Condemning the People's Republic of China for its socially unacceptable business practices, including the manufacturing and exportation of unsafe products, casual disregard for the environment, and exploitative employment practices.

Madam Speaker, I rise today in support of H. Res. 944--``Expressing the sense of the House of Representatives on religious minorities in Iraq.'' As a cosponsor of this resolution, I join my colleagues in expressing my concern about the plight of vulnerable religious and ethnic minorities of Iraq, and we are particularly concerned for the Chaldeans, Syriacs, Assyrians, and other Christians, Sabean Mandeans, Yazidis, Baha'is, Jews, and Muslim ethnic minorities, the Shabak and Turkomen, and other religious and ethnic minorities of Iraq.

Political and religious freedom in Iraq is a vital concern with regards to the nation and region. When we envision the long-term peace and security of Iraq, we envision a country with a strong, functioning democracy that respects the rights of all citizens. That vision is not a product of the imperialism of Western ideas; the tradition of religious plurality has roots in the history and religious beliefs of the Iraqi people. But, although Iraq has a strong history of multiculturalism, it must not rest on this reputation. The rights of minorities in Iraq are not fully protected, and the Iraqi government can and must do more to protect the rights of its minorities.

The degree to which Iraq protects those rights is a reflection on our country. Because of the United States' unfortunate detour from our struggle against terrorism into Iraq, the actions of the new government of Iraq directly reflect upon us. So far, I believe that the actions of the government of Iraq with respect to political and religious freedoms are problematic.

In no case is the Iraqi government's treatment of minorities more troubling than their treatment of the residents of Camp Ashraf. Although Camp Ashraf is halfway around the world, the conditions there affect Americans, including in my own district and throughout the state of Texas where some of my constituents have family members in Camp Ashraf. For example, my constituent, Mitra Sohrabi, has a brother who is currently detained in Camp Ashraf, and worries about his health on a daily

basis. I also know many people in Houston and throughout the state of Texas who were affected directly by the July 2009 raid on Camp Ashraf.

Late last year, three months after U.S. forces turned over control of Camp Ashraf, Iraqi Security Forces violated the human rights of the People's Mujahideen of Iran (PMOI). Camp Ashraf detains over 3,400 exiled Iranian political dissidents, who are members of the PMOI, including over 1,000 women. The PMOI opposes the current Iranian regime, and for their political beliefs they have been exiled from Iran and sequestered in Camp Ashraf. Several women detained at Camp Ashraf have reported acts of intimidation and threats of physical and sexual violence by members of the Iraqi security forces.

On July 28, 2009, Iraqi Security Forces conducted a raid on the detainees at Camp Ashraf. The raid occurred fewer than three months after the U.S. passed control of Camp Ashraf to the government of Iraq. The raid began on Tuesday, July 28th when Iraqi armored vehicles began attacks against the Iranian prisoners. The attacks continued for two full days and resulted in the death of 11 exiles and the injury of over 400 more. As a result of the raid on Camp Ashraf, 36 men were arrested under allegations of violent behavior. The 36 arrested Camp Ashraf residents have since been freed, but the United States has a continuing interest in ensuring that the events of July 28th never occur again.

Although most of the residents of Camp Ashraf were not religious minorities, the Iraqi government's treatment of the camp's residents sets a dangerous example. In recent years, there have been alarming numbers of religiously motivated killings, abductions, beatings, rapes, threats, intimidation, forced conversions, marriages, and displacement from homes and businesses, and attacks on religious leaders, pilgrims, and holy sites, in Iraq, with the smallest religious minorities in Iraq having been among the most vulnerable, although Iraqis from many religious communities, Muslim and non-Muslim alike, have suffered in this violence. In summary, members of small religious minority communities in Iraq do not have militia or tribal structures to defend them, do not receive adequate official protection, and are legally, politically, and economically marginalized.

This resolution will remind the Iraqi government that minorities of any type--be it race, religion, political affiliation, or difference of thought--are integral components of a robust civil society and a true democracy. I have faith that Iraq can and will achieve such a democracy, but we must remember that building democracy requires more than a constitution--it requires a commitment to democratic principles.

Madam Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and agree to the resolution (H. Res. 944) expressing the sense of the House of Representatives on religious minorities in Iraq, as amended.

Madam Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days to revise and extend their remarks and to include extraneous material on the resolution under consideration.

I rise in strong support of this resolution, and I yield myself such time as I may consume.

Madam Speaker, H. Res. 944 expresses the sense of the House of Representatives on the status of religious minorities in Iraq.

When the Iraq war began in 2003, little thought was given to the impact on Iraq's religious minorities. Only 3 percent of the population in Iraq is non-Muslim. These populations include Christians, Yazidis, Sabian-Mandaeans, Baha'is, Shabaks, Kaka'is, and a very small number of Jews.

Although the new Iraqi Constitution recognizes Islam as the official religion of Iraq, it also states that no law may be enacted that contradicts principles of democracy or the rights and basic

freedoms stipulated in the constitution. The constitution also guarantees freedom of thought, conscience, and religious belief and practice for both Muslims and non-Muslims.

Although the Iraqi Government generally respects these rights, ongoing violence restricts the free exercise of religion, and this violence poses a significant threat to the country's vulnerable religious minorities. These minorities continue to suffer at the hands of terrorists, extremists, criminal gangs, and even at the hands of unsavory elements within the Iraqi Government. Sectarian violence, including attacks on religious leaders and religious places of worship, continues to hamper their ability to practice religion freely.

Many experts consider the situation for Iraqi Christians as especially dire. According to Chaldean Catholic Auxiliary Bishop Andreos Abouna of Baghdad, the number of Christians in Iraq may have been cut in half since 2003. As documented by the State Department, Christians have been threatened with violence if they do not leave their homes. They have been accosted on the streets and have even been assassinated. Their churches have been bombed and destroyed.

Reports indicate that other religious minorities face similarly treacherous situations. The Yazidis, who are considered heretical by many Muslims because of their beliefs, have suffered under a tremendous onslaught of violence. Another targeted group, the Sabian-Mandaeans, numbered about 60,000 in 2003. Today, only about 5,000 Sabian-Mandaeans remain in Iraq, meaning that more than 90 percent have left the country or have been killed.

That is why we are considering House Resolution 944 today, and that is why I am proud to say that I am an original cosponsor of that resolution.

This resolution urges the Government of Iraq to enhance security in places of worship in Iraq, particularly where religious minorities are known to be at risk. The resolution calls for the urgent training of an appropriate number of security forces to protect religious minorities. It also urges the Iraqi Government to take affirmative measures to reverse the legal, political and economic marginalization of religious minorities in Iraq. In addition, it asks the United States to consider implementing programs for religious minorities as part of its overall economic assistance to Iraq.

Madam Speaker, I urge all of my colleagues to support this resolution in an effort to make certain that all religions survive and have a chance to prosper in the new Iraq.

Madam Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Madam Speaker, at this time I yield 3 minutes to the prime sponsor of this resolution, the gentleman from Michigan (Mr. Peters).

Madam Speaker, I have no further requests for time, and I yield back the balance of my time.

Madam Speaker, I ask unanimous consent to reclaim the balance of my time.

Madam Speaker, I have no further requests for time, and I yield back the remainder of my time.

Madam Speaker, I object to the vote on the ground that a quorum is not present and make the point of order that a quorum is not present.

Madam Speaker, I thank the gentleman from New York for yielding the time.

While the majority of Iraqis are Muslim, there are many communities of religious and ethnic minorities whose history in Iraq goes back thousands of years. This includes Chaldeans, Syriacs, Assyrians, and other Christians, as well as Sabian Mandeans and Yazidis.

Since 2003, approximately 2\1/2\ million refugees and asylum seekers have fled Iraq, and millions more have become displaced, forced to flee their homes and neighborhoods because of sectarian violence. In fact, there were approximately 1\1/2\ million Christians in Iraq in 2003, and today there is less than half of that amount.

Many of these Iraqis would like nothing more than to return home. According to the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, in 2008, approximately 221,000 Iraqis returned to their home village or neighborhood in Iraq and the vast majority settled into areas where members of their own religious community controlled the neighborhood or local government.

Unfortunately, Iraqi religious minorities do not have militia or tribal structures to defend themselves, and they do not receive adequate protection from the police or security forces. Not only does this make the possibility of return nearly impossible for Iraqi religious minorities, it also leaves them particularly vulnerable to violence.

Iraqi Christians and other religious minorities are often specifically targeted in gruesome and random acts of violence such as murder, rape, and abductions. This includes the Chaldean community, who this week is mourning the kidnapping and murder of Archbishop Paulos Faraj Rahho on February 29, 2008.

Archbishop Rahho spent almost his entire life living in Mosul and serving its Christian communities which are among the oldest and largest in Iraq. For years, the archbishop was threatened with violence because he spoke out against discrimination against Christians by Muslim extremists. Sadly, the archbishop was murdered because he refused to lend the support of his church to terrorists in their fight against U.S. forces in Iraq.

These stories continue to be tragically common, and more must be done by the United States Government and by the Government of Iraq to protect religious minorities.

This resolution calls upon the United States and the Iraqi Government to protect religious minorities by encouraging free and fair elections, training Iraqi security forces, and providing safe places to worship. It also seeks an investigation into human rights violations and calls for an end to the abuse of Iraqi religious minorities. Finally, the resolution calls for the United States to work with the Iraqi Government to ensure the physical and economic safety of those wishing to return to Iraq.

I would like to thank my colleagues, Mr. Wolf and Ms. Eshoo, who, as co-Chairs of the Religious Minorities in the Middle East Caucus, have shown great leadership on this issue and for their support of this resolution. I would also like to thank Chairman Berman and Ranking Member Ros-Lehtinen for their support and for their staffs' work in helping me bring this resolution forward today.

It is no longer possible to stand by and watch as millions of religious minorities are subject to torture, abuse, and discrimination, which is why I ask my colleagues to support this important resolution.

I thank the gentlewoman for yielding the time.

I want to support the comments that have been made by Members of both sides and let Members think about it for a moment. With the exception of Israel, the Bible, the Bible contains more references to the cities, the regions, and the nations of ancient Iraq than any other country. The patriarch Abraham came from the city of Ur. I actually visited the site, when the war began, of the location of Abraham's house. Isaac's bride, Rebekah, came from northwest Iraq. Jacob spent 20 years in Iraq, and his sons, the 12 tribes of Israel, were born in northwest Iraq. A remarkable spiritual revival as told in the Book of Jonah occurred in Nineveh. The events of the Book of Esther took place in Iraq, as did the account of Daniel in the lion's den.

So all of these religious things have taken place, and yet people have almost forgotten about Iraq. And the previous speaker in his comments has said the Christian community in these areas has been going through tremendous pressure.

I have appreciated Ambassador Chris Hill's commitment to this issue. In recent correspondence, he indicated that the security of the Christian community remains one of his paramount concerns, especially in light of attacks directed at Christian churches in Baghdad and Mosul over the past 5 months.

But there needs to be leadership from the highest levels within the State Department as well. We've long advocated both during the previous administration and the current one that the U.S. needs to adopt a comprehensive policy to address the unique situation of these defenseless minorities. This resolution, and I thank both sides for bringing it up, urges the Secretary of State to develop such a strategy.

In closing, let me just say it is time for this administration to start taking religious freedom seriously. The position of U.S. Ambassador for International Religious Freedom has been vacant, has been vacant for over a year. Did anyone hear? There is no ambassador for religious freedom that has been appointed by this administration. The position has been vacant, vacant for 1 year. Yet we see the persecution of the Coptic Christians in Egypt, the Assyrian Christians in Iraq, the Catholic Church in China, the Catholic Church in Vietnam, on and on. So we want to see this administration have an ambassador who can advocate, as the resolution calls for, to help Chris Hill and helps others to speak out and advocate. But the very fact that there has been no ambassador appointed for over 13 months kind of tells the story. Personnel, personnel is policy, and if there's no personnel, it's not a good policy.

Let me just end. I want to thank the gentlemen on both sides and the gentlewoman for speaking. And I hope there's a rollcall vote on this. I hope we have to vote up and down so we can send a message to the Assyrian Christians and those who are going through tremendous persecution wondering whether anybody in the West cares.

Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

I also rise in support of House Resolution 944, and I want to thank the gentleman from Michigan (Mr. Peters) and the gentleman from Virginia (Mr. Wolf) for bringing this important human rights issue before us today.

The protection of members of vulnerable religious and ethnic minorities, including the smallest minority groups, is integral to the future of Iraq as a free and stable country. Iraq is home to ancient and diverse Catholic, Orthodox, and other Christian groups, including Chaldean, Assyrian, Syriac, and Armenian Christians, among many others. They have been targeted for kidnapping and murder by radical Islamic extremists. Various credible sources estimate that more than half of Iraq's Christians have already fled the country during the last several years.

However, these dangers are certainly not confined to Christians. The Baha'i faith remains prohibited in Iraq, and Iraq's ancient and once- flourishing Jewish community has reportedly dwindled to fewer than a dozen people.

All of us understand that Iraq's young democracy faces many challenges, including its own threats from insurgents and other extremists. But the marginalization, the displacement, the violence that threatens Iraq's minority communities also endanger the vitality and the inclusiveness of Iraqi society as a whole.

We must strive to ensure that the work that we and our allies do helps to build Iraq's capacity and commitment to protect its minority citizens, and we must encourage the Government of Iraq to ensure that its forthcoming elections are an opportunity to reinforce the growth of democracy and freedom in that country. Those elections should be safe, should be fair, should be transparent so that all Iraqis, including members of these vulnerable religious and ethnic minority communities, can participate. And we must not let members of those minorities under siege think that they are alone or that they are forgotten.

For these reasons, Madam Speaker, I am grateful for this resolution, which deserves our unanimous support.

Madam Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Madam Speaker, I am very pleased to yield 4 minutes to the gentleman from Virginia (Mr. Wolf), the co-Chair of the Tom Lantos Congressional Human Rights Commission and the coauthor of this important measure.

(Mr. WOLF asked and was given permission to revise and extend his remarks.)

Madam Speaker, I do have an additional speaker in case the gentleman would like to reserve his time.

Madam Speaker, I now would like to yield 4 minutes to the gentleman from Tennessee (Mr. Duncan), a member of the Natural Resources, Oversight, and Transportation Committees, for his insight and the insight of his constituent who's very concerned about religious minorities in Iraq.

I have no further requests for time, and I yield back the balance of my time.