[Congressional Record Volume 166, Number 45 (Monday, March 9, 2020)]
[Senate]
[Pages S1620-S1621]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                       WOMEN POLITICAL PRISONERS

  Mr. MENENDEZ. Mr. President, on International Women's Day, we 
celebrated women and girls around the globe for their tremendous 
contributions to our communities, our countries, and the world. From 
Albania to Zimbabwe, women face enormous risks to pursue progress in 
defiance of attitudes, policies, and actions that treat them as second-
class citizens. Too often, these women are punished for their courage. 
As this year marks the 25th anniversary of the United Nations' adoption 
of the Beijing Declaration on the equal rights of women, we reaffirm 
our commitment to achieving women's empowerment and equal status 
throughout the world.
  Today, I want to highlight 25 women who have risked their lives, 
withstood torture, and been unjustly detained for fighting for human 
rights, democracy, a free and fair press, and the rights of vulnerable 
LGBT populations, as well as safeguarding their culture and the 
environment. The repressive responses of their respective governments 
speaks to the power these women command, the implications of their 
cause, and the movements they inspire.
  In Russia, President Putin's government utilizes politically 
motivated imprisonment to bolster its power by cracking down on 
journalists, human rights advocates, religious minorities, Ukrainian 
citizens, and civil society advocates. Yulia Tsetkova is the latest 
target of the authorities' long-running campaign against LGBT 
activists. Tsetkova has been placed on house arrest and faces years of 
imprisonment for her creative work at a youth amateur theater which the 
state has labeled ``homosexual propaganda,'' for drawings described as 
criminal ``pornography'' and for administrating two LGBT-themed groups 
on social media deemed'' gay propaganda.')
  The Chinese Communist Party has waged a powerful campaign to suppress 
vibrant ethnic minority communities and political dissent. The 
government has brutally cracked down in Xinjiang, where it has 
extrajudicially interned and subjected more than 1 million Uyghurs and 
other ethnic minorities to forced labor, torture, and abuse. Rahile 
Dawut, a Xinjiang University professor who researched and documented 
traditional Uyghur culture, disappeared in December 2017. Sanubar 
Tursun, a renowned Uyghur singer, disappeared in November 2018, shortly 
before she was scheduled to perform in France. We will not forget their 
names nor their work.
  The Chinese Communist party has also targeted Tibetans for 
celebrating their heritage. In late 2015, officials detained at least 
eight Tibetans accused of organizing observances of the Dalai Lama's 
80th birthday. Those detained included Bonkho Kyi, who had organized a 
public picnic to celebrate the occasion. Kyi was sentenced to 7 years' 
imprisonment, although details of the criminal charges remain 
unavailable.
  In Iran, human rights defenders have been steadfast in their advocacy 
despite repeated arrest and abuse by authorities. Nasrin Sotoudeh has 
devoted her life to advocating for human rights in Iran, speaking out 
against the death penalty and laws forcing women to wear hijabs. 
Sotoudeh was rearrested in June 2018 for defending women protestors 
against the forced hijab and faces 38 years in prison and 148 lashes. 
Atena Daemi, also a lifelong human rights activist, is serving a 7-year 
prison sentence for handing out anti-death penalty leaflets. She has 
been on hunger strike twice and is in dire need of medical attention 
due to dizziness and numbness. Narges Mohammadi, vice president of the 
Centre for Human Rights Defenders in Iran, has been imprisoned since 
May 2015 and is serving a 16-year sentence. Mohammadi is critically ill 
with pulmonary embolism and a neurological disorder resulting in 
seizures and temporary partial paralysis.
  Iranian authorities have also recently arrested and imprisoned 
environmentalists. Niloufar Bayani, a McGill University-graduate, 
worked for the United Nations Environment Programme and, most recently, 
the Persian Wildlife Heritage Foundation. She was arrested along with 
several coworkers, including Sepideh Kashami, on charges of espionage. 
Multiple government bodies have found no evidence suggesting the 
environmentalists detained were spies. While detained, Bayani has 
reportedly suffered from torture and threats of sexual assault.
  Governments around the world are also attacking the free press and 
targeting journalists, particularly those who speak truth to power and 
expose the failures of those very governments.

[[Page S1621]]

Many women journalists have been targeted and unjustly detained. In 
particular, the escalating use of criminal charges of ``false news'' or 
``fake news'' to imprison journalists and activists is alarming. 
Certainly, these incitements of ``fake news'' echo President Trump and 
his administration's regressive rhetoric and attacks on the press and 
democratic values.
  As of December 2019, Turkey was the world's second worst jailer of 
journalists with 47 in prison, coming in close second to China with 48. 
President Erdogan has cracked down on independent criticism by 
shuttering more than 100 news outlets and jailing dozens of 
journalists. Editor Hatice Duman was imprisoned in 2003 and is serving 
a life sentence based on charges of propaganda and being a member of a 
banned group. Duman was the owner and news editor of the socialist 
weekly ``Atilim,'' which had opposed President Erdogan's policies. She 
was convicted based on authorities' claim of her attendance at a 
Marxist-Leninist Communist Party demonstration and the testimony of 
confidential witnesses. Duman's husband later said the police 
threatened sexual violence against his family if he did not testify 
against his wife. Aysenur Parildak and Hanim Busra Erdal, two 
journalists for ``Zaman,'' are both serving sentences for terrorism-
related offenses based on claims that ``Zaman'' had ties to Fethulaah 
Gulen. Sadiye Eser, a reporter for the pro-Kurdish ``Mezopotamya News 
Agency,'' has also been detained by police since November 2019 on 
politically motivated charges of membership of a terrorist 
organization.
  In Egypt, President Sisi has attempted to quash dissent and 
consolidate control by wrongfully imprisoning human rights defenders. 
Mahienour el-Masry, a human rights lawyer, has spent her career 
organizing peaceful protests, advocating for political prisoners, and 
denouncing human rights violations. She was arrested in September 2019 
following a wave of protests calling for President Sisi's resignation 
and charged with collaborating with a terrorist organization, spreading 
``false news,'' and using social media to publish false rumors. Esraa 
Abdel Fattah, a human rights activist and reporter for the banned 
``Tahrir News,'' was arrested on charges of spreading ``false news,'' 
membership in a banned group, and abuse of social media networks in 
October 2019. Abdel Fattah was reportedly beaten, hung from handcuffs 
for hours, and choked with her clothes while interrogated.

  In Burundi, authorities have cracked down on free expression in 
anticipation of the country's 2020 elections. Christine Kamikazi and 
Agnes Ndirubusa, journalists at Burundi's last remaining independent 
newspaper ``Iwacu,'' were arrested and convicted on charges of 
attempting threat against state security by collaborating with the 
rebel group RED-Tabara. Kamikazi and Ndirubusa were traveling with two 
colleagues to report on in-fighting between Burundian security forces 
and RED-Tabara when they were arrested. They were convicted despite the 
fact that ``Iwacu'' had informed authorities of their plan to travel to 
the area for reporting and the fact that the RED-Tabara attack had 
already occurred before their travels to the region.
  Finally, a year ago today, I highlighted 14 women political prisoners 
in a statement marking International Women's Day. Of those 14, 8 remain 
in detention today. These include Saudi women's rights and human rights 
activists Loujain al-Hathloul, Nassima al-Sada, Samar Badawi, Nouf 
Abdulaziz, and Maya'a al-Zahrani; Senator Leila de Lima, detained for 
her criticism of extrajudicial killings in the Philippines; Guligeina 
Tashimaimaiti, a Uyghur PhD student detained in China; and Aster 
Fissehatsion, a political dissident held incommunicado without charge 
nor trial since 2001 in Eritrea.
  In Egypt, Russia, China, Iran, Turkey, Burundi, Saudi Arabia, the 
Philippines, and Eritrea, these women threatened by a repressive 
government, abusive authorities, and critical risks to their health are 
advocating for the betterment of their entire communities. Sadly, these 
25 women highlighted today only represent a small fraction of countless 
women and girls unjustly detained and imprisoned.
  On this International Women's Day, we reflect on the remarkable 
achievements of women and the work that remains to be done by all of us 
to reach gender parity. The women political prisoners we have 
highlighted today serve as role models championing human rights, 
democracy, cultural tolerance, and environmental preservation. Their 
detention should embolden the rest of us to take up their causes in 
their absence. I call on governments unjustly detaining women for 
exercising their fundamental rights to immediately release these 
political prisoners. We will not forget these women, what they have 
fought for, and what they have sacrificed for all of us as a result.

                          ____________________