Thursday, June 21, 2007

US Congress calls on the UN to charge the President of Iran for inciting genocide: only Ron Paul and Dennis Kucinich vote 'no'

Nevermind that this is all based on a falsified translation of Ahmadinejad's words, nevermind that the UN itself had condemned Zionism as a form of racism for many years, nevermind that Iran poses absolutely no threat to anyone in the region - the US Congress has covered itself in shame and disgrace yet again.

After cheering on Israel for its "continued efforts to prevent civilian casualties" during the war in Lebanon last summer, after congratulating Israel on its illegal conquests, Congress now call on the world to condemn the President of Iran and "reaffirms the unwavering strategic partnership between the United States and Israel and reasserts the steadfast commitment of the United States to defend the right of Israel to exist as a free and democratic state" (nevermind that it is the last self-declared ethno-religious state on the planet whose internal policies similar to the South African Apartheid according to Desmond Tutu).

Only Ron Paul and Dennis Kucinich had the courage to actually vote "no" to this kind of propaganda.

Oh boy - talk about a psychological preparation for war!!

(I am sure that Olmert and Netanyahu are satisfied with the results of their efforts)

Ok - so the case is clear now. Here is how all this will be packaged:

  • Iran is a rogue state, part of the axis of evil, whose President is guilty of calling for genocide.
  • The UNSC has expressed its concern at Iran (fully legal and NPT compliant) civil nuclear program and imposed (illegal) sanctions (in violation of the NPT in fact).
  • Iran also is repsonsible for the mess in Iraq, Afghanistan, Lebanon and Gaza.
  • The US Congress has expressed its repeated utmost outrage and concern at Iran's alledged actions
  • If no action is taken, another "Holocaust" - this time a nuclear one - will happen in Israel to whom Iran poses an existential threat

Thus the Empire has "no choice" but to "shoulder its responsability" and "historical mission" to engage into a "defensive war" since the nobody else has the will or the means to do so.

That cowardly and sold-out Congress would have done better to openly declare war on Iran. The result would have been the same, but at least that would have been somewhat more honorable.

As for Ron Paul and Dennis Kucinich - they will go down in history as examples of integrity and courage in the face of a general decline in courage of an entire political class.

-------


Calling on the United Nations Security Council to charge Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad with violating the 1948 Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide... (Introduced in House)

HCON 21 IH

110th CONGRESS
1st Session

H. CON. RES. 21

Calling on the United Nations Security Council to charge Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad with violating the 1948 Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide and the United Nations Charter because of his calls for the destruction of the State of Israel.

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

January 9, 2007

Mr. ROTHMAN (for himself, Mr. KIRK, Mr. TOWNS, Mr. CROWLEY, Mr. ENGEL, Mrs. MCCARTHY of New York, Ms. SCHAKOWSKY, Mr. JOHNSON of Illinois, Mr. INGLIS of South Carolina, Mr. BURTON of Indiana, Ms. BERKLEY, Mr. SESSIONS, Mr. PATRICK MURPHY of Pennsylvania, Mr. FATTAH, Mr. CARNEY, Mr. MCNULTY, Mr. KLEIN of Florida, Mr. MCCAUL of Texas, Mr. MANZULLO, Mr. ROHRABACHER, Mr. SAXTON, and Mr. LEWIS of Georgia) submitted the following concurrent resolution; which was referred to the Committee on Foreign Affairs


CONCURRENT RESOLUTION

Calling on the United Nations Security Council to charge Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad with violating the 1948 Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide and the United Nations Charter because of his calls for the destruction of the State of Israel.

Whereas the 1948 Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide (commonly referred to as the `Genocide Convention') defines genocide as, among other things, the act of killing members of a national, ethnic, racial, or religious group with the intent to destroy, in whole or in part, the targeted group, and it also prohibits conspiracy to commit genocide, as well as `direct and public incitement to commit genocide';

Whereas Article 4 of the Genocide Convention provides that individuals committing any of the listed genocidal crimes shall be punished `whether they are constitutionally responsible rulers, public officials or private individuals';

Whereas 133 Member States of the United Nations have ratified the Genocide Convention and thereby pledged to prosecute those individuals who violate its criteria for incitement to commit genocide, as well as those individuals who commit genocide directly;

Whereas 61 years ago the United Nations was founded to prevent another Holocaust, the Nazi genocide carried out during World War II that resulted in the slaughter of 6 million Jews in Europe, from happening ever again;

Whereas Article 2, Section 4, of the United Nations Charter, to which Iran has agreed as a Member State of the United Nations, requires all Member States of the United Nations to `refrain in their international relations from the threat or use of force against the territorial integrity or political independence of any state';

Whereas, on October 27, 2005, at the World Without Zionism Conference in Tehran, Iran, Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad called for Israel to be `wiped off the map', described Israel as `a disgraceful blot [on] the face of the Islamic world', and declared that `[a]nybody who recognizes Israel will burn in the fire of the Islamic nation's fury';

Whereas, on December 12, 2006, Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad addressed a conference in Tehran questioning the history of the Holocaust and said that Israel would `soon be wiped out';

Whereas, on December 14, 2006, incoming United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki-moon said that Iran's calls for Israel's destruction and its dismissal of the Holocaust are `unacceptable', and expressed concern about the regional and global security implications of Tehran's nuclear program;

Whereas, on August 3, 2006, in a speech during an emergency meeting of Muslim leaders, Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad stated that the Middle East would be better off `without the existence of the Zionist regime', called Israel an `illegitimate regime' with `no legal basis for its existence', and accused the United States of using Israel as a proxy to control the region and its oil resources;

Whereas Iran funds, trains, and openly supports terrorist groups, including Hamas, Hezbollah, and Islamic Jihad among many others, that are determined to destroy Israel;

Whereas, on December 14, 2001, the President of Iran's Expediency Council, Ali Akbar Hashemi-Rafsanjani, threatened Israel with nuclear attack, saying, `[i]f one day, the Islamic world is also equipped with weapons like those that Israel possesses now, then the imperialists' strategy will reach a standstill because the use of even one nuclear bomb inside Israel will destroy everything [in Israel], while it will merely harm the Islamic world';

Whereas Iran has aggressively pursued a clandestine effort to arm itself with nuclear weapons; and

Whereas the longstanding policy of the Iranian regime is aimed at destroying the democratic State of Israel, the only democracy in the Middle East and the most important strategic ally of the United States, which is confirmed by statements such as those made by Iranian President Ahmadinejad and Council President Rafsanjani, demonstrating the threat of a nuclear-armed Iran: Now, therefore, be it

    Resolved by the House of Representatives (the Senate concurring), That Congress--
      (1) condemns, in the strongest terms, Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's offensive remarks, contemptible statements, and reprehensible policies aimed at the destruction of the State of Israel;
      (2) calls on the United Nations Security Council to charge Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad with violating the 1948 Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide and Article 2, Section 4, of the United Nations Charter;
      (3) further calls on the United Nations Security Council and all Member States of the United Nations to consider measures to prevent Iran from obtaining nuclear weapons, which would be both a dangerous violation of the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty and a potential means to the end of carrying out President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's threats against Israel; and
      (4) reaffirms the unwavering strategic partnership between the United States and Israel and reasserts the steadfast commitment of the United States to defend the right of Israel to exist as a free and democratic state.

FINAL VOTE RESULTS FOR ROLL CALL 513
(Democrats in roman; Republicans in italic; Independents underlined)

H CON RES 21 2/3 YEA-AND-NAY 20-Jun-2007 12:29 PM
QUESTION: On Motion to Suspend the Rules and Agree, As Amended
BILL TITLE: Calling on the United Nations Security Council to charge Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad with violating the 1948 Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide and the United Nations Charter because of his calls for the destruction of the State of Israel


YeasNaysPRESNV
Democratic217194
Republican194124
Independent



TOTALS4112118


---- YEAS 411 ---

Ackerman
Aderholt
Akin
Alexander
Allen
Altmire
Andrews
Arcuri
Baca
Bachmann
Bachus
Baird
Baker
Barrett (SC)
Barrow
Bartlett (MD)
Barton (TX)
Bean
Berkley
Berman
Berry
Biggert
Bilbray
Bilirakis
Bishop (GA)
Bishop (NY)
Bishop (UT)
Blackburn
Blunt
Boehner
Bonner
Bono
Boozman
Boren
Boswell
Boucher
Boustany
Boyd (FL)
Boyda (KS)
Brady (PA)
Brady (TX)
Braley (IA)
Brown (SC)
Brown, Corrine
Brown-Waite, Ginny
Buchanan
Burgess
Burton (IN)
Butterfield
Buyer
Calvert
Camp (MI)
Campbell (CA)
Cannon
Cantor
Capito
Capps
Capuano
Cardoza
Carnahan
Carney
Carson
Carter
Castle
Castor
Chabot
Chandler
Clarke
Clay
Cleaver
Clyburn
Coble
Cohen
Cole (OK)
Conaway
Cooper
Costa
Costello
Courtney
Cramer
Crenshaw
Crowley
Cuellar
Culberson
Cummings
Davis (AL)
Davis (CA)
Davis (IL)
Davis (KY)
Davis, David
Davis, Lincoln
Davis, Tom
Deal (GA)
DeGette
Delahunt
DeLauro
Dent
Diaz-Balart, L.
Diaz-Balart, M.
Dicks
Dingell
Doggett
Donnelly
Doolittle
Doyle
Drake
Dreier
Duncan
Edwards
Ehlers
Ellison
Ellsworth
Emanuel
Emerson
Engel
English (PA)
Eshoo
Etheridge
Everett
Fallin
Farr
Fattah
Feeney
Ferguson
Filner
Flake
Forbes
Fortenberry
Fossella
Foxx
Frank (MA)
Franks (AZ)
Frelinghuysen
Gallegly
Garrett (NJ)
Gerlach
Giffords
Gillibrand
Gillmor
Gingrey
Gohmert
Gonzalez
Goode
Goodlatte
Gordon
Granger
Graves
Green, Al
Green, Gene
Grijalva
Gutierrez
Hall (NY)
Hall (TX)
Hare
Harman
Hastert
Hastings (FL)
Hastings (WA)
Hayes
Heller
Hensarling
Herger
Herseth Sandlin
Higgins
Hill
Hinojosa
Hirono
Hobson
Hodes
Hoekstra
Holden
Holt
Honda
Hooley
Hoyer
Hulshof
Hunter
Inglis (SC)
Inslee
Israel
Issa
Jackson (IL)
Jackson-Lee (TX)
Jefferson
Jindal
Johnson (GA)
Johnson (IL)
Johnson, E. B.
Johnson, Sam
Jones (OH)
Jordan
Kagen
Kanjorski
Kaptur
Keller
Kennedy
Kildee
Kilpatrick
Kind
King (IA)
King (NY)
Kingston
Kirk
Klein (FL)
Kline (MN)
Knollenberg
Kuhl (NY)
LaHood
Lamborn
Lampson
Langevin
Lantos
Larsen (WA)
Larson (CT)
Latham
LaTourette
Lee
Levin
Lewis (CA)
Lewis (GA)
Lewis (KY)
Linder
Lipinski
LoBiondo
Loebsack
Lofgren, Zoe
Lowey
Lucas
Lungren, Daniel E.
Lynch
Mack
Mahoney (FL)
Maloney (NY)
Manzullo
Marchant
Markey
Matheson
Matsui
McCarthy (CA)
McCarthy (NY)
McCaul (TX)
McCollum (MN)
McCotter
McCrery
McGovern
McHenry
McHugh
McIntyre
McKeon
McMorris Rodgers
McNerney
McNulty
Meehan
Meek (FL)
Meeks (NY)
Melancon
Mica
Michaud
Miller (FL)
Miller (MI)
Miller (NC)
Miller, Gary
Mitchell
Mollohan
Moore (KS)
Moore (WI)
Moran (KS)
Moran (VA)
Murphy (CT)
Murphy, Patrick
Murphy, Tim
Murtha
Musgrave
Myrick
Nadler
Napolitano
Neal (MA)
Neugebauer
Nunes
Oberstar
Obey
Olver
Pallone
Pascrell
Pastor
Payne
Pearce
Pence
Perlmutter
Peterson (MN)
Peterson (PA)
Petri
Pickering
Pitts
Platts
Poe
Pomeroy
Porter
Price (GA)
Price (NC)
Pryce (OH)
Putnam
Radanovich
Rahall
Ramstad
Rangel
Regula
Rehberg
Reichert
Renzi
Reyes
Reynolds
Rodriguez
Rogers (AL)
Rogers (KY)
Rogers (MI)
Rohrabacher
Ros-Lehtinen
Roskam
Ross
Rothman
Roybal-Allard
Royce
Ruppersberger
Rush
Ryan (OH)
Ryan (WI)
Salazar
Sali
Sánchez, Linda T.
Sanchez, Loretta
Sarbanes
Saxton
Schakowsky
Schiff
Schmidt
Schwartz
Scott (GA)
Scott (VA)
Sensenbrenner
Serrano
Sessions
Sestak
Shadegg
Shays
Shea-Porter
Sherman
Shimkus
Shuler
Shuster
Simpson
Sires
Skelton
Slaughter
Smith (NE)
Smith (NJ)
Smith (TX)
Smith (WA)
Snyder
Solis
Souder
Space
Spratt
Stearns
Stupak
Sutton
Tancredo
Tanner
Tauscher
Taylor
Terry
Thompson (CA)
Thompson (MS)
Thornberry
Tiahrt
Tiberi
Tierney
Towns
Turner
Udall (CO)
Udall (NM)
Upton
Van Hollen
Velázquez
Visclosky
Walberg
Walsh (NY)
Walz (MN)
Wamp
Wasserman Schultz
Waters
Watson
Watt
Waxman
Weiner
Welch (VT)
Weldon (FL)
Weller
Westmoreland
Wexler
Whitfield
Wicker
Wilson (NM)
Wilson (OH)
Wilson (SC)
Wolf
Woolsey
Wynn
Yarmuth
Young (AK)
Young (FL)

---- NAYS 2 ---

Kucinich
Paul

---- ANSWERED “PRESENT” 11 ---

Abercrombie
Baldwin
Blumenauer
DeFazio
Gilchrest
Hinchey
Jones (NC)
McDermott
Miller, George
Stark
Wu

---- NOT VOTING 8 ---

Becerra
Conyers
Cubin
Davis, Jo Ann
Marshall
Ortiz
Sullivan
Walden (OR)