[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 150 (2004), Part 13]
[House]
[Page 18177]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                          PERSONAL EXPLANATION

  Mr. CAPUANO. Mr. Speaker, I was not present to vote on September 13th 
due to the death of a close family friend.
  I intended to vote ``nay'' on the motion to suspend the rules and 
agree to H. Con. Res. 363, condemning the human rights violations in 
Syria. While I am strongly opposed to the human rights abuses being 
perpetrated by the Syrian government, I am troubled by some of the 
language in the resolution. Specifically, the resolution states: 
``Whereas the family law of Syria as applied to Muslim women is 
governed by Sharia (Islamic) law and is discriminatory in marriage, 
divorce and inheritance matters.'' While I fundamentally disagree with 
this law, I feel that this statement unnecessarily denigrates the 
religious-based laws of a sovereign nation.
  In addition, I would have voted ``aye'' on H. Con. Res. 667 and 
``aye'' on H. Res. 760.

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