International
Human Rights Equality Resolution (Introduced in House)
6/26/2001:
Referred to the House Committee on
International Relations.
8/8/2001:
Referred to the Subcommittee on
International Operations and Human Rights.
HCON 173 IH
107th CONGRESS
1st Session
H. CON. RES. 173
IN THE HOUSE OF
REPRESENTATIVES
Mr. LANTOS (for himself, Mrs.
Morella, Mr. Shays, Mr. Wexler, Mr. McGovern, Ms. Lee, Mr. Sanders, Ms.
Baldwin, Mr. Allen, Mr. Engel, Mr. Abercrombie, Mr. Delahunt, Mr. Wynn, Ms.
Rivers, Mr. Weiner, Mr. Crowley, Mr. McNulty, Mr. Gonzalez, Mr. Frank, Mr.
Lewis of Georgia, Mr. Pallone, Ms. Pelosi, Ms. Schakowsky, Mr. Conyers, Mr.
Jefferson, Mr. Stark, and Ms. Woolsey) submitted the following concurrent
resolution; which was referred to the Committee on International Relations
CONCURRENT
RESOLUTION
Resolved by the House of
Representatives (the Senate concurring),
This concurrent resolution may be
cited as the `International Human Rights Equality Resolution'.
Congress finds the following:
(1) Treaties, conventions, and
declarations to which the United States is a party address government
obligations to combat human rights violations, and the overall goals and
standards of these treaties, conventions, and declarations in promoting human
rights of all individuals have been found to be consistent with, and in support
of, the aspirations of the United States at home and globally, as well as
consistent with the Constitution of the United States.
(2) Articles 3 and 5 of the 1948 Universal
Declaration of Human Rights and Articles 6, 7, and 9 of the 1966 International
Covenant on Civil and Political Rights guarantee all individuals the right to
life, liberty, and security of person, and guarantee that no one shall be
subjected to torture or to cruel, inhuman, or degrading treatment or
punishment, and the 1984 Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or
Degrading Treatment or Punishment reinforces the commitment of countries to
prevent torture within their jurisdictions.
(3) The fundamental human right
not to be arbitrarily deprived of life is violated when those convicted of
homosexual acts in Afghanistan are sentenced to be executed and are crushed by
having walls toppled over them, and there remain a number of other countries
around the world that call for the possible execution of those convicted of
homosexual acts, including Saudi Arabia, Yemen, Kuwait, Mauritania, and Iran.
(4) The fundamental right not to
be subjected to torture or other cruel, inhuman, or degrading treatment is
violated when, because of their real or perceived sexual identity, gay men,
lesbians, bisexuals, and transgendered individuals (hereafter referred to as
`LGBT individuals') are subjected to severe beatings while in police custody in
Argentina and Uganda, and individuals in these groups are also routinely the
victims of human rights abuses, such as extortion, entrapment, physical
assaults, and rape, committed by the police in Mexico and Ecuador, among other
countries.
(5) A number of LGBT individuals
are targeted and tortured or killed because of their real or perceived sexual
identity by paramilitary groups in Guatemala and El Salvador, which collude
with the military, police, and other government officials in those countries.
(6) Articles 2 and 7 of the
Universal Declaration of Human Rights and Articles 2, 14, and 26 of the
International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights guarantee all individuals
freedom from arbitrary discrimination and equal protection before the law.
(7) Individuals in many countries,
such as Romania, are convicted pursuant to penal laws which criminalize sexual
conduct between same-sex partners, and these individuals are subjected to
torture, including rape, in prison, for which they have no legal recourse for
redress.
(8) In Pakistan and Saudi Arabia
the sentence for sexual conduct between same-sex partners who are consenting
adults includes flogging, and in Singapore and Uganda the sentence for sexual
conduct between same-sex partners who are consenting adults can extend to life
in prison.
(9) Many governments, on the basis
of vague laws, may target and persecute LGBT individuals because of their real
or perceived sexual identity, including in Egypt where individuals in these
groups may be imprisoned under laws that penalize offenses against public
morals, and in Venezuela where individuals in these groups are imprisoned under
the laws against vagrants and crooks, and the vagueness of these laws makes it
difficult to monitor governmental persecution.
(10) Articles 19 and 20 of the
Universal Declaration of Human Rights and Articles 19 and 22 of the
International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights guarantee all individuals
freedom of expression and freedom of association.
(11) The fundamental rights of
freedom of expression and association are violated when governments deny the
right of LGBT individuals to form organizations or advocate for rights under
international humanitarian laws, such as in Zimbabwe where members of Gays and
Lesbians of Zimbabwe (GALZ) have been threatened and brutally assaulted for
mobilizing around issues of concern to LGBT individuals.
(12) In some countries, agents of
the government are directing or are complicitous in abuses committed on the
basis of sexual orientation and gender identity, and investigation and
prosecution of those agents for these violations of international law often do
not occur.
(13) Due to the failure by
governments to investigate and prosecute human rights violations based on
sexual orientation and gender identity, private individuals feel encouraged to
attack violently LGBT individuals with impunity, contributing to an atmosphere
of fear and intimidation for LGBT individuals.
(14) The human rights violations
that lesbian and bisexual women suffer because of their real or perceived
sexual identity are particularly vitriolic because of their gender, and,
moreover, the aggravated abuse of these women often goes unreported because of
their gender.
(15) Violations of internationally
recognized human rights norms are to be considered crimes regardless of the
real or perceived sexual identity of the victims and are to be punished without
discrimination.
(16) Fundamental access to legal
protection from violations of internationally recognized human rights norms is
often unavailable to the victims.
(17) Lesbians and bisexual women
face additional obstacles in these countries when seeking assistance from
police, judges, and other officials due to pervasive gender bias.
(18) The preceding clauses
constitute only a few examples of the violations suffered by LGBT individuals
because of their real or perceived sexual identity, the full range and extent
of such violations are not known because governments create atmospheres of
immunity for those perpetrating such human rights violations and prevent
victims from seeking effective protection and just redress, and, thus, their
suffering remains undocumented and unremedied.
(19) Many nongovernmental human
rights organizations, including Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch, and
the International Gay and Lesbian Human Rights Commission, as well as the
United States Department of State and the United Nations, have documented, and
are continuing to document, the ongoing violations of the human rights of LGBT
individuals.
Congress--
(1) condemns all violations of
internationally recognized human rights norms based on the real or perceived
sexual orientation or gender identity of an individual;
(2)(A) recognizes that human
rights violations abroad based on sexual orientation and gender identity should
be punished without discrimination between these and other crimes, regardless
of the real or perceived sexual identity of the victims, and that such
violations should be given the same consideration and concern as human rights
violations based on other grounds in the formulation of policies to protect and
promote human rights globally; and
(B) further recognizes that the
protection from human rights abuses, such as torture and other cruel, inhuman,
or degrading treatment or punishment, is fully embedded in international
humanitarian law, regardless of the sexual orientation and gender identity of
the victim; and
(3) commends nongovernmental human
rights organizations, including Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch, and
the International Gay and Lesbian Human Rights Commission, as well as the
United States Department of State and the United Nations, for documenting the
ongoing abuse of human rights on the basis of sexual orientation and gender
identity.
COSPONSORS(72), ALPHABETICAL [followed by Cosponsors
withdrawn]: (Sort: by
date)
|
Rep Abercrombie, Neil - 6/26/2001 |
Rep Allen, Thomas H. - 6/26/2001 |
|
Rep Baird, Brian - 7/18/2001 |
Rep Baldwin, Tammy - 6/26/2001 |
|
Rep Bonior, David E. - 10/5/2001 |
Rep Brady, Robert - 7/18/2001 |
|
Rep Capps, Lois - 10/5/2001 |
Rep Capuano, Michael E. - 6/28/2001 |
|
Rep Conyers, John, Jr. - 6/26/2001 |
Rep Crowley, Joseph - 6/26/2001 |
|
Rep Cummings, Elijah E. - 7/18/2001 |
Rep DeFazio, Peter A. - 10/5/2001 |
|
Rep DeGette, Diana - 6/11/2002 |
Rep Delahunt, William D. - 6/26/2001 |
|
Rep DeLauro, Rosa L. - 9/20/2001 |
Rep Engel, Eliot L. - 6/26/2001 |
|
Rep Eshoo, Anna G. - 11/28/2001 |
Rep Evans, Lane - 7/18/2001 |
|
Rep Farr, Sam - 12/4/2001 |
Rep Filner, Bob - 7/18/2001 |
|
Rep Frank, Barney - 6/26/2001 |
Rep Frost, Martin - 6/11/2002 |
|
Rep Gonzalez, Charles A. - 6/26/2001 |
Rep Gutierrez, Luis V. - 12/4/2001 |
|
Rep Hastings, Alcee L. - 1/24/2002 |
Rep Hinchey, Maurice D. - 12/4/2001 |
|
Rep Hooley, Darlene - 8/2/2001 |
Rep Jackson, Jesse L., Jr. - 7/30/2001 |
|
Rep Jefferson, William J. - 6/26/2001 |
Rep Kolbe, Jim - 7/18/2001 |
|
Rep Kucinich, Dennis J. - 7/18/2001 |
Rep Larson, John B. - 6/28/2001 |
|
Rep Leach, James A. - 8/2/2001 |
Rep Lee, Barbara - 6/26/2001 |
|
Rep Levin, Sander M. - 7/18/2001 |
Rep Lewis, John - 6/26/2001 |
|
Rep Lowey, Nita M. - 6/28/2001 |
Rep Maloney, Carolyn B. - 9/20/2001 |
|
Rep Matsui, Robert T. - 9/20/2001 |
Rep McDermott, Jim - 7/18/2001 |
|
Rep McGovern, James P. - 6/26/2001 |
Rep McKinney, Cynthia A. - 6/28/2001 |
|
Rep McNulty, Michael R. - 6/26/2001 |
Rep Millender-McDonald, Juanita - 6/11/2002 |
|
Rep Miller, George - 7/30/2001 |
Rep Mink, Patsy T. - 7/18/2001 |
|
Rep Moran, James P. - 7/30/2001 |
Rep Morella, Constance A. - 6/26/2001 |
|
Rep Nadler, Jerrold - 7/18/2001 |
Rep Olver, John W. - 6/11/2002 |
|
Rep Pallone, Frank, Jr. - 6/26/2001 |
Rep Pastor, Ed - 9/20/2001 |
|
Rep Pelosi, Nancy - 6/26/2001 |
Rep Price, David E. - 9/20/2001 |
|
Rep Rivers, Lynn N. - 6/26/2001 |
Rep Rothman, Steve R. - 6/11/2002 |
|
Rep Roybal-Allard, Lucille - 8/2/2001 |
Rep Sanders, Bernard - 6/26/2001 |
|
Rep Schakowsky, Janice D. - 6/26/2001 |
Rep Shays, Christopher - 6/26/2001 |
|
Rep Sherman, Brad - 12/4/2001 |
Rep Simmons, Rob - 1/24/2002 |
|
Rep Stark, Fortney Pete - 6/26/2001 |
Rep Tierney, John F. - 6/28/2001 |
|
Rep Towns, Edolphus - 12/4/2001 |
Rep Velazquez, Nydia M. - 10/5/2001 |
|
Rep Watson, Diane E. - 9/20/2001 |
Rep Waxman, Henry A. - 6/28/2001 |
|
Rep Weiner, Anthony D. - 6/26/2001 |
Rep Wexler, Robert - 6/26/2001 |
|
Rep Woolsey, Lynn C. - 6/26/2001 |
Rep Wynn, Albert Russell - 6/26/2001 |
SUMMARY AS OF:
6/26/2001--Introduced.
International
Human Rights Equality Resolution - Declares that Congress: (1) condemns all
violations of internationally recognized human rights norms based on the real
or perceived sexual orientation or gender identity of an individual; (2)
recognizes that human rights violations abroad based on sexual orientation and
gender identity should be punished without discrimination between these and
other crimes, regardless of the real or perceived sexual identity of the
victims, and that such violations should be given the same consideration and
concern as human rights violations based on other grounds in the formulation of
policies to protect and promote human rights globally; (3) further recognizes
that the protection from human rights abuses, such as torture and other cruel,
inhuman, or degrading treatment or punishment, is fully embedded in
international humanitarian law, regardless of the sexual orientation and gender
identity of the victim; and (4) commends nongovernmental human rights
organizations, including Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch, and the
International Gay and Lesbian Human Rights Commission, as well as the United
States Department of State and the United Nations, for documenting the ongoing
abuse of human rights on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity.
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