[Congressional Record Volume 158, Number 32 (Wednesday, February 29, 2012)]
[House]
[Pages H1087-H1091]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




        CONDEMNING IRAN FOR ITS PERSECUTION OF YOUCEF NADARKHANI

  Mr. PITTS. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and agree to the 
resolution (H. Res. 556) condemning the Government of Iran for its 
continued persecution, imprisonment, and sentencing of Youcef 
Nadarkhani on the charge of apostasy, as amended.
  The Clerk read the title of the resolution.
  The text of the resolution is as follows:

                              H. Res. 556

       Whereas the United Nations Universal Declaration of Human 
     Rights and the International Covenant on Civil and Political 
     Rights recognize that every individual has ``the right to 
     freedom of thought, conscience and religion'', which includes 
     the ``freedom to change his religion or belief, and freedom, 
     either alone or in community with others and in public or 
     private, to manifest his religion or belief in teaching, 
     practice, worship and observance'';
       Whereas Iran is a member of the United Nations and 
     signatory to both the Universal Declaration of Human Rights 
     and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights;
       Whereas the United Nations Special Rapporteur on the 
     situation of human rights in Iran has reported that religious 
     minorities, including Nematullahi Sufi Muslims, Sunnis, 
     Baha'is, and Christians, face human rights violations in 
     Iran;
       Whereas in recent years, there has been a significant 
     increase in the number of incidents of Iranian authorities 
     raiding religious services, detaining worshippers and 
     religious leaders, and harassing and threatening members of 
     religious minorities;
       Whereas the United Nations Special Rapporteur on the 
     situation of human rights in Iran has reported that Iranian 
     intelligence officials are known to threaten Christian 
     converts with arrest and apostasy charges if they do not 
     return to Islam;
       Whereas the Department of State's most recent report on 
     International Religious Freedom, released on September 13, 
     2011, states that Iran's ``laws and policies severely 
     restrict freedom of religion,'' and notes ``government 
     imprisonment, harassment, intimidation, and discrimination 
     based on religious beliefs'' including ``death sentences for 
     apostasy or evangelism'';
       Whereas in October 2009, Youcef Nadarkhani, an Iranian 
     Christian, protested an Iranian law that would impose Islam 
     on his Christian children;
       Whereas in September 2010, an Iranian court accused Youcef 
     Nadarkhani of abandoning the Islamic faith of his ancestors, 
     and condemned him to death for apostasy;
       Whereas the Iranian court sentenced Youcef Nadarkhani to 
     death by hanging;
       Whereas on December 5, 2010, Youcef Nadarkhani appealed his 
     conviction and sentence to the Supreme Revolutionary Court in 
     Qom, Iran, and the court held that if it could be proven that 
     he was a practicing Muslim in adulthood, his death sentence 
     should be carried out unless he recants his Christian faith 
     and adopts Islam;
       Whereas from September 25 to September 28, 2011, an Iranian 
     court held hearings to determine if Youcef Nadarkhani was a 
     practicing Muslim in adulthood, and held that he had 
     abandoned the faith of his ancestors and must be sentenced to 
     death if he does not recant his faith;
       Whereas on numerous occasions the judiciary of Iran offered 
     to commute Youcef Nadarkhani's sentence if he would recant 
     his faith;
       Whereas numerous Government of Iran officials have 
     attempted to coerce Youcef Nadarkhani to recant his Christian 
     faith and accept Islam in exchange for his freedom;
       Whereas Youcef Nadarkhani continues to refuse to recant his 
     faith;
       Whereas the Government of Iran continues to indefinitely 
     imprison Youcef Nadarkhani for choosing to practice 
     Christianity; and
       Whereas the United Nations Special Rapporteur on the 
     situation of human rights in Iran has reported that, at the 
     time of his report, on October 19, 2011, Iran had secretly 
     executed 146 people during that calendar year, and in 2010, 
     Iran secretly executed more than 300 people: Now, therefore, 
     be it
       Resolved, That the House of Representatives--
       (1) condemns the Government of Iran for its ongoing and 
     systemic violations of the human rights of the Iranian 
     people, including the state-sponsored persecution of 
     religious minorities in Iran, and its continued failure to 
     uphold its international obligations, including with respect 
     to the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the 
     International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights;
       (2) calls for the Government of Iran to exonerate and 
     immediately and unconditionally release Youcef Nadarkhani and 
     all other individuals held or charged on account of their 
     religious or political beliefs;
       (3) calls on the Administration to designate additional 
     Iranian officials, as appropriate, for human rights abuses 
     pursuant to section 105 of the Comprehensive Iran Sanctions, 
     Accountability, and Divestment Act of 2010 (Public Law 111 
     195); and
       (4) reaffirms that freedom of religious belief and practice 
     is a universal human right and a fundamental individual 
     freedom that every government must protect and must never 
     abridge.

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


                             General Leave

  Mr. PITTS. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may 
have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks and 
include extraneous material on this measure.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the 
gentleman from Pennsylvania?
  There was no objection.
  Mr. PITTS. I yield myself such time as I may consume.
  Mr. Speaker, I want to thank the leaders on both sides of the aisle 
for allowing this resolution to come to the floor so promptly.
  Article 18 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights reads:

       Everyone has the right to freedom of thought, conscience 
     and religion; this right includes freedom to change his 
     religion or belief, and freedom, either alone or in community 
     with others and in public or private, to manifest his 
     religion or belief in teaching, practice, worship and 
     observance.

  Iran was one of the original signers of the declaration and has not 
removed their country from the agreement, even through changes in 
government.
  In October of 2009, Youcef Nadarkhani was alarmed to find out that 
his children were being forced to participate in Islamic religious 
instruction at their local school.
  Pastor Youcef had no radical reaction to this revelation. Indeed, he 
only went to the school and asked that his children be granted their 
rights under the Iranian Constitution to freedom of religion. These 
rights explicitly include parents' rights to bring up children under 
the religious teaching of the family.
  For the crime of asking that his rights be respected, Pastor Youcef 
was summoned to a tribunal. There he was arrested and charged with 
unlawful protesting. This charge was later changed to apostasy.
  After almost a year in prison, Pastor Youcef was convicted and 
sentenced to death. A panel of judges demanded that he recant his 
faith. When confronted with this demand, Pastor Youcef stated, ``I 
cannot.''
  While it is difficult to peer past the gates of an Iranian prison, we 
have some evidence that there has been continued pressure on Pastor 
Youcef to recant and that there may have been attempts to trap him into 
blaspheming Islam. Despite this pressure, he has remained faithful.
  With our religious freedom protected by the First Amendment, it is 
difficult for any of us to imagine what Pastor Youcef has been going 
through, torn away from his children and family, placed in a high-
security prison, with the likely outcome being the hangman's noose.
  Today, we're not asking Iran to respect our laws or our conventions. 
We're asking them to abide by the agreements at the United Nations that 
they have signed on to.
  The authorities in Iran are not proud of sentencing Pastor Youcef to 
death. Indeed, the Iranian Government doesn't even want their own 
people to

[[Page H1088]]

know that Pastor Youcef has been charged for practicing his religion. 
State media have actually reported that he is charged with rape and 
extortion, not apostasy.
  Millions of Iranians are members of a minority religious group. Sunni 
Muslims, Christians, Jews, and Zoroastrians are all proud to call Iran 
home. They want to live in peace with their neighbors, and they want to 
follow the law, but they cannot do so when their faith is under 
assault.
  This evening, I'm proud that we have bipartisan support for this 
resolution. I'm proud to join with Representative Keith Ellison on this 
resolution. We stand together tonight in support of basic human rights, 
and we appeal to the highest authorities in Iran to spare the life of 
Youcef Nadharkani.
  Please let this father return to his wife and his children. Further 
still, let the Iranian people freely practice their faith. Stand by 
your commitments to your people and to the world.
  With that, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. HIGGINS. I yield myself as much time as I may consume.
  Mr. Speaker, I rise in strong support of this important resolution. I 
would like to join my colleagues in calling for the immediate release 
of Youcef Nadarkhani and all of the other individuals who are held or 
charged on account of their religion.
  I would also like to send a message to Pastor Youcef's family. Please 
know that the United States stands behind you, and we will do all we 
can to see that Youcef is set free.
  Mr. Speaker, it is difficult to comprehend in this day and age that 
there are nations in which one is not free to practice the religion of 
their choosing. And in Iran, freedom of religion is not the only right 
Iranian citizens are denied. The Iranian regime also continues to 
maintain severe restrictions on freedom of expression, association, and 
assembly.
  Tehran maintains strict control over domestic and international 
media, aimed at reducing Iranians' contact with the outside world. And 
individuals and groups risk arrest, torture, imprisonment for political 
protesting or cooperating with foreign human rights organizations.

                              {time}  1950

  Women's and minority rights activists and other human rights 
defenders, lawyers, journalists, and students are regularly arrested 
and harassed. Once imprisoned, detainees are ill-treated and tortured. 
These are just a few examples of the repressive tactics of the Iranian 
regime. We must continue to speak out against these injustices and call 
on our friends and allies to do the same.
  Mr. Speaker, once again, I ask Iran to immediately release Pastor 
Youcef and end its State-sponsored persecution of religious minorities.
  I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. PITTS. Mr. Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to a champion of human 
rights, the gentleman from Alabama (Mr. Aderholt), chairman of the 
Appropriations Subcommittee on Homeland Security and a member of the 
Helsinki Commission.
  Mr. ADERHOLT. I want to thank my colleague, the gentleman from 
Pennsylvania, for his work on this in authoring this resolution. I 
think, as Mr. Pitts mentioned, both sides of the aisle have worked 
together on this issue. I know many times the American people get 
frustrated with what goes on here in Washington, but this is a time 
when Democrats and Republicans have come together, Mr. Speaker, and 
worked together, and I think this is certainly a crucial thing that 
we're doing tonight.
  Few times, Mr. Speaker, do Members of Congress have the opportunity 
to work on life-and-death issues. I would tell my colleagues tonight, 
Mr. Speaker, tonight is one of those issues.
  As has already been said by Mr. Pitts, this is an issue where a 
pastor, Pastor Youcef Nadarkhani, is in prison because of his belief.
  There are few things in life that a government can provide for its 
citizens that's more important than religious expression and a simple 
ability to worship as one chooses. That is why the support of this 
resolution tonight is so important, House Resolution 556.
  We would ask that the people of this country, Mr. Speaker, would 
remember not only Pastor Youcef but other citizens of Iran and other 
countries around the world that sit in the same position as Pastor 
Youcef does.
  But tonight, we focus on Pastor Youcef. We ask the leadership in Iran 
to set aside this ruling and release Pastor Youcef, and also that he 
can be reunited with his wife and his two young boys who are there in 
Iran.
  Thank you, Mr. Speaker, for the opportunity to speak tonight. I urge 
my colleagues to support this resolution.
  Mr. HIGGINS. Mr. Speaker, I yield 5 minutes to the gentleman from 
Minnesota (Mr. Ellison).
  Mr. ELLISON. Mr. Speaker, tonight we come together, Republicans, 
Democrats, Muslims, Christians, and Jews, to stand for a very simple 
idea, and that idea is that it ought to be the case that a person can 
freely profess their faith. It ought to be the case that no matter what 
your religion is, it's dear to you, and you should not be punished for 
professing it publicly wherever you are.
  You know, I have not really sought out a lot of attention for my own 
faith, but I got some of it anyway, and the fact is that I feel so 
privileged to be an American where I can, for the first time ever, when 
I was sworn in, use a book of my faith.
  As I heard about the story of Pastor Youcef, I thought to myself, 
wow, you know, here I am a Muslim in a Christian majority country free 
to swear in on a Koran when I came to Congress, and there he is a 
Christian facing the death penalty simply for professing his faith.
  Pastor Youcef, he's a husband, he's a father. He has two young 
children. They're not even teenagers. They're 7 and 9 years old. I know 
they must be incredibly proud of their father, who would stand up 
against forces of repression that would kill him simply because he 
professed his faith in Christianity. It's wrong. I don't say it as an 
American only, I say it as a citizen of this small planet we live on, 
that every human being should be able to worship and seek the divine as 
they see fit.
  Pastor Youcef deserves to be free. Pastor Youcef must be released. 
Pastor Youcef needs to walk out of that prison, grab his cross, go to 
his church, and lead his congregation in prayer, freely. He should be 
able to do it in his hometown in a local church.
  All of us, no matter who you may be on this planet, you must stand 
for that idea, because if it can't be for one, it can't really be for 
any. We have to stand together, people of all faiths, all cultures, and 
all backgrounds and ethnicities and say that the right to seek the 
divine as you see fit must be an essential component of the human 
experience.
  I also say a word of caution, and that is that the regime in Iran 
uses opportunities to deprive the people of human rights whenever they 
claim that there's a threat of war looming. I urge diplomacy because I 
think that whenever they can claim that they are under military threat, 
this allows them to crack down on any dissenter and try to use people 
like Pastor Youcef as an example so that other people will not freely 
express themselves and claim their God-given right not only to freedom 
of faith but to freedom of expression, the right to a fair trial.
  You know, we come together in this place, this Congress that we're 
all in, and sometimes we debate taxes, and sometimes we debate where 
bridges should go, and we debate all kinds of stuff. But I pray that 
there will never be a debate about the simple right of every individual 
to worship and see God as they see fit or not to.
  I just am particularly saddened when I think about how the early 
Muslim community, and Iran professes Islam, but early Muslims, the 
first Muslims were persecuted in their home of Mecca 1,400 years ago, 
and they fled their country, and they sought out their freedom of their 
faith in a distant land ruled by a Christian king in Ethiopia, and 
there they found sanctuary under that Christian king.
  When their prosecutors and tormentors crossed the Red Sea and came 
into Africa and went to that king with bribes and said, Give us these 
people back, they're renegades, that Christian king listened to those 
early Muslims and said, You know what? These people are under my 
protection. You can go home.

[[Page H1089]]

  I only wish tonight Pastor Youcef could get a return of that 
sanctuary in his own land.
  Mr. PITTS. Mr. Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from 
Virginia (Mr. Forbes), chairman of the Armed Services Subcommittee on 
Readiness.
  Mr. FORBES. Mr. Speaker, I first want to compliment Congressman Pitts 
and Congressman Ellison for their leadership in this matter and to 
recognize tonight, Mr. Speaker, as we go through our busy lives, we 
often take for granted the privilege of living in a Nation that's 
governed by Founders who realized there were a set of rights so 
fundamental, so much at the core of life itself that they could not 
come from any State or any government but had to come from the hands of 
the Creator of life himself.
  At the center of these rights, some would say the foundation of them, 
is the freedom of religion. As we travel around the world and see other 
citizens who do not have these rights, we may be saddened or even 
angered, but when the government of any nation of the world is so 
dangerous to the lives of its citizens that it's willing to rob one of 
those citizens of life itself merely because he will not recant his 
faith, we not only feel sadness and anger, but also fear.
  Tonight, the citizens of Iran should be afraid of such an oppressive 
and dangerous government. Tonight, the neighbors of Iran should be 
afraid of such an oppressive and dangerous government.

                              {time}  2000

  Tonight, the citizens of the world should be afraid of such an 
oppressive and dangerous government.
  They should condemn this government for its actions. They should 
stand with this pastor, and they should join hearts with people of all 
faiths around the world to pray for his life and his safety.
  Every Member of this body should adopt this resolution.
  Mr. HIGGINS. Mr. Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the gentleman from New 
Jersey (Mr. Andrews).
  (Mr. ANDREWS asked and was given permission to revise and extend his 
remarks.)
  Mr. ANDREWS. I thank my friend for yielding and my friends from 
Pennsylvania and Minnesota for sponsoring this bill.
  Tonight, we stand united and strong for the release of Pastor Youcef. 
Although the legal case for his release is overwhelming, as Mr. Pitts 
has outlined, we do not rely on the law in our plea. Though our 
political convictions shared among everyone on both sides of the aisle 
I believe here are deep, our appeal is not based on politics. Instead, 
our appeal is based on the ineffable human quality of the loving bond 
between a parent and his children.
  Whether one worships in a mosque, a temple, a church, a synagogue, or 
some other forum not known to us, whether one chooses not to worship at 
all, whether one lives on any of the continents of the world, practices 
any of the political ideologies of the world, is there not a common 
bond among those who feel the overwhelming love when they first hold 
their daughter or their son?
  Is there not a common bond among those who feel the anxiety of 
worrying whether a sick child will be healed?
  Is there not a common bond of the immense pride that a mother or a 
father feels when their children achieve some hard-fought goal?
  Is there not a common bond of the empty and hurtful feeling that 
people know that someday they will have to depart from the children 
they love so dearly?
  That day is coming all too soon for Pastor Youcef if those who are 
mothers and fathers, who are his captors, do not consider that 
ineffable human bond.
  This is a man who tonight sits in prison awaiting execution because 
he loved his children enough to insist that they be free to worship as 
he and his family thought they ought to worship. This is labeled as 
``apostasy.'' The act of his arrest and impending execution is a 
monstrous act of inhumanity.
  We do not appeal to the law, though it is on our side. We do not deal 
from political consensus, although I believe it exists in and out of 
this country. Our appeal is based on the simple, ineffable quality that 
parents have an innate right to love their children. This man has been 
deprived of this right. That deprivation should not exist for another 
hour, another day, another moment.
  We will stand strong and united in calling for the humane release of 
Pastor Youcef, and we pray tonight that that wish will be granted by 
his captors, who must understand that they have that same ineffable 
love.
  Mr. PITTS. I would like to inquire of the gentleman if he is prepared 
to yield back. I am prepared to close.
  Mr. HIGGINS. Mr. Speaker, I have no further requests for time, and I 
yield back the balance of my time.
  Mr. PITTS. I yield myself the balance of my time.
  Tonight, as Pastor Youcef sits in prison, awaiting a hangman's noose, 
I want him to know and the people of Iran to know and the people of the 
world to know that we stand with him. Our thoughts and our prayers are 
with him.
  I would say to those international guests who might watch this 
telecast that you will never understand America until you understand 
that, in our Constitution, the very First Amendment contains the 
freedom of religion, not the freedom from religion. It contains the 
freedom of religion. It is not our Second, our Sixth, our 16th, or our 
26th Amendment. It is our First Amendment. It is the first thing 
mentioned in the First Amendment--the freedom of religion: Congress 
shall not act to establish a religion and shall not prohibit the free 
exercise thereof. That comes before the freedom of the press or speech 
or assembly or petition of grievances.
  If you want to understand America, you must understand this basic 
belief that the Americans have in the right of the freedom of religion.
  So we ask, we implore, the authorities in Iran: free Pastor Youcef. 
Keep faith with the documents you've signed. Free him. Return him to 
his family.
  I urge support, Mr. Speaker, of the Members for House Resolution 556.
  With that, I yield back the balance of my time.
  Mr. SMITH of New Jersey. Mr. Speaker, a young Christian pastor sits 
today in prison in Iran--separated from his wife and young children, 
facing the death penalty--because he will not lie about his beliefs. He 
will not lie even to save himself.
  He will not lie even to spare his family suffering. He is a man of 
extraordinary conviction. A man of decision. A man who knows what he 
believes. Youcef Nadarkhani will follow his conscience though it cost 
him everything.
  Iranian courts have repeatedly asked him, on pain of death, to reject 
his Christian faith and say that he believes in Islam. He responds, ``I 
cannot.''
  The resolution (H. Res. 556) on the floor this evening is not an 
attempt to say which religion is right. Rather, this is a resolution 
that affirms that Youcef Nadarkhani has the God-given right--even the 
responsibility--to believe as his conscience directs him.
  No human government should interfere.
  Iran is a member of the United Nations and signatory to both the 
Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the International Covenant on 
Civil and Political Rights. Both documents affirm that that every 
individual has ``the right to freedom of thought, conscience and 
religion,'' which includes the ``freedom to change his religion or 
belief, and freedom, either alone or in community with others and in 
public or private, to manifest his religion or belief in teaching, 
practice, worship and observance;''
  Under international law voluntarily agreed to by Iran, Youcef 
Nadarkhani has the right to change his religion.
  He was free to change from Islam to Christianity. He is free to 
change back.
  But the government of Iran is NOT free to force him in either 
direction. Iran has made a commitment to leave men like Youcef 
Nadarkhani in peace. This resolution calls on Iran to follow 
international law.
  Iran sets aside seats in its Parliament for Christians and permits 
hundreds of churches to function across the country. And yet it also 
cracks down on religious minorities, falsely seeing them as a security 
threat.
  The most recent U.S. State Department Religious Freedom Report lists 
numerous cases of arrest and detention of Christians, both lay people 
and leaders. For instance:

       On April 11, 2010, government agents arrested 19-year-old 
     Daniel Shahri, a Christian, on the basis of insulting Islam. 
     Shahri was able to contact his parents on April 14, 2010, 
     while being held in a prison in Isfahan. He was released on 
     April 24, 2010 on bail and awaits a trial date . . .

[[Page H1090]]

       On January 8, 2010, the Fars Provincial Ministry of 
     Intelligence detained an unknown number of persons who were 
     reportedly Christians. Under interrogation the detainees gave 
     the names of those leading Christian groups in the area 
     leading to further arrest.
       On December 24, 2009, Pakdasht security forces raided a 
     home-church gathering and arrested the 15 members who were in 
     attendance. All 15 were released in early January with orders 
     to return to sign documents. Upon returning three were 
     rearrested and held until March 17 when they were released . 
     . .

  The report of the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom 
underscores the danger to Muslim converts to Christianity in Iran and a 
recent increase in arrests. This report, issued in May 2011, indicates 
that:

       Since June 2010, more than 250 Christians have been 
     arbitrarily arrested throughout the country. . . . In 
     December 2010 and January 2011 alone, approximately 120 
     Christians were arrested. . . . During the reporting period, 
     the number of incidents of Iranian authorities raiding church 
     services, harassing and threatening church members, and 
     arresting, convicting, and imprisoning worshippers and church 
     leaders has increased significantly. Christians, particularly 
     Evangelical and other Protestants, are subject to harassment, 
     arrests, close surveillance, and imprisonment; many are 
     reported to have fled the country. (emphasis added)

  Tragically, Youcef Nadarkhani is not the only believer in prison. He 
is just the only one we know of who is facing the death penalty for 
apostasy.
  Whatever the political conflicts between the United States and Iran, 
whatever the tensions over weapons--human rights do not change. Iran's 
signature on the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the 
International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights has not changed.
  All nations, including Iran, must respect the consciences and 
religious freedom of their citizens--and not practice religious 
coercion.
  Youcef Nadarkhani is not a political pawn. He is a person--a person 
being prayed for by citizens around the world.
  Tonight, the U.S. Congress stands with him and with all people of 
conscience, calling on the Government of Iran to release him and ensure 
his safety.
  Mr. FRANKS of Arizona. Mr. Speaker, at no other point in recent 
history has it been more crucial for Congress to take action on 
international religious freedom. I would like to deeply thank my 
colleagues, Congressmen Joe Pitts and Keith Ellison, for sponsoring H. 
Res. 556 that addresses religious freedom in Iran. These vital issues 
deserve our immediate attention as we see religious persecution 
escalate internationally: in Iraq, for instance, Assyrian Christians 
were brutally murdered in their church and continue to be directly 
targeted by terrorist organizations; some have even been attacked and 
murdered on their own front doorstep. In China, thousands of Christians 
and Falun Gong practitioners are forced into re-education through labor 
camps while the lawyers that try to defend them are often imprisoned. 
Uygur Muslims and Tibetan Buddhists are targeted as separatists because 
of their faith.
  Mr. Speaker, commitment to religious freedom is not just for one 
faith community but for people of all confessions throughout the world 
and across political lines. Religious freedom is not only for Americans 
or Christians or Republicans or Democrats, it is a sacred right for all 
humanity. The U.N. Declaration of Human Rights, of which Iran is a 
signatory, allows for the ``right to freedom of thought, conscience and 
religion'' and this right includes the freedom to change religion or 
belief. I would like to note that Pastor Yousef was imprisoned and 
charged with apostasy in direct violation with the international 
standards that Iran had accepted. The fundamental right of religious 
freedom, furthermore, is enshrined in Iran's Constitution in Articles 
13, 14, and 23.
  Mr. Speaker, the Pitts-Ellison resolution condemns the Iranian 
government, one of the most horrific perpetrators of religious freedom 
violations, for its repression of religious minorities. It focuses, in 
particular, on the case of Pastor Yousef Nadarkhani, a Christian with 
the Church of Iran denomination, who faces imminent execution for his 
faith. Pastor Yousef's arrest and imprisonment resulted from 
questioning the mandate from the government of Iran that all school 
children be taught Islamic teachings.
  Mr. Speaker, one of the most precious rights parents can have is 
having the freedom to educate their own children and bring up their 
children the way they believe is best for their family. Pastor Yousef 
was not given this foundational right to instill in his children a 
respect for freedom of religion and conscience. As the author of The 
Children's Hope Act, I know how critical it is for parents to make 
their own independent decisions about the education of their children. 
No parent should have to face death, as is the situation for Pastor 
Yousef, just for asking his government to grant him freedom of 
religion, even if that freedom of religion was narrowly defined to the 
freedom to educate and practice his faith in his own home.
  Mr. Speaker, the case of Pastor Yousef is only one of many other 
deplorable religious freedom cases in Iran. A close personal friend of 
Pastor Yousef and a member of the Council of Elders for the Church of 
Iran described the egregious situation for Christians in the Middle 
East as strikingly similar to ``the final decision in Germany,'' when 
the Nazis religiously and racially ``cleansed'' German society of the 
Jews. This elder ended by saying that the ``international reaction [to 
the religious cleansing in the Middle East] is also like the time of 
Hitler. They waited and didn't react until it was too late.'' In Iran, 
at least 285 Christians were arrested during the first half of 2011 
without reaction.
  Mr. Speaker, one such case of the silently persecuted is Masoud 
Delijani, a school teacher in Kermanshah, Iran, who was arrested by 
plain clothes intelligence officers in March 2011. He was arrested, 
together with his wife and nine other Christian converts, when they had 
gathered in a house church for a service. He was held in solitary 
confinement and was severely pressured both mentally and physically. 
The court eventually charged him with having faith in Christianity and 
for holding illegal house church gatherings.
  Mr. Speaker, the Revolutionary Court of Kermanshah province recently 
sentenced Masoud Delijani to three years in prison. Sources report that 
his trial was anything but fair: he was denied the right to choose his 
own advocate or defend himself against the charges levied. Masoud 
Delijani is now being held in Deizal-Abad prison of Kermanshah to serve 
his three-year prison sentence. The central prison of Kermanshah is 
described as horrendous and sickening by knowledgeable sources.
  Mr. Speaker, the cases described above would largely go unnoticed and 
the persecuted would be forced to suffer if we are silent. Given our 
own freedoms in America and the responsibility to represent the 
concerns of our constituents who are concerned with the suffering of 
persons and families abroad, I believe we have a personal 
responsibility to stand up for justice and support those who are 
persecuted. I would also urge other world leaders to not wait to speak 
out on behalf of Pastor Yousef and his universal right of religious 
freedom until it is too late.
  Mr. Speaker, Alexander Hamilton, one of the architects of our 
Republic, said, ``The sacred rights of mankind are not to be rummaged 
for among old parchments or musty records. They are written, as with a 
sunbeam, in the whole volume of human nature, by the hand of the 
divinity itself; and can never be erased.''
  Mr. Speaker, may the right of religious freedom touch those around 
the world and persons of all faiths, and may future generations walk in 
the sunlight of that most inalienable and universal freedom.
  Mr. BERMAN. Mr. Speaker, I rise in strong support of H. Res. 556, 
which condemns the Government of Iran for its persecution, 
imprisonment, and sentencing to death of Pastor Youcef Nadarkhani.
  Pastor Youcef is a 34-year old father of two who was arrested over 
two years ago for the crime of converting from Islam to Christianity. 
In October 2009 he was tried and found guilty of apostasy--and 
sentenced to death-by-hanging. More recently, the Iranian Supreme Court 
upheld the sentence.
  Iranian law requires that a man accused of apostasy be given three 
chances to recant his beliefs and return to Islam. Pastor Youcef was 
given his three chances. In every instance, Youcef refused. Nothing, 
not even the threat of death, would discourage him from remaining true 
to his faith. He proved himself as religiously committed as he is 
physically, and morally, courageous.
  Mr. Speaker, last September President Obama said, Pastor Nadarkhani 
has done nothing more than maintain his devout faith, which is a 
universal right for all people. . . . A decision to impose the death 
penalty would further demonstrate the Iranian authorities' utter 
disregard for religious freedom, and highlight Iran's continuing 
violation of the universal rights of its citizens.
  Mr. Speaker, the resolution before us condemns the Government of Iran 
for its state-sponsored persecution of religious minorities and for its 
repression of freedom of thought and of religion, and calls for the 
immediate release of Youcef Nadarkhani and of all other individuals 
held or charged on account of their religion.
  The House of Representatives should stand in solidarity with Pastor 
Youcef. I encourage all of my colleagues to support this important 
resolution.
  Mr. WOLF. Mr. Speaker, I rise in strong support of H. Res. 556, a 
resolution condemning the government of Iran for its ongoing repression 
of religious minorities, including 34-year-old Pastor Youcef 
Nadarkhani. I was an original cosponsor of this resolution, and

[[Page H1091]]

thank my friend Congressman Pitts for introducing this important 
legislation.
  Just this past week, Iranian authorities renewed an order of 
execution for Christian Pastor Youcef Nadarkhani, a young father of 
two. Pastor Nadarkhani was originally arrested in 2009 for protesting 
the teaching of Islam at the public school that his children attended. 
He was later charged with apostasy which carried a much more severe 
penalty. Since 2009 he has been subjected to repeated attempts to 
coerce him to recant his faith--which he has courageously refused to 
do. Rather, Pastor Nadarkhani's perseverance in the face of this 
injustice is a source of great inspiration. In a 2010 letter from 
prison, he wrote that the true believer, ``does not need to wonder for 
the fiery trial that has been set on for him as though it were 
something unusual, but it pleases him to participate in Christ's 
suffering. Because the believer knows he will rejoice in his glory.''
  Indeed, Pastor Youcef has faced a ``fiery trial.'' And now, according 
to a February 22 Fox New story, the latest developments mean that 
Pastor Youcef may be ``executed at any time without prior warning, as 
death sentences in Iran may be carried out immediately or dragged out 
for years.''
  Pastor Youcef's case is just the latest example of Iran's attacks on 
basic human rights, including freedom of religion. In recent years, 
there has been a significant increase in Iran in acts of repression and 
discrimination against religious minorities including Bahai's and 
Christians. These actions show a continuing disregard by Iranian 
authorities for the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, the 
International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights as well as its own 
constitution.
  In addition to supporting this resolution condemning Iran for these 
shocking and flagrant violations of fundamental freedoms, I call on the 
government of Iran to immediately and unconditionally release Pastor 
Youcef Nadarkhani.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is on the motion offered by the 
gentleman from Pennsylvania (Mr. Pitts) that the House suspend the 
rules and agree to the resolution, H. Res. 556, 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. PITTS. 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, further 
proceedings on this question will be postponed.

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