Title: Defending United States Citizens and Diplomatic Staff from Political Prosecutions Act of 2019
Policy area: International Affairs

Summary:
Defending United States Citizens and Diplomatic Staff from Political Prosecutions Act of 2019
This bill directs the President to impose visa- and property-blocking sanctions on any senior government official of Turkey who the President determines is responsible for the wrongful and prolonged detention of any U.S. citizens in Turkey or locally employed staff of U.S. diplomatic missions. The President may waive the application of sanctions for national security purposes.
The President shall periodically report to Congress on the status of any such wrongfully detained persons and on the persons sanctioned under this bill.

[Congressional Bills 116th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 1075 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

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116th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                S. 1075

   To advocate for the release of United States citizens and locally 
employed diplomatic staff unlawfully detained in Turkey, and for other 
                               purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                             April 9, 2019

Mr. Wicker (for himself, Mr. Cardin, Mr. Rubio, Mr. Tillis, Mr. Durbin, 
and Mr. Van Hollen) introduced the following bill; which was read twice 
           and referred to the Committee on Foreign Relations

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
   To advocate for the release of United States citizens and locally 
employed diplomatic staff unlawfully detained in Turkey, and for other 
                               purposes.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Defending United States Citizens and 
Diplomatic Staff from Political Prosecutions Act of 2019''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

    Congress makes the following findings:
            (1) The United States Government employs thousands of local 
        nationals (in this Act referred to as ``locally employed 
        staff'') at its diplomatic missions, military bases, and other 
        official facilities around the world, generating employment and 
        economic opportunities in local economies and allowing the 
        United States Government to benefit from local expertise and 
        perspectives.
            (2) Since February 2017, the Government of Turkey--a member 
        of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (in this Act referred 
        to as ``NATO'') since 1952--has targeted at least 3 locally 
        employed staff of United States consulates in Turkey with 
        national security charges stemming from their routine job 
        responsibilities on behalf of the United States Government and 
        without providing any credible evidence of wrongdoing.
            (3) As NATO allies, the United States and Turkey share a 
        commitment to ``safeguard the freedom, common heritage and 
        civilization of their peoples, founded on the principles of 
        democracy, individual liberty and the rule of law'', as 
        enshrined in the preamble to the 1949 North Atlantic Treaty.
            (4) Authorities in Turkey detained Hamza Ulucay--an 
        employee of the United States Consulate in Adana for more than 
        38 years--for nearly 2 years and convicted him of ``membership 
        in a terrorist organization'' without any credible evidence of 
        wrongdoing before releasing him on January 30, 2019, and 
        barring him from international travel.
            (5) Authorities in Turkey have detained Metin Topuz--a 
        Foreign Service National Investigator at the United States 
        Consulate General in Istanbul for more than 36 years--since 
        September 25, 2017, on charges of ``membership in a terrorist 
        organization'', ``gathering state secrets for espionage'', and 
        ``attempting to overthrow [the Government, Turkish National 
        Assembly, and the Constitutional Order]'', citing among other 
        things his routine communications with Turkish law enforcement 
        officers, which constituted a central part of his job 
        responsibilities as an employee of the United States 
        Government.
            (6) Authorities in Turkey have held Mete Canturk--another 
        Foreign Service National Investigator at the United States 
        Consulate General in Istanbul for more than 30 years--under 
        house arrest since January 31, 2018, and subjected his wife and 
        daughter to travel bans and regular check-ins with police after 
        initially detaining them.
            (7) As of April 9, 2019, Metin Topuz remains in jail, Mete 
        Canturk remains under house arrest, and Hamza Ulucay remains 
        convicted of false charges and subject to travel restrictions 
        because of charges relating directly to the conduct of their 
        professional responsibilities as employees of the United States 
        Government without any credible evidence of wrongdoing.
            (8) The physical and psychological health of these men 
        continues to be adversely affected by their prolonged and 
        indefinite detention, including significant weight loss and 
        aggravation of preexisting medical conditions.
            (9) On November 15, 2017, then-Deputy Assistant Secretary 
        of State for European and Eurasian Affairs Jonathan Cohen 
        testified to the Commission on Security and Cooperation in 
        Europe (commonly known as the ``Helsinki Commission'') that 
        ``it appears to us that Mr. Ulucay and Mr. Topuz were arrested 
        for maintaining legitimate contacts with Turkish Government and 
        local officials and others in the context of their official 
        duties on behalf of the United States Government''.
            (10) In pursuing its legitimate right to bring to justice 
        the perpetrators of the failed July 2016 coup attempt, Turkish 
        authorities have subjected tens of thousands of other citizens 
        of Turkey to detention and criminal prosecutions, with some 
        subjected to official harassment based on specious claims and 
        guilt by association, reflecting a significant deterioration in 
        the respect of the Government of Turkey for the rule of law and 
        the human rights of its people.
            (11) United States citizen and National Aeronautics and 
        Space Administration physicist Dr. Serkan Golge has spent more 
        than 2\1/2\ years in jail in Turkey and is currently serving a 
        5-year sentence on national security charges without any 
        credible evidence of wrongdoing.

SEC. 3. SENSE OF CONGRESS.

    It is the sense of Congress that--
            (1) the Government of Turkey should immediately release all 
        wrongfully detained locally employed staff of United States 
        diplomatic missions and citizens of the United States in Turkey 
        and resolve such cases in a timely, fair, and transparent 
        manner;
            (2) the United States has a moral obligation to forcefully 
        advocate for the release of wrongfully detained locally 
        employed staff who endure arrest, detention, prosecution, and 
        imprisonment because of the personal risk they often assume to 
        themselves, their families, and their communities as a result 
        of their work for and affiliation with the United States 
        Government;
            (3) it is in the national security interest of the United 
        States to advocate for the safety and security of all employees 
        of the United States Government overseas because any failure to 
        do so emboldens other foreign governments to interfere with 
        United States diplomatic, military, and other missions around 
        the world; and
            (4) the President should--
                    (A) press the Government of Turkey, in coordination 
                with NATO allies, in all high-level bilateral and 
                multilateral fora to immediately release wrongfully 
                detained locally employed staff and citizens of the 
                United States and to resolve their cases in a timely, 
                fair, and transparent manner;
                    (B) urge the Government of Turkey, in coordination 
                with NATO allies, to restore democratic norms and 
                respect for the rule of law and the human rights of all 
                citizens of Turkey by ceasing all arbitrary or 
                politically motivated prosecutions, detentions, and 
                dismissals, and by undertaking meaningful reforms to 
                ensure the independence of the judiciary in Turkey;
                    (C) consider, in coordination with NATO allies, in 
                order to secure the prompt release of wrongfully 
                detained locally employed staff and citizens of the 
                United States in Turkey, rescinding accreditations to a 
                commensurate number of diplomats from the Embassy of 
                Turkey to the United States; and
                    (D) support the extension of special immigrant 
                visas to Hamza Ulucay, Metin Topuz, and Mete Canturk 
                and their immediate families in recognition of their 
                distinguished service to the United States under 
                exceptional circumstances.

SEC. 4. IMPOSITION OF SANCTIONS WITH RESPECT TO WRONGFUL DETENTION OF 
              LOCALLY EMPLOYED STAFF AND UNITED STATES CITIZENS IN 
              TURKEY.

    (a) In General.--The President shall impose the sanctions described 
in subsection (b) with respect to any senior official of the Government 
of Turkey the President determines, based on credible evidence, is, on 
or after the date of the enactment of this Act, responsible for the 
wrongful and prolonged detention of locally employed staff of United 
States diplomatic missions or citizens of the United States in Turkey.
    (b) Sanctions Described.--The sanctions to be imposed under 
subsection (a) with respect to an official described in that subsection 
are the following:
            (1) Inadmissibility to united states.--Ineligibility to 
        receive a visa to enter the United States or to be admitted to 
        the United States or, if the official has been issued a visa or 
        other documentation, revocation, in accordance with section 
        221(i) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 
        1201(i)), of the visa or other documentation.
            (2) Blocking of property.--
                    (A) In general.--The blocking and prohibiting, in 
                accordance with the International Emergency Economic 
                Powers Act (50 U.S.C. 1701 et seq.), of all 
                transactions in all property and interests in property 
                of the official if such property and interests in 
                property are in the United States, come within the 
                United States, or are or come within the possession or 
                control of a United States person.
                    (B) Inapplicability of national emergency 
                requirement.--The requirements of section 202 of the 
                International Emergency Economic Powers Act (50 U.S.C. 
                1701) shall not apply for purposes of this paragraph.
    (c) Exceptions.--
            (1) Exception to comply with united nations headquarters 
        agreement and law enforcement objectives.--Sanctions under 
        subsection (b)(1) shall not apply to an individual if admitting 
        the individual into the United States would further important 
        law enforcement objectives or is necessary to permit the United 
        Nations Headquarters Agreement or other applicable 
        international obligations of the United States.
            (2) Exception relating to importation of goods.--
                    (A) In general.--The authority to block and 
                prohibit all transactions in all property and interests 
                in property under subsection (b)(2) shall not include 
                the authority to impose sanctions on the importation of 
                goods.
                    (B) Good.--In this paragraph, the term ``good'' 
                means any article, natural or man-made substance, 
                material, supply or manufactured product, including 
                inspection and test equipment, and excluding technical 
                data.
    (d) Implementation; Penalties.--
            (1) Implementation.--The President may exercise all 
        authorities provided under sections 203 and 205 of the 
        International Emergency Economic Powers Act (50 U.S.C. 1702 and 
        1704) to carry out this section.
            (2) Penalties.--A person that violates, attempts to 
        violate, conspires to violate, or causes a violation of 
        subsection (b)(2) or any regulation, license, or order issued 
        to carry out that subsection shall be subject to the penalties 
        set forth in subsections (b) and (c) of section 206 of the 
        International Emergency Economic Powers Act (50 U.S.C. 1705) to 
        the same extent as a person that commits an unlawful act 
        described in subsection (a) of that section.
    (e) National Security Waiver.--The President may waive the 
application of sanctions under this section with respect to an 
individual if the President determines and reports to the appropriate 
congressional committees and leadership that the waiver is in the vital 
national security interests of the United States.
    (f) Termination.--The requirement to impose sanctions under this 
section shall terminate on the date on which the President determines 
and reports to the appropriate congressional committees and leadership 
that--
            (1) all locally employed staff of United States diplomatic 
        missions and citizens of the United States wrongfully detained 
        by the Government of Turkey have been released from detention; 
        and
            (2) locally employed staff of United States diplomatic 
        missions and citizens of the United States are not subject to 
        travel restrictions imposed by the Government of Turkey.

SEC. 5. REPORT REQUIRED.

    (a) In General.--Not later than 90 days after the date of the 
enactment of this Act, and every 120 days thereafter, the President 
shall submit to the appropriate congressional committees and leadership 
a report that includes the following:
            (1) Information related to the wrongful and prolonged 
        detention by the Government of Turkey of locally employed staff 
        of United States diplomatic missions and citizens of the United 
        States, including--
                    (A) their status within the judicial system in 
                Turkey;
                    (B) where applicable, the dates of their detention, 
                arrest, indictment, trials, and convictions;
                    (C) a description of the access the Government of 
                Turkey grants to representatives of the United States 
                Government to the detained individuals and their 
                families;
                    (D) a description of the detention conditions in 
                which the detained individuals are held;
                    (E) a description of the ways in which the United 
                States Government is providing financial, legal, or 
                other assistance to the detained locally employed staff 
                and their families; and
                    (F) a description of United States Government 
                engagement with the Government of Turkey to secure the 
                release of the detained individuals.
            (2) A list of the officials identified by the President 
        pursuant to section 4(a).
            (3) A list of any waivers exercised by the President under 
        section 4(e), and the justification for each such waiver.
    (b) Form; Publication.--
            (1) Form.--The report required by paragraph (1) shall be 
        submitted in unclassified form but may contain a classified 
        annex as necessary.
            (2) Publication.--The unclassified portion of the report 
        required by paragraph (1) shall be posted on a publicly 
        available internet website of the Department of State.

SEC. 6. DEFINITIONS.

    In this Act:
            (1) Admission; admitted.--The terms ``admission'' and 
        ``admitted'' have the meanings given those terms in section 101 
        of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1101).
            (2) Appropriate congressional committees and leadership.--
        The term ``appropriate congressional committees and 
        leadership'' means--
                    (A) the Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban 
                Affairs, the Committee on Foreign Relations, the 
                Committee on Appropriations, and the majority and 
                minority leaders of the Senate; and
                    (B) the Committee on Financial Services, the 
                Committee on Foreign Affairs, the Committee on 
                Appropriations, and the Speaker, the majority leader, 
                and the minority leader of the House of 
                Representatives.
            (3) United nations headquarters agreement.--The term 
        ``United Nations Headquarters Agreement'' means the Agreement 
        regarding the Headquarters of the United Nations, signed at 
        Lake Success June 26, 1947.
            (4) United states person.--The term ``United States 
        person'' means--
                    (A) a United States citizen or an alien lawfully 
                admitted for permanent residence to the United States; 
                or
                    (B) an entity organized under the laws of the 
                United States or any jurisdiction within the United 
                States, including a foreign branch of such an entity.
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