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[Congressional Bills 107th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H. Res. 212 Introduced in House (IH)]

107th CONGRESS
  1st Session
H. RES. 212

  Expressing the sense of the House of Representatives that the World 
   Conference Against Racism, Racial Discrimination, Xenophobia, and 
  Related Intolerance presents a unique opportunity to address global 
                            discrimination.

_______________________________________________________________________

                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                             July 27, 2001

Mr. Lantos (for himself, Mr. Hastings of Florida, Ms. Ros-Lehtinen, Mr. 
   Cox, Mr. Waxman, Mr. Gilman, Mr. Wu, Mr. Smith of New Jersey, Mr. 
   Matsui, Mr. Langevin, Mr. Ackerman, Mr. Crowley, Ms. Berkley, Mr. 
Schiff, Mr. Cantor, Mr. Bishop, Mr. Pitts, Mr. Towns, Mr. Hoeffel, Mr. 
    Ballenger, Mr. Nadler, Mr. Berman, Ms. Millender-McDonald, Mrs. 
    Tauscher, Mr. Cummings, Mr. Hoyer, and Mr. Rush) submitted the 
     following resolution; which was referred to the Committee on 
                        International Relations

_______________________________________________________________________

                               RESOLUTION

 
  Expressing the sense of the House of Representatives that the World 
   Conference Against Racism, Racial Discrimination, Xenophobia, and 
  Related Intolerance presents a unique opportunity to address global 
                            discrimination.

Whereas, since the adoption of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights in 
        1948, the international community has taken significant steps to 
        eradicate racism, xenophobia, sexism, religious intolerance, slavery, 
        and other forms of discrimination;
Whereas national and international measures to combat discrimination and promote 
        equality, justice, and dignity for all individuals have proven 
        inadequate;
Whereas the United Nations World Conference Against Racism, Racial 
        Discrimination, Xenophobia, and Related Intolerance (``WCAR''), to be 
        held in Durban, South Africa, from August 31 through September 7, 2001, 
        aims to create a new world vision for the fight against racism and other 
        forms of intolerance in the twenty-first century, urge participants to 
        adopt anti-discrimination policies and practices, and establish a 
        mechanism for monitoring future progress toward a discrimination-free 
        world;
Whereas the causes and manifestations of contemporary racism, xenophobia, 
        sexism, religious intolerance, slavery, and other forms of 
        discrimination are many and increasingly complex and subtle;
Whereas victims of racism, xenophobia, sexism, religious intolerance, slavery, 
        and other forms of discrimination have suffered and continue to suffer 
        from the deprivation of their fundamental rights and opportunities;
Whereas, to varying degrees, states, societies, and individuals have adopted the 
        notion that racial, cultural, religious, and social diversity can enrich 
        a country and its citizens;
Whereas participants of the WCAR currently plan to discuss remedies, redress, 
        and other mechanisms to provide recourse at national, regional, and 
        international levels for victims of racism, xenophobia, sexism, 
        religious intolerance, slavery, and other forms of discrimination;
Whereas the achievement of full and effective equality between peoples requires 
        that states, civic groups, and individuals cooperate to address the real 
        difficulties in attaining societies free of discrimination;
Whereas some preparatory materials for the WCAR take positions on current 
        political crises which, if adopted in the final WCAR Declaration and 
        Program of Action, could exacerbate existing tensions;
Whereas the attempt by some to use the WCAR as a platform to resuscitate the 
        divisive and discredited notion equating Zionism with racism, a notion 
        that was overwhelmingly rejected by United Nations Resolution 3379 
        (1991), would undermine the goals and objectives of the conference; and
Whereas the United States encourages respect for an individual's human rights 
        and fundamental freedoms without distinction of any kind, such as race, 
        color, sex, language, religion, political or other opinion, national or 
        social origin, property, birth, or other status: Now, therefore, be it
    Resolved, That the House of Representatives--
            (1) encourages all participants in the United Nations World 
        Conference Against Racism, Racial Discrimination, Xenophobia, 
        and Related Intolerance (``WCAR'') to seize this singular 
        opportunity to tackle the scourges of racism, xenophobia, 
        sexism, religious intolerance, slavery, and other forms of 
        discrimination which have divided people and wreaked 
        immeasurable suffering on the disempowered;
            (2) recognizes that since racism, racial discrimination, 
        xenophobia, and related intolerance exist to some extent in 
        every region and country around the world, efforts to address 
        these prejudices should occur within a global framework and 
        without reference to specific regions, countries, or present-
        day conflicts;
            (3) exhorts the participants to utilize the WCAR to 
        mitigate, rather than aggravate, racial, ethnic, and regional 
        tensions;
            (4) urges the WCAR to focus on concrete steps that may be 
        taken to address gross human rights violations that were 
        motivated by racially and ethnically based animus and on 
        devising strategies to help eradicate such intolerance; and
            (5) commends the efforts of the Government of the Republic 
        of South Africa in hosting the WCAR.
                                 <all>
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