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Mr. GARRETT of New Jersey. It has now been 1 week since the Iranian people went to the polls to elect their new political leader. And in the last 7 days, the results of the election have been questioned, the media in Iran has been suppressed, thousands of demonstrators have protested, and some of these demonstrators have been injured and killed. Yet this very morning the supreme leader of Iran compared the election to a family disagreement. He offered no apologies for the deaths of the civilian protesters and, instead, simply blamed the Western media for being Zionist-controlled.
As a Member of Congress, I am appalled at this response and the apparent mockery of a fundamental democratic freedom, the freedom to protest and report on one's own government. We know the demonstrators were harassed rather than defended, and we know that Internet connections were cut and cell phone services disabled. Even foreign radio and television satellites were jammed.
So I ask, is this the behavior indicative of a country that recognizes liberties? I was proud earlier today to vote for H. Res. 560 and express my support for the Iranian citizens who recognize the need for their voices to be heard.
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