[Congressional Record Volume 155, Number 115 (Tuesday, July 28, 2009)]
[House]
[Pages H8940-H8941]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




 COMMENDING THE CONGRESS OF LEADERS OF WORLD AND TRADITIONAL RELIGIONS

  Mr. FALEOMAVAEGA. Madam Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and 
agree to the resolution (H. Res. 535) commending the Congress of 
Leaders of World and Traditional Religions for calling upon all nations 
to live in peace and mutual understanding.
  The Clerk read the title of the resolution.
  The text of the resolution is as follows:

                              H. Res. 535

       Whereas religious leaders can be a decisive factor in 
     maintaining peace and security in the world;
       Whereas a Congress of Leaders of World and Traditional 
     Religions was established in 2003;
       Whereas the purpose of the Congress is to advance 
     tolerance, development, and security;
       Whereas the Congress provides a forum for improving 
     understanding and mutual cooperation among religious 
     communities from around the world;
       Whereas the Congress considers interfaith dialogue one of 
     the most important instruments for the maintenance of peace 
     and harmony among peoples and nations;
       Whereas the Congress regularly holds forums that address, 
     among other issues, religious freedom, inter-religious 
     dialogue, and the role of religious leaders in strengthening 
     global security;
       Whereas the world's major religions, including Buddhism, 
     Christianity, Hinduism, Islam, Judaism, Shinto, and Taoism 
     are represented in the Congress;
       Whereas religious leaders representing more than 26 
     nations, including Israel, Egypt, Pakistan, Iran, Saudi 
     Arabia, Libya, Armenia, South Korea, China, India, Thailand, 
     the United States, Switzerland, France, Japan, and the Holy 
     See, participate in the Congress;
       Whereas a Secretariat of the Congress was established by 
     the leaders and representatives of the world and traditional 
     religions in 2003 as a permanent body of the interfaith 
     dialogue;
       Whereas the Secretariat of the Congress adopted resolutions 
     to convene the second and third Congress in 2006 and 2009; 
     and
       Whereas the third Congress was held on July 1-2, 2009: Now, 
     therefore, be it
       Resolved, That the House of Representatives--
       (1) commends the Congress of Leaders of World and 
     Traditional Religions for calling upon all nations to live in 
     peace and mutual understanding; and
       (2) supports freedom of religion and conscience throughout 
     the world as a fundamental human right and as a source of 
     stability for all countries.

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


                             General Leave

  Mr. FALEOMAVAEGA. Madam Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all 
Members may have 5 days to revise and extend their remarks and include 
extraneous materials on the resolution under consideration.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the 
gentleman from American Samoa?
  There was no objection.
  Mr. FALEOMAVAEGA. Madam Speaker, I rise today in support of House 
Resolution 535, commending the Congress of Leaders of World and 
Traditional Religions for calling upon all nations to live in peace and 
mutual understanding. The Congress was organized in 2003 in recognition 
of the growing importance of world religions in responding to emerging 
threats and global epidemics. The Congress is held every 3 years and 
seeks to foster greater dialogue and cooperation among world religions 
to address the serious challenge we are facing like terrorism, poverty, 
war, extremism, and the global collapse of financial markets.
  This year I had the privilege of attending the third Congress. 
Approximately 77 delegations from 35 countries participated, including 
leading clerics and scholars representing Judaism, Islam, Christianity, 
Buddhism and other religious traditions. The delegation from the 
Vatican was led by Cardinal Jean-Louis Turan. Israel's President, 
Shimon Peres delivered the keynote address, and the Church of Jesus

[[Page H8941]]

Christ of Latter-day Saints was also represented for the first time.
  Because religious leaders can be a decisive factor in maintaining 
peace and security in the world, I encourage my colleagues to vote in 
favor of House Resolution 535. This resolution supports freedom of 
religion and conscience throughout the world as a fundamental right and 
as a source of stability for all countries and commends the Congress of 
Leaders of World and Traditional Religions for the work it is doing to 
advance tolerance and understanding. Again, I urge my colleagues to 
support this bipartisan resolution.
  I reserve the balance of my time.
  Ms. ROS-LEHTINEN. Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may 
consume. Madam Speaker, I rise in support of House Resolution 535. This 
resolution commends the Congress of leaders of World and Traditional 
Religions and expresses support for freedom of religion as a 
fundamental human right and a source of stability for all countries. I 
support this resolution and the broader cause of promoting freedom of 
religion.
  However, I have some concerns about this measure. Kazakhstan 
initiated the effort to establish the Congress of Leaders of World and 
Traditional Religious and its capital served as the location for the 
past three gatherings. However, our U.S. Department of State's report 
on international religious freedom, as well as a number of human rights 
NGOs, underscore that Kazakhstan has considerable problems with its 
treatment of some of its religious minority groups. Some of the 
reported instances of religious intolerance in Kazakhstan include 
police officials disrupting religious meetings in private homes, 
confiscation of religious literature, fines, detentions, harassment and 
deportation of unregistered missionaries.
  It has also been reported that the government-controlled media in 
Kazakhstan has increased its negative coverage of what they consider 
nontraditional religions such as Evangelical Christians, Jehovah's 
Witnesses, Hare Krishnas and Scientologists, depicting those groups as 
dangerous sects. Although we should support the efforts of the Congress 
of Leaders of World and Traditional Religions, we must be careful not 
to inadvertently provide political legitimacy to the government of 
Kazakhstan in its treatment of some of its religious minorities. 
Furthermore, Kazakhstan will assume the chairmanship of the 
Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe in 2010, and it is 
important that those responsible nations hold it accountable to the 
commitments that it has made to implement democratic reforms and to 
protect human rights.
  Again, I would like to express my support for this resolution, 
although with some reservation, and I ask my colleagues to do the same.
  I have no further requests for time, and I yield back the balance of 
my time.
  Mr. FALEOMAVAEGA. Madam Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is on the motion offered by the 
gentleman from American Samoa (Mr. Faleomavaega) that the House suspend 
the rules and agree to the resolution, H. Res. 535, 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.
  Ms. ROS-LEHTINEN. Madam Speaker, I object to the vote on the ground 
that a quorum is not present and make the point of order that a quorum 
is not present.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to clause 8 of rule XX and the 
Chair's prior announcement, further proceedings on this motion will be 
postponed.
  The point of no quorum is considered withdrawn.

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