[Congressional Record Volume 151, Number 155 (Tuesday, December 6, 2005)]
[House]
[Pages H11059-H11063]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




     URGING MEMBER STATES OF THE UNITED NATIONS TO STOP SUPPORTING 
               RESOLUTIONS THAT UNFAIRLY CASTIGATE ISRAEL

  Ms. ROS-LEHTINEN. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and agree 
to the resolution (H. Res. 438) urging member states of the United 
Nations to stop supporting resolutions that unfairly castigate Israel 
and to promote within the United Nations General Assembly more balanced 
and constructive approaches to resolving conflict in the Middle East, 
as amended.
  The Clerk read as follows:

                              H. Res. 438

       Whereas the 60th session of the General Assembly of the 
     United Nations is currently underway in New York City;
       Whereas the State of Israel is a critical strategic ally of 
     the United States in the Middle East and the only true 
     democracy in the region;
       Whereas 60 years ago the United Nations was founded, in 
     part, to prevent another Holocaust from ever happening again;
       Whereas three years after its founding, the United Nations 
     passed General Assembly Resolution 181, which provided for 
     the partition of Mandatory Palestine and the establishment on 
     its territory of an independent Jewish state, which became 
     the State of Israel;
       Whereas in recent years, the General Assembly of the United 
     Nations has engaged in a pattern of approving resolutions 
     that unfairly criticize and condemn Israel;
       Whereas during the 59th session of the General Assembly of 
     the United Nations, the General Assembly adopted 21 
     resolutions criticizing Israel;
       Whereas despite the myriad of challenges facing the world 
     community, the General Assembly of the United Nations has 
     devoted a vastly disproportionate amount of time and 
     resources to castigating Israel;
       Whereas for the past 30 years, the United Nations has 
     funded three entities that support anti-Israel propaganda, 
     including the Division for Palestinian Rights, the Committee 
     on the Exercise of the Inalienable Rights of the Palestinian 
     People, and the Special Committee to Investigate Israeli 
     Human Rights Practices Affecting the Palestinian People and 
     Other Arabs of the Occupied Territories;
       Whereas the double standard against the State of Israel 
     that is perpetrated at the United Nations is pervasive: of 
     ten emergency special sessions called by the General Assembly 
     of the United Nations, six have been about Israel, and since 
     1997, at the annual meetings of the United Nations Commission 
     on Human Rights in Geneva, only Israel has had its own agenda 
     item (Item 8) dealing with its alleged human rights 
     violations, whereas all other countries are dealt with in a 
     separate agenda item (Item 9); and
       Whereas as a founding member of the United Nations, the 
     United States has a special responsibility to promote fair 
     and equitable treatment of all member states of the United 
     Nations: Now, therefore be it
       Resolved, That the House of Representatives urges member 
     states of the United Nations to--
       (1) stop supporting resolutions that unfairly castigate 
     Israel; and
       (2) promote within the United Nations system a more 
     balanced and constructive approach to resolving conflict in 
     the Middle East.

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentlewoman from 
Florida (Ms. Ros-Lehtinen) and the gentleman from California (Mr. 
Lantos) each will control 20 minutes.
  The Chair recognizes the gentlewoman from Florida.


                             General Leave

  Ms. ROS-LEHTINEN. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all 
Members may have 5 legislative days within which to revise and extend 
their remarks and include extraneous material on the resolution under 
consideration.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the 
gentlewoman from Florida?
  There was no objection.
  Ms. ROS-LEHTINEN. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may 
consume.
  Mr. Speaker, I rise in strong support of House Resolution 438, which 
I am proud to cosponsor.
  Mr. Speaker, I want to begin by thanking the gentleman from New 
Jersey (Mr. Rothman) and the gentleman from Illinois (Mr. Kirk) for 
their initiative in drafting this measure.
  Let me also thank the chairman and the ranking member of the 
Committee on International Relations and the House leadership for 
moving this resolution to the floor so rapidly.
  Mr. Speaker, as the current session of the General Assembly of the 
United Nations winds toward a close, there are still important 
decisions to be made. Will the United Nations reform itself along the 
lines suggested by the United States, indeed, by this House? Many of 
these reforms are supported widely among the member states of the U.N. 
and even in some parts of its bureaucracy. Or will it continue along 
its way, wasting money and political capital on what lawyers might call 
``larks and detours''?
  Among the most wasteful of the activities of the U.N. is its 
incessant use of funds and time on Israel-bashing resolutions and 
institutions. While these were never good ideas, and have been opposed 
by all American administrations, any excuse for supporting them has 
simply disappeared with the changes in the situation on the ground in 
the Middle East.

[[Page H11060]]

  The resolution carefully catalogs the abysmal record of the United 
Nations' one-sided criticism of Israel over the decades. I will not 
repeat the details that are covered in the resolution; but it is enough 
to say, enough is enough. It is time to bring this unacceptable 
behavior to an end.
  The United Nation has legitimate work to do. It should not sully its 
hands further with this one-sided agenda which serves no useful 
purpose, but only prevents it from doing good where it might be able to 
do so.
  Mr. Speaker, I ask the administration which has been working on these 
issues energetically to increase its efforts to correct this situation, 
including through the elimination of Palestinian offices and 
commissions that serve to fuel the anti-Israel bias and the resolutions 
that they always consider.
  I included such a mandate in the U.N. Reform Act, the Henry Hyde 
bill, and I look forward to working with the administration toward this 
goal.
  When our current permanent representative to the United Nations, 
Ambassador John Bolton, was Assistant Secretary of State for 
organizational affairs during the administration of the first President 
Bush, he executed a masterful strategy aimed at the repeal of the 
infamous Zionism is Racism resolution of the General Assembly.
  Mr. Speaker, I have every confidence that given his energy and the 
backing of the Department, he will have success in carrying out the 
agenda outlined in this resolution before us.
  Mr. Speaker, I ask my colleagues to render their strong support for 
this resolution.
  Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. LANTOS. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I might consume.
  Mr. Speaker, I strongly support this resolution. The primary 
pathology that infects the United Nations General Assembly is its 
continuing obsession with singling out and castigating the democratic 
nation of Israel by the passing of a series of outrageous resolutions.
  Mr. Speaker, I applaud my good friend and colleague from New Jersey 
(Mr. Rothman) for offering this measure which encourages the U.N. to 
confront this pathology.
  Mr. Speaker, the U.N.'s obsessive focus on Israel is not just an 
obstacle to the promotion of peace between Israel and the Palestinian 
people. The massive amount of time and resources spent on this issue by 
the General Assembly and the so-called U.N. Human Rights Commission 
crowds out the consideration of truly critical problems such as the 
ongoing genocide in Darfur, the AIDS crisis in Africa, Mugabe's 
murderous campaign against his own citizens in Zimbabwe, and scores of 
other real issues.
  The climate created by the repeated passage of anti-Israeli measures 
at the U.N. also emboldens the most hate-filled, ignorant, and 
pathological members of the international community such as Iranian 
President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, who recently declared that Israel should 
be wiped off the map.
  The U.N.'s repeated official condemnation of Israel's efforts to 
provide basic security for its citizens also emboldens further violence 
and terrorism against innocent Israelis.

                              {time}  1600

  Just yesterday, five innocent Israeli civilians were killed by 
suicide bombers. Since Israel's population is 1/60th of ours, this 
would have amounted to mass murder had it occurred in the United 
States.
  Mr. Speaker, several recent developments have provided the U.N. with 
an opportunity to move past its shameful legacy of bias and hatred for 
Israel. After decades of exclusion from positions of leadership at the 
U.N., Israel has gained a more normal status at the organization, 
culminating in the recent historic election of Israeli Ambassador 
Gillerman as vice president of the General Assembly.
  Mr. Speaker, the U.N. currently has two bold and principled leaders 
who have committed themselves to confronting the U.N.'s lingering anti-
Semitism. Secretary General Kofi Annan has made numerous statements on 
this issue and convened an historic commemorative session on the 60 
anniversary of the liberation of the Nazi death camps earlier this 
year.
  The new president of the General Assembly, Sweden's former 
distinguished ambassador here in Washington, my dear friend Jan 
Eliasson, pressed the General Assembly to adopt a U.N. date to 
memorialize the suffering of the Jewish people in the Holocaust as the 
first official act of the 60th session.
  Mr. Speaker, the current U.N. reform effort also presents the 
organization with an opportunity to eliminate the three entities that 
support anti-Israel propaganda: The Division For Palestinian Rights, 
the Committee on the Exercise of the Inalienable Rights of the 
Palestinian People, and the Special Committee to Investigate Israeli 
Human Rights Practices Affecting the Palestinian People and Other Arabs 
of the Occupied Territories. That is quite a title for an organization, 
which is useless.
  Mr. Speaker, I earnestly hope that the U.N. will take advantage of 
this moment and will begin to reverse its pattern of outrageous attacks 
on Israel. I urge all of my colleagues to support H. Res. 438.
  Mr. Speaker, I yield 6 minutes to my good friend and distinguished 
colleague from New Jersey (Mr. Rothman), the sponsor of the resolution.
  (Mr. ROTHMAN asked and was given permission to revise and extend his 
remarks.)
  Mr. ROTHMAN. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman from California (Mr. 
Lantos) for his leadership on all these issues and for yielding me 
time. I would also like to thank the gentlewoman from Florida (Ms. Ros-
Lehtinen) for all of her support for reforms at the U.N., as well as 
support for the State of Israel, what is right, and my dear friend and 
colleague on the House Appropriations Committee, the gentleman from 
Illinois (Mr. Kirk), who has worked with me on a number of issues 
relating to reforms at the U.N. and various other issues that we hold 
very near and dear to our hearts.
  Mr. Speaker, what if I were to ask you the following question? Maybe 
would you possibly guess what is the answer. As you know, the United 
Nations has about 190 countries in it, 190 countries in the United 
Nations. What if I told you that over the last 30 years, about on 
average one-third of each of the resolutions each year at the United 
Nations for the last 30 years, about one-third of the resolutions 
relate to criticizing one country, every year, one-third of the 
resolutions of the General Assembly of the U.N.
  You would say, wow, one country gets one-third of the resolutions at 
the U.N.? What country deserves the attention, the energy, the money, 
the hot air of the U.N. and the condemnation of that world body? Well, 
you would say, maybe had to do with the slaughter in the Sudan, the 
genocide in Rwanda or Cambodia or Bosnia, or the actions of Saddam 
Hussein's Iraq. Maybe those nations. Well, we are only talking about 
one, so it cannot be all of them. Would one of those be the one that 
for 30 years has gotten one-third of the resolutions condemning a 
country?
  What if I told you that the country that for the last 30 years was 
condemned with 30 percent of the resolutions at the U.N., the only 
country, was the State of Israel, the only democracy in the Middle 
East? They get one-third of the resolutions of the U.N. addressed to 
it, the State of Israel, condemning it.
  You would say, wow, what did Israel do to deserve that? Is it because 
Israel is a democracy and the world does not like democracies? The U.N. 
is against democracies, so they attack the only democracy in the Middle 
East? Or maybe you are more cynical and you say, ah hah, the Arab world 
does not like the State of Israel, so since the Arab world has all the 
oil, maybe that is why the U.N. devotes one-third of its resolutions 
every year to criticizing Israel, because they have no oil and the 
Arabs do not like Israel. Or maybe it is because Israel is America's 
best friend in the Middle East, its most reliable and trusted ally in 
the Middle East, and maybe that is why the U.N. does not like Israel. 
Or maybe you might say maybe it is because Israel is the only Jewish 
state in the world. Maybe that is why the U.N., of the 190 nations, 
singles out Israel for one-third of its resolutions a year, every year, 
for the last 30 years.
  The 5 million Jews in Israel deserve castigation and condemnation, 
out of the 6 billion people on the planet, and

[[Page H11061]]

we pay American taxpayer dollars to finance the U.N. to do that? It is 
absurd. It is immoral. It is shameful.
  Yet just last week, the United Nations again passed six more 
resolutions condemning the State of Israel. And if it is on target for 
each of the last 30 years, this year the United Nations will expend 
one-third of its resolutions criticizing one nation in the world, the 
tiny state, the only democracy in the Middle East, the only Jewish 
state in the world, the State of Israel.
  Something is terribly wrong, Mr. Speaker, and this resolution that 
the gentleman from Illinois (Mr. Kirk) and I have put together, with 
the help and support of the leadership of both parties, on the IR 
Committee and in the House, simply says to the United Nations that they 
should stop supporting these resolutions, wasting their money attacking 
America's best friend, the only Jewish state in the world, and instead 
use their energy, if they want to focus on the Middle East, how about 
the slaughter going on in all the dictatorships in the Arab world?
  Why does the U.N. not spend its money more constructively if they 
want to be a legitimate help in resolving issues in the Middle East? 
Maybe they want to introduce some pro-democracy movements in all of the 
Arab dictatorships in the Middle East, or maybe they want to introduce 
some resolutions about the torture in Arab nations around the world, or 
the genocide going on in every continent of the world.
  But I must tell you this: The American taxpayers are sick and tired, 
as are the Members of this House of Representatives, of the United 
Nations wasting our taxpayer money to attack our best friend for no 
reason with double standards. It is shameful, it is fraudulent, it is 
slanderous. There is no way to describe their lies being offered up as 
truths. And we are paying for it as a member nation of the U.N.? That 
is wrong.
  The U.N. must stop its double standard against the State of Israel, 
wasting one-third of its resolutions for the whole year attacking 
Israel, or they are going to have to deal with the consequences.
  Ms. ROS-LEHTINEN. Mr. Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the gentleman 
from Illinois (Mr. Kirk).
  (Mr. KIRK asked and was given permission to revise and extend his 
remarks.)
  Mr. KIRK. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentlewoman from Florida for 
bringing this resolution forward, and especially a man that we all 
follow his leadership for the dignity of human rights and the 
individual, the gentleman from California (Mr. Lantos).
  Mr. Speaker, we founded the United Nations 50 years ago with the 
promise of ``never again.'' The Nazi Holocaust had just claimed 6 
million Jewish lives, and we pledged to the civilized world that we 
would never again allow such a brutal genocide. Two years later, we 
fulfilled the first step in that promise by passing a plan for 
Palestine, granting the Jewish people a homeland of their own in a 
world that had sought their destruction.
  How 50 years can change things. Today, the very institution which 
recognized and helped create the Jewish state works almost daily to 
make it a pariah in the world. The U.N. General Assembly has evolved 
into a relentlessly anti-Israel body, scapegoating the preeminent 
democracy in the Middle East for the bulk of the world's problems.
  When Jews are murdered in shopping malls in Netanya or in pizza 
parlors in Jerusalem, the General Assembly is silent. When Jews stand 
up against terrorism and defend themselves, that is when the General 
Assembly erupts into condemnation.
  There is now a chilling double standard at the United Nations that 
roots itself in the very ideology we defeated in Europe 50 years ago. 
It is rooted in a new 21st century anti-Semitism that targets the 
political manifestation of the Jewish people.
  Mr. Speaker, the people of Israel once again face a threat of 
genocide and annihilation, they call it the existential threat, from 
the President of Iran who outlined his vision of a world without a 
State of Israel and highlighted his pursuit of nuclear power until that 
vision is realized.
  The United Nations cannot sit by and allow that to happen. Now is the 
time to fulfill our promise, never again. We need to wake up now and 
see the United Nations for what it is, not what it was. What it is now, 
in part, is a corrupt and anti-Semitism organization. What it should 
become is a reformed body that fulfills the promise Mrs. Roosevelt set 
for it as a dream and a force for peace in the world.
  Mr. Speaker, I want to thank my friend from New Jersey for his 
leadership on this issue, and also thank the gentlewoman from Florida 
and the gentleman from California for bringing this key resolution to 
the floor.
  Ms. ROS-LEHTINEN. Mr. Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the gentlewoman 
from Michigan (Mrs. Miller).
  Mrs. MILLER of Michigan. Mr. Speaker, I certainly thank the 
gentlewoman for yielding me time.
  Mr. Speaker, the United Nations has supported a series of three 
resolutions which praise Palestinian actions while condemning Israeli 
self-defense. Rather than promoting democracy in the Middle East, the 
U.N. continually strikes at Israel, even though it is the only true 
democracy in that region.
  Without any consideration of Palestinian aggression, the U.N. has 
relentlessly gone on the offensive against the Israeli government, 
despite themselves having established the State of Israel after the 
Second World War. It is truly shameful that some 30 percent of the 
U.N.'s total legislative business is anti-Israel, when so many of the 
U.N.'s member nations have abhorrent human rights records that go 
unaddressed and unspoken of.
  Mr. Speaker, I have a simple request for the United Nations: Please 
do your job. Stop wasting our time with your anti-Israel political 
agenda and start doing something useful, might I suggest, like really 
investigating the Oil-For-Food scandal and holding the responsible 
parties accountable.
  Most importantly, take a fair and balanced approach towards solving 
the problems that are plaguing the Middle East. If we are honestly 
trying to bring peace to the Middle East, we must help the Palestinians 
establish their own independent state, while at the same time showing 
them they must live in peaceful coexistence with Israel.
  Mr. Speaker, the President of Iran recently said that Israel needs to 
be wiped off the face of the map, yet no one at the U.N. made more than 
a passing reference to these outrageous comments. The United Nations 
must realize that all member states deserve respect, and that these 
kinds of hateful, anti-Semitic remarks offend fair-minded people 
throughout the entire world.

                              {time}  1615

  Mr. Speaker, it is no secret that many Americans question our 
membership in the United Nations. Many resent that our dues are being 
spent on a political agenda that undermines our American ideals; and 
when such ridiculous actions are taken, no wonder questions arise about 
our involvement and our membership.
  I urge our colleagues to support H. Res. 438 and ask that the United 
Nations as well take a balanced approach to the problems facing the 
Middle East.
  Ms. ROS-LEHTINEN. Mr. Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the gentleman 
from New Jersey (Mr. Garrett).
  Mr. GARRETT of New Jersey. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentlewoman for 
the time.
  Mr. Speaker, I rise today in strong support of H. Res. 438 today to 
once again demonstrate my strong resolute support for the State of 
Israel and all of our support for Israel, and its beleaguered people as 
well. When we think about it, it is really unfortunate that Congress 
has to get together and even make such a statement, but I believe that 
the circumstances and world politics necessitate that we do so.
  In addition to being one of the United States' closest allies, Israel 
is also the only truly fully functioning democracy in the Middle East. 
Yet, ever since 1948, when the world officially established the State 
of Israel and recognized its right to exist in the Middle East, the 
United Nations has shown an extraordinary bias against it.
  It is my hope that it would be clear to all the freedom-loving 
peoples in the world and all the peaceful nations throughout the world 
that such a sentiment is unwarranted. Israel has done no more than to 
promote religious and economic freedom and democratic principles to 
each of its citizens, and it has

[[Page H11062]]

done so while enduring literally decades upon decades of violent 
attacks from many of its neighbors.
  The U.N.'s bias has only served, however, to embolden Israel's 
enemies and to promote an anti-Israel attitude. That body's record of 
lagging in promotion of Israeli ambassadors to leadership positions 
while turning basically a blind eye when condemnation of actions 
against Israel were warranted is just one of the reasons why the U.S. 
Congress cannot sit idly by and do nothing.
  As a cosponsor of H. Res. 438, I strongly encourage all of my 
colleagues to join in support of this resolution and also the next 
resolution, H. Res. 535, which honors the life and work of slain 
Israeli Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin. Together, these resolutions 
demonstrate the contrast of peace and democracy versus the hatred and 
bias that has surrounded Israel and the United Nations' treatment of it 
over the years.
  I am hopeful that our united stand today will persuade the U.N., 
which has a history of inefficiency and corruption, to change its 
approach and its dealings with these issues.
  I thank the gentlewoman for this opportunity.
  Mr. LANTOS. Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to yield 3 minutes to the 
gentleman from New York (Mr. Engel), a distinguished member of the 
International Relations Committee.
  Mr. ENGEL. Mr. Speaker, I thank my friend, the distinguished 
gentleman from California, for the time.
  I rise in strong support of H. Res. 438, which urges the U.N. member 
states to cease unfairly castigating Israel and adopt a balanced 
approach to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. I would also like to 
commend the gentleman from New Jersey (Mr. Rothman) and the gentleman 
from Illinois (Mr. Kirk) for their diligent effort on this issue, as 
well as the gentleman from California (Mr. Lantos) and the gentlewoman 
from Florida (Ms. Ros-Lehtinen).
  Mr. Speaker, this resolution concerns one simple issue: equality of 
all U.N. member states. It is shameful, absolutely shameful, that 
Israel, a state established by U.N. consensus in the ashes of the 
Holocaust, has been unjustly maligned for decades. More than 30 years 
since the infamous Zionism of Racism resolution, an established 
precedent of Israel-bashing still thrives at the United Nations.
  Within the context of U.N. reform, eradicating the various mechanisms 
of bias is crucial to its success. Examples include the plethora of 
resolutions condemning Israel while the world's worst human rights 
abusers escape attention or are even appointed to key U.N. panels.
  I am particularly concerned with the three annual U.N. resolutions 
which reauthorize the so-called Division on Palestinian Rights, the 
Committee on the Inalienable Rights of the Palestinian People, and the 
Special Committee to Investigate so-called Israeli Human Rights Abuses. 
These bodies serve no other purpose than to bash Israel and endorse the 
cause of one side in the long-standing conflict. Such discriminatory 
treatment of Israel discredits the entire United Nations organization 
and should be immediately eliminated.
  Mr. Speaker, I recently returned from meetings in the European Union. 
I and the gentleman from New York (Mr. Ackerman) and other colleagues 
urged European Union officials to switch their vote in the U.N. General 
Assembly from ``abstention'' to ``no'' on those resolutions which fund 
anti-Israel entities. I say to our friends in the European Union, an 
abstention is the equivalent of voting ``yes'' and continuing the bias 
against Israel. By voting ``no,'' the EU can join the United States in 
dissolving these inherently discriminatory panels, transfer the funds 
to a real humanitarian purpose, and move unequivocally to the realm of 
honest broker. If the EU states were to vote ``no,'' funding would stop 
because there would not be the necessary two-thirds to perpetuate the 
funding.
  Mr. Speaker, the Israeli-Palestinian conflict will not be solved by 
constantly berating one side, Israel. By tolerating such action, the 
organization responsible for maintaining world peace is actually 
exacerbating the conflict by discriminating against a member state.
  I strongly urge my colleagues to support H. Res. 438.
  Mr. CARDIN. Mr. Speaker I rise in support and as a co-sponsor of H. 
Res. 438, which urges member states of the United Nations to stop 
supporting resolutions that unfairly castigate Israel and to promote 
within the United Nations General Assembly more balanced and 
constructive approaches to resolving conflict in the Middle East.
  Israel is a critical strategic ally of the United States and is the 
only true democracy in the Middle East. The United States and Israel 
are built on a common set of core democratic principles and operate 
under the rule of law. The United States and Israel must continue to 
work closely together to eliminate terrorism and foster the spread of 
democracy and economic prosperity throughout the Middle East.
  The state of Israel, founded shortly after the Holocaust, serves as a 
safe haven and strong voice for Jews around the world.
  The Charter of the United Nations--adopted after the end of World War 
II--states that the U.N. was founded to ``maintain international peace 
and security'' and ``develop friendly relations among nations.'' The 
Charter also states that ``[this] Organization is based on the 
principle of the sovereign equality of all its Members.''
  Unfortunately, Mr. Speaker, the United Nations has utterly failed to 
live up to the principles and obligations of its charter when it comes 
to its treatment of Israel. The United Nations has a long history of 
singling out Israel for unfair, biased, and one-sided criticism and 
treatment. Let me mention just a few examples. Israel is the only 
country that has three special committees set up to support propaganda 
against it. Israel is the only country that has had its own agenda item 
dealing with its alleged human rights violations in annual meetings of 
the United Nations Commission on Human Rights in Geneva, in contrast to 
all other countries which are combined into a separate agenda item. 
Israel is the only member nation of the United Nations that has 
consistently been denied full admission to its regional grouping, which 
violates the U.N. Charter guarantee of ``sovereign equality'' and 
denies Israel the right to fully participate in all U.N. functions.
  Out of the ten emergency special sessions called by the United 
Nations General Assembly, six have related to Israel. During last 
year's session of the U.N. General Assembly, the body adopted a total 
of 71 resolutions by roll call vote, 21 of which (roughly 30 percent) 
criticized Israel. These resolutions are biased and one-sided, and I am 
disappointed that the U.N. has not focused its efforts on condemning 
and bringing an end to Palestinian terrorist attacks launched against 
Israel.
  Finally, I want to cite the recent bipartisan task force report 
issued in June 2005 entitled ``American Interests and U.N. Reform: 
Report of the Task Force on the United Nations.'' The report, authored 
by former House Speaker Newt Gingrich and former Senate Majority Leader 
George Mitchell, found that ``systematic hostility'' against Israel is 
``routinely expressed, organized, and funded'' within the U.N. system, 
which treats Israel as a ``second-class citizen.''
  Mr. Speaker, the United Nations has a critical role to play in the 
21st century in its role as peacekeeper, election monitor, and 
humanitarian relief provider. The U.N. has also made great strides in 
promoting the rule of law and democracy. Unfortunately, the U.N. to 
date has not played a constructive role in resolving conflict in the 
Middle East, and the U.N. allowed itself to be hijacked by those with a 
political agenda. I have also written to U.N. Secretary General Kofi 
Annan and expressed my concerns about anti-Semitic statements made by 
U.N. officers, and have urged him to follow the lead of the Helsinki 
Commission and the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe 
(OSCE) in combating anti-Semitism. I hope today's resolution will cause 
the U.N. and its member states to reevaluate their attitudes toward 
Israel and to reflect on how they can use the U.N. to make a 
constructive and meaningful contribution to international peace and 
security.
  I urge my colleagues to support this resolution.
  Mr. MENENDEZ. Mr. Speaker, I would like to thank my fellow colleague 
from New Jersey, Congressman Rothman, for sponsoring this important 
resolution which addresses the unfair treatment of Israel in the United 
Nations.
  Too frequently we witness the destructive effects of anti-Semitism, 
hatred and intolerance on innocent people around the world. Just this 
past weekend, a suicide bomber killed 5 people and wounded at least 66 
others at a shopping mall in Netanya, Israel.
  Year after year, anti-Israel sentiments have manifested themselves in 
U.N. resolutions that unfairly condemn and castigate the State of 
Israel. That is why I am a proud cosponsor of this resolution that 
criticizes the blatant anti-Israel tone within the United Nations and 
calls on the U.N. to encourage a more balanced approach to the Middle 
East conflict.
  At a time when anti-Semitism is on the rise around the world, the 
United Nations should

[[Page H11063]]

be taking a strong stance in support of tolerance. Instead, it is 
funding entities that support anti-Israel propaganda; it has dedicated 
over half of its emergency special sessions to Israel; and it continues 
to single out Israel for human rights violations in both the annual 
meetings of the U.N. Commission on Human Rights and in thirty percent 
of the resolutions voted on by the U.N. General Assembly each year.
  Let me be clear--there have been some improvements, such as the 
election of Israel's Ambassador to the vice presidency of the 60th 
General Assembly. And yet Israel still remains the only member nation 
that has been denied admission to its regional grouping.
  In 1948, the United Nations established the State of Israel as a 
homeland and refuge for Jewish people around the world. It is shameful 
that 57 years later, anti-Semitism has not gone away but is on the 
rise.
  The United Nations Charter calls for its members to practice 
tolerance and live together in peace as good neighbors. Yet the U.N.'s 
unbalanced approach toward the situation in the Middle East in general, 
and toward Israel in particular, risks undermining this foundation.
  The United Nations should be a bastion of equal rights, equal voices, 
equal treatment and, when necessary, equal condemnation. If it cannot 
be an impartial judge of circumstances, the U.N. risks losing its 
credibility in the Middle East and undermining any future peace 
process.
  I join my colleagues in supporting this bill to call on the United 
Nations to stop unfairly castigating Israel, and to support fair and 
equal treatment of all member nations.
  Mr. GENE GREEN of Texas. Mr. Speaker, this resolution offers support 
for our closest ally, Israel, and calls upon member states of the 
United Nations to stop supporting resolutions that unfairly criticize 
Israel.
  Israel is the only member-state in the UN that is prevented from 
belonging to the regional grouping which it geographically belongs in 
and is, therefore, prevented from participating in much of the ordinary 
work of the UN. Israel cannot vote for or be elected to many of the 
UN's central organizations. Just as troubling as being denied full 
membership, however, is the disproportionate number of resolutions 
passed in the UN that unfairly criticize Israel.
  Anti-Israel resolutions are often adopted in agencies, and on issues 
which have no relevance to the work or mandate of these organizations. 
Additionally, the Commission on Human Rights routinely adopts a grossly 
disproportionate number of resolutions concerning Israel. Of all 
condemnations of this agency, 26 percent refer to Israel alone, while 
states such as Syria and Libya are rarely criticized.
  Another egregious example of bias against Israel is the fact that the 
UN has repeatedly held Emergency Special Sessions of the General 
Assembly on Israeli construction in Jerusalem. The Emergency Special 
Session was originally conceived in 1950 for emergencies like the 
Korean War, however in the last two decades, these special meetings 
have only been held regarding Israel. Emergency Special Sessions were 
not convened over the genocide in Rwanda, ethnic cleansing in the 
former Yugoslavia, or with regard to the other major world conflicts.
  Since joining the United Nations on May 11, 1949, Israel has been 
singled out time and again for disproportionate criticism, 
underrepresented on important committees, denied full membership in 
regional groupings and constantly attacked by a bloc of Arab states and 
their supporters.
  Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to join me in voting in favor of 
this resolution to once again reaffirm our support for Israel, and to 
urge members of the UN to stop supporting resolutions that unfairly 
criticize Israel and prevent Israel from fully participating in the UN.
  Mr. LANTOS. Mr. Speaker, we have no additional requests for time, and 
we yield back the balance of our time.
  Ms. ROS-LEHTINEN. Mr. Speaker, I also have no further requests for 
time, and I yield back the balance of my time.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore (Mr. Aderholt). The question is on the motion 
offered by the gentlewoman from Florida (Ms. Ros-Lehtinen) that the 
House suspend the rules and agree to the resolution, H. Res. 438, as 
amended.
  The question was taken.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. In the opinion of the Chair, two-thirds of 
those present have voted in the affirmative.
  Mr. LANTOS. Mr. Speaker, on that I demand the yeas and nays.
  The yeas and nays were ordered.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to clause 8 of rule XX and the 
Chair's prior announcement, further proceedings on this question will 
be postponed.

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