[Congressional Record Volume 160, Number 142 (Wednesday, November 19, 2014)]
[House]
[Pages H8106-H8110]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
CONDEMNING IRAN FOR HUMAN RIGHTS VIOLATIONS
Mr. ROYCE. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and agree to the
resolution (H. Res. 754) condemning the Government of Iran for its
gross human rights violations.
The Clerk read the title of the resolution.
The text of the resolution is as follows:
H. Res. 754
Whereas Iran is a member of the United Nations and a
signatory to both the Universal Declaration of Human Rights
and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights,
among other international human rights treaties, without
reservation;
Whereas in violation of these and other international
obligations, officials of the Government of Iran continue to
perpetrate gross violations of the fundamental human rights
of the Iranian people;
Whereas Iranian women are increasingly subject to heinous
acid attacks, either condoned by, or sponsored by, the
Government of Iran, through the Basij and other vigilante
groups;
Whereas the Parliament of Iran recently enacted a law
providing legal protection to private citizens to enforce a
strict Islamic dress code and other behavior prescribed under
Sharia law, emboldening the Basij and other vigilante groups;
Whereas the Government of Iran ``manipulates the electoral
process'', according to the United States Department of
State's Country Reports on Human Rights Practices for 2013,
``severely limit[ing] citizens' right to change their
government peacefully through free and fair elections'';
Whereas following voting irregularities that resulted in
the election of President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, the Government
of Iran brutally suppressed peaceful political dissent from
wide segments of civil society during the Green Revolution in
2009 in a cynical attempt to retain its undemocratic grip on
power;
Whereas the Government of Iran has kept the principal
leaders of the Green Revolution, Mir Hussein Moussavi and
Mehdi Karroubi, under house arrest since February 2011;
Whereas the United States Department of State consistently
finds that Iranian authorities have ``limited freedom of
association through threats, intimidation, the imposition of
arbitrary requirements on organizations, and the arrests of
group leaders and members'';
Whereas the United States Department of State's Virtual
Embassy Tehran website highlights human rights violations and
abuses in Iran on a weekly basis;
Whereas the Government of Iran continues to restrict
freedom of speech and peaceful assembly, particularly for
journalists and human rights activists;
Whereas the United Nations Special Rapporteur on the
Situation of Human Rights in the Islamic Republic of Iran
found in its August 2014 report that the laws and policies of
the Government of Iran ``continue to place overly broad
restrictions on the rights to freedom of expression and
access to information'', including ``severe content
restrictions, intimidation and prosecution of Internet users
and limitations on Internet access through throttling and
filtering'';
Whereas the ability of religious freedom and human rights
activists to freely express themselves, and mobilize civil
society, is actively thwarted by the Government of Iran;
Whereas the Special Rapporteur found that the Government of
Iran continues to apply capital punishment to offenders
convicted of crimes below the international human rights law
threshold of ``most serious crimes''; political prisoners;
and juvenile offenders, including 8 individuals in 2014
believed to be
[[Page H8107]]
less than 18 years of age at the time of their alleged
crimes;
Whereas Iranian women continue to face legal and societal
discrimination, as well as rampant domestic violence, which
is not specifically prohibited under domestic law;
Whereas, on October 25, 2014, Iranian authorities executed
Reyhaneh Jabbari, an Iranian woman convicted of killing a man
she said she stabbed in self-defense during a sexual assault,
an execution preceded by the lack of due process, including a
reported forced confession;
Whereas the United States Department of State issued a
statement condemning Jabbari's execution and calling on Iran
to ``respect the fair trial guarantees afforded to its people
under Iran's own laws and its international obligations'';
Whereas the United States Commission on International
Religious Freedom found in its 2014 Annual Report that the
Government of Iran ``continues to engage in systematic,
ongoing, and egregious violations of religious freedom,
including prolonged detention, torture, and executions based
primarily or entirely upon the religion of the accused'';
Whereas the Government of Iran persecutes such religious
minority groups as the Baha'is, Christians, Sufi, Sunni, and
dissenting Shi'a Muslims (such as imprisoned Ayatollah
Hossein Kazemeyni Boroujerdi) through harassment, arrests,
and imprisonment, during which detainees have routinely been
beaten, tortured, and killed;
Whereas since 1999, the United States Department of State
has repeatedly designated Iran as a ``country of particular
concern'' for severe violations of religious freedom pursuant
to the International Religious Freedom Act of 1998 (Public
Law 105-292), most recently on July 28, 2014;
Whereas the Government of Iran has long persecuted with
particular intensity the Baha'i community, the largest non-
Muslim religious minority in Iran, who number at least
300,000, and are viewed as ``heretics'', and therefore are
subjected to repression on the grounds of apostasy;
Whereas according to the United States Commission on
International Religious Freedom, since 1979, Iranian
authorities have killed or executed more than 200 Baha'i
leaders;
Whereas ordinary Iranian citizens who belong to the Baha'i
faith are disproportionately targeted, interrogated, and
detained under the pretext of national security;
Whereas senior governmental, military, and public security
officials in Iran are responsible for ordering, controlling,
and committing gross human rights violations that, in many
cases, represent national policies of the Iranian regime;
Whereas the United States Department of the Treasury,
pursuant to section 413 of the Iran Threat Reduction and
Syria Human Rights Act of 2012 (22 U.S.C. 8753), issued a
General License in September 2013 to permit the exportation
of services and the transfer of funds for activities related
to human rights and democracy building projects in Iran,
which facilitate United States nongovernmental organizations'
activities that increase Iranian access to information and
freedom of expression;
Whereas since 2010, the United States Department of the
Treasury, in consultation with the United States Department
of State, has sanctioned 19 Iranian officials and 18 Iranian
entities for their involvement or complicity in serious human
rights abuses or in restricting the freedom of expression or
assembly of the Iranian people;
Whereas the most recent designation was for Morteza
Tamaddom, former Governor-General of Tehran Province,
designated May 23, 2014, under Executive Order 13628 for his
involvement in censorship and other activities that limit the
freedom of expression and freedom of assembly of Iran's
citizens;
Whereas the United States led the effort in the United
Nations Human Rights Council to renew the mandate of the
Special Rapporteur on Iran in order to further expose Iranian
human rights abuses; and
Whereas it is important that the President of the United
States consistently and rigorously exercise the statutory
authorities granted by the Comprehensive Iran Sanctions,
Accountability, and Divestment Act of 2010 and the Iran
Threat Reduction and Syria Human Rights Act of 2012 to impose
sanctions on officials of the Government of Iran and other
individuals directly responsible for human rights abuses,
engaging in censorship, or engaging in the diversion of goods
intended for the people of Iran: Now, therefore, be it
Resolved, That the House of Representatives--
(1) calls on the Government of Iran to abide by all of its
international and domestic obligations with respect to human
rights and civil liberties, including freedoms of assembly,
speech, and press;
(2) deplores the dramatic rise in executions of Iranian
citizens by authorities since the election of President
Hassan Rouhani in June 2013;
(3) condemns, in particular, the recent cruel execution of
Reyhaneh Jabbari, an Iranian woman convicted of killing a man
she said she stabbed in self-defense during a sexual assault;
(4) deplores the Government of Iran's mistreatment of its
religious minorities, including through the deprivation of
life, liberty, and property;
(5) condemns, in particular, the Government of Iran for its
relentless persecution of its Baha'i minority;
(6) calls on the Government of Iran to release all
political prisoners and prisoners of conscience;
(7) notes that the Administration has designated only one
Iranian person for the commission of serious human rights
abuses under the Comprehensive Iran Sanctions,
Accountability, and Divestment Act, as amended, since May 30,
2013;
(8) urges the President to increase the utilization of all
available authorities, including the Comprehensive Iran
Sanctions, Accountability, and Divestment Act of 2010, to
impose sanctions on officials of the Government of Iran and
other individuals directly responsible for serious human
rights abuses, including by freezing those individuals'
assets and barring their entry into the United States;
(9) urges the United States Government to adopt and
implement the following recommendations of the United States
Commission on International Religious Freedom with respect to
Iran--
(A) continue to seek that violations of freedom of religion
or belief and related human rights are part of multilateral
or bilateral discussions with the Government or Iran whenever
possible, and continue to work closely with European and
other allies to apply pressure through a combination of
advocacy, diplomacy, and targeted sanctions;
(B) continue to speak out publicly and frequently at the
highest levels about the severe religious freedom abuses in
Iran, press for and work to secure the release of all
prisoners of conscience, and highlight the need for the
international community to hold authorities accountable in
specific cases; and
(C) continue to call on Iran to cooperate fully with the
United Nations Special Rapporteur on the Human Rights
Situation in Iran, including allowing the Special Rapporteur,
as well as the United Nations Special Rapporteur on Freedom
of Religion or Belief, to visit and continue to support an
annual United Nations General Assembly resolution condemning
severe violations of human rights, including freedom of
religion or belief in Iran and calling for officials
responsible for such violations to be held accountable;
(10) condemns the undemocratic elections process that
denies Iranians the ability to freely choose their own
government; and
(11) stands with the people of Iran who seek the
opportunity to freely elect a government of their choosing.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from
California (Mr. Royce) and the gentleman from New York (Mr. Engel) each
will control 20 minutes.
The Chair recognizes the gentleman from California.
General Leave
Mr. ROYCE. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may
have 5 legislative days to revise and extend their remarks and include
any extraneous material on this resolution.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the
gentleman from California?
There was no objection.
Mr. ROYCE. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
I rise today in support of this resolution, which condemns the
Government of Iran for its gross human rights violations.
This bipartisan resolution, which I have introduced together with my
good friend from New York--the ranking member of the Foreign Affairs
Committee, Eliot Engel--comes at a very important moment. The
administration, together with the world's powers, is seeking a
diplomatic solution to Iran's nuclear program. We all want this
outcome, though, at this point, it is unclear how an agreement that is
in the long-term national security interests of the United States can
be reached.
One thing is clear: we can have no illusions about the true nature of
the Iranian regime. The history of rogue regimes teaches us that the
manner in which these governments treat their own people is a pretty
good indicator of how they will treat their neighbors and of whether
they will abide by international agreements. This is a regime that has
systematically violated the fundamental human rights of large segments
of Iranian society since embarking upon the Revolution that brought it
to power in 1979. It is a regime that rules by force, preventing the
people of Iran from choosing their own government.
The world saw the undemocratic nature of this regime back in 2009
when millions of Iranians took to the streets to peacefully protest a
stolen election. Not many are going to forget the images of the young
girl bleeding to death in the capital city there, and today, the
leaders of the Green Revolution opposition movement are confined to
[[Page H8108]]
their homes, they are under house arrest, and, of course, at the time,
thousands were imprisoned, many disappeared, and hundreds were
tortured. It is a regime that has brutally suppressed the voice of
human rights activists and journalists and religious minorities. But
what I want to focus on today is the plight of women, who, in
particular, face heinous treatment.
Recently, the parliament in Iran enacted a law. What they were
responding to were acid attacks that had occurred because young men in
this Basij militia had taken it on their own responsibility to go up to
women who were uncovered and throw acid in their faces. The reason for
the enactment of the law--which followed the harassment and arrest of a
human rights activist, a woman who protested the fact that young men
were themselves taking on this responsibility of enacting shari'a law,
and doing it sometimes by motorcycle, driving by and throwing the acid,
sometimes by walking up to the women--was that they were doing this
with impunity. The state, the government, was not coming in. The
argument that these young men were making was, it is shari'a law that
they do this, so this is our enforcement mechanism.
What strikes me is the brutality of the law passed by parliament that
would enact a law providing legal protection to citizens to enforce a
strict Islamic dress code and other behavior prescribed under shari'a
law. In other words, it is cover for these young men. It says if you
are going to go out there and if you are going to enforce the Islamic
revolution, and you are going to do it by throwing acid, you now have
protection under the courts to do it.
This law will embolden these Basij. It will embolden them and other
vigilante groups, who in recent months have prowled the streets of
Iran's cities, conducting these cruel acid attacks on innocent women. I
was going to hold up one of these pictures today, but I thought better
of it. I think what we should do is appeal to reason here and make an
appeal to the parliament in Iran and say, Reverse this law. Reverse
this act. You are only going to encourage more acid attacks.
Let me underscore this point: today, Iranian women face the terror of
knowing that state-sanctioned vigilantes may attack them by dousing
them with corrosive acid, disfiguring them and blinding them. This is
an unspeakable reality there. In 2014, the women of Iran, frankly, are
under siege, not by an external force but by their own theocratic
government. This is not the history of Cyrus the Great. Iran was the
home of the first human rights document thousands of years ago. That
was Persian culture. What is this?
We who live in freedom have a moral responsibility to condemn this
brutal regime and insist that it treat its people with the dignity and
respect that they deserve. This resolution stands for the principle
that U.S. foreign policy can and must pursue strategic objectives like
the dismantling of Iran's nuclear program while promoting the
importance of democracy and human rights. Ultimately, the best chance
for a peaceful Iran is a democratic Iran. These two go hand in hand.
I reserve the balance of my time.
Mr. ENGEL. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
I rise in strong support of H. Res. 754, a resolution condemning the
Government of Iran for its gross human rights violations.
When President Hassan Rouhani was elected in June 2013, he came to
office with a reputation as a so-called ``moderate.'' Some hoped that
the human rights situation inside Iran would improve. A year later, we
know that was a false hope. In fact, on so many fronts, things have
gotten worse.
It is interesting when people say Rouhani is a moderate. No moderates
were allowed to run for President in the Iranian election. There were
six hard-liners at the end who were allowed to run. Rouhani may be the
most moderate of those six hard-liners, but he is still a hard-liner,
and I think we are seeing it time and time and time again. In fact, we
don't even really know that he has the power to make decisions. Supreme
Leader Khamenei is the one who really makes all of those decisions. So,
while we can hope for certain things, I think we have to deal with
things, unfortunately, as they are and not as we wish they were.
For example, Iranian authorities have dramatically escalated the
number of executions of Iranian citizens. This is from the so-called
``moderate'' Rouhani regime. According to the U.N., there were 852
executions between July 2013 and June 2014.
Last month, Iran executed Reyhaneh Jabbari. She was convicted of
killing a man whom she apparently stabbed in self-defense while she was
being sexually assaulted. That evidence wasn't allowed to be a part of
her trial. While she was in prison, awaiting execution, she was
tortured.
We all remember the massive protests, as the chairman mentioned,
after the fraudulent 2009 Iranian elections. We all remember the images
of tens of thousands of Iranians--brave Iranian citizens--taking to the
streets, and we all remember how the Iranian government responded--
sending the Basij militia to brutally beat peaceful protesters. The
leaders of that Green Revolution remain under house arrest to this very
day.
Religious minorities also face constant danger in Iran. This is
especially true for members of the Baha'i faith. The Baha'i people are
frequently detained and interrogated by Iranian security forces. Since
1979, hundreds of Baha'i leaders have been executed.
The United States has helped to shine a light on Iran's human rights
violations. We have pushed the U.N. Human Rights Council to continue
the work of the Special Rapporteur on Iran. Now, I have been one of the
strongest critics of the Human Rights Council and its outrageous bias
against Israel, but this Rapporteur has done important work to reveal
the scale of human rights abuses in Iran.
Since 2010, the administration has sanctioned 19 Iranian officials
and 18 Iranian entities. We have gone after them for their involvement
or complicity in serious human rights abuses or in restricting the
basic freedoms of the Iranian people. I am proud of the role that
Congress has provided in putting forth these sanctions.
The most recent designation was for Morteza Tamaddon. He was the
governor-general of Tehran Province. On May 23 of this year, we singled
him out for his involvement in censorship and other activities that
limit the freedom of expression and the freedom of assembly of Iran's
citizens. This designation occurred even while the P5+1 is negotiating
with Iran on its illicit nuclear program. Even as those negotiations
continue, we cannot and must not turn a blind eye to the horrific
abuses taking place in Iran every single day.
{time} 1600
The resolution we are now considering urges the administration to use
every tool at its disposal to target, expose, and punish those who
violate the human rights of the Iranian people because, at the end of
the day, Mr. Speaker, despite the sharp differences between our
governments, we have no ill will toward the people of Iran, to the
citizens of Iran.
They are, unfortunately, oppressed by a government that calls itself
their government, but it is really a brutal oppressor of the Iranian
people.
On the contrary, I believe the people of our two nations should be
natural friends. Iran would be the natural U.S. ally in the region, but
because of the Iranian regime, this of course cannot happen and will
not happen as long as they are in power.
I hope that this resolution will demonstrate to the people of Iran,
who are our friends--not the government, but the people of Iran--that
we join them in seeking a future for their country based on respect for
democracy, human rights, and the rule of law.
I urge my colleagues to support this resolution.
I thank the chairman, as always, for his cooperation, and I reserve
the balance of my time.
Mr. ROYCE. Mr. Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the gentleman from New
Jersey (Mr. Smith), the chairman of the Foreign Affairs Subcommittee on
Africa, Global Health, Global Human Rights, and International
Organizations.
Mr. SMITH of New Jersey. Mr. Speaker, I rise in strong support of H.
Res. 754, condemning the government of Iran for its gross human rights
violations, authored by my good friend and colleague, Chairman Ed Royce
of California.
[[Page H8109]]
I want to thank him, especially on the eve of the November 24
deadline for the Iranian-U.S. talks on nuclear, as it is very important
to have this discussion on the floor of the House, so your timing as
well as the substance is deeply appreciated by all, especially the
victims of Iran.
Ironically, Iran wants the world to lift sanctions and trust them
with nuclear capabilities, despite ongoing reckless and violent
disregard for even the most basic of human rights of its own citizens,
as well as U.S. citizens.
U.N. special rapporteur for human rights in Iran, Dr. Ahmed Shaheed,
noted in a March 2014 statement that hundreds of individuals remain in
some form of confinement for exercising their basic rights, including
179 Baha'i, 97 Sunni Muslims, 49 Christians, and 14 Dervish Muslims.
Mr. Speaker, it has now been nearly 2\1/2\ years since American
pastor Saeed Abedini has seen or hugged his children, Rebecca and
Jacob, or his wife, Naghmeh; and she has been a tireless advocate on
his behalf. She was back here yesterday on Capitol Hill, pleading for
her husband.
Members will recall that Pastor Abedini was arrested in Iran in
September of 2012. He was in Iran to help orphans. Orphans. He was
arrested while he was there, and he was there with the full knowledge
and consent of the Iranian Government.
I have chaired two congressional hearings on Saeed Abedini. His wife
testified at both, and to hear this noble, brave, and loving wife
present her husband's case brings tears to your eyes.
She testified at a hearing that Frank Wolf had chaired previous to
the two that I had, and you could heard a pin drop when she told her
story and told about the agony that both she and her family--especially
her two young children--experience, knowing that their father has now
been given an 8-year sentence and has been subjected to torture of
many, many kinds.
We are also concerned about Robert Levinson, a retired agent of the
FBI. His daughter lives in my district. That family is in utter agony.
He got 7 years.
Amir Hekmati, a 31-year-old retired U.S. Marine, disappeared while
visiting his grandmother in Iran in 2011. He got 10 years.
Now, recently, Jason Rezaian, a Washington Post reporter, has
disappeared.
Mr. Speaker, this resolution sends a clear message to the Iranians
and to the world that we care about human rights, but I would also ask
that the President of the United States invite to the White House the
family members of these Americans unjustly held captive in Iran and to
ask, petition, push for, and link to our negotiations the release of
these Americans and for a fuller expression of human rights in Iran.
I thank Chairman Royce for yielding the time.
Mr. ENGEL. I reserve the balance of my time.
Mr. ROYCE. Mr. Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the gentleman from
Pennsylvania (Mr. Perry), a member of the Foreign Affairs, Homeland
Security, and Transportation Committees.
Mr. PERRY. Mr. Speaker, I thank Chairman Royce for this legislation,
and I offer my strongest support because, if nothing else, it reminds
us of what the Iranian regime really is at its foundational core, what
its essence is.
With much of today's focus on the prospects of a nuclear deal with
Iran and the potential military cooperation of our Nation with theirs
against ISIS, we absolutely cannot and must not forget the unacceptable
and appalling human rights abuses the Iranian regime commits on a daily
basis.
Just today, a U.N. resolution condemned Iran's numerous human rights
abuses, which include an ``alarmingly high frequency'' of the use of
the death penalty, the persecution and imprisonment of religious and
ethnic minorities, and the suppression of multiple individual freedoms,
and the list just goes on.
Firsthand reports continue to emerge, describing how, of the over 800
documented executions over the past year, 80 percent were for drug
offenses, and legal due process was almost never given to defendants.
We don't even know if the defendants committed any offenses whatsoever.
Also, disturbingly, in 2014 alone, at least eight people under the
age of 18 at the time they allegedly committed their crimes were
executed.
Mr. Speaker, President Hassan Rouhani promised to improve the Iranian
regime's human rights record. Really? Does anybody take that seriously
at all? Realistically, the Iranian regime has only ramped up the
oppression of its citizens.
We absolutely must remain clear-eyed when dealing with this extremist
regime in all accounts, whether it is a nuclear deal, whether it is in
cooperation against ISIS, and certainly when it comes to their human
rights violations.
Mr. ENGEL. I reserve the balance of my time.
Mr. ROYCE. Mr. Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the gentleman from
Florida (Mr. Clawson), a member of the Committee on Foreign Affairs and
the Committee on Homeland Security.
Mr. CLAWSON of Florida. I thank the chairman.
Mr. Speaker, I am here in support of H. Res. 754, and I
wholeheartedly support this resolution, and I commend Chairman Royce
for his important work and leadership on this issue.
Any successful negotiation must be based on mutual trust and respect.
Trusting and respecting the Iranian regime as an equal member of the
world's community of nuclear power producers would be a tragic mistake,
in my view. Iran has not earned our trust or Israel's trust or the
world's trust. For 35 years, Iran has done anything but earn our trust.
It is time for Iran to free Christian pastor Saeed Abedini. Iran's
horrific human rights violations, their state sponsorship of terrorism,
their public condemnations of our own country, and their repeated
denials of Israel's right to exist spell potential disaster here, I am
afraid. Let's not trust the untrustworthy.
This dilemma reminds me of a scorpion and the frog fable that my
friend from Arkansas, Tom Cotton, recently used. A frog is about to
cross a river when he is asked for a ride by a scorpion. Now, the frog
knew that scorpions are poisonous and untrustworthy. He knew that, if
the scorpion stung him on the way across the river, they would both
drown.
When the frog asked for assurance from the scorpion, the scorpion
replied, ``Of course, I won't sting you. If I do, we will both drown.''
Halfway across the river, of course, the scorpion struck, and as they
were both headed for their demise, the frog asked, ``Why did you sting
me?'' The scorpion responded, ``Because it is my nature.''
Even though the frog knew that the safe way to go was to say ``no''
to the scorpion, he caved in, dismissed better judgment, and the result
was tragic.
Let us not repeat the mistake of the frog. We cannot give Iran a free
ride across the Rubicon to nuclear weapons. We must not hand the keys
of nuclear proliferation to a scorpionlike regime that cannot be
trusted.
So what do we do? We can't do a bad deal. We can't walk away, but we
also can't trust Iran. What must Iran do to gain our trust? Treat its
people right. Treat its neighbors right. Treat Israel right, with
dignity and respect. I think we have many rivers to cross before we get
to that state.
As we work on this Iranian nuclear dilemma, which will take years, we
need to see concrete progress toward the civil liberties that have been
mentioned today. They must stop the crimes against humanity exposed in
Chairman Royce's resolution.
To gain our trust, Iran must acknowledge the right of Israel to
exist.
The SPEAKER pro tempore (Mr. Marchant). The time of the gentleman has
expired.
Mr. ROYCE. Mr. Speaker, I yield the gentleman an additional 30
seconds.
Mr. CLAWSON of Florida. I thank the chairman.
Mr. Speaker, in the 1930s, the world trusted a scorpion, thinking
that we had achieved peace in our time, and millions paid the price for
that mistake with their lives. Let's not stand here someday and admit
that we messed up because we trusted an Iranian scorpion.
Mr. ENGEL. Mr. Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from
Minnesota (Mr. Ellison).
Mr. ELLISON. I thank the gentleman from New York for the time.
Mr. Speaker, I have said time and time again that the Iranian
Government must improve the status of
[[Page H8110]]
human rights in their country. Let's not pretend though that this
resolution is taking place at this time outside of any context. There
is a context, and the context is that we are closer than we have ever
been to reaching a peaceful agreement with Iran on nuclear weapons.
I don't know what is going to happen on November 24, and I suspect
the people who do know aren't telling the public just yet, but I do
know that we have made substantial progress and that we are close.
The context is important that we should stand with the people of Iran
and stand for their human rights. I absolutely believe that that is the
right thing to do; therefore, I ask for a ``yes'' vote on this.
I have to ask the question: Is this the most well-timed time for this
resolution? I do worry that we could undermine the negotiations, but
the four corners of this resolution are right, so I am a ``yes'' vote.
I think today's resolution, which highlights the human rights abuses
in Iran, also could be improved if it included words and language about
the best way to bring those abuses to an end.
I believe improving human rights in Iran is much more likely if we
secure a nuclear agreement. The best way to empower human rights
leaders within Iran is to engage, not isolate.
Increased sanctions and the threat of war hurts human rights
activists because it allows the hard-liners in Iran to claim that they
are under imminent threat and, therefore, there is no time or space or
room for human rights. I believe that a nuclear agreement will actually
increase the likelihood for human rights advocacy.
I don't want to see us go back to the days when we talked in terms of
the ``axis of evil.'' It didn't improve the set freedom and security of
Americans or anyone. I liked the fact that we have embarked on the path
of diplomacy.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. The time of the gentleman has expired.
Mr. ENGEL. I yield the gentleman an additional 1 minute.
Mr. ELLISON. President Rouhani has prioritized diplomacy, and I think
this is an important opportunity that we should pursue.
In the final analysis, human rights are what the United States should
always stand for, and we in this Congress should never not stand for
human rights. I am proud that we are clear on human rights in this
resolution.
I simply want to admonish and warn us that taking action that could
undermine very delicate negotiations may not be the best timing that we
have ever pursued and that for the last 30 years--and I hope for the
next 30 years--we will always raise the banner of human rights whenever
and wherever, but I think we should be sensitive of the reality of the
moment that we are in.
Let me just say thank you to the brave souls who stand up for human
rights under very difficult conditions in Iran.
{time} 1615
Mr. ROYCE. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself 2 minutes to respond.
One of the reasons the timing on this is important is because this is
the timing that the Iranian regime has chosen to pass legislation that
would protect those young men in the Basij who carry out these acid
attacks against women. One of the reasons I am bringing this bill to
the floor is because I am concerned about what it tells us about a
regime that, rather than come to the defense of these women who
admittedly were in violation of the dress code in terms of their
facial, in terms of their mode of dress, to allow individuals in a
theocratic country to make the decisions that they are the arbitrator
of what is shari'a law and then to exonerate them by saying it is the
right of the individual to step in against another and enforce shari'a
law rather than have the state do it, this is a theocratic state that
is taking a principle against the individual, against individual
freedom, and especially against rights of women to an extra step that
is so injurious to human liberty, but also the fact that they would do
this now and that they would be so unconcerned that we might not even
respond to this or that the international community would have a
reaction to this, I think it demands a reaction. Because if we do not,
in the court of international opinion, hold them to account for these
kinds of acts in their Parliament, what is the message that is given to
those who are encouraged to further violate women's rights and minority
rights in Iran? That is why I am pushing this bill today.
Mr. Speaker, I had a conversation a little over a week ago with a
group of Iranian American women about their experiences in Iran and
their reaction to this parliamentary act and their reaction to the acid
attacks which are increasing in number to a truly alarming percentage.
There have been over a dozen of these now. So that is why the timing of
the legislation. It is in response to this. In the process, it catalogs
the other abuses that the regime recently has undertaken under
President Rouhani at a time when we thought they might put a different
foot forward to the international community.
Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time to close.
Mr. ENGEL. Mr. Speaker, in closing, I want to send a message of
support to the Iranian people that they build a better future for
themselves and their children. Today this House exposes the gross
violations of human rights by the Iranian regime. The Iranian people
deserve better. Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to support this
resolution.
I yield back the balance of my time.
Mr. ROYCE. Mr. Speaker, there were observers that were tempted to
believe that Iran's President Rouhani would usher in a more tolerant
attitude at home. I think many of us suspected that might be the case
because he did occasionally offer less antagonistic rhetoric than his
predecessor, even if he had had the history he did have in the security
services. But it turns out that was wrong. That assumption was wrong.
In a new report, the U.N. Special Rapporteur has documented an
alarming increase in the number of executions, including political
prisoners, juveniles, and religious minorities, such as the peaceful
Baha'i, since President Rouhani took office in August of 2013. The
motif of this regime is becoming a religious dissident swinging by the
neck from a crane, if you watch the news coming out of Iran.
I won't again articulate my concerns about these acid attacks that
are going on, but this comes, I think, at a time when millions of
Iranians yearn for basic freedoms--basic freedoms--that we in the West
take for granted.
Mr. Speaker, I think it is incumbent upon all of us, as the House is
doing today, to stand with the people of Iran who suffer under this
theocracy and to speak out.
I yield back the balance of my time.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is on the motion offered by the
gentleman from California (Mr. Royce) that the House suspend the rules
and agree to the resolution, H. Res. 754.
The question was taken; and (two-thirds being in the affirmative) the
rules were suspended and the resolution was agreed to.
A motion to reconsider was laid on the table.
____________________