WASHINGTON - U.S. Sens. Ron Wyden (D-OR)
and Sam Brownback (R-KS) joined with U.S. Rep. Tom Lantos (D-CA)
in a news conference today saying the U.S. must support pro-democracy
Iranian dissidents. Brownback, Wyden and Lantos today introduced
a Congressional resolution on Iran.
“The goal of our resolution is to prevent the plight of
the Iranian people from slipping off the world's radar screen,”
said Wyden. “Iran’s record on the range of human rights
concerns, from torture to freedom of the press, continues to deteriorate.
We intend to keep the pressure on Iran to take all necessary steps
toward respect for human rights and fundamental freedoms,”
said Wyden.
\“I believe strongly that the
brave Iranian people will win this important battle,” Brownback
said. “History is on their side. Tyranny and oppression
as forms of government cannot last forever. Once the people commit
to change and to a better life for their children, no force in
the world can hold them back. America itself is a living example
of this principle. It is so inspiring to see the 50 million young
people in Iran rising up to demand free press, to demand basic
human rights and most of all - to demand the liberty that is their
birthright,” Brownback said.
“The Iranian people want
secular democracy, and they want close ties with the United States,”
Lantos said. “Indeed, Iranians are crying out for change,
and they deserve America's support.
“But Iran's theocratic regime
continues unabatedly to repress freedom, to develop weapons of mass
destruction, and to undermine the interests of the United States
and our regional allies -- whether by supporting anti-U.S. tribal
leaders in Afghanistan, shipping arms to the Palestinian Authority,
blowing up Jewish institutions in Argentina, training and funding
Hizbullah, or directing Islamic terrorism in Turkey.
“With our resolution, the
American people will send the unmistakable message that they have
lost all hope that this ugly regime can change, but, at the same
time, that they stand four-square, in solidarity and respect, with
the Iranian people in their quest for true freedom and secular democracy,”
Lantos said.
The resolution offers support
to the Iranian people who are struggling for democracy, freedom
and respect for human rights in Iran. An unelected supreme leader
continues to exercise control over all functions of the Iranian
state. Through this ideological dictatorship, the government of
Iran is directly involved in supporting terrorism and the development
of weapons of mass destruction.
Efforts to engage the regime are
counterproductive to real progress within Iran and engagement with
the current regime undermines the real democratic constituencies
in Iranian society and provides a facade of international legitimacy
to an illegitimate regime. The resolution offers the respect of
the American people to the contributions of Iranian culture and
recognizes the support of real democratic forces within Iran. It
calls upon the United States government to support the Iranian people’s
aspirations for real freedom.
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