[Congressional Record Volume 164, Number 76 (Thursday, May 10, 2018)]
[Senate]
[Pages S2605-S2607]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
Calling for the Release of Pastor Andrew Brunson
Mr. TILLIS. Mr. President, a couple of weeks ago, I started the first
of what will be a weekly speech to bring attention to what I think is a
travesty of justice occurring in Turkey.
I wish to speak about a pastor, a Presbyterian minister from North
Carolina, who has lived in Turkey for about 20 years and who has done
his very best to respect the laws of Turkey and to bring the Word to
people who want to hear it.
Unfortunately, he has been swept up in a coup. He has been swept up
in the emergency powers of Turkey. He has been in prison for 580 days.
I went to Turkey about 6 weeks ago to visit Pastor Brunson in prison
because I heard that after being in prison for about a year and a
half--and for much of that time in a cell that is designed for 8 people
and had 21 people in it--he was then indicted. I heard he was afraid
the American people were going to read that 62-page bogus indictment,
with some of the flimsiest charges we could imagine--charges that
wouldn't keep someone overnight in an American jail--that have kept him
in prison for 580 days. About 2 months ago, he was indicted, but he
said to his wife and friends, he was afraid the American people would
read that indictment and turn their backs on him.
So it was important for me to travel over there and tell him face-to-
face in that Turkish prison that is the last thing that is going to
happen. We are going to continue to work every day he is in prison. I
am going to come to the Senate floor, and other Members are, every week
for as long as he is illegally in prison, and we are going to make sure
the American people and the Turkish people know what is going on and
send a very clear message to the leaders of Turkey that this is an
unacceptable way to deal with a NATO ally. It is a horrible way to deal
with somebody who is only guilty of standing up for a church in Izmir.
It is a small church. Actually, the seating area down below, maybe if
it was packed, could hold 150 people. It opens up to a street. It is in
a residential area. They let anybody come in. They open their windows.
They actually talk with the police about security matters so they know
what is going on, but it is just a small church, and all he was trying
to do is provide aid and comfort for those who want to seek it.
Every once in a while, he would go to Syria or other parts of Turkey
to try to provide aid and comfort to those who need it, Syrian refugees
or anyone else. Part of the charges are actually related to that. If
you provide aid and comfort, food, to a Kurdish person, in Turkey
today, you may be considered a terrorist or a coup plotter. That is
what he has been charged with.
In my second trip, I spent 12 hours in a Turkish courtroom to hear
every word of the testimony from secret witnesses--whom Pastor Brunson
didn't get to face--about the horrible things he did. One of the
charges was that one night a witness saw for 4 hours a light on in one
of the rooms in the church. Here is the problem with that charge: That
is the room. It doesn't have a window. So unless they had x-ray vision,
there is no possible way they could have observed that, but it became
weighty testimony in the courtroom.
It is a kangaroo court. I want to continue to say, if you don't know
``kangaroo court,'' there is the definition. It is just a trumped-up
theater that bears no resemblance to anything you would ever see in
American jurisprudence.
Let me give another idea of the level of absurdity of the charges.
Pastor Brunson's daughter posted how much she enjoyed a meal with
friends. It turns out the prosecutor thought this particular meal was
something that was enjoyed by people who participated in the Gulen
movement, and therefore her father must somehow be associated with the
coup attempt. These are actually serious discussions going on in a
Turkish courtroom.
I wasn't able to make it back to Turkey on Monday. I understand that
basically the same thing happened, but it got worse. On Monday, when
Pastor Brunson and his defense attorney had asked that 10 other
witnesses testify on his behalf, they weren't allowed to testify
because they were suspects. They weren't convicted. They apparently
have been charged or considered to be charged, but in Turkish
jurisprudence standards, to be suspect is enough to prevent you from
actually helping defend someone who is on trial for a 35-year sentence.
He has been in prison for 580 days. He has lost 50 pounds. He is
struggling to keep his wits about him, and he and his wife are doing an
extraordinary job. This is a miscarriage of justice.
I believe, today, as I said in a speech 2 weeks ago, and I will say
it again: Don't travel to Turkey right now. If you are thinking about
making a trip to Turkey, make sure you don't eat this meal--and, for
goodness' sake, if you do, don't post how much you enjoyed it because
you may be considered a Gulenist. Don't take a picture with friendly
people on the street whose ethnic origins you don't know because they
may have you associated with somebody who is suspected of plotting a
coup. That is the reality of Turkey today.
I can't guarantee the safety of North Carolinians because I have yet
to actually speak with people in their state department and their
foreign ministry who actually understand the absurdity of what is going
on in Turkey today.
I hope we can get back to a better position, but until this man is
released, and others who have been falsely charged are treated fairly,
I am going to have to come to the Senate floor each and every week we
are in session to make sure the American people know what is going on
in Turkey and to make absolutely certain that people like Pastor
Brunson who are in prison know they have people in the U.S. Senate.
In fact, 66 Senate Members have signed a letter--that is a big lift
in the U.S. Senate to get any 66 Members to agree on something--to send
a very clear message that we are watching, and there will be
consequences if this man is wrongfully imprisoned and could potentially
spend the rest of his life in Turkey.
Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent to enter into a colloquy with
my friend and colleague from Oklahoma.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
Mr. TILLIS. Mr. President, with that approval, I will pass it over
and thank Senator Lankford for his hard work--he has been aware of this
issue from day one--and collaboration on it.
Mr. LANKFORD. Mr. President, I thank Senator Tillis and the Presiding
Officer for acknowledging our time to have this conversation. This is a
serious conversation because this is a NATO ally.
Dr. Andrew Brunson has been in Turkey 24 years. For 23 of these
years, he served as a pastor in humanitarian work. He took care of
providing food and clothing and pastoral ministry for anyone who would
come, just like anyone does.
That has not been an issue in Turkey for decades because Turkey has
been very open to all faiths, all religions, and they have prided
themselves on
[[Page S2606]]
being a nation that recognizes all faiths, all backgrounds, and all
religions and ethnicity. At least that was the old Turkey. Literally,
under Dr. Brunson's feet, Turkey shifted from where they were to where
we don't recognize them anymore as a NATO ally.
In October of 2016, Dr. Brunson was called by the police department
there. Assuming it was an immigration issue, he and his wife went
because they had gone multiple times to the police department to renew
their visa and keep everything up to date. They had a great
relationship with the local police department, with local individuals,
and with all the authorities in the area because they had been there
for two decades and had developed great friendships.
So they went to check in, but this time, instead just checking in
again for an immigration issue, they took them into custody, without
any charges, and held them for a year--with no charges--then,
eventually, presented these trumped-up charges which they have laid out
that are absolutely absurd.
How a Christian minister is somehow cooperating with a Muslim in a
coup in Turkey is absurd on its face. All of the crazy accusations from
secret witnesses who would appear by video with their faces blurred
out, making accusations that they had seen or they had heard--allowing
no one to actually ask them questions is absurd. Just as absurd is not
allowing Dr. Brunson to bring any witnesses in his defense.
There have now been two hearings that have been just this style: Dr.
Brunson not allowed to bring anyone to speak on his behalf; all of
these trumped-up witnesses who come with blurred-out faces--this secret
testimony that they can present--to come back and present something
they would consider evidence that we would never allow in any court,
and, quite frankly, no one would take seriously these accusations.
In 2016, after Dr. Brunson had been in jail for a few weeks, I went
to Turkey and visited with the Minister of Justice there. The Minister
of Justice at that time said: We have some information. We are going to
work this out. We are going to allow the process to go through the
court system, but we will rapidly go through this process. Now, a year
and a half later, we are finding out there never was any evidence,
there never was any issue--and we are still dealing with an American
being held hostage by a NATO ally.
I thought I would never say this sentence, but I would like to see
Turkey follow the example of North Korea and release the American
hostages they are holding. Now, when Turkey--a NATO ally--is behind
North Korea in how they are handling humanitarian issues, Turkey has
moved to a very bad spot. It is not a place they need to stay.
Turkey has been a friend and an ally--we work together against
terrorism; we work together on economics--but I join Senator Tillis in
the statement he just made: I discourage anyone I speak to, to do any
business in Turkey or to travel to Turkey at this point. If you are
doing business in Turkey, you cannot guarantee the safety of your
employees any longer; if you are traveling to Turkey, you cannot be
guaranteed safety anymore. Because of the emergency powers that are
currently being used in their legal system, they can sweep up anyone
for any accusation and hold them for any length of time. That is not
just theory; that is being proven by a pastor being held for a year and
a half in Turkey with false charges. I highly recommend no one does
business in Turkey at this moment, just for the safety of your
employees and the people you would work with.
Now, Turkey has not just done this. They have also turned toward
Russia, pursuing Russia for their air defense systems. As a NATO ally,
that is unheard of, to say they are going to have NATO equipment, but
then they are also going to go to Russia. That shows the turning of
President Erdogan and the leadership of the country.
Congress is not going to just sit back on this and should not.
Senator Shaheen and I have already put language out for the foreign ops
bill in Appropriations which would specifically identify those
individuals--the judges in the court, the officials who are holding
Pastor Brunson, the officials in the city jail and in their national
government who are specifically holding those individuals--to apply
sanctions directly to the individuals who are holding an American
pastor hostage.
Senator Shaheen, Senator Tillis, and I have already put forward a
piece of legislation blocking Turkey from maintaining or purchasing the
F-35. They are a NATO ally, and they should have access to that, but
they are not acting like a NATO ally. We don't know where they are
going, and it would be a mistake for the United States to give our best
technology--somewhere that we don't know where it is going to go and
how it is going to be used in the future.
Just this week, the House released their National Defense
Authorization Act. In the base text of the NDAA coming from the House
is a provision which would block all defense sales to Turkey until we
get more information about what is happening in the future and what
direction Turkey is going. That is a reasonable precaution to take in a
nation that is rapidly shifting away from democracy, a free court, free
speech, and freedom of religion. They are losing humanitarian values.
We should address that and respond to that, and we are.
It is not just what we might do; it is what we are doing currently to
try to respond to this issue. The State Department continues to apply
diplomatic pressure, but we have moved past the time when diplomatic
pressure needs to be applied. It is time to apply economic pressure and
pressure on how our partnership will work long term.
We want our ally back--the Turkey we used to know, that we cooperated
with, and maintained a long-term friendship with. We would love to
maintain that long-term friendship with an ally that has strongly stood
with us, and we have stood with them, but we do not recognize what
Turkey is anymore.
A good first step with them would be to follow the lead of North
Korea and release our hostages out of their jails.
Mr. President, I yield back.
Mr. TILLIS. Mr. President, I thank Senator Lankford.
I went to Turkey when I was speaker of the house in North Carolina
and led a delegation there about 7 years ago, spent 9 days, met with
business leaders, and met with President Erdogan. I came away with a
great deal of optimism--as a matter of fact, so much optimism, I hosted
a delegation from the mayor of Kayseri, who is now a Minister in the
Turkish Government, to talk about how North Carolina and Turkey could
build stronger economic ties. We both have textile and furniture
industries. It looked like a great opportunity, but, as Senator
Lankford said, the Turkey of today bears no resemblance to the Turkey I
visited about 7 years ago, to the Turkey I visited just a few weeks
ago.
I would like to be talking about how we help Turkey take the fight to
terrorist organizations threatening their homeland. I would like to
work more with Turkey, as we have this week, to identify ISIS leaders,
detain them, and make that region safer.
I would like to be a member of the Senate Armed Services Committee--
and sit right next to Senator Sullivan--fighting for additional NDAA
provisions that underscore our commitment to our NATO ally in Turkey,
but now I am at a fork in the road, and right now I only have one
position to take; that is, to put Turkey on notice for their bad
actions as a NATO ally and for their bad actions toward American
nationals in the country of Turkey.
So I am with Senator Lankford, Senator Shaheen, and other Senators.
When we do our markup on the national defense authorization, instead of
talking about how we strengthen our relationship for their part in
manufacturing the Joint Strike Fighter and what is the timeline to
actually have our NATO ally have Joint Strike Fighters, F-35s, within
their military base, now I have to start talking about whether they
should have it at all. I have to start talking about what are the
implications of a Russian missile defense system in a NATO country,
with all the intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance assets that
come with it. I have to start talking about what the future of our
relationship is with a nation that is, for the first time in NATO
history, holding American hostages--a NATO ally. I have to take
[[Page S2607]]
things in a different direction. It is my responsibility, as the co-
lead of the Senate NATO observer group, as the Senator of a State who
has had a citizen in prison for 580 days. I have no choice.
I thank the Presiding Officer for the time today. I will be back next
week, and I will be back every week until we see justice served for
Pastor Brunson.
I yield the floor.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. Under the previous order, all postcloture time
is expired.
The question is, Will the Senate advise and consent to the Brennan
nomination?
Mr. WYDEN. I ask for the yeas and nays.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. Is there a sufficient second?
There appears to be a sufficient second.
The clerk will call the roll.
The bill clerk called the roll.
Mr. CORNYN. The following Senators are necessarily absent: the
Senator from South Carolina (Mr. Graham) and the Senator from Arizona
(Mr. McCain).
Mr. DURBIN. I announce that the Senator from New Jersey (Mr. Booker),
the Senator from Delaware (Mr. Coons), and the Senator from Illinois
(Ms. Duckworth) are necessarily absent.
The PRESIDING OFFICER (Mrs. Fischer). Are there any other Senators in
the Chamber desiring to vote?
The result was announced--yeas 49, nays 46, as follows:
[Rollcall Vote No. 89 Ex.]
YEAS--49
Alexander
Barrasso
Blunt
Boozman
Burr
Capito
Cassidy
Collins
Corker
Cornyn
Cotton
Crapo
Cruz
Daines
Enzi
Ernst
Fischer
Flake
Gardner
Grassley
Hatch
Heller
Hoeven
Hyde-Smith
Inhofe
Isakson
Johnson
Kennedy
Lankford
Lee
McConnell
Moran
Murkowski
Paul
Perdue
Portman
Risch
Roberts
Rounds
Rubio
Sasse
Scott
Shelby
Sullivan
Thune
Tillis
Toomey
Wicker
Young
NAYS--46
Baldwin
Bennet
Blumenthal
Brown
Cantwell
Cardin
Carper
Casey
Cortez Masto
Donnelly
Durbin
Feinstein
Gillibrand
Harris
Hassan
Heinrich
Heitkamp
Hirono
Jones
Kaine
King
Klobuchar
Leahy
Manchin
Markey
McCaskill
Menendez
Merkley
Murphy
Murray
Nelson
Peters
Reed
Sanders
Schatz
Schumer
Shaheen
Smith
Stabenow
Tester
Udall
Van Hollen
Warner
Warren
Whitehouse
Wyden
NOT VOTING--5
Booker
Coons
Duckworth
Graham
McCain
The nomination was confirmed.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. Under the previous order, the motion to
reconsider is considered made and laid upon the table and the President
will be immediately notified of the Senate's action.
____________________