[Congressional Record Volume 153, Number 43 (Tuesday, March 13, 2007)]
[House]
[Pages H2447-H2450]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




EXPRESSING SENSE OF THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES THAT BANGLADESH SHOULD 
           DROP CHARGES AGAINST SALAH UDDIN SHOAIB CHOUDHURY

  Mr. ACKERMAN. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and agree to

[[Page H2448]]

the resolution (H. Res. 64) expressing the sense of the House of 
Representatives that the Government of Bangladesh should immediately 
drop all pending charges against Bangladeshi journalist Salah Uddin 
Shoaib Choudhury, as amended.
  The Clerk read as follows:

                               H. Res. 64

       Whereas Salah Uddin Shoaib Choudhury is a Bangladeshi 
     journalist who, because of his beliefs in an interfaith 
     dialogue between Jews and Muslims and criticism of Islamic 
     extremism, is on trial for sedition, an offense punishable by 
     death;
       Whereas on November 29, 2003, Mr. Choudhury was arrested at 
     Zia International Airport in Dhaka, Bangladesh, on his way to 
     board a flight bound for Tel Aviv; Mr. Choudhury's passport 
     was seized, along with considerable sums of money and several 
     personal items; on that same day police raided Mr. 
     Choudhury's home and newspaper offices, seizing files, 
     computers, and other valuables;
       Whereas Mr. Choudhury was detained in Dhaka Central Jail 
     for a passport violation, then subsequently charged with 
     sedition; Mr. Choudhury suffered harsh interrogation 
     techniques and received no treatment for a debilitating case 
     of glaucoma; Mr. Choudhury's incarceration lasted 17 months 
     without legal recourse;
       Whereas on April 30, 2005, after intervention by the United 
     States Department of State and congressional offices, Mr. 
     Choudhury was released on bail;
       Whereas in the subsequent months, senior members of the 
     Bangladeshi Government made continuous public promises that 
     there was no substance to Mr. Choudhury's pending charges and 
     that all charges would be dropped;
       Whereas on September 29, 2005, Mr. Choudhury was awarded 
     the ``Freedom to Write Award'' by PEN USA;
       Whereas on May 5, 2006, Mr. Choudhury was awarded the 
     American Jewish Committee's Moral Courage Award in absentia 
     in Washington, D.C.; two days prior to Mr. Choudhury 
     receiving the award, after returning Mr. Choudhury's passport 
     and appearing to allow him to attend, senior Bangladeshi 
     Government officials issued threats to prevent him from 
     leaving the country;
       Whereas on September 18, 2006, a judge with alleged ties to 
     an Islamic extremist party ruled that Mr. Choudhury will 
     stand trial for sedition; the judge made this ruling despite 
     the Public Prosecutor's testimony in court days before that 
     the government did not have evidence and would not object to 
     the charges being dropped;
       Whereas members of the United States Commission on 
     International Religious Freedom visited with Mr. Choudhury on 
     their trip to Bangladesh in February and March 2006;
       Whereas on October 6, 2006, the United States Commission on 
     International Religious Freedom wrote a letter to U.S. 
     Assistant Secretary of State for South and Central Asian 
     Affairs Richard A. Boucher calling on the United States 
     Government to strengthen the ``voices of moderation'' in 
     countries like Bangladesh where the rule of law, democratic 
     institutions, and respect for human rights are under assault 
     by violent extremists; the Commission identified Mr. 
     Choudhury as one of those voices that should not be silenced;
       Whereas, according to the Department of State's 2005 
     Country Report on Human Rights Practices in Bangladesh, 
     ``Attacks on journalists and newspapers, and government 
     efforts to intimidate them, political party activists, and 
     others, occurred frequently.''; and
       Whereas moderate voices in the Muslim world must be 
     supported and protected to advance the security of the United 
     States and its allies: Now, therefore, be it
       Resolved,  That it is the sense of the House of 
     Representatives that--
       (1) the Government of Bangladesh should immediately drop 
     all pending charges against Bangladeshi journalist Salah 
     Uddin Shoaib Choudhury;
       (2) the Government of Bangladesh should immediately return 
     all of Mr. Choudhury's confiscated possessions; and
       (3) the Government of Bangladesh should cease harassment 
     and intimidation of Mr. Choudhury and take steps to protect 
     Mr. Choudhury.

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from New 
York (Mr. Ackerman) and the gentleman from Arkansas (Mr. Boozman) each 
will control 20 minutes.
  The Chair recognizes the gentleman from New York.


                             General Leave

  Mr. ACKERMAN. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members 
have 5 legislative days 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 
gentleman from New York?
  There was no objection.
  Mr. ACKERMAN. Mr. Speaker, I rise in strong support of this 
resolution, and yield myself such time as I may consume.
  Mr. Speaker, I would first like to commend my friend and colleague  
Mark Kirk from Illinois as well as that of Mrs. Lowey of New York for 
their leadership on this important human rights case.
  With passage of this resolution, Congress will firmly indicate its 
view that the government of Bangladesh should immediately release a 
Bangladeshi journalist whose only apparent crime is to attempt to visit 
the democratic nation of Israel.
  Mr. Speaker, Bangladesh has undergone great political turmoil in 
recent months, and the nation is now being ruled by a caretaker 
government. As Bangladesh moves towards a new round of elections, it is 
imperative that the rule of law and freedom of the press be preserved.
  The current government has set out an agenda to reform Bangladesh's 
political system and to stem corruption. We have seen lately the arrest 
of many previously high-ranking government officials. It is my sincere 
wish that the standards of responsible governance survive under the 
caretaker government until free and fair elections take place, 
elections that I hope will happen in the near term.
  In this time of great political turmoil in Bangladesh, it is truly 
inexplicable that the government would focus its scarce resources on 
prosecuting a journalist.
  Mr. Choudhury believes in interfaith dialogue between Jews and 
Muslims as an alternative to religious extremism, and has been 
commended by the international community for such bravery of thought.
  Gaining the respect and concern of organizations like the United 
States Commission on International Religious Freedom, Mr. Choudhury has 
shown immense resiliency after facing numerous political and physical 
threats.
  Mr. Choudhury's actions are courageous, not criminal, and it is time 
for the government of Bangladesh to take decisive action and drop all 
pending charges. The political leadership of Bangladesh should focus on 
getting its own house in order instead of mindlessly prosecuting 
someone for trying to promote international peace and stability.
  Mr. Speaker, I urge all of my colleagues to support this legislation.
  Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. BOOZMAN. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
  At the outset, I would like to express my appreciation for the 
outstanding leadership of Congressman Kirk in introducing this timely 
resolution. It has my wholehearted support.
  Mr. Choudhury is a Bangladeshi journalist and the editor of the 
Weekly Blitz, the largest tabloid English-language weekly in 
Bangladesh. He is currently facing a sedition trial for daring to reach 
out to Jewish and Israeli writers, as well as for speaking openly about 
the threat radical Islam poses in Bangladesh.
  Mr. Choudhury was arrested in November 2003 when he tried to attend a 
conference in Israel and then was subjected to brutal treatment while 
in prison. Although he was released last year, in large part due to the 
efforts of Congressman Kirk and others, the Bangladesh government 
refuses to drop the charges against Mr. Choudhury, apparently trying to 
intimidate him into silence.
  Last May, the American Jewish Committee presented Mr. Choudhury with 
the Moral Courage Award recognizing his efforts to promote dialogue 
between Muslims and Jews and his courage in speaking out against 
Islamic extremism.
  Unfortunately, however, the authorities in Dhaka refused to permit 
him to visit the U.S. to receive the honor.
  Mr. Speaker, Bangladesh and the U.S. have been good friends for over 
35 years. Despite many handicaps, Bangladesh has made good progress in 
some key areas of development, including agricultural production, 
improved literacy rates, basic social services, and empowering women 
through employment and education.
  As the fourth most populous Muslim country in the world, a moderate 
and stable Bangladesh can play an important role in regional and world 
affairs.
  Today, however, Bangladesh is at a crossroads. National elections are 
being postponed amidst electoral chaos; meanwhile, the military appears

[[Page H2449]]

to be playing an increasingly large role within the Bangladeshi interim 
government.
  The prospect of holding free and fair elections during the first half 
of 2007 appears to be much in doubt. More broadly, endemic political 
polarization, corruption and related governance concerns, as well as 
the rise of violent extremists remains substantial challenges for the 
Bangladeshi society.
  Mr. Speaker, in this context I urge the authorities in Dhaka to send 
a strong signal about the importance Bangladesh attaches to tolerance 
and the rule of law by dropping these politically motivated charges 
against Mr. Choudhury. I support the resolution and urge its adoption.
  Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. ACKERMAN. Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. BOOZMAN. Mr. Speaker, I yield such time as he may consume to the 
gentleman from Illinois (Mr. Kirk), the author of this resolution.
  Mr. KIRK. I thank the gentleman.
  Mr. Speaker, I rise in strong support of this resolution which marks 
this family member and what has happened to him as a prisoner of 
conscience in Bangladesh.
  When we see what happened to him after advocating the cause of 
religious reconciliation between Muslims and Jews, we see the condition 
of Salah Choudhury after a severe beating which he was subjected to.

                              {time}  1245

  This resolution urges the government of Bangladesh to drop all 
charges against Bangladeshi journalist Salah Uddin Shoaib Choudhury.
  Mr. Choudhury now faces charges of sedition, treason and blasphemy. 
He faces these charges because of his belief in an interfaith dialogue 
between Jews and Muslims, and because of articles that he published 
critical of Islamic extremism. Under Bangladeshi law, sedition is a 
crime punishable by death.
  Mr. Choudhury was detained in November 2003 at Zia International 
Airport in Dhaka, Bangladesh, on his way to board a flight for Tel Aviv 
simply to participate in the annual Hebrew Writers Conference. Mr. 
Choudhury's passport was seized, along with considerable sums of money 
and several personal items. On that same day, the police raided his 
home, his newspaper, and seized files, computers and other valuables.
  Since Bangladeshi law currently prohibits travel to Israel, Choudhury 
was first cited for a minor passport violation, but he was subsequently 
charged with sedition and accused of espionage as an Israeli spy and 
incarcerated indefinitely. He was subjected to harsh interrogation 
techniques and received no treatment for a debilitating case of 
glaucoma.
  After being denied due process, Choudhury languished in jail for 17 
months until one tireless human rights champion, and my constituent, 
Dr. Richard Benkin, began a personal odyssey to free Shoaib Choudhury. 
Dr. Benkin met Mr. Choudhury through a pro-Israel Internet Web site, 
and Dr. Benkin brought this situation to my attention and now before 
the House. All together, we sought for his freedom, and shortly 
thereafter, we did succeed in getting Choudhury's release from jail, 
finally reuniting him with his wife and two children.
  Following Shoaib's release, a senior Bangladesh government official 
made numerous public pledges that all pending legal action against Mr. 
Choudhury would be dropped. Nevertheless, the government pressed 
forward with formal sedition charges.
  Mr. Choudhury has won the recognition of international human rights 
and freedom of expression organizations for his courage. He was honored 
by PEN U.S.A.'s Freedom to Write Award and was presented with the 
American Jewish Committee's prestigious Moral Courage Award in absentia 
in Washington, D.C. The United States Commission on International 
Religious Freedom intervened and wrote a letter to Assistant Secretary 
of State Richard Boucher calling on the U.S. Government to strengthen 
the voices of moderation in countries like Bangladesh where the rule of 
law, democratic institutions, and respect for human rights are under 
assault by violent extremists. The commission identified Mr. Choudhury 
as one of those voices.
  But despite such international attention, the persecution of 
Choudhury has persisted. Mr. Choudhury's newspaper offices were bombed 
by Islamic extremists in July 2006, and he was attacked by a mob in his 
office on October 5, 2006, where this very picture was taken. A judge 
with alleged ties to Islamic extremist groups then ruled that Choudhury 
must stand trial for his life for sedition.
  Bangladesh today is at a crossroads. Much-anticipated elections were 
postponed due to irregularities, and a state of emergency was declared. 
In a country with 150 million people packed into a land mass smaller 
than Iowa, 85 percent of whom are Muslim, it is critically important 
for Bangladesh to demonstrate its commitment to democratic 
institutions, to religious freedom, and to human rights. For his 
message of moderation and interfaith dialogue between Muslims and Jews, 
Mr. Choudhury is facing unjust criminal charges in an effort to silence 
him. The House of Representatives sends a clear message today that we 
will not allow an outspoken advocate for religious freedom to be 
quelled by intolerance.
  Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to join me in this resolution and 
would like to thank Chairman Lantos for his friendship and support in 
bringing this up and for his tireless advocacy on behalf of human 
rights of all as co-chairman of the Human Rights Caucus. I also want to 
thank Ranking Member Ileana Ros-Lehtinen for her support on the Foreign 
Affairs Committee.
  I would like also to thank our ambassador to Bangladesh, Patricia 
Butenis, for her outstanding work at Embassy Dhaka. Her team has been 
vigorously monitoring this case, attending Mr. Choudhury's legal 
proceedings, and making strong public statements on his behalf.
  I also want to thank Dr. Richard Benkin, sitting in the gallery 
today, for his unrelenting pursuit of justice on behalf of Shoaib 
Choudhury. I am proud to join Dr. Benkin in this endeavor and look 
forward to one day when we may even host Shoaib Choudhury in our very 
own Mount Prospect, Illinois.
  Lastly, I want to thank the best congressional human rights staffer 
that I have ever had: Jeff Phillips had worked tirelessly on behalf of 
an African prisoner of conscience for months until he finally won his 
release. Now he has seized on Shoaib's case and made it a cause in the 
United States, in Canada, in Europe, and the subcontinent. He, we, have 
all been inspired by Shoaib and Dr. Benkin, and we hope by this 
resolution this case and a potential death sentence against Shoaib can 
be lifted. Shoaib is not a criminal, and he should not become a martyr. 
He is a model for interfaith tolerance and discussion between all of 
those of different faiths in the world.


                Announcement by the Speaker Pro Tempore

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. All Members of the House are reminded to 
refrain from bringing to the attention of the House occupants of the 
galleries.
  Mr. ACKERMAN. Mr. Speaker, it is my pleasure to yield such time as 
she might consume to the gentlewoman from New York (Mrs. Lowey), the 
distinguished Chair of the appropriations subcommittee on Foreign 
Operations and the cosponsor of this resolution before us.
  Mrs. LOWEY. I thank my distinguished colleague from New York for 
yielding me time.
  Mr. Speaker, I rise in strong support of H. Res. 64, a resolution 
expressing the sense of the House that the Government of Bangladesh 
should drop all charges against Bangladeshi journalist, Salah Uddin 
Shoaib Choudhury. I want to thank my colleague from Illinois (Mr. Kirk) 
for his leadership on this issue.
  In May of 2006, the American Jewish Committee awarded Mr. Choudhury 
the Moral Courage Award. Unfortunately, he was not there to receive 
this honor because more than 2 years earlier he was arrested while 
attempting to board a flight from Bangladesh to Tel Aviv. Mr. 
Choudhury's passport was confiscated, his house and possessions were 
raided, and he was first cited for a passport violation because 
Bangladeshi law prohibits travel to Israel. Subsequently, he was 
charged with sedition, accused of espionage, and imprisoned for 17 
months.

[[Page H2450]]

  What is his crime? Mr. Choudhury spoke up for interfaith dialogue, he 
published articles critical of Islamic extremism, and he appealed for 
greater religious tolerance and freedom. For these ``crimes'' he is 
charged with sedition, an offense punishable by death.
  Mr. Choudhury has already been harassed and subjected to harsh 
interrogation techniques in prison. His newspaper offices were bombed 
by Islamic extremists in July of 2006, and he was physically attacked 
in October of 2006.
  This resolution calls on the Government of Bangladesh to immediately 
drop the charges against Mr. Choudhury, to return his confiscated 
property, to stop intimidation tactics against him, and to protect him 
from future harassment.
  Mr. Choudhury advocates peace and tolerance. It is time that Congress 
sends a strong and clear message: we are watching, and we will not 
allow Mr. Choudhury and others like him to be silenced.
  I hope you will join me in strongly supporting H. Res. 64.
  Mr. BOOZMAN. Mr. Speaker, I yield 4 minutes to the gentleman from 
Ohio (Mr. Chabot).
  Mr. CHABOT. I thank the gentleman for yielding; and, Mr. Speaker, I 
want to especially thank the gentleman from Illinois (Mr. Kirk) and 
Mrs. Nita Lowey for their hard work in bringing this thoughtful 
resolution to the House floor today.
  I was in Bangladesh about 3 weeks ago where I had the opportunity to 
meet with the new caretaker government, that leadership, as well as the 
leaderships in the two main political parties that are vying for power 
and have held power the last several decades. In fact, I met with our 
ambassador and members in the business community.
  But one of the highlights and I think the most significant thing that 
I had an opportunity to do was to meet with the gentleman, Shoaib 
Choudhury, who is a journalist, and we have heard much talk about his 
situation this morning. But I think the gravity of it is significant, 
and I think it is important that this House is taking this action 
today.
  Mr. Choudhury is a journalist in Bangladesh, known for his viewpoints 
which are favorable to expanding dialogue between Muslims and Jews and 
Christians and for developing ties with Israel. As was indicated, he 
was actually arrested on his way to Israel at the airport, and he is 
also trying to have more equality relative to religion and especially 
his observance and opposition to Islamic extremism, which unfortunately 
is on the rise in Bangladesh and in a number of regions.
  Just as Islamic extremism and fundamentalism have been a danger in 
other areas of the world, it is a real problem in Bangladesh, and he 
has had the courage to speak out on this important issue.
  Unfortunately, in a place where journalists are not necessarily given 
broad freedom of speech as our media would have here in this country, 
Mr. Choudhury was arrested and charged with sedition and accused of 
espionage and unjustly incarcerated for 17 months during which he 
received less than adequate treatment for glaucoma and other conditions 
from which he suffers. He is now facing charges which could bring the 
death penalty under Bangladesh law.
  Now, several government leaders indicated that they do not intend to 
pursue the death penalty in this particular case; but when one 
considers the actions for which Mr. Choudhury was charged, this is not 
a person that should be jailed in the first place. This is a person who 
should be honored, as he has been around the world. You have to admire 
his strength and his resilience.
  I asked him how he was being treated and spoke with him about the 
prospects for his trial. His next trial appearance was supposed to be 
February 28. At the time of my visit, Mr. Choudhury was encouraged by 
recent government assurances that his charges might be dropped or that 
they did not intend to go forward with the death penalty; but as it 
turns out, a radical Islamist-affiliated judge recently signed an order 
forcing the trial and the court proceedings to proceed. He is being 
accused of a threat to the security of Bangladesh. So much for a fair 
trial and just treatment.
  This is something that really should get the attention not only of 
this House but the world.
  This bipartisan resolution on the floor today urges the Bangladeshi 
Government to drop all charges against Mr. Choudhury. The United States 
Congress should show Mr. Choudhury that he can count on our full 
support and that the success of fledgling democracies such as 
Bangladesh lies squarely on the very freedoms that Mr. Choudhury 
embodies.
  I am glad to be a cosponsor of this important resolution. I thank the 
Speaker for recognizing this and urge my colleagues to support it.
  Mr. ACKERMAN. Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of our time.
  Mr. BOOZMAN. Mr. Speaker, again in closing, I want to thank the 
chairman of the Middle East Subcommittee, Mr. Ackerman, for bringing 
this forward. Certainly we want to thank Mr. Kirk for his hard work and 
then Mrs. Lowey for making this a very bipartisan effort, and I would 
urge all of my colleagues to support this.
  Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.

                              {time}  1300

  Mr. ACKERMAN. Mr. Speaker, I want to express my gratitude to Mr. 
Boozman, the gentleman from Arkansas, for his expeditious handling of 
this on the floor. I want to thank both Mr. Kirk and Mrs. Lowey for 
bringing this resolution to our attention and to also note the great 
spirit of nonpartisanship that we have on this matter and hope that 
that could splash over and spill over and overwhelm some prevailing 
attitudes on both sides so that we might bring this kind of approach 
and dedication to all of the legislation that we have before us this 
session.
  Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is on the motion offered by the 
gentleman from New York (Mr. Ackerman) that the House suspend the rules 
and agree to the resolution, H. Res. 64, as amended.
  The question was taken.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. In the opinion of the Chair, two-thirds 
being in the affirmative, the ayes have it.
  Mr. KIRK. 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.

                          ____________________