[Senate]
[Page S3222]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                         SUBMITTED RESOLUTIONS

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  SENATE CONCURRENT RESOLUTION 30--CONDEMNING THE DESTRUCTION OF PRE-
          ISLAMIC STATUES IN AFGHANISTAN BY THE TALIBAN REGIME

  Mr. AKAKA (for himself, Mr. Kerry, and Mr. Wellstone) submitted the 
following concurrent resolution; which was referred to the Committee on 
Foreign Relations:

                            S. Con. Res. 30

       Whereas many of the oldest and most significant Buddhist 
     statues in the world have been located in Afghanistan, which, 
     at the time that many of the statues were carved, was one of 
     the most cosmopolitan regions in the world and hosted 
     merchants, travelers, and artists from China, India, Central 
     Asia, and the Roman Empire;
       Whereas such statues have been part of the common heritage 
     of mankind, and such cultural treasures must be preserved for 
     future generations;
       Whereas on February 26, 2001, the leader of the Taliban 
     regime, Mullah Mohammad Omar, reversed his regime's previous 
     policy and ordered the destruction of all pre-Islamic statues 
     in Afghanistan, among them a pair of 1,600-year-old 175-foot-
     tall and 120-foot-tall statues carved out of a mountainside 
     at Bamiyan, one of which is believed to have been the world's 
     largest statue of a standing Buddha;
       Whereas the religion of Islam and Buddhist statues have co-
     existed in Afghanistan as part of the unique historical and 
     cultural heritage of that nation for more than 1,100 years;
       Whereas the destruction of the pre-Islamic statues 
     contradicts the basic tenet of the Islamic faith that other 
     religions should be treated with respect, a tenet 
     encapsulated in the Qur'anic verses, ``There is no compulsion 
     in religion'' and ``Unto you your religion, and unto me my 
     religion'';
       Whereas people of many faiths and nationalities have 
     condemned the destruction of the statues in Afghanistan, 
     including many Muslim theologians, communities, and 
     governments around the world;
       Whereas the Taliban regime has previously demonstrated its 
     lack of respect for international norms by its brutal 
     repression of women, its widespread violation of human 
     rights, its hindrance of humanitarian relief efforts, and its 
     support for terrorist groups throughout the world; and
       Whereas the destruction of the statues violates the United 
     Nations Convention Concerning the Protection of the World 
     Cultural and Natural Heritage, which was ratified by 
     Afghanistan on March 20, 1979: Now, therefore, be it
       Resolved by the Senate (the House of Representatives 
     concurring), That Congress--
       (1) joins with people and governments around the world in 
     condemning the destruction of pre-Islamic statues in 
     Afghanistan by the Taliban regime;
       (2) urges the Taliban regime to stop destroying such 
     statues; and
       (3) calls upon the Taliban regime to grant the United 
     Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization and 
     other international organizations immediate access to 
     Afghanistan to survey the damage and facilitate international 
     efforts to preserve and safeguard the remaining statues.

  Mr. AKAKA. Mr. President, I rise today to introduce a concurrent 
resolution condemning the destruction of pre-Islamic statues in 
Afghanistan by the Taliban regime. A similar resolution has been 
introduced in the House of Representatives. This resolution expresses 
the grave concern of the Congress over the recent destruction of 
religious treasures in Afghanistan by the Taliban and over the 
treatment of the Afghani people by their Taliban rulers.
  Afghanistan is home to a rich cultural heritage, steeped in Buddhist 
history and ancient artifacts. More than 1,500 years ago, a pair of 
Buddha statues, each standing over 100 feet tall, was carved out of a 
mountainside in Bamiyan. Since their creation, these statues have been 
visited by many people. they were both religious and cultural 
treasures--they become one of the most important models for the 
depiction elsewhere of Buddha. Significant relics such as these should 
have been preserved for the edification and enlightenment of future 
generations.
  Islam and Buddhism have peacefully coexisted in Afghanistan for more 
than 1,000 years. Two years ago, Mullah Mohammed Omar, the leader of 
the Taliban regime, called for the preservation of Buddhist cultural 
heritage in Afghanistan. The Islamic faith supports religious tolerance 
and coexistence, evidenced in the Qur'anic verse ``Unto you your 
religion, and unto me my religion.''
  In spite of this edict, several times within the last year the 
leaders of the Taliban regime have ordered the military to disfigure 
these and other Buddhist statues. On February 26, 2001, Taliban leader 
Mullah Mohammed Omar ordered the utter destruction of these 
irreplaceable cultural treasures, along with all other pre-Islamic 
statues in the nation, calling them ``shrines of infidels.'' Mohammed 
Omar claimed that statues of the human form are in contradiction with 
Shari'ah and the tenets of Islam. Shari'ah refers to the laws and way 
of life prescribed by Allah in the Qur'an, and dictates ideology of 
faith, behavior, manners, and practical daily life. Destruction of the 
statues clearly contradicts a basic tenet of the Islamic faith which is 
tolerance.
  The the recent destruction of Buddhist statuary is the latest action 
by the Taliban demonstrating an open disregard for international 
opinion and basic norms of human behavior which include respect for 
individuals and their beliefs. Tales of horrific human rights 
violations continue to be told. Confirmed reports tell of men, 
imprisoned for political reasons, being held in windowless cells 
without food and hung by their legs while being beaten with cables. In 
January of this year, Taliban troops massacred several hundred Hazaras, 
members of a Muslim ethnic group in the Bamiyan province. This was just 
the latest in a series of such slaughters. Such executions are not 
uncommon.
  The regime has a history of showing support for terrorist groups and 
violating human rights. Women are a frequent target of abuse. Facing 
the threat of public beatings, women cannot leave their homes unless 
accompanied by a male relative and are forbidden from participating in 
activities in which they may interact with men. For this reason, women 
were banned from work and school under the Taliban, although some were 
allowed to work on projects sponsored by foreign charities until that 
right was revoked last summer. This further restriction of women under 
the Taliban is exacerbated by the increasing occurrence of the rape and 
abduction of Afghani women. The State Department recently reported that 
the Taliban sold women from the Shomali plains areas to Pakistan and 
the Arab Gulf states. The State Department in its human rights reports 
also describes the risk of rape and abduction and tells of young women 
forced to marry local commanders who kidnap them. This is a sad 
situation with no apparent end. Afghanistan appears to be a bottomless 
pit of human misery, a misery afflicted by the few on the many.
  Afghanistan has suffered its share of human and natural disasters. 
While prolonged civil war continues to wreak havoc among the 
population, agricultural productivity has been reduced by the worst 
drought in 30 years. This setback reduced crop yields by 50 percent and 
resulted in a 80 percent loss of livestock, affecting half the 
population. But the Taliban government has demonstrated greater 
interest in opium production than in growing food for their starving 
people. They seem to want history to remember them as the destroyers of 
both the Afghani people and Afghanistan's heritage.
  I urge my colleagues' support for this resolution, denouncing the 
actions of the Taliban regime in destroying a vital part of the history 
of humankind and of their treatment of the Afghnani people.

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