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“SUBMITTED RESOLUTIONS” mentioning the U.S. Dept of State was published in the Senate section on pages S5553 on May 23, 2001.
The publication is reproduced in full below:
SUBMITTED RESOLUTIONS
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SENATE CONCURRENT RESOLUTION 42--A BILL CONDEMNING THE TALEBAN FOR
THEIR DISCRIMINATORY POLICIES AND FOR OTHER PURPOSES
Mr. BROWNBACK (for himself and Mrs. Boxer) submitted the following concurrent resolution; which was referred to the Committee on Foreign Relations:
S. Con. Res. 42
Whereas the Taleban militia took power in Afghanistan in 1996, and now rules over 90 percent of the country;
Whereas, under Taleban rule, most political, civil, and human rights are denied to the Afghan people;
Whereas women, minorities, and children suffer disproportionately under Taleban rule;
Whereas, according to the United States Department of State Country Report on Human Rights Practices, violence against women and girls in Afghanistan occurs frequently, including beatings, rapes, forced marriages, disappearances, kidnapings, and killings;
Whereas Taleban edicts isolate Muslim and non-Muslim minorities, and will require the thousands of Hindus living in Taleban-ruled Afghanistan to wear identity labels on their clothing, singling out these minorities for discrimination and harsh treatment;
Whereas Taleban forces have targeted ethnic Shiite Hazaras, many of whom have been massacred, while those who have survived, are denied relief and discriminated against for their religious beliefs;
Whereas non-Muslim religious symbols are banned, and earlier this year Taleban forces obliterated 2 ancient statues of Buddha, claiming they were idolatrous symbols;
Whereas Afghanistan is currently suffering from its worst drought in 3 decades, affecting almost one-half of Afghanistan's 21,000,000 population, with the impact severely exacerbated by the ongoing civil war and Taleban policies denying relief to needy areas;
Whereas the Taleban has systematically interfered with United Nations relief programs and workers, recently closing a new hospital and arresting local workers, closing United Nations World Food Program bakeries providing much needed food, and closing offices of the United Nations Special Mission to Afghanistan in 4 Afghan cities;
Whereas, as a result of those policies, there are more than 25,000,000 persons who are internally displaced within Afghanistan, and this year, contrary to past practice, the Taleban rejected a United Nations call for a cease-fire in order to bring assistance to the internally displaced;
Whereas, as a result of Taleban policies, there are now more than 2,200,000 Afghan refugees in Pakistan, and 500,000 more refugees are expected to flee in the coming months unless some form of relief is forthcoming;
Whereas Pakistan has closed its borders to Afghanistan, and has announced that Pakistani and United Nations officials will begin screening refugees in June with a view toward forcibly repatriating all those who are found to be staying illegally in Pakistan;
Whereas the Taleban leadership continues to give safe haven to terrorists, including Osama bin Laden, and is known to host and provide training ground to other terrorist organizations; and
Whereas the people of Afghanistan are the greatest victims of the Taleban, and in recognition of that fact, the United States has provided $124,000,000 in relief to the people of Afghanistan this year: Now, therefore, be it
Resolved by the Senate (the House of Representatives concurring), That Congress--
(1) condemns the harsh and discriminatory policies of the Taleban toward Muslims, Hindus, women, and all other minorities, and the attendant destruction of religious icons;
(2) urges the Taleban to immediately reopen United Nations offices and hospitals and allow the provision of relief to all the people of Afghanistan;
(3) commends President George W. Bush and his administration for their recognition of these urgent issues and encourages President Bush to continue to respond to those issues;
(4) recognizes the burdens placed on the Government of Pakistan by Afghan refugees, and calls on that Government to facilitate the provision of relief to these refugees and to abandon any plans for forced repatriation; and
(5) calls on the international community to increase assistance to the Afghan people and consider granting asylum to at-risk Afghan refugees.
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