[Congressional Bills 109th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H. Con. Res. 248 Referred in Senate (RFS)]
109th CONGRESS
1st Session
H. CON. RES. 248
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES
October 17, 2005
Received and referred to the Committee on Foreign Relations
_______________________________________________________________________
CONCURRENT RESOLUTION
Honoring the life and work of Simon Wiesenthal and reaffirming the
commitment of Congress to the fight against anti-Semitism and
intolerance in all forms, in all forums, and in all nations.
Whereas Simon Wiesenthal, who was known as the ``conscience of the Holocaust'',
was born on December 31, 1908, in Buczacz, Austria-Hungary, and died in
Vienna, Austria, on September 20, 2005, and he dedicated the last 60
years of his life to the pursuit of justice for the victims of the
Holocaust;
Whereas, during World War II, Simon Wiesenthal worked with the Polish
underground and was interned in 12 different concentration camps until
his liberation by the United States Army in 1945 from the Mauthausen
camp;
Whereas, after the war, Simon Wiesenthal worked for the War Crimes Section of
the United States Army gathering documentation to be used in prosecuting
the Nuremberg trials;
Whereas Simon Wiesenthal's investigative work and expansive research was
instrumental in the capture and conviction of more than 1,000 Nazi war
criminals, including Adolf Eichmann, the architect of the Nazi plan to
annihilate European Jewry, and Karl Silberbauer, the Gestapo officer
responsible for the arrest and deportation of Anne Frank;
Whereas numerous honors and awards were bestowed upon Simon Wiesenthal,
including the Congressional Gold Medal, honorary British Knighthood, the
Dutch Freedom Medal, the French Legion of Honor, the World Tolerance
Award, and the Jerusalem Medal;
Whereas the Simon Wiesenthal Center was founded in 1977 in Los Angeles and named
in honor of Simon Wiesenthal to promote awareness of anti-Semitism,
monitor neo-Nazi and other extremist groups, and help bring surviving
Nazi war criminals to justice;
Whereas, in 1978, inspired in part by the work of Simon Wiesenthal, the Congress
enacted a law to deny citizenship and Federal benefits to former Nazis,
and the Office of Special Investigations of the Department of Justice
has since conducted more than 1,500 investigations, won 101 cases, and
blocked the immigration of 170 individuals, and the work of the Office
continues;
Whereas, in keeping with the efforts of Simon Wiesenthal, many governments have
responded to the growing tide of anti-Semitism worldwide, elected
leaders have spoken out against anti-Semitism, and law enforcement
officials and prosecutors have aggressively pursued the perpetrators of
anti-Semitic acts; and
Whereas Simon Wiesenthal's legacy teaches that the perpetrators of genocide
cannot and will not be allowed to hide from their crimes: Now,
therefore, be it
Resolved by the House of Representatives (the Senate concurring),
That the Congress--
(1) honors the life and work of Simon Wiesenthal to
memorialize the victims of the Holocaust and to bring the
perpetrators of crimes against humanity to justice;
(2) reaffirms its commitment to the fight against anti-
Semitism and intolerance in all forms, in all forums, and in
all nations; and
(3) urges all members of the international community to
facilitate the investigation and prosecution of surviving Nazi
war criminals and to continue documenting and collecting
information on Nazi war crimes for archival and historical
purposes.
Passed the House of Representatives October 7, 2005.
Attest:
JEFF TRANDAHL,
Clerk.
By Gerasimos C. Vans,
Deputy Clerk.