[Congressional Record Volume 150, Number 117 (Friday, September 24, 2004)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1704]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




CALLING FOR THE SUSPENSION OF SUDAN'S MEMBERSHIP ON THE UNITED NATIONS 
                       COMMISSION ON HUMAN RIGHTS

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                               speech of

                         HON. MARTIN T. MEEHAN

                            of massachusetts

                    in the house of representatives

                     Wednesday, September 22, 2004

  Mr. MEEHAN. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in strong support of Senate 
Concurrent Resolution 137.
  The human rights violations in Darfur are reaching a crisis point. 
Since the beginning of the conflict in early 2003, more than 30,000 
innocent civilians have been murdered, more than 400 villages have been 
destroyed, and hundreds of thousands of people have been displaced from 
their homes.
  Tragically, the situation in Darfur has escalated from a rebellion by 
local militias into a full-scale ethnic cleansing campaign. The 
government in Khartoum has met this crisis with deliberate neglect at 
best, and direct support at worst. Congress rightly called this brutal 
and systematic slaughter a ``genocide'' in a resolution passed on July 
22.
  On July 30th, the United Nations Security Council unanimously adopted 
a resolution calling upon the Sudanese government to immediately 
fulfill its obligations to facilitate humanitarian relief, take steps 
to disarm the Janjaweed militias, and cooperate with an independent 
investigation of human rights violations in Darfur. However, it is time 
for the international community to make its authority felt through 
actions, not just words.
  The Universal Declaration of Human Rights binds member nations 
together in a pact to uphold universal respect for and observance of 
human rights and fundamental freedoms. The Government of Sudan has 
broken this pledge and must be held accountable for its crime against 
humanity. I therefore urge Congress to call for the immediate 
suspension of Sudan from the United Nations Commission on Human Rights 
and pass Senate Concurrent Resolution 137.

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