[House Report 105-480]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]



105th Congress                                            Rept. 105-480
                        HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

 2d Session                                                      Part 1
_______________________________________________________________________


 
             FREEDOM FROM RELIGIOUS PERSECUTION ACT OF 1998

                                _______
                                

                 April 1, 1998.--Ordered to be printed

_______________________________________________________________________


 Mr. Gilman, from the Committee on International Relations, submitted 
                             the following

                              R E P O R T

                             together with

                            DISSENTING VIEWS

                        [To accompany H.R. 2431]

      [Including cost estimate of the Congressional Budget Office]

  The Committee on International Relations, to whom was 
referred the bill (H.R. 2431) to establish an Office of 
Religious Persecution Monitoring, to provide for the imposition 
of sanctions against countries engaged in a pattern of 
religious persecution, and for other purposes, having 
considered the same, report favorably thereon with an amendment 
and recommend that the bill as amended do pass.
  The amendment is as follows:
  Strike out all after the enacting clause and insert in lieu 
thereof the following:
  

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

  This Act may be cited as the ``Freedom From Religious Persecution Act 
of 1998''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS AND PURPOSE.

  (a) Findings.--The Congress makes the following findings:
          (1) Governments have a primary responsibility to promote, 
        encourage, and protect respect for the fundamental and 
        internationally recognized right to freedom of religion.
          (2)(A) Since its inception, the United States Government has 
        rested upon certain founding principles. One of those 
        principles is that all people have the inalienable right to 
        worship freely, which demands that religion be protected from 
        unnecessary government intervention. The Founding Fathers of 
        the United States incorporated that principle in the 
        Declaration of Independence, which states that mankind has the 
        inalienable right to ``life, liberty, and the pursuit of 
        happiness'', and in the United States Constitution, the first 
        amendment to which states that ``Congress shall make no law 
        respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the 
        free exercise thereof''. Therefore, in accordance with this 
        belief in the inalienable right of freedom of religion for all 
        people, as expressed by the Declaration of Independence, and 
        the belief that religion should be protected from government 
        interference, as expressed by the United States Constitution, 
        the Congress opposes international religious persecution and 
        believes that the policies of the United States Government and 
        its relations with foreign governments should be consistent 
        with the commitment to this principle.
          (B) Numerous international agreements and covenants also 
        identify mankind's inherent right to freedom of religion. These 
        include the following:
                  (i) Article 18 of the Universal Declaration of Human 
                Rights states that ``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''.
                  (ii) Article 18 of the Covenant on Civil and 
                Political Rights declares that ``Everyone shall have 
                the right to freedom of thought, conscience, and 
                religion . . .'' and further delineates the privileges 
                under this right.
                  (iii) The Declaration on the Elimination of All Forms 
                of Intolerance and of Discrimination Based on Religion 
                and Belief, adopted by the United Nations General 
                Assembly on November 25, 1981, declares that ``religion 
                or belief, for anyone who professes either, is one of 
                the fundamental elements in his conception of life . . 
                .'' and that ``freedom of religion and belief should 
                also contribute to the attainment of the goals of world 
                peace, social justice and friendship among peoples and 
                to the elimination of ideologies or practices of 
                colonialism and racial discrimination''.
                  (iv) The Concluding Document of the Third Follow-Up 
                Meeting of the Organization for Security and 
                Cooperation in Europe commits states to ``ensure in 
                their laws and regulations and in their application the 
                full and effective exercise of the freedom of thought, 
                conscience, religion or belief''.
          (3) Persecution of religious believers, particularly Roman 
        Catholic and evangelical Protestant Christians, in Communist 
        countries persists and in some cases is increasing.
          (4) In many countries and regions thereof, governments 
        dominated by extremist movements persecute non-Muslims and 
        religious converts from Islam using means such as ``blasphemy'' 
        and ``apostasy'' laws, and such movements seek to corrupt a 
        historically tolerant Islamic faith and culture through the 
        persecution of Baha'is, Christians, and other religious 
        minorities.
          (5) The extremist Government of Sudan is waging a self-
        described religious war against Christians, other non-Muslims, 
        and moderate Muslims by using torture, starvation, enslavement, 
        and murder.
          (6) In Tibet, where Tibetan Buddhism is inextricably linked 
        to the Tibetan identity, the Government of the People's 
        Republic of China has intensified its control over the Tibetan 
        people by interfering in the selection of the Panchen Lama, 
        propagandizing against the religious authority of the Dalai 
        Lama, restricting religious study and traditional religious 
        practices, and increasing the persecution of monks and nuns.
          (7) In Xinjiang Autonomous Region of China, formerly the 
        independent republic of East Turkistan, where the Muslim 
        religion is inextricably linked to the dominant Uyghur culture, 
        the Government of the People's Republic of China has 
        intensified its control over the Uyghur people by 
        systematically repressing religious authority, restricting 
        religious study and traditional practices, destroying mosques, 
        and increasing the persecution of religious clergy and 
        practitioners.
          (8) In countries around the world, Christians, Jews, Muslims, 
        Hindus, and other religious believers continue to be persecuted 
        on account of their religious beliefs, practices, and 
        affiliations.
          (9) The 104th Congress recognized the facts set forth in this 
        section and stated clearly the sense of the Senate and the 
        House of Representatives regarding these matters in approving--
                  (A) House Resolution 515, expressing the sense of the 
                House of Representatives with respect to the 
                persecution of Christians worldwide;
                  (B) S. Con. Res. 71, expressing the sense of the 
                Senate with respect to the persecution of Christians 
                worldwide;
                  (C) H. Con. Res. 102, concerning the emancipation of 
                the Iranian Baha'i community; and
                  (D) section 1303 of H.R. 1561, the Foreign Relations 
                Authorization Act, Fiscal Years 1996 and 1997.
          (10) The Department of State, in a report to Congress filed 
        pursuant to House Report 104-863, accompanying the Omnibus 
        Consolidated Appropriations Act, 1997 (Public Law 104-208) set 
        forth strong evidence that widespread and ongoing religious 
        persecution is occurring in a number of countries around the 
        world.
  (b) Purpose.--It is the purpose of this Act to reduce and eliminate 
the widespread and ongoing religious persecution taking place 
throughout the world today.

SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS.

  As used in this Act:
          (1) Director.--The term ``Director'' means the Director of 
        the Office of Religious Persecution Monitoring established 
        under section 5.
          (2) Legislative day.--The term ``legislative day'' means a 
        day on which both Houses of Congress are in session.
          (3) Persecuted community.--The term ``persecuted community'' 
        means any religious group or denomination whose members have 
        been found to be subject to category 1 or category 2 
        persecution in the latest annual report submitted under section 
        6(a) or in any interim report submitted thereafter under 
        section 6(c) before the next annual report.
          (4) Persecution facilitating products.--The term 
        ``persecution facilitating products'' means those crime 
        control, detection, torture, and electroshock instruments and 
        equipment (as determined under section 6(n) of the Export 
        Administration Act of 1979) that are directly and substantially 
        used or intended for use in carrying out acts of persecution 
        described in paragraphs (5) and (6).
          (5) Category 1 persecution.--The term ``category 1 
        persecution'' means widespread and ongoing persecution of 
        persons on account of their religious beliefs or practices, or 
        membership in or affiliation with a religion or religious group 
        or denomination, whether officially recognized or otherwise, 
        when such persecution--
                  (A) includes abduction, enslavement, killing, 
                imprisonment, forced mass relocation, rape, crucifixion 
                or other forms of torture, or the systematic imposition 
                of fines or penalties which have the purpose and effect 
                of destroying the economic existence of persons on whom 
                they are imposed; and
                  (B) is conducted with the involvement or support of 
                government officials or agents, or pursuant to official 
                government policy.
          (6) Category 2 persecution.--The term ``category 2 
        persecution'' means widespread and ongoing persecution of 
        persons on account of their religious beliefs or practices, or 
        membership in or affiliation with a religion or religious group 
        or denomination, whether officially recognized or otherwise, 
        when such persecution--
                  (A) includes abduction, enslavement, killing, 
                imprisonment, forced mass relocation, rape, crucifixion 
                or other forms of torture, or the systematic imposition 
                of fines or penalties which have the purpose and effect 
                of destroying the economic existence of persons on whom 
                they are imposed; and
                  (B) is not conducted with the involvement or support 
                of government officials or agents, or pursuant to 
                official government policy, but which the government 
                fails to undertake serious and sustained efforts to 
                eliminate, being able to do so.
          (7) Responsible entities.--The term ``responsible entities'' 
        means the specific government units, as narrowly defined as 
        practicable, which directly carry out the acts of persecution 
        described in paragraphs (5) and (6).
          (8) Sanctioned country.--The term ``sanctioned country'' 
        means a country on which sanctions have been imposed under 
        section 7.
          (9) United states assistance.--The term ``United States 
        assistance'' means--
                  (A) any assistance under the Foreign Assistance Act 
                of 1961 (including programs under title IV of chapter 2 
                of part I of that Act, relating to the Overseas Private 
                Investment Corporation), other than--
                          (i) assistance under chapter 8 of part I of 
                        that Act;
                          (ii) any other narcotics-related assistance 
                        under part I of that Act or under chapter 4 or 
                        5 of part II of that Act, but any such 
                        assistance provided under this clause shall be 
                        subject to the prior notification procedures 
                        applicable to reprogrammings pursuant to 
                        section 634A of that Act;
                          (iii) disaster relief assistance, including 
                        any assistance under chapter 9 of part I of 
                        that Act;
                          (iv) antiterrorism assistance under chapter 8 
                        of part II of that Act;
                          (v) assistance which involves the provision 
                        of food (including monetization of food) or 
                        medicine;
                          (vi) assistance for refugees; and
                          (vii) humanitarian and other development 
                        assistance in support of programs of 
                        nongovernmental organizations under chapters 1 
                        and 10 of that Act;
                  (B) sales, or financing on any terms, under the Arms 
                Export Control Act, other than sales or financing 
                provided for narcotics-related purposes following 
                notification in accordance with the prior notification 
                procedures applicable to reprogrammings pursuant to 
                section 634A of the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961; and
                  (C) financing under the Export-Import Bank Act of 
                1945.
          (10) United states person.--The term ``United States person'' 
        means--
                  (A) any United States citizen or alien lawfully 
                admitted for permanent residence into the United 
                States; and
                  (B) any corporation, partnership, or other entity 
                organized under the laws of the United States or of any 
                State, the District of Columbia, or any territory or 
                possession of the United States.

SEC. 4. APPLICATION AND SCOPE.

  The responsibility of the Secretary of State under section 5(g) to 
determine whether category 1 or category 2 persecution exists, and to 
identify persons and communities that are subject to such persecution, 
extends to--
          (1) all foreign countries in which alleged violations of 
        religious freedom have been set forth in the latest annual 
        report of the Department of State on human rights under 
        sections 116(d) and 502(b) of the Foreign Assistance Act of 
        1961 (22 U.S.C. 2151n(d) and 2304(b)); and
          (2) such other foreign countries in which, either as a result 
        of referral by an independent human rights group or 
        nongovernmental organization in accordance with section 5(e)(2) 
        or otherwise, the Director has reason to believe category 1 or 
        category 2 persecution may exist.

SEC. 5. OFFICE OF RELIGIOUS PERSECUTION MONITORING.

  (a) Establishment.--There shall be established in the Department of 
State the Office of Religious Persecution Monitoring (hereafter in this 
Act referred to as the ``Office'').
  (b) Appointment.--The head of the Office shall be a Director who 
shall be appointed by the President, by and with the advice and consent 
of the Senate. The Director shall receive compensation at the rate of 
pay in effect for level IV of the Executive Schedule under section 5315 
of title 5, United States Code.
  (c) Removal.--The Director shall serve at the pleasure of the 
President.
  (d) Barred From Other Federal Positions.--No person shall serve as 
Director while serving in any other position in the Federal Government.
  (e) Responsibilities of Director.--The Director shall do the 
following:
          (1) Consider information regarding the facts and 
        circumstances of violations of religious freedom presented in 
        the annual reports of the Department of State on human rights 
        under sections 116(d) and 502B(b) of the Foreign Assistance Act 
        of 1961 (22 U.S.C. 2151n(d) and 2304(b)).
          (2) Make findings of fact on violations of religious freedom 
        based on information--
                  (A) considered under paragraph (1); or
                  (B) presented by independent human rights groups, 
                nongovernmental organizations, or other interested 
                parties, at any stage of the process provided in this 
                Act.
         When appropriate, the Director may hold public hearings 
        subject to notice at which such groups, organizations, or other 
        interested parties can present testimony and evidence of acts 
        of persecution occurring in countries being examined by the 
        Office.
          (3) On the basis of information and findings of fact 
        described in paragraphs (1) and (2), make recommendations to 
        the Secretary of State for consideration by the Secretary in 
        making determinations of countries in which there is category 1 
        or category 2 persecution under subsection (g), identify the 
        responsible entities within such countries, and prepare and 
        submit the annual report described in section 6.
          (4) Maintain the lists of persecution facilitating products, 
        and the responsible entities within countries determined to be 
        engaged in persecution described in paragraph (3), revising the 
        lists in accordance with section 6(c) as additional information 
        becomes available. These lists shall be published in the 
        Federal Register.
          (5) In consultation with the Secretary of State, make policy 
        recommendations to the President regarding the policies of the 
        United States Government toward governments which are 
        determined to be engaged in religious persecution.
          (6) Report directly to the President and the Secretary of 
        State, and coordinate with the appropriate officials of the 
        Department of State, the Department of Justice, the Department 
        of Commerce, and the Department of the Treasury, to ensure that 
        the provisions of this Act are fully and effectively 
        implemented.
  (f) Administrative Matters.--
          (1) Personnel.--The Director may appoint such personnel as 
        may be necessary to carry out the functions of the Office.
          (2) Services of other agencies.--The Director may use the 
        personnel, services, and facilities of any other department or 
        agency, on a reimbursable basis, in carrying out the functions 
        of the Office.
  (g) Responsibilities of the Secretary of State.--The Secretary of 
State, in time for inclusion in the annual report described in 
subsections (a) and (b) of section 6, shall determine with respect to 
each country described in section 4 whether there is category 1 or 
category 2 persecution, and shall include in each such determination 
the communities against which such persecution is directed. Any 
determination in any interim report described in subsection (c) of 
section 6 that there is category 1 or category 2 persecution in a 
country shall be made by the Secretary of State.

SEC. 6. REPORTS TO CONGRESS.

  (a) Annual Reports.--Not later than April 30 of each year, the 
Director shall submit to the Committees on Foreign Relations, the 
Judiciary, Appropriations, and Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs of 
the Senate and to the Committees on International Relations, the 
Judiciary, Appropriations, and Banking and Financial Services of the 
House of Representatives a report described in subsection (b).
  (b) Contents of Annual Report.--The annual report of the Director 
shall include the following:
          (1) Determination of religious persecution.--A copy of the 
        determinations of the Secretary of State pursuant to subsection 
        (g) of section 5.
          (2) Identification of persecution facilitating products.--
        With respect to each country in which the Secretary of State 
        has determined that there is either category 1 or category 2 
        persecution, the Director, in consultation with the Secretary 
        of Commerce, shall identify and list the items on the list 
        established under section 6(n) of the Export Administration Act 
        of 1979 that are directly and substantially used or intended 
        for use in carrying out acts of religious persecution in such 
        country.
          (3) Identification of responsible entities.--With respect to 
        each country in which the Secretary of State has determined 
        that there is category 1 persecution, the Director shall 
        identify and list the responsible entities within that country 
        that are engaged in such persecution. Such entities shall be 
        defined as narrowly as possible.
          (4) Other reports.--The Director shall include the reports 
        submitted to the Director by the Attorney General under section 
        9 and by the Secretary of State under section 10.
  (c) Interim Reports.--The Director may submit interim reports to the 
Congress containing such matters as the Director considers necessary, 
including revisions to the lists issued under paragraphs (2) and (3) of 
subsection (b). The Director shall submit an interim report in the case 
of a determination by the Secretary of State under section 5(g), other 
than in an annual report of the Director, that category 1 or category 2 
persecution exists, or in the case of a determination by the Secretary 
of State under section 11(a) that neither category 1 or category 2 
persecution exists.
  (d) Persecution in Regions of a Country.--In determining whether 
category 1 or category 2 persecution exists in a country, the Secretary 
of State shall include such persecution that is limited to one or more 
regions within the country, and shall indicate such regions in the 
reports described in this section.

SEC. 7. SANCTIONS.

  (a) Prohibition on Exports Relating to Religious Persecution.--
          (1) Actions by responsible departments and agencies.--With 
        respect to any country in which--
                  (A) the Secretary of State finds the occurrence of 
                category 1 persecution, the Director shall so notify 
                the relevant United States departments and agencies, 
                and such departments and agencies shall--
                          (i) prohibit all exports to the responsible 
                        entities identified in the lists issued under 
                        subsections (b)(3) and (c) of section 6; and
                          (ii) prohibit the export to such country of 
                        the persecution facilitating products 
                        identified in the lists issued under 
                        subsections (b)(2) and (c) of section 6; or
                  (B) the Secretary of State finds the occurrence of 
                category 2 persecution, the Director shall so notify 
                the relevant United States departments and agencies, 
                and such departments and agencies shall prohibit the 
                export to such country of the persecution facilitating 
                products identified in the lists issued under 
                subsections (b)(2) and (c) of section 6.
          (2) Prohibitions on u.s. persons.--(A) With respect to any 
        country in which the Secretary of State finds the occurrence of 
        category 1 persecution, no United States person may--
                  (i) export any item to the responsible entities 
                identified in the lists issued under subsections (b)(3) 
                and (c) of section 6; and
                  (ii) export to that country any persecution 
                facilitating products identified in the lists issued 
                under subsections (b)(2) and (c) of section 6.
          (B) With respect to any country in which the Secretary of 
        State finds the occurrence of category 2 persecution, no United 
        States person may export to that country any persecution 
        facilitating products identified in the lists issued under 
        subsections (b)(2) and (c) of section 6.
          (3) Penalties.--Any person who knowingly violates the 
        provisions of paragraph (2) shall be subject to the penalties 
        set forth in subsections (a) and (b)(1) of section 16 of the 
        Trading With the Enemy Act (50 U.S.C. App. 16 (a) and (b)(1)) 
        for violations under that Act.
          (4) Effective date of prohibitions.--The prohibitions on 
        exports under paragraphs (1) and (2) shall take effect with 
        respect to a country 90 days after the date on which--
                  (A) the country is identified in a report of the 
                Director under section 6 as a country in which category 
                1 or category 2 persecution exists,
                  (B) responsible entities are identified in that 
                country in a list issued under subsection (b)(3) or (c) 
                of section 6, or
                  (C) persecution facilitating products are identified 
                in a list issued under subsection (b)(2) or (c) of 
                section 6,
        as the case may be.
  (b) United States Assistance.--
          (1) Category 1 persecution.--No United States assistance may 
        be provided to the government of any country which the 
        Secretary of State determines is engaged in category 1 
        persecution, effective 90 days after the date on which the 
        Director submits the report in which the determination is 
        included.
          (2) Category 2 persecution.--No United States assistance may 
        be provided to the government of any country in which the 
        Secretary of State determines that there is category 2 
        persecution, effective 1 year after the date on which the 
        Director submits the report in which the determination is 
        included, if the Secretary of State, in the next annual report 
        of the Director under section 6, determines that the country is 
        engaged in category 1 persecution or that category 2 
        persecution exists in that country.
  (c) Multilateral Assistance.--
          (1) Category 1 persecution.--With respect to any country 
        which the Secretary of State determines is engaged in category 
        1 persecution, the President shall instruct the United States 
        Executive Director of each multilateral development bank and of 
        the International Monetary Fund to vote against, and use his or 
        her best efforts to deny, any loan or other utilization of the 
        funds of their respective institutions to that country (other 
        than for humanitarian assistance, or for development assistance 
        which directly addresses basic human needs, is not administered 
        by the government of the sanctioned country, and confers no 
        benefit on the government of that country), effective 90 days 
        after the Director submits the report in which the 
        determination is included.
          (2) Category 2 persecution.--With respect to any country in 
        which the Secretary of State determines there is category 2 
        persecution, the President shall instruct the United States 
        Executive Director of each multilateral development bank and of 
        the International Monetary Fund to vote against, and use his or 
        her best efforts to deny, any loan or other utilization of the 
        funds of their respective institutions to that country (other 
        than for humanitarian assistance, or for development assistance 
        which directly addresses basic human needs, is not administered 
        by the government of the sanctioned country, and confers no 
        benefit on the government of that country), effective 1 year 
        after the date on which the Director submits the report in 
        which the determination is included, if the Secretary of State, 
        in the next annual report of the Director under section 6, 
        determines that the country is engaged in category 1 
        persecution or that category 2 persecution exists in that 
        country.
          (3) Reports to congress.--If a country described in paragraph 
        (1) or (2) is granted a loan or other utilization of funds 
        notwithstanding the objection of the United States under this 
        subsection, the Secretary of the Treasury shall report to the 
        Congress on the efforts made to deny loans or other utilization 
        of funds to that country, and shall include in the report 
        specific and explicit recommendations designed to ensure that 
        such loans or other utilization of funds are denied to that 
        country in the future.
          (4) Definition.--As used in this subsection, the term 
        ``multilateral development bank'' means any of the multilateral 
        development banks as defined in section 1701(c)(4) of the 
        International Financial Institutions Act (22 U.S.C. 
        262r(c)(4)).
  (d) Denial of Visas.--No consular officer shall issue a visa to, and 
the Attorney General shall exclude from the United States, any alien 
who the Director determines carried out or directed the carrying out of 
any act of category 1 or category 2 persecution.
  (e) Relationship to Other Provisions.--The effective dates of the 
sanctions provided in this section are subject to sections 8 and 11.
  (f) Duly Authorized Intelligence Activities.--The prohibitions and 
restrictions of this section shall not apply to the conduct of duly 
authorized intelligence activities of the United States Government.
  (g) Effect on Existing Contracts.--The imposition of sanctions under 
this section shall not affect any contract that is entered into by the 
Overseas Private Investment Corporation before the sanctions are 
imposed, is in force on the date on which the sanctions are imposed, 
and is enforceable in a court of law on such date.
  (h) Effect of Waivers.--Any sanction under this section shall not 
take effect during the period after the President has notified the 
Congress of a waiver of that sanction under section 8 and before the 
waiver has taken effect under that section.

SEC. 8. WAIVER OF SANCTIONS.

  (a) Waiver Authority.--Subject to subsection (b), the President may 
waive the imposition of any sanction against a country under section 7 
for periods of not more than 12 months each, if the President, for each 
waiver--
          (1) determines--
                  (A) that the national security interests of the 
                United States justify such a waiver; or
                  (B) that such a waiver will substantially promote the 
                purposes of this Act as set forth in section 2; and
          (2) provides to the Committees on Foreign Relations, Finance, 
        the Judiciary, and Appropriations of the Senate and to the 
        Committees on International Relations, the Judiciary, and 
        Appropriations of the House of Representatives a written 
        notification of the President's intention to waive any such 
        sanction.
The notification shall contain an explanation of the reasons why the 
President considers the waiver to be necessary, the type and amount of 
goods, services, or assistance to be provided pursuant to the waiver, 
and the period of time during which such a waiver will be effective. 
When the President considers it appropriate, the explanation under the 
preceding sentence, or any part of the explanation, may be submitted in 
classified form.
  (b) Additional Information.--In the case of a waiver under subsection 
(a)(1)(B), the notification shall contain a detailed statement of the 
facts particular to the country subject to the waiver which justifies 
the President's determination, and of the alternative measures the 
President intends to implement in order to achieve the objectives of 
this Act.
  (c) Taking Effect of Waiver.--
          (1) In general.--Subject to paragraph (2), a waiver under 
        subsection (a) shall take effect 45 days after its submission 
        to the Congress, or on the day after the 15th legislative day 
        after such submission, whichever is later.
          (2) In emergency conditions.--The President may waive the 
        imposition of sanctions against a country under subsection (b) 
        or (c) of section 7 to take effect immediately if the 
        President, in the written notification of intention to waive 
        the sanctions, certifies that emergency conditions exist that 
        make an immediate waiver necessary.
  (d) Sense of Congress.--It is the sense of Congress that in order to 
achieve the objectives of this Act, the waiver authority provided in 
this section should be used only in extraordinary circumstances.

SEC. 9. MODIFICATION OF IMMIGRATION POLICY.

  (a) Credible Fear of Persecution Defined.--Section 235(b)(1)(B)(v) of 
the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1225(b)(1)(B)(v)) (as 
amended by section 302 of the Illegal Immigration Reform and Immigrant 
Responsibility Act of 1996; Public Law 104-208; 110 Stat. 3009-582) is 
amended by adding at the end the following:
                        ``Any alien who can credibly claim membership 
                        in a persecuted community found to be subject 
                        to category 1 or category 2 religious 
                        persecution in the most recent annual report 
                        sent by the Director of the Office of Religious 
                        Persecution Monitoring to the Congress under 
                        section 6 of the Freedom From Religious 
                        Persecution Act of 1997 shall be considered to 
                        have a credible fear of persecution within the 
                        meaning of the preceding sentence.''.
  (b) Training for Certain Immigration Officers.--Section 235 of the 
Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1225) (as amended by section 
302 of the Illegal Immigration Reform and Immigrant Responsibility Act 
of 1996; Public Law 104-208; 110 Stat. 3009-579) is amended by adding 
at the end the following:
  ``(d) Training on Religious Persecution.--The Attorney General shall 
establish and operate a program to provide to immigration officers 
performing functions under subsection (b), or section 207 or 208, 
training on religious persecution, including training on--
          ``(1) the fundamental components of the right to freedom of 
        religion;
          ``(2) the variation in beliefs of religious groups; and
          ``(3) the governmental and nongovernmental methods used in 
        violation of the right to freedom of religion.''.
  (c) Asylum.--Section 208 of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 
U.S.C. 1158) (as amended by section 604 of the Illegal Immigration 
Reform and Immigrant Responsibility Act of 1996; Public Law 104-208; 
1110 Stat. 3009-690) is amended by adding at the end the following:
  ``(e) Special Rules for Religious Persecution Claims.--
          ``(1) Procedures upon denial.--
                  ``(A) In general.--In any case in which the Service 
                denies or refers to an immigration judge an asylum 
                application filed by an alien described in the second 
                sentence of section 235(b)(1)(B)(v), or any care in 
                which an immigration judge denies such an application 
                on the ground that the alien is not a refugee within 
                the meaning of section 101(a)(42)(A), the Service shall 
                provide the alien with the following:
                          ``(i) A written statement containing the 
                        reasons for the denial, which shall be 
                        supported by references to--
                                  ``(I) the most recent annual report 
                                sent by the Director of the Office of 
                                Religious Persecution Monitoring to the 
                                Congress under section 6 of the Freedom 
                                From Religious Persecution Act of 1997; 
                                and
                                  ``(II) either--
                                          ``(aa) the most recent 
                                        country report on human rights 
                                        practices issued by the 
                                        Secretary of State; or
                                          ``(bb) any other report 
                                        issued by the Secretary of 
                                        State concerning conditions in 
                                        the country of which the alien 
                                        is a national (or, in the case 
                                        of an alien having no 
                                        nationality, the country of the 
                                        alien's last habitual 
                                        residence).
                          ``(ii) A copy of any assessment sheet 
                        prepared by an asylum officer for a supervisory 
                        asylum officer with respect to the application.
                          ``(iii) A list of any publicly available 
                        materials relied upon by an asylum officer as a 
                        basis for denying the application.
                          ``(iv) A copy of any materials relied upon by 
                        an asylum officer as a basis for denying the 
                        application that are not available to the 
                        public, except Federal agency records that are 
                        exempt from disclosure under section 552(b) of 
                        title 5, United States Code.
                  ``(B) Credibility in issue.--In any case described in 
                subparagraph (A) in which the denial is based, in whole 
                or in part, on credibility grounds, the Service shall 
                also provide the alien with the following:
                          ``(i) The statements by the applicant, or 
                        other evidence, that were found not to be 
                        credible.
                          ``(ii) A statement certifying that the 
                        applicant was provided an opportunity to 
                        respond to the Service's position on the 
                        credibility issue.
                          ``(iii) A brief summary of such response, if 
                        any was made.
                          ``(iv) An explanation of how the negative 
                        determination on the credibility issue relates 
                        to the applicant's religious persecution claim.
          ``(2) Effect in subsequent proceedings.--
                  ``(A) Use at option of applicant.--Any material 
                provided to an alien under paragraph (1) shall be 
                considered part of the official record pertaining to 
                the alien's asylum application solely at the option of 
                the alien.
                  ``(B) No effect on review.--The provision of any 
                material under paragraph (1) to an alien shall not be 
                construed to alter any standard of review otherwise 
                applicable in any administrative or judicial 
                adjudication concerning the alien's asylum application.
          ``(3) Duty to submit report on religious persecution.--In any 
        judicial or administrative proceeding in which the Service 
        opposes granting asylum to an alien described in the second 
        sentence of section 235(b)(1)(B)(v), the Service shall submit 
        to the court or administrative adjudicator a copy of the most 
        recent annual report submitted to the Congress by the Director 
        of the Office of Religious Persecution Monitoring under section 
        6 of the Freedom From Religious Persecution Act of 1997, and 
        any interim reports issued by such Director after such annual 
        report.''.
  (d) Annual Report.--Not later than January 1 of each year, the 
Attorney General shall submit to the Director an annual report that 
includes the following:
          (1) With respect to the year that is the subject of the 
        report, the number of applicants for asylum or refugee status 
        whose applications were based, in whole or in part, on 
        religious persecution.
          (2) In the case of such applications, the number that were 
        proposed to be denied, and the number that were finally denied.
          (3) In the case of such applications, the number that were 
        granted.
          (4) A description of developments with respect to the 
        adjudication of applications for asylum or refugee status filed 
        by an alien who claims to be a member of a persecuted community 
        that the Director found to be subject to category 1 or category 
        2 religious persecution in the most recent annual report 
        submitted to the Congress under section 6.
          (5) With respect to the year that is the subject of the 
        report, a description of training on religious persecution 
        provided under section 235(d) of the Immigration and 
        Nationality Act (as added by subsection (b)) to immigration 
        officers performing functions under section 235(b) of such Act, 
        or adjudicating applications under section 207 or 208 of such 
        Act, including a list of speakers and materials used in such 
        training and the number of officers who received such training.
  (e) Admission Priority.--For purposes of section 207(a)(3) of the 
Immigration and Nationality Act, an individual who is a member of a 
persecuted community that the Director found to be subject to category 
1 or category 2 religious persecution in the most recent annual report 
submitted to the Congress under section 6, and is determined by the 
Attorney General to be a refugee within the meaning of section 
101(a)(42)(A) of the Immigration and Nationality Act, shall be 
considered a refugee of special humanitarian concern to the United 
States. In carrying out such section, such an individual shall be given 
priority status at least as high as that given to any member of any 
other specific group of refugees of special concern to the United 
States.
  (f) No Effect on Others' Rights.--Nothing in this section, or any 
amendment made by this section, shall be construed to deny any 
applicant for asylum or refugee status (including any applicant who is 
not a member of a persecuted community but whose claim is based on 
religious persecution) any right, privilege, protection, or eligibility 
otherwise provided by law.
  (g) No Displacement of Other Refugees.--Refugees admitted to the 
United States as a result of the procedures set forth in this section 
shall not displace other refugees in need of resettlement who would 
otherwise have been admitted in accordance with existing law and 
procedures.
  (h) Period for Public Comment and Review.--Section 207(d) of the 
Immigration and Nationality Act is amended by adding at the end the 
following:
  ``(4)(A) Notwithstanding any other provision of law, prior to each 
annual determination regarding refugee admissions under this 
subsection, there shall be a period of public review and comment, 
particularly by appropriate nongovernmental organizations, churches, 
and other religious communities and organizations, and the general 
public.
  ``(B) Nothing in this paragraph may be construed to apply subchapter 
II of chapter 5 of title 5, United States Code, to the period of review 
and comment referred to in subparagraph (A).''.

SEC. 10. STATE DEPARTMENT HUMAN RIGHTS REPORTS.

  (a) Annual Human Rights Report.--In preparing the annual reports of 
the State Department on human rights under sections 116(d) and 502B(b) 
of the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 (22 U.S.C. 2151n(d) and 2304(b)), 
the Secretary of State shall, in the section on religious freedom--
          (1) consider the facts and circumstances of the violation of 
        the right to freedom of religion presented by independent human 
        rights groups and nongovernmental organizations;
          (2) report on the extent of the violations of the right to 
        freedom of religion, specifically including whether the 
        violations arise from governmental or nongovernmental sources, 
        and whether the violations are encouraged by the government or 
        whether the government fails to exercise satisfactory efforts 
        to control such violations;
          (3) report on whether freedom of religion violations occur on 
        a nationwide, regional, or local level; and
          (4) identify whether the violations are focused on an entire 
        religion or on certain denominations or sects.
  (b) Training.--The Secretary of State shall--
          (1) institute programs to provide training for chiefs of 
        mission as well as Department of State officials having 
        reporting responsibilities regarding the freedom of religion, 
        which shall include training on--
                  (A) the fundamental components of the right to 
                freedom of religion, the variation in beliefs of 
                religious groups, and the governmental and 
                nongovernmental methods used in the violation of the 
                right to freedom of religion; and
                  (B) the identification of independent human rights 
                groups and nongovernmental organizations with expertise 
                in the matters described in subparagraph (A); and
          (2) submit to the Director, not later than January 1 of each 
        year, a report describing all training provided to Department 
        of State officials with respect to religious persecution during 
        the preceding 1-year period, including a list of instructors 
        and materials used in such training and the number and rank of 
        individuals who received such training.

SEC. 11. TERMINATION OF SANCTIONS.

  (a) Termination.--The sanctions described in section 7 shall cease to 
apply with respect to a sanctioned country 45 days, or the day after 
the 15th legislative day, whichever is later, after the Director, in an 
annual report described in section 6(b), does not include a 
determination by the Secretary of State that the sanctioned country is 
among those in which category 1 or category 2 persecution continues to 
exist, or in an interim report under section 6(c), includes a 
determination by the Secretary of State that neither category 1 nor 
category 2 persecution exists in such country.
  (b) Withdrawal of Finding.--Any determination of the Secretary of 
State under section 5(g) may be withdrawn before taking effect if the 
Secretary makes a written determination, on the basis of a 
preponderance of the evidence, that the country substantially 
eliminated any category 1 or category 2 persecution that existed in 
that country. The Director shall submit to the Congress each 
determination under this subsection.

SEC. 12. SANCTIONS AGAINST SUDAN.

  (a) Extension of Sanctions Under Existing Law.--Any sanction imposed 
on Sudan because of a determination that the government of that country 
has provided support for acts of international terrorism, including--
          (1) export controls imposed pursuant to the Export 
        Administration Act of 1979;
          (2) prohibitions on transfers of munitions under section 40 
        of the Arms Export Control Act;
          (3) the prohibition on assistance under section 620A of the 
        Foreign Assistance Act of 1961;
          (4) section 2327(b) of title 10, United States Code;
          (5) section 6 of the Bretton Woods Agreements Act Amendments, 
        1978 (22 U.S.C. 286e-11);
          (6) section 527 of the Foreign Operations, Export Financing, 
        and Related Programs Appropriations Act, 1998 (as contained in 
        Public Law 105-118); and
          (7) section 901(j) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986;
shall continue in effect after the enactment of this Act until the 
Secretary of State determines that Sudan has substantially eliminated 
religious persecution in that country, or the determination that the 
government of that country has provided support for acts of 
international terrorism is no longer in effect, whichever occurs later.
  (b) Additional Sanctions on Sudan.--Effective 90 days after the date 
of the enactment of this Act, the following sanctions (to the extent 
not covered under subsection (a)) shall apply with respect to Sudan:
          (1) Prohibition on financial transactions with government of 
        sudan.--
                  (A) Offense.--Any United States person who knowingly 
                engages in any financial transaction, including any 
                loan or other extension of credit, directly or 
                indirectly, with the Government of Sudan shall be fined 
                in accordance with title 18, United States Code, or 
                imprisoned for not more than 10 years, or both.
                  (B) Definitions.--As used in this paragraph:
                          (i) Financial transaction.--The term 
                        ``financial transaction'' has the meaning given 
                        that term in section 1956(c)(4) of title 18, 
                        United States Code.
                          (ii) United states person.--The term ``United 
                        States person'' means--
                                  (I) any United States citizen or 
                                national;
                                  (II) any alien lawfully admitted into 
                                the United States for permanent 
                                residence;
                                  (III) any juridical person organized 
                                under the laws of the United States; 
                                and
                                  (IV) any person in the United States.
          (2) Prohibition on imports from sudan.--No article which is 
        grown, produced, manufactured by, marketed, or otherwise 
        exported by the Government of Sudan, may be imported into the 
        United States.
          (3) Prohibitions on united states exports to sudan.--
                  (A) Prohibition on computer exports.--No computers, 
                computer software, or goods or technology intended to 
                manufacture or service computers may be exported to or 
                for use of the Government of Sudan.
                  (B) Regulations of the secretary of commerce.--The 
                Secretary of Commerce may prescribe such regulations as 
                may be necessary to carry out subparagraph (A).
                  (C) Penalties.--Any person who violates this 
                paragraph shall be subject to the penalties provided in 
                section 11 of the Export Administration Act of 1979 (50 
                U.S.C. App. 2410) for violations under that Act.
          (4) Prohibition on new investment in sudan.--
                  (A) Prohibition.--No United States person may, 
                directly or through another person, make any new 
                investment in Sudan that is not prohibited by paragraph 
                (1).
                  (B) Regulations.--The Secretary of Commerce may 
                prescribe such regulations as may be necessary to carry 
                out subparagraph (A).
                  (C) Penalties.--Any person who violates this 
                paragraph shall be subject to the penalties provided in 
                section 11 of the Export Administration Act of 1979 (50 
                U.S.C. App. 2410) for violations under that Act.
          (5) Aviation rights.-- 
                  (A) Air transportation rights.--The Secretary of 
                Transportation shall prohibit any aircraft of a foreign 
                air carrier owned or controlled, directly or 
                indirectly, by the Government of Sudan or operating 
                pursuant to a contract with the Government of Sudan 
                from engaging in air transportation with respect to the 
                United States, except that such aircraft shall be 
                allowed to land in the event of an emergency for which 
                the safety of an aircraft's crew or passengers is 
                threatened.
                  (B) Takeoffs and landings.--The Secretary of 
                Transportation shall prohibit the takeoff and landing 
                in Sudan of any aircraft by an air carrier owned, 
                directly or indirectly, or controlled by a United 
                States person, except that such aircraft shall be 
                allowed to land in the event of an emergency for which 
                the safety of an aircraft's crew or passengers is 
                threatened, or for humanitarian purposes.
                  (C) Termination of air service agreements.--To carry 
                out subparagraphs (A) and (B), the Secretary of State 
                shall terminate any agreement between the Government of 
                Sudan and the Government of the United States relating 
                to air services between their respective territories.
                  (D) Definitions.--For purposes of this paragraph, the 
                terms ``aircraft'', ``air transportation'', and 
                ``foreign air carrier'' have the meanings given those 
                terms in section 40102 of title 49, United States Code.
          (6) Prohibition on promotion of united states tourism.--None 
        of the funds appropriated or otherwise made available by any 
        provision of law may be available to promote United States 
        tourism in Sudan.
          (7) Government of sudan bank accounts.--
                  (A) Prohibition.--A United States depository 
                institution may not accept, receive, or hold a deposit 
                account from the Government of Sudan, except for such 
                accounts which may be authorized by the President for 
                diplomatic or consular purposes.
                  (B) Annual reports.--The Secretary of the Treasury 
                shall submit annual reports to the Congress on the 
                nature and extent of assets held in the United States 
                by the Government of Sudan.
                  (C) Definition.--For purposes of this paragraph, the 
                term ``depository institution'' has the meaning given 
                that term in section 19(b)(1) of the Act of December 
                23, 1913 (12 U.S.C. 461(b)(1)).
          (8) Prohibition on united states government procurement from 
        sudan.--
                  (A) Prohibition.--No department, agency, or any other 
                entity of the United States Government may enter into a 
                contract for the procurement of goods or services from 
                parastatal organizations of Sudan, except for items 
                necessary for diplomatic or consular purposes.
                  (B) Definition.--As used in this paragraph, the term 
                ``parastatal organization of Sudan'' means a 
                corporation, partnership, or entity owned, controlled, 
                or subsidized by the Government of Sudan.
          (9) Prohibition on united states appropriations for use as 
        investments in or trade subsidies for sudan.--None of the funds 
        appropriated or otherwise made available by any provision of 
        law may be available for any new investment in, or any subsidy 
        for trade with, Sudan, including funding for trade missions in 
        Sudan and for participation in exhibitions and trade fairs in 
        Sudan.
          (10) Prohibition on cooperation with armed forces of sudan.--
        No agency or entity of the United States may engage in any form 
        of cooperation, direct or indirect, with the armed forces of 
        Sudan, except for activities which are reasonably necessary to 
        facilitate the collection of necessary intelligence. Each such 
        activity shall be considered as significant anticipated 
        intelligence activity for purposes of section 501 of the 
        National Security Act of 1947 (50 U.S.C. 413).
          (11) Prohibition on cooperation with intelligence services of 
        sudan.--
                  (A) Sanction.--No agency or entity of the United 
                States involved in intelligence activities may engage 
                in any form of cooperation, direct or indirect, with 
                the Government of Sudan, except for activities which 
                are reasonably designed to facilitate the collection of 
                necessary intelligence.
                  (B) Policy.--It is the policy of the United States 
                that no agency or entity of the United States involved 
                in intelligence activities may provide any intelligence 
                information to the Government of Sudan which pertains 
                to any internal group within Sudan. Any change in such 
                policy or any provision of intelligence information 
                contrary to this policy shall be considered a 
                significant anticipated intelligence activity for 
                purposes of section 501 of the National Security Act of 
                1947 (50 U.S.C. 413).
The sanctions described in this subsection shall apply until the 
Secretary of State determines that Sudan has substantially eliminated 
religious persecution in that country.
  (c) Multilateral Efforts To End Religious Persecution in Sudan.--
          (1) Efforts to obtain multilateral measures against sudan.--
        It is the policy of the United States to seek an international 
        agreement with the other industrialized democracies to bring 
        about an end to religious persecution by the Government of 
        Sudan. The net economic effect of such international agreement 
        should be measurably greater than the net economic effect of 
        the other measures imposed by this section.
          (2) Commencement of negotiations to initiate multilateral 
        sanctions against sudan.--It is the sense of the Congress that 
        the President or, at his direction, the Secretary of State 
        should convene an international conference of the 
        industrialized democracies in order to reach an international 
        agreement to bring about an end to religious persecution in 
        Sudan. The international conference should begin promptly and 
        should be concluded not later than 180 days after the date of 
        the enactment of this Act.
          (3) Presidential report.--Not less than 210 days after the 
        date of the enactment of this Act, the President shall submit 
        to the Congress a report containing--
                  (A) a description of efforts by the United States to 
                negotiate multilateral measures to bring about an end 
                to religious persecution in Sudan; and
                  (B) a detailed description of economic and other 
                measures adopted by the other industrialized countries 
                to bring about an end to religious persecution in 
                Sudan, including an assessment of the stringency with 
                which such measures are enforced by those countries.
          (4) Conformity of united states measures to international 
        agreement.--If the President successfully concludes an 
        international agreement described in paragraph (2), the 
        President may, after such agreement enters into force with 
        respect to the United States, adjust, modify, or otherwise 
        amend the measures imposed under any provision of this section 
        to conform with such agreement.
          (5) Procedures for agreement to enter into force.--Each 
        agreement submitted to the Congress under this subsection shall 
        enter into force with respect to the United States if--
                  (A) the President, not less than 30 days before the 
                day on which the President enters into such agreement, 
                notifies the House of Representatives and the Senate of 
                the President's intention to enter into such an 
                agreement, and promptly thereafter publishes notice of 
                such intention in the Federal Register;
                  (B) after entering into the agreement, the President 
                transmits to the House of Representatives and to the 
                Senate a document containing a copy of the final text 
                of such agreement, together with--
                          (i) a description of any administrative 
                        action proposed to implement such agreement and 
                        an explanation as to how the proposed 
                        administrative action would change or affect 
                        existing law; and
                          (ii) a statement of the President's reasons 
                        regarding--
                                  (I) how the agreement serves the 
                                interest of United States foreign 
                                policy; and
                                  (II) why the proposed administrative 
                                action is required or appropriate to 
                                carry out the agreement; and
                  (C) a joint resolution approving such agreement has 
                been enacted, in accordance with section 8066(c) of the 
                Department of Defense Appropriations Act, 1985 (as 
                contained in Public Law 98-473 (98 Stat. 1936)), within 
                30 days of transmittal of such document to the 
                Congress.
        For purposes of applying such section 8066(c), any reference in 
        such section to ``joint resolution'', ``resolution'', or 
        ``resolution described in paragraph (1)'' shall be deemed to 
        refer to a joint resolution described in subparagraph (C) of 
        this paragraph.
          (6) United nations security council imposition of same 
        measures against sudan.--It is the sense of the Congress that 
        the President should instruct the Permanent Representative of 
        the United States to the United Nations to propose that the 
        United Nations Security Council, pursuant to Article 41 of the 
        United Nations Charter, impose measures against Sudan of the 
        same type as are imposed by this section.
  (d) Additional Measures and Reports; Recommendations of the 
President.--
          (1) United states policy to end religious persecution.--It 
        shall be the policy of the United States to impose additional 
        measures against the Government of Sudan if its policy of 
        religious persecution has not ended on or before December 25, 
        1998.
          (2) Report to congress.--The Director shall prepare and 
        transmit to the Speaker of the House of Representatives and the 
        Chairman of the Committee on Foreign Relations of the Senate on 
        or before February 1, 1999, and every 12 months thereafter, a 
        report containing a determination by the Secretary of State of 
        whether the policy of religious persecution by the Government 
        of Sudan has ended.
          (3) Recommendation for imposition of additional measures.--If 
        the Secretary of State determines that the policy of religious 
        persecution by the Government of Sudan has not ended, the 
        President shall prepare and transmit to the Speaker of the 
        House of Representatives and the Chairman of the Committee on 
        Foreign Relations of the Senate on or before March 1, 1999, and 
        every 12 months thereafter, a report setting forth such 
        recommendations for such additional measures and actions 
        against the Government of Sudan as will end that government's 
        policy of religious persecution.
  (e) Definitions.--As used in this section:
          (1) Government of sudan.--The term ``Government of Sudan'' 
        includes any agency or instrumentality of the Government of 
        Sudan.
          (2) New investment in sudan.--The term ``new investment in 
        Sudan''--
                  (A) means--
                          (i) a commitment or contribution of funds or 
                        other assets, or
                          (ii) a loan or other extension of credit,
                that is made on or after the effective date of this 
                subsection; and
                  (B) does not include--
                          (i) the reinvestment of profits generated by 
                        a controlled Sudanese entity into that same 
                        controlled Sudanese entity, or the investment 
                        of such profits in a Sudanese entity;
                          (ii) contributions of money or other assets 
                        where such contributions are necessary to 
                        enable a controlled Sudanese entity to operate 
                        in an economically sound manner, without 
                        expanding its operations; or
                          (iii) the ownership or control of a share or 
                        interest in a Sudanese entity or a controlled 
                        Sudanese entity or a debt or equity security 
                        issued by the Government of Sudan or a Sudanese 
                        entity before the date of the enactment of this 
                        Act, or the transfer or acquisition of such a 
                        share or interest, or debt or equity security, 
                        if any such transfer or acquisition does not 
                        result in a payment, contribution of funds or 
                        assets, or credit to a Sudanese entity, a 
                        controlled Sudanese entity, or the Government 
                        of Sudan.
          (3) Controlled sudanese entity.--The term ``controlled 
        Sudanese entity'' means--
                  (A) a corporation, partnership, or other business 
                association or entity organized in Sudan and owned or 
                controlled, directly or indirectly, by a United States 
                person; or
                  (B) a branch, office, agency, or sole proprietorship 
                in Sudan of a United States person.
          (4) Sudanese entity.--The term ``Sudanese entity'' means--
                  (A) a corporation, partnership, or other business 
                association or entity organized in Sudan; or
                  (B) a branch, office, agency, or sole proprietorship 
                in Sudan of a person that resides or is organized 
                outside Sudan.
          (5) Sudan.--The term ``Sudan'' means any area controlled by 
        the Government of Sudan or by any entity allied with the 
        Government of Sudan, and does not include any area in which 
        effective control is exercised by an entity engaged in active 
        resistance to the Government of Sudan.
  (f) Waiver Authority.--The President may waive the imposition of any 
sanction against Sudan under paragraph (3) or (9) of subsection (b) of 
this section for periods of not more than 12 months each, if the 
President, for each waiver--
          (1) determines that the national security interests of the 
        United States justify such a waiver; and
          (2) provides to the Committees on Foreign Relations, Finance, 
        the Judiciary, and Appropriations of the Senate and to the 
        Committees on International Relations, Ways and Means, the 
        Judiciary, and Appropriations of the House of Representatives a 
        written notification of the President's intention to waive any 
        such sanction.
The notification shall contain an explanation of the reasons why the 
President considers the waiver to be necessary, the type and amount of 
goods, services, or assistance to be provided pursuant to the waiver, 
and the period of time during which such a waiver will be effective. 
When the President considers it appropriate, the explanation under the 
preceding sentence, or any part of the explanation, may be submitted in 
classified form.
  (g) Duly Authorized Intelligence Activities.--The prohibitions and 
restrictions contained in paragraphs (1), (2), (3), (4), and (8) of 
subsection (b) shall not apply to the conduct of duly authorized 
intelligence activities of the United States Government.

SEC. 13. EXCEPTION FOR IMPORTATION OF CERTAIN AGRICULTURAL PRODUCTS.

  Notwithstanding any other provision of law, none of the provisions of 
this Act shall restrict the importation of gum Arabic from Sudan during 
a calendar year if, during the preceding calendar year, a supply of 
that commodity in unprocessed form of equal quality to that cultivated 
in Sudan and not attributable to Sudan is not available in sufficient 
supply to meet the needs of United States consumers, processors, and 
manufacturers.

SEC. 14. EFFECTIVE DATE.

  (a) In General.--Subject to subsections (b) and (c), this Act and the 
amendments made by this Act shall take effect 120 days after the date 
of the enactment of this Act.
  (b) Appointment of Director.--The Director shall be appointed not 
later than 60 days after the date of the enactment of this Act.
  (c) Regulations.--Each Federal department or agency responsible for 
carrying out any of the sanctions under section 7 shall issue all 
necessary regulations to carry out such sanctions within 120 days after 
the date of the enactment of this Act.

                         Background and Purpose

    H.R. 2431, the Freedom From Religious Persecution Act, is 
intended to reduce and eliminate the widespread and ongoing 
religious persecution taking place throughout the world today. 
It seeks to achieve this objective by increasing the priority 
attached in U.S. foreign policy to the problem of religious 
persecution; by threatening to impose sanctions on foreign 
governments that carry out or condone serious religious 
persecution; and by seeking to increase the protections 
available to victims of religious persecution.
    Because of the exceptionally serious religious persecution 
being carried out by the government of Sudan, H.R. 2431 
requires the imposition of specified sanctions on that country. 
With respect to other countries where religious persecution is 
a problem, H.R. 2431 establishes a process for identifying 
those countries in which there is widespread and ongoing 
religious persecution of a serious nature. Countries so 
identified are required to be sanctioned, subject to the 
President's authority to waive the imposition of sanctions.
    The Committee believes that the threat of sanctions will 
encourage countries where persecution is a problem to bring 
their performance into conformity with international human 
rights standards.
    Following two days of Committee hearings on the legislation 
in September of 1997, it became apparent that a number of 
Committee Members had reservations about the bill as originally 
introduced. In an effort to address these reservations, the 
Committee worked for over six months to revise the legislation 
in ways that would accommodate Member concerns without 
weakening the fundamental purpose and structure of the bill. 
The large margin of approval within the Committee for H.R. 2431 
demonstrates that these efforts were largely successful.

                            Committee Action

    H.R. 2431, The Freedom From Religious Persecution Act of 
1998, was introduced by Rep. Wolf on September 8, 1997, and 
referred to the Committee on International Relations, and in 
addition, to the Committees on Ways and Means, the Judiciary, 
Banking, and Rules, for a period to be subsequently determined 
by the Speaker. The Subcommittee on Immigration and Claims (of 
the Judiciary Committee) held a hearing on March 24, 1998.
    During the 104th Congress, the Subcommittee on 
International Operations and Human Rights of the Committee on 
International Relations held two hearings on matters related to 
religious persecution. On February 15, 1996, the Subcommittee 
held a hearing on Persecution of Christians Worldwide. 
Witnesses included: Nina Shea, Director, The Puebla Program on 
Religious Freedom, Freedom House; Joseph M.C. Kung, President, 
The Cardinal Kung Foundation; Rev. Tran Qui Thien, Catholic 
Priest; Tom White, USA Director, The Voice of the Martyrs, 
Inc.; David F. Forte, Professor of Law, Cleveland State 
University--Marshall College of Law; Rev. Canon Patrick P. 
Augustine, Associate Rector, Church of the Holy Comforter; 
Pedro C. Moreno, International Coordinator, The Rutherford 
Institute; Abe Ghaffari, President, Iranian Christians 
International; Dr. Richard Land, President, Christian Life 
Commission of the Southern Baptist Convention; Dr. Morton 
Winston, Chair, Board of Directors, Amnesty International USA; 
Rev. Dr. Albert Pennybacker, Associate General Secretary, 
National Council of Churches of the Churches of Christ in the 
USA; and Martin J. Dannenfelser, Jr., Assistant to the 
President for Government Relations, Family Research Council.
    On February 27, 1996, the Subcommittee on International 
Operations and Human Rights held a hearing on Worldwide 
Persecution of Jews. Witnesses included: Dr. Peter Stavrakis, 
Deputy Director, The Kennan Institute for Advanced Russian 
Studies; Paul A. Goble, Senior Fellow, The Potomac Foundation; 
Alla Gerber, formerly a member of the Duma; Sergei Sirotkin, 
Deputy Chairman of the Commission on Human Rights Under the 
President of the Russian Federation; Dr. Gilbert N. Kahn, 
Professor of Political Science, Kean College of New Jersey; Dr. 
Leonid Stonov, Director of the Union of Councils' International 
Human Rights Bureaus in the Former Soviet Union; Raisa Kagan 
(pseudonym), Victim of Anti-Semitism in Uzbekistan; Tatyana 
Polanskaya (pseudonym), recently emigrated from the Former 
Soviet Union; and Shahin Abkazian (pseudonym), Iranian 
refugee--testimony read by Norman D. Tiles, President, Hebrew 
Immigrant Aid Society.
    On September 9, 1997, the Full Committee on International 
Relations held a hearing on H.R. 2431. Witnesses for the 
hearing included: Hon. Frank Wolf, Member of Congress; Hon. Ted 
Strickland, Member of Congress; Hon. Arlen Specter, United 
States Senate; and Hon. John Shattuck, Assistant Secretary of 
State, Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights and Labor.
    On September 10, 1997, the Full Committee continued 
hearings on H.R. 2431. Witnesses included: Atilio Okot John and 
Tsultrim Dolma, victims of religious persecution; Dr. Richard 
D. Land, President, Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission, 
Southern Baptist Convention; Rev. Richard John Neuhaus, 
Director, Institute on Religion and Public Life; Dr. Donald 
Argue, President, National Association of Evangelicals; Rev. 
Drew Christianson, S.J., Director, Office of International 
Justice and Peace, United States Catholic Conference; William 
J. Bennett, Co-Director, Empower America; Donald Hodel, 
President, Christian Coalition; Lodi G. Gyari, President 
International Campaign for Tibet; Jerry Goodman, Executive 
Director, National Committee for Labor Israel; Stephen Rickard, 
Director, Washington Office, Amnesty International USA, Law and 
Liberty Trust; and Lauren Homer, President, Law and Liberty 
Trust.
    On September 18, 1997, the Subcommittee on International 
Operations and Human Rights held a markup on H.R. 2431.

                               amendments

    A substitute amendment was offered by Mr. Smith. Mr. Smith 
asked unanimous consent to make a clarification in the 
substitute amendment regarding the definition of humanitarian 
assistance to include certain development assistance. There was 
no objection to the unanimous consent request, and the 
substitute amendment, as amended, passed by a voice vote.
     A motion to report the bill, as amended, passed by voice 
vote.
    The Full Committee marked up the bill in open session, 
pursuant to notice, on March 25, 1998. During the debate, two 
Administration officials, Amb. Stuart Eizenstat, Under 
Secretary of State for Economic, Business and Agriculture, and 
Barbara Larkin, Assistant Secretary of State for Legislative 
Affairs, responded to questions from Members.
    The Full Committee considered the bill as original text for 
the purpose of amendment. The Full Committee considered an 
amendment in the nature of a substitute offered by Mr. Gilman. 
Mr. Brady offered a substitute to the Gilman amendment in the 
nature of a substitute. Mr. Gilman withdrew his amendment, and 
the Brady amendment fell. Mr. Gilman then offered a revised 
amendment in the nature of a substitute. The following 
amendments were offered to the revised Gilman amendment in the 
nature of a substitute:
          (1) Brady amendment in the nature of a substitute 
        (same amendment as was previously offered by Mr. 
        Brady). Mr. Brady then withdrew the amendment.
          (2) Smith amendment that removed certain references 
        to specific countries and provided for the Secretary of 
        State to make certain determinations under the Act 
        rather than the Director of the Office of Religious 
        Persecution Monitoring. The amendment was agreed to by 
        voice vote.
          (3) Menendez amendment which, under certain 
        circumstances, exempts gum Arabic from the Act's 
        prohibition on imports from Sudan. The amendment was 
        agreed to by a roll call vote of 20-11 (see below).
          (4) Manzullo amendment which exempted the Overseas 
        Private Investment Corporation, the Trade and 
        Development Agency, and the Export-Import Bank from the 
        Act's foreign assistance cut-off sanction. Mr. Manzullo 
        withdrew the amendment after objections were heard that 
        the amendment was not under the jurisdiction of the 
        Committee on International Relations.
          (5) Bereuter amendment that revised provisions 
        regarding visa denial and refugee and asylum matters. 
        The Chair ruled in favor of a point of order that the 
        amendment went beyond the jurisdiction of the Committee 
        on International Relations.
          (6) Campbell amendment to delete the section relating 
        to sanctions against Sudan. The Chair ruled in favor of 
        a point of order that the amendment went beyond the 
        jurisdiction of the Committee on International 
        Relations.
    The Full Committee adopted the Gilman amendment in the 
nature of a substitute, as amended by the Smith and Menendez 
amendments. After concluding consideration of the bill, with a 
quorum being present, the Committee considered the Smith motion 
to order the bill favorably reported to the House, and agreed 
to the motion by a vote of 31 yeas to 5 nays, with one Member 
abstaining.
    The Chairman, by Unanimous Consent, was granted permission 
to make motions under Rule XX relative to this bill or a 
counterpart bill from the Senate. The Chief of Staff, by 
unanimous consent, was given permission to make technical, 
conforming and grammatical changes.

                             Rollcall Votes

    Clause (2)(l)(2)(B) of rule XI of the Rules of the House of 
Representatives requires the Committee to list the recorded 
votes on the motion to report legislation and amendments 
thereto. The votes on the Menendez amendment to the Gilman 
substitute amendment to H.R. 2431, and the vote on the motion 
to favorably report the bill, are set out below.

 description of amendment, motion, order, or other proposition (votes 
              during markup of h.r. 2431--march 25, 1998)

    Vote No. 1.--Menendez amendment making an exception to 
restrictions on the importation of certain agricultural 
products by allowing the importation of gum Arabic from Sudan.
    Voting yes: Ballenger, Manzullo, Chabot, McHugh, Hamilton, 
Gejdenson, Berman, Ackerman, Faleomavaega, Martinez, Andrews, 
Menendez, Brown, Danner, Hilliard, Sherman, Wexler, Clement, 
Luther, and Davis.
    Voting no: Gilman, Bereuter, Smith, Rohrabacher, Sanford, 
Salmon, Campbell, Graham, Blunt, Brady, and Lantos.
    Ayes, 20. Noes, 11.
    Vote No. 2.--On motion to favorably report H.R. 2431, as 
amended.
    Voting yes: Gilman, Goodling, Hyde, Smith, Burton, 
Gallegly, Ros-Lehtinen, Ballenger, Rohrabacher, Manzullo, Kim, 
Chabot, Sanford, Fox, Graham, Blunt, Brady, Gejdenson, Lantos, 
Berman, Ackerman, Faleomavaega, Andrews, Menendez, Brown, 
McKinney, Sherman, Wexler, Clement, Luther, and Davis.
    Voting no: Salmon, Campbell, Hamilton, Hastings, and 
Hilliard.
    Abstaining: Bereuter.
    Ayes, 31. Noes, 5. Abstaining, 1.

                      Committee Oversight Findings

    In compliance with clause 2(l)(3)(A) of rule XI of the 
Rules of the House of Representatives, the Committee reports 
the findings and recommendations of the Committee, based on 
oversight activities under clause 2(b)(1) of rule X of the 
Rules of the House of Representatives, are incorporated in the 
descriptive portions of this report.

         Committee on Government Reform and Oversight Findings

    No findings or recommendations of the Committee on 
Government Reform and Oversight were received as referred to in 
clause 2(l)(3)(D) of rule XI of the Rules of the House of 
Representatives.

               New Budget Authority and Tax Expenditures

    The Committee adopts the cost estimate of the Congressional 
Budget Office, set out below, as its submission of any required 
information on new budget authority, new spending authority, 
new credit authority, or an increase or decrease in the 
national debt required by clause 2(l)(3)(B) of rule XI of the 
Rules of the House of Representatives.

                       Federal Mandates Statement

    The Committee adopts as its own the estimate of Federal 
mandates prepared by the Director of the Congressional Budget 
Office pursuant to section 423 of the Unfunded Mandates Reform 
Act.

                      Advisory Committee Statement

    No advisory committees within the meaning of section 5(b) 
of the Federal Advisory Committee Act were created by this 
legislation.

                Applicability to the Legislative Branch

    The Committee finds that the legislation does not relate to 
the terms and conditions of employment or access to public 
services or accommodations within the meaning of section 
102(b)(3) of the Congressional Accountability Act.

                   Constitutional Authority Statement

    In compliance with clause 2(l)(4) of rule XI of the Rules 
of the House of Representatives, the Committee cites the 
following specific powers granted to the Congress in the 
Constitution as authority for enactment of H.R. 2431 as 
reported by the Committee: Article I, section 8, clause 3 
(relating to the regulation of commerce with foreign nations 
and among the several states); and Article I, section 8, clause 
18 (relating to making all laws necessary and proper for 
carrying into execution powers vested by the Constitution in 
the government of the United States).

               Congressional Budget Office Cost Estimate

    In compliance with clause 2(l)(3)(C) of rule XI of the 
Rules of the House of Representatives, the Committee sets forth 
with respect to H.R. 2431 as reported by the Committee the 
following estimate and comparison prepared by the Director of 
the Congressional Budget Office under section 403 of the Budget 
Act of 1974:

                                     U.S. Congress,
                               Congressional Budget Office,
                                     Washington, DC, April 1, 1998.
Hon. Benjamin A. Gilman,
Chairman, Committee on International Relations,
House of Representatives, Washington, DC.
    Dear Mr. Chairman: The Congressional Budget Office has 
prepared the enclosed cost estimate for H.R. 2431, the Freedom 
From Religious Persecution Act of 1998.
    If you wish further details on this estimate, we will be 
pleased to provide them. The CBO staff contact is Joseph C. 
Whitehill.
            Sincerely,
                                         June E. O'Neill, Director.
    Enclosure.

H.R. 2431--Freedom From Religious Persecution Act of 1998

    Summary: H.R. 2431 would create an Office of Religious 
Persecution to monitor and to report on violations of religious 
freedom throughout the world. The bill would impose restriction 
on trade or aid, deny visas, and levy sanctions on countries 
that are found to support to tolerate religious persecution. In 
particular, the bill would impose additional sanctions on 
Sudan. Finally, the bill would make certain changes to policies 
governing the admission of refugees and those seeking asylum 
into the United States.
    CBO estimates that enacting the bill would increase 
discretionary spending, assuming the appropriation of the 
necessary funds. Based on information from the Department of 
State, CBO estimates that the Office of Religious Persecution 
would cost about $600,000 a year.
    H.R. 2341 would affect direct spending, and thus pay-as-
you-go procedures would apply. The bill would impose additional 
costs on the Immigration and Naturalization Service (INS) by 
requiring it to increase documentation for certain cases in 
which it denies applications for asylum. CBO has not yet 
completed its estimate of such costs, but we believe that they 
could total a few million dollars a year. We expect that these 
costs would be paid from the Immigration Examination Fee 
Account and, therefore, that they would be direct spending. In 
addition, the changes in policies governing asylees and 
refugees could affect direct spending in certain benefit 
programs, but CBO does not expect that such costs would be 
significant.
    H.R. 2431 contains no intergovernmental mandates as defined 
in the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act of 1995 (UMRA), and would 
not have a significant impact on the budgets of state, local, 
or tribal governments. The bill would impose new private-sector 
mandates, as defined by UMRA, but CBO cannot determine whether 
the total costs of mandates resulting from sanctions against 
countries that engage in religious persecution would exceed the 
statutory threshold set by UMRA ($100 million in 1996, adjusted 
annually for inflation) in any one year.
    Basis of Estimate: The estimate assumes enactment of H.R. 
2431 and subsequent appropriation of the estimated 
authorizations by September 30, 1998. The costs of this 
legislation fall within budget function 150 (international 
affairs) and budget function 750 (administration of justice).
    Spending Subject to Appropriations. The bill would require 
the creation of an Office of Religious Persecution within the 
Department of State. Based on information provided by the 
department, CBO estimates that operating the office would 
require about five personnel, including the director, and would 
cost $600,000 per year.
    CBO estimates that the restrictions on foreign assistance 
required by the bill would not have a significant budgetary 
impact. The United States provides little assistance to the 
governments of countries suspected of supporting or tolerating 
religious persecution. In addition, the bill provides for many 
exemptions and waivers.
    Direct Spending. H.R. 2431 would require the INS to 
increase documentation for certain cases in which it denies 
applications for asylum. Enacting the bill would increase 
spending by the INS, but CBO cannot assign a specific annual 
cost at this time. Based on preliminary information from the 
General Accounting Office and the INS, we estimate that the 
resultant costs would probably be a few million dollars a year. 
We anticipate that the additional outlays would come from an 
account funded by users fees charged by the agency and would be 
classified as direct spending.
    H.R. 2431 would also make certain changes to policies 
government the admission of refugees and asylees into the 
United States. These changes could potentially affect direct 
spending for certain benefit programs (notably Supplemental 
Security Income, Food Stamps, and Medicaid) because many such 
individuals collect benefits under those programs, but CBO does 
not except that those costs would be significant.
    Under current law, applicant who can demonstrate a well-
founded fear of persecution on account of religion (or race, 
nationality, membership in a particular social group, or 
political opinion) already qualify for asylee or refugee 
status. The Department of State, which monitors the human 
rights situation around the world, has developed profiles of 
the varieties of religious persecution prevalent in various 
countries, and those profiles are used by the Department of 
Justice in adjudicating claims of asylum. Applicants for 
refugee or asylee status from countries such as Sudan and Iraq 
already have a very high probability of being granted admission 
into the United States H.R. 2431 would continue to require that 
applicants establish a well-founded fear of persecution, and 
would not grant automatic admission to anyone who merely 
asserts such claim on the basis of religion.
    The bill would, however, exempt certain people who claim 
religious persecution from the expedited removal procedures 
that now apply to other aliens who arrive without proper 
documents, and would make it more arduous for the government to 
document its denial of such claims during subsequent 
adjudications. It would also provide for a period of public 
review and comment on the proposed ceiling for the next year's 
refugee admissions, a ceiling that is now set by the President 
after consultation with key Congressional committees. Those 
procedural changes raise the possibility that the bill would 
lead the government to admit more refugees or grant more claims 
for asylum. But after consulting with the Department of Justice 
and the Department of State, CBO concludes that the number of 
additional people granted refugee or asylee status is likely to 
be quite small.
    Pay-as-you-go considerations: Because the bill would result 
in additional direct spending by the INS, pay-as-you-go 
procedures would apply. CBO has not yet completed its estimate 
of these costs, but we expect that they would amount to a few 
million dollars a year.
    Estimated impact on State, local, and tribal governments: 
H.R. 2431 contains no intergovernmental mandates as defined in 
UMRA, and would not have a significant impact on the budgets of 
state, local, or tribal governments.
    Estimated impact on the private sector: H.R. 2431 would 
impose new private-sector mandates, as defined by UMRA, on U.S. 
exporters who sell to countries identified as engaging in 
religious persecution. In addition, the bill would extend 
mandates that currently prohibit nearly all economic relations 
with the country of Sudan. Because the precise prohibitions 
against exports relating to religious persecution would be 
determined at a later date, CBO cannot estimate whether the 
direct costs of mandates in the bill would exceed the statutory 
threshold established in UMRA.
    Section 7 would prohibit all exports to identified 
responsible entities within a country that has been determined 
to carry out religious persecution or exports of products that 
facilitate persecution, depending on the specific findings of 
the Secretary of State. Because we have no basis for predicting 
what the secretary's findings would be, CBO cannot estimate the 
direct costs to the private-sector of these provisions.
    Section 12 would extend current sanctions against Sudan. 
Because existing sanctions ban virtually all economic relations 
with Sudan, CBO estimates that the provisions of this section 
would not impose significant additional costs on private-sector 
entities.
    Estimate prepared by: Impact on Federal Register Budget: 
Joseph Whitehill prepared the estimate of costs to the State 
Department; Kathy Ruffing prepared the estimate of the impacts 
on entitlement programs; and Mark Grabowicz prepared the 
estimate of costs to the Department of Justice. Impact on 
State, Local, and Tribal Governments: Pepper Santalucia. Impact 
on the Private sector: Elliot Schwartz.
    Estimate approved by: Robert A. Sunshine, Deputy Assistant 
Director for Budget Analysis.

                Jurisdictional Issues and Other Matters

    The following material is included for the interest of 
Members:

                          House of Representatives,
                                Committee on the Judiciary,
                                    Washington, DC, March 20, 1998.
Re immigration provisions of Religious Persecution Act.

Hon. Bennjamin A. Gilman,
Chairman, Committee on International Relations, House of 
        Representatives, Rayburn House Office Building, Washington, DC
    Dear Chairman Gilman: We are writing to request that the 
Committee on International Relations adopt the enclosed 
amendment during its upcoming markup of H.R. 2431, the 
``Freedom from Religious Persecution Act of 1997.'' The 
amendment relates to immigration provisions of the bill. The 
Committee on the Judiciary, as you know, has joint jurisdiction 
with the Committee on International Relations over section 
7(d), and sole jurisdiction over section 9.
    In order to obviate the necessity of a markup of H.R. 2431 
by the Committee on the Judiciary, we hope your committee will 
follow recommendations relating to Section 7(d) and Section 9 
of the bill. Such action will enable us to waive our referral 
on the bill.
    The requested amendments, a copy of which is attached,\1\ 
is based on concerns explained in an attached memorandum by 
Chairman Smith. Descriptively, our proposal is as follows:
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
    \1\ The attached amendments is based on the version of H.R. 2431 
reported by the International Relations Committee's Subcommittee on 
International Operations and Human Rights. If a different version of 
the bill is taken up by the International Relations Committee, the 
Judiciary Committee's requested amendment might have to be modified so 
that the same end result is achieved.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
    1. Section 7(d) of the bill would be struck and replaced by 
a new Section 9(a), adding to the Immigration and Nationality 
Act a new provision making inadmissible any alien who has 
carried out or directed the carrying out of religious 
persecution as defined in the Religious Persecution Act.
    2. The present Section 9(a), regarding the `'credible 
fear'' standard for asylum claims, and Section 9(c), regarding 
special asylum rules for designated religious persecution 
claims, would be struck.
    3. Retain unchanged Section 9(b), regarding training 
requirements for immigration officers; Section 9(d), regarding 
annual reports submitted by the Attorney General; Sections 
9(e), (f), and (g), regarding special refugee admissions for 
members of designated religious groups; and Section 9(h), 
regarding public comment and review on refugee admissions.
    If the amendment we propose is adopted and no additional 
immigration related provisions are added to the bill, the 
Judiciary Committee will waive its jurisdiction over H.R. 2431. 
Otherwise, we anticipate proceeding through regular order, 
which would necessitate our marking up the bill, thereby making 
all of the bill's immigration related provisions open to 
amendment.
    Your consideration of this request is greatly appreciated.
            Sincerely,
                                   Henry J. Hyde,
                                           Chairman.
                                   Lamar Smith,
                                           Chairman, Subcommittee on 
                                               Immigration and Claims.
    Attachments: Amendment to H.R. 2431.

    In section 7, strike subsection (d) (and redesignate 
provisions accordingly).
    In section 9, strike subsection (a) and insert the 
following:
    (a) Classes of Aliens Ineligible for Visas or Admission.--
Section 212(a)(3) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 
U.S.C. 1182(a)(3)) is amended by adding at the end the 
following:
                  ``(F) Participants in religious 
                persecution.--Any alien who carried out or 
                directed the carrying out of category 1 
                persecution (as defined in section 3 of the 
                Freedom from Religious Persecution Act of 1997) 
                or category 2 persecution (as so defined) is 
                inadmissible.''.
    In section 9, strike subsection (c) (and redesignate 
provisions accordingly).
                              ----------                              

                          House of Representatives,
                      Committee on International Relations,
                                    Washington, DC, March 31, 1998.
Hon. Henry Hyde,
Chairman, Committee on the Judiciary, House of Representatives, Rayburn 
        House Office Building, Washington, DC.
    Dear Henry: Thank you for your letter of March 20th, 
proposing an amendment to H.R. 2431, the ``Freedom From 
Religious Persecution Act of 1998,'' that would address the 
concerns of the Judiciary Committee with respect to provisions 
of the bill within your jurisdiction.
    During our Committee mark-up of H.R. 2431 on March 25th, 
Congressman Bereuter offered you proposed language as an 
amendment. A point of order was made to Mr. Bereuter's 
amendment, and in accordance with advice provided to me by the 
Office of the Parliamentarian, I sustained the point of order.
    Because we were unable to incorporate your proposal at our 
mark-up, I anticipate that your Committee will want to consider 
the provisions of H.R. 2431 within your jurisdiction on 
sequential referral.
    I appreciate the efforts made by you and Subcommittee 
Chairman Lamar Smith to resolve the concerns of the judiciary 
Committee by means short of sequential referral, and I am 
confident that the measure will receive appropriate 
consideration by your Committee under regular order.
    With warmest regards,
            Sincerely,
                                      Benjamin A. Gilman, Chairman.

                      Section-by Section Analysis

                         Section 1. Short Title

    Provides that the Act may be cited as the ``Freedom from 
Religious Persecution Act of 1998''.

                    Section 2. Findings and Purpose

    Sets forth relevant findings, including that persecution of 
religious believers is a serious problem in many countries 
around the world; that the 104th Congress adopted a number of 
measures calling attention to and condemning such persecution; 
and that such persecution was reviewed in detail in a State 
Department report to Congress. Recites provisions of the 
Declaration of Independence, Constitution, and various 
international legal instruments that establish freedom of 
religion as a fundamental right. Declares that the purpose of 
the Act is to reduce and eliminate the widespread and ongoing 
religious persecution taking place throughout the world today.

                         Section 3. Definitions

    Defines terms used in the Act, including ``persecution 
facilitating products,'' ``responsible entities,'' and ``United 
States assistance.''
    ``Category 1 persecution'' is defined as widespread and 
ongoing persecution of persons because of their religious 
beliefs or practices or membership in or affiliation with a 
religion or religious denomination, officially recognized or 
otherwise, when such persecution (1) includes abduction, 
enslavement, killing, imprisonment, forced mass relocation, 
rape, crucifixion or other forms of torture, or the systematic 
imposition of fines or penalties that have the purpose and 
effect of destroying the economic existence of persons on whom 
they are imposed, and (2) is conducted with the involvement or 
support of government officials or its agents or as part of 
official government policy.
    ``Category 2 persecution'' has the same elements as 
category 1 persecution, except it is not conducted with the 
involvement or support of government officials or agents, or 
pursuant to official government policy, in circumstances where 
the government, being able to undertake serious and sustained 
efforts to eliminate the persecution, fails to do so.
    By incorporating a requirement of abduction, enslavement, 
killing, or similar gross violations of human rights, the 
definitions of category 1 and category 2 persecution set a much 
higher threshhold for a finding of religious persecution than 
ordinarily is the case under international law. This higher 
standard is adopted for purposes of this Act only, and does not 
imply any retreat from or lack of support for the generally-
applicable definition of religious freedom set forth in article 
18 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, article 18 of 
theInternational Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, and 
similar international legal instruments.

                    Section 4. Application and Scope

    The Secretary of State is required to make a determination 
at least annually whether or not category 1 or category 2 
persecution exists in each foreign country that is either (1) a 
foreign country in which alleged violations of religious 
freedom have been described in the latest annual human rights 
report of the Department of State, or (2) a foreign country in 
which the Director of the Office of Religious Persecution 
Monitoring has reason to believe that category 1 or category 2 
persecution may exist as a result of a referral by an 
independent human rights group or nongovernmental organization 
or otherwise.

         Section 5. Office of Religious Persecution Monitoring

    Establishes within the Department of State the Office of 
Religious Persecution Monitoring, to be headed by a Director 
appointed by the President with the advice and consent of the 
Senate. The Director should be an individual with recognized 
knowledge and expertise in matters relating to religious 
persecution. The Director is barred from holding any other 
federal position, and has the following responsibilities:
          Consider information regarding violations of 
        religious freedom presented in the State Department's 
        annual human rights reports;
          Make findings of facts on violations of religious 
        freedom based on information presented by the State 
        Department, independent human rights groups, non-
        governmental organizations, and other interested 
        parties (which may include foreign governments subject 
        to review under the Act and persecuted communities 
        abroad);
          Make recommendations to the Secretary of State for 
        consideration by the Secretary in making determinations 
        regarding whether there is category 1 or category 2 
        persecution in countries subject to review under the 
        Act;
          Maintain the list of persecution-facilitating 
        products and the responsible entities within countries 
        determined to be engaged in religious persecution and 
        revise the lists as information becomes available;
          In consultation with the Secretary of State, make 
        policy recommendations to the President regarding the 
        policies of the U.S. government towards governments 
        determined to be engaged in the violation of the right 
        to freedom of religion;
          Coordinate with the Secretary of State, the Attorney 
        General, the Secretary of Commerce and the Secretary of 
        the Treasury to ensure the provisions of the Act are 
        fully implemented.
    The Secretary of State is responsible for making 
determinations about whether there is category 1 or category 2 
persecution in particular countries, which determinations are 
to be included in annual and appropriate interim reports 
submitted pursuant to section 6.

                     Section 6. Reports to Congress

    Not later than April 30 of each year, the Director is 
required to submit to Congress a report containing the 
determinations of the Secretary of State regarding whether 
there is category 1 or category 2 persecution occurring in 
foreign countries subject to review under the Act.
    In each country determined by the Secretary of State to 
have category 1 or category 2 persecution, the Director is 
required, in consultation with the Secretary of Commerce, to 
identify the goods on the Commerce Department's crime control 
list established under section 6(n) of the Export 
Administration Act of 1979 that are directly and substantially 
used or intended for use in carrying out of acts of religious 
persecution in that country. The Director may not identify as a 
``persecution facilitating product'' any item that does not 
appear on the Commerce Department's crime control list.
    In countries determined by the Secretary of State to have 
category 1 persecution, the Director is required to identify 
which the responsible entities within the foreign government 
that are engaged in religious persecution. Such entities are to 
be identified as narrowly as possible.
    The Director may submit interim reports to Congress that 
may, among other things, transmit determinations by the 
Secretary of State about whether there is category 1 or 
category 2 persecution in a country, or revise the lists of 
responsible entities or persecution facilitating products for a 
country.

                          Section 7. Sanctions

    For all countries in which the Secretary of State has found 
category 1 religious persecution, all exports to the 
responsible entities of the foreign government shall be 
prohibited. For all countries in which the Secretary of State 
has found category 1 or category 2 persecution, all exports of 
persecution-facilitating products to the country shall be 
prohibited. Both of these prohibitions shall be effective 90 
days after the Director submits the report to Congress 
containing the determination or identifying the responsible 
entity or persecution facilitating product, as the case may be.
    No United States assistance may be provided to the 
government of any country determined by the Secretary of State 
to have category 1 or category 2 persecution. This prohibition 
shall be effective with respect to a particular country 90 days 
after a report to Congress by the Director containing a finding 
of category 1 persecution in that country, and one year after a 
report to Congress by the Director containing a finding of 
category 2 persecution in that country. This prohibition 
extends to military assistance, Export-Import Bank, Overseas 
Private Investment Corporation (OPIC), and Trade and 
Development Agency assistance. The prohibition does not apply 
to disaster assistance, narcotics-related assistance, provision 
of food and medicine, or refugee assistance. In limited 
circumstances, the performance of OPIC contracts entered into 
before the effective date of sanctions is not prohibited.
    The President shall instruct the U.S. Executive Directors 
of all international financial institutions to vote against and 
lobby against loans to countries determined by the Secretary of 
State to have category 1 or category 2 persecution. Certain 
loans to address basic human needsare exempted. This 
restriction shall be effective with respect to a particular country 90 
days after a report to Congress by the Director containing a finding of 
category 1 persecution in that country, and one year after a report to 
Congress by the Director containing a finding of category 2 persecution 
in that country. If in international financial institution approves 
loans to these countries, the Secretary of Treasury must report to 
Congress on efforts made to deny loans and what steps will be taken in 
the future to deny loans to these countries.
    No consular officer may issue a visa to, and the Attorney 
General shall exclude from the United States, any alien who the 
Director determines carried out any act of category 1 or 
category 2 persecution.

                     Section 8. Waiver of Sanctions

    The President may waive the imposition of any sanction 
against a country under section 7 for periods of not more than 
12 months each for either of two reasons: (1) he determines 
that the national security interests of the United States 
justify such a waiver; or (2) he determines that such a waiver 
will substantially promote the purposes of the Act. The 
President must report to Congress on his intent to waive the 
sanctions at least 45 calendar days before the waiver takes 
effect (or 15 legislative days, whichever is later) and provide 
a written explanation of why he believes a waiver to be 
necessary. The President can exercise a partial waiver 
immediately by reporting to Congress that emergency conditions 
require immediate termination of sanctions.
    The waiver authority provided in this section is intended 
to be used only in extraordinary circumstances.

             Section 9. Modification of Immigration Policy

    This section makes changes to asylum and refugee policy 
that are not within the jurisdiction of the Committee on 
International Relations.

           Section 10. State Department Human Rights Reports

    The State Department is directed to report more thoroughly 
on religious persecution in the Annual Country Reports on Human 
Rights Practices by investigating whether persecution arises 
from governmental or nongovernmental sources, whether the 
persecution occurs on a nationwide, regional or localized 
level, and whether the persecution targets an entire religion 
or certain denominations. The State Department is also directed 
to train its human rights officers on religious persecution and 
report to the Director on the training provided.

                  Section 11. Termination of Sanctions

    Sanctions against a country are terminated if an annual 
report by the Director does not contain a determination by the 
Secretary of State that that country has category 1 or category 
2 persecution. Sanctions against a country are also terminated 
if the Director transmits an interim report to Congress 
containing a determination by the Secretary of State that 
neither category 1 nor category 2 persecution exists in that 
country. The termination of sanctions is effective 45 calendar 
days (or 15 legislative days, whichever is later) after the 
relevant report is transmitted to Congress.
    A finding of category 1 or category 2 persecution may be 
withdrawn at any time before sanctions take effect if the 
Secretary of State makes a written determination, on the basis 
of a preponderance of the evidence, that the country has 
substantially eliminated category 1 or category 2 persecution.

                  Section 12. Sanctions Against Sudan

    The Act provides that the sanctions currently in place 
against Sudan because of Sudan's designation as a state sponsor 
of terrorism shall remain in place until the government of 
Sudan has substantially eliminated religious persecution, or 
until that government is no longer designated as a state 
sponsor of terrorism, whichever is later. In addition, the Act 
imposes new sanctions similar to those imposed on South Africa 
in 1986. These include, among others, a prohibition on exports 
to and imports from Sudan, a prohibition on financial 
transactions with the government of Sudan, a prohibition on new 
investment in Sudan, a prohibition on flights to and from 
Sudan, a prohibition on the promotion of U.S. tourism in Sudan, 
a prohibition on U.S. depository institutions holding deposits 
from the government of Sudan, and a prohibition on U.S. 
government procurement from Sudan.
    In addition, the President is urged to pursue multilateral 
measures against Sudan.
    The President may waive the imposition of certain sanctions 
against Sudan for periods of not more than 12 months each if he 
determines that the national security interests of the United 
States justify such a waiver and notifies specified committees 
of Congress of his intent to waive such sanctions.

 Section 13. Exception for Importation of Certain Agricultural Products

    No provision of the Act shall restrict the importation of 
gum Arabic from Sudan during a calendar year if, during the 
preceding calendar year, a supply of that commodity in 
unprocessed form from other countries of equal quality to that 
cultivated in Sudan is not available in sufficient supply to 
meet United States requirements.

                       Section 14. Effective Date

    The Act is effective 120 days after enactment. The Director 
shall be appointed 60 days after enactment. All necessary 
regulations shall be issued within 120 days of enactment.

         Changes in Existing Law Made by the Bill, as Reported

  In compliance with clause 3 of rule XIII of the Rules of the 
House of Representatives, changes in existing law made by the 
bill, as reported, are shown as follows (new matter is printed 
in italic, and existing law in which no change is proposed is 
shown in roman):

IMMIGRATION AND NATIONALITY ACT

           *       *       *       *       *       *       *


TITLE II--IMMIGRATION

           *       *       *       *       *       *       *


   annual admission of refugees and admission of emergency situation 
                                refugees

  Sec. 207. (a) * * *

           *       *       *       *       *       *       *

  (d)(1) * * *

           *       *       *       *       *       *       *

  (4)(A) Notwithstanding any other provision of law, prior to 
each annual determination regarding refugee admissions under 
this subsection, there shall be a period of public review and 
comment, particularly by appropriate nongovernmental 
organizations, churches, and other religious communities and 
organizations, and the general public.
  (B) Nothing in this paragraph may be construed to apply 
subchapter II of chapter 5 of title 5, United States Code, to 
the period of review and comment referred to in subparagraph 
(A).

                                 asylum

  Sec. 208. (a) * * *

           *       *       *       *       *       *       *

  (e) Special Rules for Religious Persecution Claims.--
          (1) Procedures upon denial.--
                  (A) In general.--In any case in which the 
                Service denies or refers to an immigration 
                judge an asylum application filed by an alien 
                described in the second sentence of section 
                235(b)(1)(B)(v), or any care in which an 
                immigration judge denies such an application on 
                the ground that the alien is not a refugee 
                within the meaning of section 101(a)(42)(A), 
                the Service shall provide the alien with the 
                following:
                          (i) A written statement containing 
                        the reasons for the denial, which shall 
                        be supported by references to--
                                  (I) the most recent annual 
                                report sent by the Director of 
                                the Office of Religious 
                                Persecution Monitoring to the 
                                Congress under section 6 of the 
                                Freedom From Religious 
                                Persecution Act of 1997; and
                                  (II) either--
                                          (aa) the most recent 
                                        country report on human 
                                        rights practices issued 
                                        by the Secretary of 
                                        State; or
                                          (bb) any other report 
                                        issued by the Secretary 
                                        of State concerning 
                                        conditions in the 
                                        country of which the 
                                        alien is a national 
                                        (or, in the case of an 
                                        alien having no 
                                        nationality, the 
                                        country of the alien's 
                                        last habitual 
                                        residence).
                          (ii) A copy of any assessment sheet 
                        prepared by an asylum officer for a 
                        supervisory asylum officer with respect 
                        to the application.
                          (iii) A list of any publicly 
                        available materials relied upon by an 
                        asylum officer as a basis for denying 
                        the application.
                          (iv) A copy of any materials relied 
                        upon by an asylum officer as a basis 
                        for denying the application that are 
                        not available to the public, except 
                        Federal agency records that are exempt 
                        from disclosure under section 552(b) of 
                        title 5, United States Code.
                  (B) Credibility in issue.--In any case 
                described in subparagraph (A) in which the 
                denial is based, in whole or in part, on 
                credibility grounds, the Service shall also 
                provide the alien with the following:
                          (i) The statements by the applicant, 
                        or other evidence, that were found not 
                        to be credible.
                          (ii) A statement certifying that the 
                        applicant was provided an opportunity 
                        to respond to the Service's position on 
                        the credibility issue.
                          (iii) A brief summary of such 
                        response, if any was made.
                          (iv) An explanation of how the 
                        negative determination on the 
                        credibility issue relates to the 
                        applicant's religious persecution 
                        claim.
          (2) Effect in subsequent proceedings.--
                  (A) Use at option of applicant.--Any material 
                provided to an alien under paragraph (1) shall 
                be considered part of the official record 
                pertaining to the alien's asylum application 
                solely at the option of the alien.
                  (B) No effect on review.--The provision of 
                any material under paragraph (1) to an alien 
                shall not be construed to alter any standard of 
                review otherwise applicable in any 
                administrative or judicial adjudication 
                concerning the alien's asylum application.
          (3) Duty to submit report on religious persecution.--
        In any judicial or administrative proceeding in which 
        the Service opposes granting asylum to an alien 
        described in the second sentence of section 
        235(b)(1)(B)(v), the Service shall submit to the court 
        or administrative adjudicator a copy of the most recent 
        annual report submitted to the Congress by the Director 
        of the Office of Religious Persecution Monitoring under 
        section 6 of the Freedom From Religious Persecution Act 
        of 1997, and any interim reports issued by such 
        Director after such annual report.

           *       *       *       *       *       *       *


 inspection by immigration officers; expedited removal of inadmissible 
                 arriving aliens; referral for hearing

  Sec. 235. (a) * * *
  (b) Inspection of Applicants for Admission.--
          (1) Inspection of aliens arriving in the united 
        states and certain other aliens who have not been 
        admitted or paroled.--
                  (A) * * *
                  (B) Asylum interviews.--
                          (i) * * *

           *       *       *       *       *       *       *

                          (v) Credible fear of persecution 
                        defined.--For purposes of this 
                        subparagraph, the term ``credible fear 
                        of persecution'' means that there is a 
                        significant possibility, taking into 
                        account the credibility of the 
                        statements made by the alien in support 
                        of the alien's claim and such other 
                        facts as are known to the officer, that 
                        the alien could establish eligibility 
                        for asylum under section 208. Any alien 
                        who can credibly claim membership in a 
                        persecuted community found to be 
                        subject to category 1 or category 2 
                        religious persecution in the most 
                        recent annual report sent by the 
                        Director of the Office of Religious 
                        Persecution Monitoring to the Congress 
                        under section 6 of the Freedom From 
                        Religious Persecution Act of 1997 shall 
                        be considered to have a credible fear 
                        of persecution within the meaning of 
                        the preceding sentence.

           *       *       *       *       *       *       *

  (d) Training on Religious Persecution.--The Attorney General 
shall establish and operate a program to provide to immigration 
officers performing functions under subsection (b), or section 
207 or 208, training on religious persecution, including 
training on--
          (1) the fundamental components of the right to 
        freedom of religion;
          (2) the variation in beliefs of religious groups; and
          (3) the governmental and nongovernmental methods used 
        in violation of the right to freedom of religion.

           *       *       *       *       *       *       *


 DISSENTING VIEWS OF HON. LEE H. HAMILTON, HON. ALCEE L. HASTINGS; AND 
                         HON. EARL F. HILLIARD

    We have several concerns about H.R. 2431, which the 
Committee ordered reported, as amended, on March 25, 1998. The 
bill does not provide sufficient flexibility to the President 
in the conduct of American foreign policy. It forces the 
Secretary of State to devote enormous amounts of time in the 
making of a huge number of decisions about religious 
persecution, grading each country. These decisions will not 
lessen religious persecution, and will be counterproductive.
What does this bill do?
    This bill creates an Office of Religious Persecution 
Monitoring, whose Direrctor is assigned the responsibility of 
evaluating the state of religious freedom abroad. The Director 
must make recommendations about the existence and nature of 
religious persecution in countries around the world, to the 
Secretary of State. The Secretary must then sift through these 
recommendations and make decisions about sanctions because of 
religious persecution. She must find that a country either does 
or does not engage in religious persecution. If it does, a long 
list of sanctions apply automatically.
    Under this bill, the Secretary of State has no authority to 
balance other U.S. interests--such as economics, security 
issues, or even other human rights issues--in the making of her 
decision. Under this bill, the Secretary is confronted with the 
enormous burden of determining the applicability of sanctions 
to over seventy countries. On an extremely complex issue, where 
every country has a different history of religious expression 
and religious tolerance, the Secretary cannot judge nuances--
she is forced to make a stark yes or no choice on sanctions.
    Countries determined to be Category One or Category Two 
persecutors under this bill are automatically sanctioned. Once 
sanctions are imposed, the President would have the ability to 
review those sanctions, but he could waive them only after a 
sanctions determination had already been made public. The 
result of this process would be to complicate, if not damage 
seriously, our bilateral relations with several countries of 
enormous importance to the United States, and to harm the U.S. 
national interest.
What would be the impact of the bill if enacted today?
    Today, if Indonesia, Egypt, or Saudi Arabia were determined 
to fit the definition of religious persecution--as they almost 
surely would under this bill--the consequences could be severe. 
Even if the President were to waive the application of 
sanctions, U.S. relations with these important countries would 
be harmed, and so would key U.S. foreign policy objectives. The 
targeted countries would be outraged and deeply offended.
    How would sanctions against Indonesia impact on jittery 
world financial markets? How would such sanctions help the 
United States address the financial crisis in Asia and the 
threat to the world financial system?
    How would sanctions against Egypt--the first and most 
important Arab country to make peace with Israel--advance the 
Middle East peace process, at a time when the peace process is 
already in great difficulty?
    How would sanctions against Saudi Arabia impact on the 
presence of U.S. troops in Saudi Arabia, and advance the vital 
U.S. national interest in the secure and stable flow of oil 
from the Persian Gulf? Or on the U.S. goal of containing Saddam 
Hussein and enforcing UN Security Council Resolutions 
concerning Iraq?
Objections to the bill
    Our objections in detail to this bill follow:
    First, the mandatory, automatic sanctions in this bill 
sharply restrict the President's ability to conduct American 
foreign policy. A determination of religious persecution would 
automatically trigger all the sanctions listed in the bill.
    Sanctions would be triggered without consideration of any 
other U.S. interests. We are equipping ourselves with a single, 
inflexible, one-size-fits-all tool to address an issue of 
immense complexity and scope. U.S. interests in any country are 
multifaceted. No President should be forced to conduct American 
foreign policy toward a country on the basis of a single 
standard.
    Second, this bill could harm, not promote, efforts to 
protect religious freedom. We must be very careful about the 
impact of our action on the groups we seek to protect. 
Automatically launching an array of sanctions against a 
targeted country upon our determination could have serious 
consequences.
    A government that is willing to commit grave acts of 
persecution is not likely to stop persecution to avert 
sanctions mandated by this bill. We simply do not provide 
enough assistance or export enough critical products to give us 
this kind of leverage.
    But even if sanctions do not end persecution, they could 
provoke governments to strike out at those they hold 
responsible for U.S. pressure: the persecuted religious 
minorities we are trying to help. This is not a theoretical 
concern. In recent weeks, we have heard from churches and 
evangelical groups with tens of thousands of missionaries in 
China and other countries. They are concerned that the punitive 
approach in this bill will produce a backlash against them and 
the persecuted communities they are trying to help.
    Third, the bill has a cumbersome waiver provision.
    The President will not be able to waive these mandatory 
sanctions until after a public determination to impose them has 
been made. Even if sanctions are never imposed, they willcause 
harm long before a waiver takes effect.
    This waiver, like so many others we have written into law, 
lets Congress posture on an issue without taking 
responsibility. We leave the tough calls to the President.
    Waivers are not cost-free. They create huge foreign policy 
problems in themselves. They tie up the foreign policy 
bureaucracy with immensely complicated decisions, as is the 
case in the Iran-Libya Sanctions Act. They ask the President to 
make a static ``pass or fail'' determination with respect to 
issues of enormous complexity.
    Each and every time the President exercises his waiver 
authority to avoid sanctions, he will be sending mixed signals 
about the Administration's resolve in fighting religious 
persecution. He will have to defend each decision, which will 
require drawing narrow distinctions among countries.
    Fourth, this bill establishes a hiearchy of human rights 
violations, damaging to U.S. foreign policy.
    This bill establishes religious persecution as the top 
priority of U.S. human rights and immigration policy. We are 
saying in these bills that religious persecution is more 
important to us than any other form of persecution--more 
important than female infanticide, than racial discrimination; 
more important even than ethnic cleansing.
    We agree that religious persecution is abhorrent, but we 
believe it is a mistake to establish a hierarchy of human 
rights violations in U.S. law. We should never put overselves 
in the position of stating that one type of human rights abuse 
is more or less serious than another. This is a dangerous 
precedent. When we signal that one form of persecution takes 
priority for us, we invite governments to test our tolerance 
for other forms of persecution.
    Finally, let us say a word about the broader context of 
this bill.
    Seventy-five countries, representing more than half the 
world's population, are now subject to, or threatened by, 
unilateral U.S. sanctions. Two dozen more sanctions proposals 
are pending before Congress. Dozens of state and local 
governments have adopted, or are considering, their own foreign 
policy sanctions.
    There are scores of other Presdential certifications and 
waivers in U.S. law, all of which require the Administration to 
spend an enormous amount of time ``grading'' countries--time 
that would be better spent engaging those countries on issues 
of concern to us.
    In our rush to sanction and grade so many countries, we 
needlessly complicate the ability of the President to conduct 
American foreign policy.
    We note that the Administration had stated prior to mark up 
that the President's senior advisers would recommend that he 
veto the bill.
    While we voted aginst H.R. 2431 in committee, we are 
committed to working with its sponsors to improve this bill as 
it moves through the congressional process. We note that a 
different--and better--version of this bill was introduced in 
the Senate. Our fervent hope and expectation is that in the end 
we can work out a bill that will have strong bipartisan support 
and the support of the President, so that it can be signed into 
law and prmot the goals of religious freedom and tolerance that 
we all share.

                                   Lee H. Hamilton.
                                   Alcee L. Hastings.
                                   Earl F. Hilliard.

              DISSENTING VIEWS OF CONGRESSMAN TOM CAMPBELL

    I reluctantly oppose this bill in its present form. An 
amendment in the nature of a substitute was offered at the 
mark-up that included a very limited waiver authority with 
respect to the Sudan sanctions. The national security of the 
United States might require an import from Sudan. It might 
require that an airplane under the control of a United States 
citizen fly to Sudan. It might require procurement of a 
substance needed by the United States government from Sudan. 
Yet none of these are possible under the version reported by 
the committee. The bill as it leaves our committee limits that 
waiver to only the sponsoring of trade missions to Sudan and 
exports to Sudan.
    Several colleagues on the committee assured me that this 
problem would be taken care of in the next committee of 
jurisdiction to consider the bill. I certainly hope this is the 
case. However, I cannot vote on a bill on the basis of what 
another committee might (or might not) do with it. I can only 
vote on bills before me. And this bill is grossly deficient. It 
has the potential to jeopardize the national security of our 
country.
    One other aspect of the sanctions against Sudan is 
troublesome. The bill keeps in force the current sanctions that 
were imposed because of Sudan's alleged support for 
international terrorism. Under the bill, these sanctions may 
not be waived even if Sudan shows improvement in respect to the 
factors that caused Sudan to be subjected to those sanctions. 
Instead, Sudan would have to meet additional tests for any such 
removal to occur. And, with the changes made in the bill at the 
mark-up, these sanctions, which are currently able to be waived 
in the national security interest of the United States, may no 
longer be waived even if the national security compels it.
    Should Sudan show some progress, it is better for the 
President to have the authority to reward that progress by some 
selective easing of sanctions. Now that is impossible.

                                                      Tom Campbell.

                                
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