[Congressional Record Volume 158, Number 27 (Friday, February 17, 2012)]
[Senate]
[Pages S1020-S1021]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




   CONDEMNING VIOLENCE BY THE GOVERNMENT OF SYRIA AGAINST THE SYRIAN 
                                 PEOPLE

  Mr. REID. Mr. President, if we could return to Calendar No. 325, S. 
Res. 379, I ask unanimous consent the action just taken be vitiated.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
  Mr. REID. We are still on that matter; is that correct?
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. We are still on that matter.
  The question is on agreeing to the resolution and its preamble.
  The resolution (S. Res. 379) was agreed to.
  The preamble was agreed to.
  The resolution, with its preamble, reads as follows:

                              S. Res. 379

       Whereas the Syrian Arab Republic is a party to the 
     International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR), 
     adopted at New York December 16, 1966, the United Nations 
     Convention Against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or 
     Degrading Treatment or Punishment, done at New York December 
     10, 1984;
       Whereas Syria voted in favor of the Universal Declaration 
     of Human Rights, adopted at Paris, December 10, 1948;
       Whereas, in March 2011, peaceful demonstrations in Syria 
     began against the authoritarian rule of Bashar al-Assad;
       Whereas, in response to the demonstrations, the Government 
     of Syria launched a brutal crackdown, which has resulted in 
     gross human rights violations, use of force against 
     civilians, torture, extrajudicial killings, arbitrary 
     executions, sexual violence, and interference with access to 
     medical treatment;
       Whereas the United Nations, as of January 25, 2012, 
     estimated that more than 5,400 people in Syria have been 
     killed since the violence began in March 2011;
       Whereas, on February 4, 2012, President Barack Obama stated 
     that President Bashar al-Assad ``has no right to lead Syria, 
     and has lost all legitimacy with his people and the 
     international community'';
       Whereas the Department of State has repeatedly condemned 
     the Government of Syria's crackdown on its people, including 
     on January 30, 2012, when Secretary of State Hillary Clinton 
     stated ``The status quo is unsustainable . . . The longer the 
     Assad regime continues its attacks on the Syrian people and 
     stands in the way of a peaceful transition, the greater the 
     concern that instability will escalate and spill over 
     throughout the region.'';
       Whereas President Obama, on April 29, 2011, designated 3 
     individuals subject to sanctions for humans rights abuses in 
     Syria: Mahir al-Assad, the brother of Syrian President Bashar 
     al-Assad and brigade commander in the Syrian Army's 4th 
     Armored Division; Atif Najib, the former head of the 
     Political Security Directorate for Daraa Province and a 
     cousin of Bashar al-Assad; and Ali Mamluk, director of 
     Syria's General Intelligence Directorate;
       Whereas, on May 18, 2011, President Obama issued an 
     executive order sanctioning senior officials of the Syrian 
     Arab Republic and their supporters, specifically designating 
     7 people: President Bashar al-Assad, Vice President Farouk 
     al-Shara, Prime Minister Adel Safar, Minister of the Interior 
     Mohammad Ibrahim al-Shaar, Minister of Defense Ali Habib 
     Mahmoud, Head of Syrian Military Intelligence Abdul Fatah 
     Qudsiya, and Director of Political Security Directorate 
     Mohammed Dib Zaitoun;
       Whereas President Obama, on August 17, 2011, issued 
     Executive Order 13582, blocking property of the Government of 
     Syria and prohibiting certain transactions with respect to 
     Syria;
       Whereas, on December 1, 2011, the Department of the 
     Treasury designated 2 individuals, Aus Aslan and Muhammad 
     Makhluf, under Executive Order 13573 and 2 entities, the 
     Military Housing Establishment and the Real Estate Bank of 
     Syria, under Executive Order 13582;
       Whereas, on May 6, 2011, the European Union's 27 countries 
     imposed sanctions on the Government of Syria for the human 
     rights abuses, including asset freezes and visa bans on 
     members of the Government of Syria and an arms embargo on the 
     country;
       Whereas, on November 12, 2011, the League of Arab States 
     voted to suspend Syria's membership in the organization;
       Whereas, on December 2, 2011, the United Nations Human 
     Rights Council passed Resolution S-18/1, which deplores the 
     human rights situation in Syria, commends the League of Arab 
     States, and supports implementation of its Plan of Action;
       Whereas the League of Arab States approved and implemented 
     a plan of action to send a team of international monitors to 
     Syria, which began December 26, 2011;
       Whereas, on January 28, 2012, the League of Arab States 
     decided to suspend its international monitoring mission due 
     to escalating violence within Syria;
       Whereas, on February 4, 2012, the Russian Federation and 
     People's Republic of China vetoed a United Nations Security 
     Council Resolution in support of the League of Arab States' 
     Plan of Action;
       Whereas, on February 14, 2012, General Martin Dempsey, 
     Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, testified before the 
     Committee on Armed Services of the Senate that Syria ``is a 
     much different situation than we collectively saw in Libya,'' 
     presenting a ``very different challenge'' in which ``we also 
     know that other regional actors are providing support'' as a 
     part of a ``Sunni majority rebelling against an oppressive 
     Alawite-Shia regime'';
       Whereas the Governments of the Russian Federation and the 
     Islamic Republic of Iran remain major suppliers of military 
     equipment to the Government of Syria notwithstanding that 
     government's violent repression of demonstrators;
       Whereas the gross human rights violations perpetuated by 
     the Government of Syria against the people of Syria represent 
     a grave risk to regional peace and stability; and
       Whereas the Committee on Foreign Relations of the Senate 
     will immediately schedule a hearing to take place as soon as 
     the Senate reconvenes to assess the situation in Syria and 
     all the international options available to address this 
     crisis: Now, therefore, be it
       Resolved, That the Senate--
       (1) strongly condemns the Government of Syria's brutal and 
     unjustifiable use of force against civilians, including 
     unarmed women and children and its violations of the 
     fundamental human rights and dignity of the people of Syria;
       (2) expresses its solidarity with the people of Syria, who 
     have exhibited remarkable courage and determination in the 
     face of unspeakable violence to rid themselves of a brutal 
     dictatorship;
       (3) expresses strong disappointment with the Governments of 
     the Russian Federation and the People's Republic of China for 
     their veto of the United Nations Security Council resolution 
     condemning Bashar al-Assad and the violence in Syria and 
     urges them to reconsider their votes;
       (4) encourages the members of the United Nations Security 
     Council to continue to pursue a resolution in support of a 
     political solution to the crisis in Syria;

[[Page S1021]]

       (5) commends the League of Arab States' efforts to bring 
     about a peaceful resolution in Syria;
       (6) regrets that the League of Arab States observer mission 
     was not able to monitor the full implementation of the League 
     of Arab States' Action Plan of November 2, 2011, due to the 
     escalating violence in Syria; and
       (7) urges the international community to review legal 
     processes available to hold officials of the Government of 
     Syria accountable for crimes against humanity and gross 
     violations of human rights.

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