[Congressional Record Volume 152, Number 76 (Wednesday, June 14, 2006)]
[Senate]
[Page S5879]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




  SENATE CONCURRENT RESOLUTION 101--CONDEMNING THE REPRESSION OF THE 
 IRANIAN BAHA'I COMMUNITY AND CALLING FOR THE EMANCIPATION OF IRANIAN 
                                BAHA'IS

  Mr. REID (for himself, Mr. Brownback, Mr. Durbin, Mrs. Feinstein, Mr. 
Johnson, Mr. Lieberman, and Mr. Sarbanes) submitted the following 
concurrent resolution; which was referred to the Committee on Foreign 
Relations:

                            S. Con. Res. 101

       Whereas in 1982, 1984, 1988, 1990, 1992, 1994, 1996, and 
     2000, Congress, by concurrent resolution, declared that it 
     deplores the religious persecution by the Government of Iran 
     of the Baha'i community and holds the Government of Iran 
     responsible for upholding the rights of all Iranian 
     nationals, including members of the Baha'i Faith;
       Whereas on March 20, 2006, the United Nations Special 
     Rapporteur on Freedom of Religion or Belief, Ms. Asma 
     Jahangir, revealed the existence of a confidential letter 
     dated October 29, 2005, from the Chairman of the Command 
     Headquarters of Iran's Armed Forces to the Ministry of 
     Information, the Revolutionary Guard, and the Police Force, 
     stating that the Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Khamenei, had 
     instructed the Command Headquarters to identify members of 
     the Baha'i Faith in Iran and monitor their activities;
       Whereas the United Nations Special Rapporteur expressed 
     ``grave concern and apprehension'' about the implications of 
     this letter for the safety of the Baha'i community;
       Whereas in 2005 the Iranian Government initiated a new wave 
     of assaults, homes raids, harassment, and detentions against 
     Baha'is, and in December 2005, Mr. Zabihullah Mahrami died 
     after 10 years of imprisonment on charges of apostasy due to 
     his membership in the Baha'i Faith; and
       Whereas beginning in October 2005, an anti-Baha'i campaign 
     has been conducted in the state-sponsored Kayhan newspaper 
     and in broadcast media: Now, therefore, be it
       Resolved by the Senate (the House of Representatives 
     concurring),  That Congress--
       (1) condemns the Government of Iran for the October 29, 
     2005 letter, calls on the Government of Iran to immediately 
     cease such activities and all activities aimed at the 
     repression of the Iranian Baha'i community, and continues to 
     hold the Government of Iran responsible for upholding all the 
     rights of its nationals, including members of the Baha'i 
     community; and
       (2) requests the President to--
       (A) call for the Government of Iran to emancipate the 
     Baha'i community by granting those rights guaranteed by the 
     Universal Declaration of Human Rights and other international 
     covenants on human rights;
       (B) emphasize that the United States regards the human 
     rights practices of the Government of Iran, including its 
     treatment of the Baha'i community and other religious 
     minorities, as a significant factor in the foreign policy of 
     the United States Government regarding Iran; and
       (C) initiate an active and consistent dialogue with other 
     governments and the European Union in order to persuade the 
     Government of Iran to rectify its human rights practices.

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