4 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 stan, including the legislature, and the restoration of democracy and the rule of law; (5) urges the armed forces of Pakistan to respect the human rights of all Pakistani citizens, including those members of the national government who are currently being illegally detained in violation of their constitutional and human rights; and (6) calls on the President not to consider exercising the waiver authority which would be granted to him by the Department of Defense Appropriations Act, 2000 (Public Law 106-79), to allow the sale of any military equipment or services to Pakistan, or reinstatement of Pakistan's eligibility for international military education and training, until a civilian, democratically elected government is returned to power in Pakistan. Amend the title to read: "Expressing the strong opposition of Congress to the military coup in Pakistan and calling for a civilian, democratically elected government to be returned to power in Pakistan." HRES 169 IH 106th CONGRESS 1st Session H. RES. 169 Expressing the sense of the House of Representatives with respect to democracy, free elections, and human rights in the Lao People's Democratic Republic. IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES May 13, 1999 Mr. VENTO (for himself and Mr. SMITH of New Jersey) submitted the following resolution; which was referred to the Committee on International Relations RESOLUTION Expressing the sense of the House of Representatives with respect to democracy, free elections, and human rights in the Lao People's Democratic Republic. Whereas in 1975, the Pathet Lao party supplanted the existing Lao government and the Lao Royal Family, and established a `people's democratic republic', in violation of the 1962 Declaration on the Neutrality of Laos and its Protocol, as well as the 1973 Vientiane Agreement on Laos; Whereas since the 1975 overthrow of the existing Lao Government, Laos has been under the sole control of the Lao People's Democratic Party; Whereas the present Lao Constitution provides for human rights protection for the Lao people, and Laos is a signatory to international agreements on civil and political rights; Whereas Laos has become a member of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, which calls for the creation of open societies in each of its member states by the year 2020; Whereas despite that, the State Department's Country Reports on Human Rights Practices for 1998' notes that the government has only slowly eased restrictions on basic freedoms and begun codification of implementing legislation for rights stipulated in the Lao Constitution, and continues to significantly restrict the freedoms of speech, assembly, and religion; Whereas according to Amnesty International, serious problems persist in the human rights record of the Government of Laos, including the continued detention of political prisoners and the treatment of such prisoners in a manner that is degrading, abusive, and inhu mane; Whereas in February 1998, one political prisoner of the Government of Laos, Thongsouk Saysangkhi, died, and an unknown number of other political prisoners still remain inside its prisons; and Whereas allegations of persecution and human rights abuse of the Hmong who repatriated to Laos continue, and Hmong families of detained political prisoners are reported to be threatened daily under the Communist Government in Laos: Now, therefore, be it Resolved, That it is the sense of the House of Representatives that the present Government of Laos should END (1) respect international norms of human rights and democratic freedoms for the Lao people, and fully honor its commitments to those norms and freedoms as embodied in its constitution and international agreements, and in the 1962 Declaration on the Neutrality of Laos and its Protocol and the 1973 Vientiane Agreement on Laos; (2) issue a public statement specifically reaffirming its commitment to protecting religious freedom and other basic human rights; (3) fully institute a process of democracy, human rights, and openly contested free and fair elections in Laos, and ensure specifically that the National Assembly elections--currently scheduled for 2002-are openly contested; and (4) allow access for international human rights monitors, including the International Committee of the Red Cross and Amnesty International, to Lao prisons, and to all regions of the country to investigate allegations of human rights abuses, including those against the Hmong people, when requested. [COMMITTEE PRINT] Showing H. Res. 169, as Reported by the Subcommittee on Asia and the Pacific [The amendments consist of amendments in the nature of a substitute to the preamble and text and a title amendment] 106TH CONGRESS 1ST SESSION H. RES. 169 Expressing the sense of the House of Representatives with respect to democracy, free elections, and human rights in the Lao People's Democratic Republic. IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES MAY 13, 1999 Mr. VENTO (for himself and Mr. SMITH of New Jersey) submitted the following resolution; which was referred to the Committee on International Relations RESOLUTION Expressing the sense of the House of Representatives with respect to democracy, free elections, and human rights in the Lao People's Democratic Republic. 2 Strike the preamble and the text after the resolving clause and insert the following: Whereas since the 1975 overthrow of the existing Royal Lao Government, Laos has been under the sole control of the Lao People's Revolutionary Party; Whereas the present Lao constitution provides for a wide range of freedoms for the Lao people, including freedom of speech, freedom of assembly, and freedom of religion, and Laos is a signatory to international conventions on genocide, racial discrimination, discrimination against women, war crimes, and rights of the child; Whereas since July 1997, Laos has been a member of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), an organization which has set forth a vision for the year 2020 of a membership consisting of "open societies governed with the consent and greater participation of the people" and "focus(ed) on the welfare and dignity of the human person and the good of the community"; Whereas, despite the Lao constitution and the membership by Laos in ASEAN, the Department of State's Laos Country Report on Human Rights Practices for 1998 states that the Lao Government's human rights record deteriorated and that the Lao Government restricts freedom of speech, assembly, association, and religion; Whereas Amnesty International reports that serious problems persist in the Lao Government's performance in the area of human rights, including the continued detention of prisoners of conscience in extremely harsh conditions, and that in one case a prisoner of conscience held with |