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A resolution expressing the sense of the House of Representatives
regarding the murder of human rights lawyer Jafar Siddiq Hamzah in Medan,
Indonesia
H. Res. 580 (List of Sponsors) IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES September 18, 2000 106th CONGRESS H. RES. 580 Expressing the sense of the House of Representatives regarding the murder of human rights lawyer Jafar Siddiq Hamzah in Medan, Indonesia. IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES September 18, 2000 Mr. CROWLEY (for himself, Mr. PITTS, Mr. KUCINICH, Mr. HALL of Ohio, Mr. SMITH of New Jersey, Mr. WEINER, and Mrs. LOWEY) submitted the following resolution; which was referred to the Committee on International Relations RESOLUTION Expressing the sense of the House of Representatives regarding the murder of human rights lawyer Jafar Siddiq Hamzah in Medan, Indonesia. Whereas Jafar Siddiq Hamzah was a well-respected Acehnese human rights lawyer and a permanent resident of the United States who resided in Queens, New York; Whereas the body of Jafar Siddiq Hamzah, who had been missing for a month, was identified on September 7, 2000, along with four other badly decomposed bodies, whose faces were bashed in and whose hands and feet were bound with barbed wire, in a forested area outside of Medan, in North Sumatra, Indonesia; Whereas Jafar Siddiq Hamzah was last seen alive on August 5, 2000, in Medan, after which he failed to keep an appointment and his family lost all contact with him; Whereas Jafar Siddiq Hamzah founded and directed the International Forum on Aceh, which works for peace and human rights in Aceh, a province in northern Indonesia; Whereas Jafar Siddiq Hamzah was an important voice of moderation and an internationally known representative of his people, who was pursuing a graduate degree in political science at the New School for Social Research in New York; Whereas Jafar Siddiq Hamzah's enormous contributions to peace and respect for human rights in his homeland are irreplaceable; Whereas serious human rights violations occur in Aceh every day and over 300 people have been killed and several others have disappeared there this year; and Whereas since Jafar Siddiq Hamzah's disappearance, instances of harassment and intimidation of local Acehnese nongovernmental workers and human rights advocates have increased: Now, therefore, be it Resolved, That the House of Representatives-- (1) condemns the murder of Jafar Siddiq Hamzah in Indonesia; (2) offers condolences to the family and friends of Jafar Siddiq Hamzah, a courageous human rights advocate and founder of the International Forum on Aceh; and (3) calls upon the Department of State and the Government of Indonesia-- (A) to do everything in their power to bring about a thorough, open, and transparent investigation of the murder of Jafar Siddiq Hamzah and the four others with whom he was found, make the results of the official autopsy public, and offer full access and support to independent investigators and forensics experts brought in to examine these cases; (B) to ensure that the perpetrators of these atrocities are brought to justice through open and fair trials; and (C) to devote official attention, in an atmosphere of openness and transparency and oversight, to broader investigations into the numerous other cases of killings and disappearance in Aceh. Additional background on Jafar's murder Back to: ETAN Legislative Section Note: For those without a fax application on their computer - CallCenter V3.5.8, is a Native 32-bit Voice Telephony software application integrated with fax and data communications... and it's free of charge! Download from http://www.v3inc.com/ |
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