III

103D CONGRESS

1ST SESSION S. RES. 89

Relating to restoration of democracy in Haiti.

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

APRIL 1 (legislative day, MARCH 3), 1993

Ms. MOSELEY-BRAUN (for herself and Mr. FEINGOLD) submitted the following

resolution; which was referred to the Committee on Foreign Relations

RESOLUTION

Relating to restoration of democracy in Haiti.

Whereas the Republic of Haiti is the second oldest republic

in the Western Hemisphere;

Whereas in their 188-year history the people of Haiti have

long suffered under the yoke of tyranny and dictatorship;

Whereas in 1986 the Haitian people rose up against injustice

to overthrow President-for-Life Jean Claude Duvalier;

Whereas the people of Haiti have repeatedly demonstrated

their desire for full participatory democracy and economic

opportunity for all Haitians;

Whereas these yearnings culminated in the December 16,

1990 election of President Jean-Bertrand Aristide in the

first free, fair, and open elections in the history of the

Republic;
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•SRES 89 IS

Whereas a military junta subsequently seized power illegally

and forced President Aristide into exile;

Whereas the people of Haiti have suffered anew under the

brutality and oppression of the current military-backed

regime;

Whereas conditions in Haiti are forcing record numbers of

Haitians to flee their country under the most dangerous

of conditions;

Whereas the flood of Haitian refugees threatens to overwhelm

the ability of the United States and other nations in the

region to pursue a constructive long-term policy toward

Haiti;

Whereas the trade embargo imposed on Haiti by the Organization of American States (OAS) on October 8, 1990 has

to date proven largely ineffective;

Whereas the movement toward democracy which has recently

swept the Western Hemisphere has greatly benefited the

peoples of the Caribbean and Latin America; and

Whereas the continuing terror and oppression in Haiti are inimical to democracy in the Western Hemisphere, and the

refugee crisis caused thereby contributes to regional

instability: Now, therefore, be it

1 Resolved, That (a) it is the sense of the Senate that

2 the highest priority of United States policy toward Haiti

3 should be to restore democratic government without fur4 ther delay.

5 (b) The Senate urges the President—

6 (1) to join with the Senate in expressing the

7 outrage of the American people over the Haitian
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•SRES 89 IS

1 regime’s brutal attempt to deny the hard-won fruits

2 of democracy to its people;

3 (2) to review immediately the compliance of

4 United States persons and corporations with the

5 OAS-sponsored embargo of Haiti;

6 (3) to implement promptly whatever measures

7 are necessary to ensure maximum compliance with

8 the embargo;

9 (4) to give special priority to preventing oil

10 from evading the embargo;

11 (5) to request that the United Nations Security

12 Council join with the OAS in sponsoring an embargo

13 against the Haitian regime;

14 (6) to assist the United Nations in expanding

15 the number of its human rights observers in Haiti

16 from 40 to the 500 originally proposed by United

17 Nations special envoy Dante Caputo;

18 (7) to establish as the policy of the United

19 States that Haitian refugees will be granted the

20 same consideration and protection afforded to those

21 fleeing other oppressive regimes around the world;

22 (8) to urge other Caribbean nations to share

23 the burden of sheltering and accepting Haitian refu24 gees;
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1 (9) to offer humanitarian assistance to the peo2 ple of Haiti; and

3 (10) to develop a long-term United States pol4 icy toward Haiti which places a priority on building

5 and supporting the institutions of a civil and demo6 cratic society.

7 SEC. 2. The Secretary of the Senate shall transmit

8 a copy of this resolution to the President.

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