A joint resolution to designate March 21, 1987 as "Afghanistan Day".
PL 100-16 (S.J.Res.63), enacted 03/27/1987

101 STAT. 130 
PUBLIC LAW 100-16—MAR. 27, 1987 
Public Law 100-16 
100th Congress 
Joint Resolution 
Mar. 27, 1987 
[S.J. Res. 63] 
To designate March 21, 1987, as Afghanistan Day. 
15 UST 2228. 
Whereas more than seven years have passed since the unprovoked 
Soviet invasion of the nonaligned country of Afghanistan; 
Whereas close to one hundred and fifteen thousand Soviet troops are 
continuing a brutal attempt to crush the nationwide Afghan 
resistance to the Soviets and the Marxist regime they installed; 
Whereas indiscriminate air and artillery bombardments, deliberate 
attempts to generate refugees, and the destruction of livestock, 
crops, and property remain a key instrument of Soviet and Kabul 
regime policy; 
Whereas Soviet and Kabul regime actions in Afghanistan violate 
the following international covenants: the 1949 Geneva Conven-
6 UST 3114, 
tions and Customary International Law; article 7 of the Inter-
?rVT'oi^lo'oQ^^^ 
national Covenant on Civil and Political Rights; and the 1954 
Hague Convention; 
Whereas the military operations of the Soviets and their Afghan 
surrogates have driven almost three million refugees into Paki-
t Stan, placing an almost intolerable burden on its economy, social 
service system, and ecology; 
Whereas the United Nations General Assembly has in eight resolu-
tions called for the "immediate withdrawal of foreign troops from 
Afghanistan", and a recent United Nations Human Rights 
Commission report concludes that the continuation of a military 
4 solution in Afghanistan will "lead inevitably to a situation 
approaching genocide"; 
Whereas, the twentieth semiannual report of the United States 
,j Department of State on the implementation of the Helsinki Final 
Act observes that Soviet policies in Afghanistan are: "in direct 
and willful violation of the general principles set forth in the 
Helsinki Final Act, including respect of the inviolability of fron-
tiers, territorial integrity of states, and self-determination of 
peoples"; 
Whereas, in June 1986, the European Parliament overwhelmingly 
adopted a resolution on the situation in Afghanistan which con-
demns: "The deaths of some one and a half million Afghans since 
the beginning of the Soviet intervention, out of the total popu-
lation of fifteen million, while four and a half million refugees 
have had to flee to Pakistan and Iran and a million Afghans are 
surviving in extremely difficult conditions within the country 
itself; 
Wheresis Soviet and Kabul regime aircraft have violated Pakistan's 
airspace seven hundred and fifty-seven times during 1986, killing 
forty-six innocent people and wounding seventy-seven; 
Whereas over two hundred and thirty-three Soviet and Kabul-
inspired terrorist incidents took place in Pakistan during 1986, 
often in circumstances calculated to cause the deaths of innocent 
civilians; 
PUBLIC LAW 100-16—MAR. 27, 1987 
101 STAT. 131 
Whereas recent developments such as the deceptive withdrawal of 
six Soviet regiments, a "national reconciliation" scheme which 
leaves a regime opposed by an overwhelming majority of the 
Afghan people, and a ceasefire proposal with no provision for the 
withdrawal of Soviet forces suggest no change in the Soviet goal in 
Afghanistan; 
< 
Whereas the only credible indicator of Soviet commitment to nego-
tiated political settlement in Afghanistan will be their agreement 
at the Geneva negotiations to a prompt and complete withdrawal 
of all their troops and full self-determination for the Afghan 
people; 
Whereas, since the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan, the Congress has 
in numerous resolutions declared the solidarity of the American 
people with the struggle of the Afghan people against the Soviet 
invaders; and 
Whereas the people of Afghanistan observe March 21 as the tradi-
tional start of their new year and as a symbol of their nation's 
rebirth: Now, therefore, be it 
Resolved by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United 
States of America in Congress assembled. That the President is 
authorized and requested to issue a proclamation designating March 
21, 1987, as Afghanistan Day, and calling upon the people of the 
United States to observe such day with appropriate ceremonies and 
activities. 
Approved March 27, 1987. 
LEGISLATIVE HISTORY—S.J. Res. 63: 
CONGRESSIONAL RECORD, Vol. 133 (1987): 
Mar. 17, considered and passed Senate. 
Mar. 19, considered and passed House. 
91-194 O - 90 - 6 : QL.3 Part 1