Expressing Concern Regarding Violation of Human Rights by Syria
EXPRESSING CONCERN REGARDING VIOLATION OF HUMAN RIGHTS BY SYRIA -- (House of Representatives - March 16, 2005)
Mr. SMITH of New Jersey. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and agree to the concurrent resolution (H. Con. Res. 18) expressing the grave concern of Congress regarding the continuing gross violations of human rights and civil liberties of the Syrian and Lebanese people by the Government of the Syrian Arab Republic, as amended.
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Mr. SMITH of New Jersey. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. I want to thank the leadership for bringing up this resolution.
H. Con. Res. 18, Mr. Speaker, addresses the continued gross violations of human rights committed by the Syrian regime. The terrorist regime in Damascus is one that not only supports and facilitates terrorist attacks against innocent civilians throughout the world but also engages in a widespread campaign of terror and human rights suppression among its own people.
According to the most recent State Department Country Reports on Human Rights Practices, the government of Syria continues to commit numerous serious abuses and remains with a poor record on human rights overall. Any activity by human rights activists and organizations is stifled and activists are sentenced to lengthy prison terms, tortured or even forced into exile, only to be harassed and intimidated in exile as well.
Domestic human rights groups cannot exist legally. According to a recent world report by Human Rights Watch, the dictatorship of Syria strictly limits freedom of expression, association and assembly and treats ethnic minority Kurds as second-class citizens. The government has a long record of arbitrary arrests, systematic torture, prolonged detention of suspects and grossly unfair trials. Women face discrimination and have little means for full redress when they become victims of rape or domestic violence.
However, Syria's deplorable human rights record is not limited to its immediate borders. The repressive apparatus also extends into neighboring Lebanon, which has been a captive nation for 25 years. Hundreds of free-thinking Lebanese civilians are believed to have been killed or disappeared because of Syrian occupation forces throughout these years. U.S. policy must support the Syrian people. It must support its dissidents, human rights activists, and the pro-democracy advocates so that they, too, can free themselves from the shackles of tyrannical rule.
This resolution also addresses, Mr. Speaker, two overarching vital U.S. national security requirements regarding the Syrian regime; that is, that Syria must immediately and unconditionally cease its support for terrorism and its development of unconventional weapons and advanced missile capabilities.
I strongly urge my colleagues to support this important resolution to express U.S. support for those in Syria and Lebanon who continue to toil for freedom and democracy, and ensure the regime in Damascus that we will continue to increase the pressure until these goals are met.
Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
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