Congressman Chris Smith (R-NJ) spoke on the House Floor on Tuesday in defense of Iranians who are protesting the corruption of their regime and demanding greater respect for human rights.
Congressman Chris Smith (R-NJ) spoke on the House Floor on Tuesday in defense of Iranians who are protesting the corruption of their regime and demanding greater respect for human rights.
“Mr. Speaker, it is our responsibility as Americans to support those who risk everything for the cause of human liberty wherever they may be,” Rep. Smith, who chairs the House global human rights panel, stated.
“We must hold Iran to account for the treatment of the hundreds of jailed protesters and not let their fates be forgotten with the next news cycle,” Smith said.
Over the past several weeks, tens of thousands of Iranians have publicly protested the regime’s corruption and human rights violations; the government responded with a brutal crackdown including 20 protesters killed in clashes with security forces, and at least 1,000 arrests made.
Rep. Smith spoke in support of H. Res. 676, sponsored by Rep. Ed Royce (R-CA), Chair of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, and Rep. Elliot Engel (D-NY), the committee’s Ranking Member; the resolution expresses solidarity with the people of Iran protesting their government.
Below are excerpts of Congressman Smith’s remarks:
Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of H. Res. 676 and in solidarity with the people of Iran who courageously took to the streets in recent weeks to protest their country’s barbaric dictatorship. I thank my good friends Ed Royce and Elliot Engel, our committee chairman and ranking member, for bringing this resolution swiftly to the floor to demonstrate the United States’ vocal support for those Iranians who risked life, limb, and livelihood to stand for human dignity in the face of brutality.
Mr. Speaker, it is our responsibility as Americans to support those who risk everything for the cause of human liberty wherever they may be. I commend President Trump, Vice President Pence, Secretary Tillerson, and Ambassador Haley for leading the world with their defense of the rights of the Iranian protesters and their condemnation of the crushing repression they face. Where the Obama Administration erred on the side of timidity during the Green Revolution of 2009, the Trump Administration rightly asserted American leadership in the defense of universal rights.
Mr. Speaker, over the past several weeks, tens of thousands of Iranians participated in nationwide protests to condemn the corruption, repression, and brutality that together represent the unique legacy of Iran’s nearly 40-year-old theocracy. The regime responded with characteristic coercion, intimidating activists and their families, and deploying government-sponsored thugs and military units to quell the unrest. Approximately 20 protesters died in clashes with security forces. At least 1,000 were arrested and some estimates place the number closer to 4,000.
Mr. Speaker, this unrest is the inevitable consequence of a dictatorship built on brutality and corruption in the service of domestic repression and regional conquest. Ambassador Haley was absolutely right when she told the UN Security Council: “When the rights of the people are denied, the people rightly resist. If the concerns are not acknowledged, then peace and security are inevitably threatened.”
Mr. Speaker, I am proud of the work this Congress has done to reinforce human rights sanctions against Iran.
We must hold Iran to account for the treatment of the hundreds of jailed protesters and not let their fates be forgotten with the next news cycle. We must work tirelessly to secure the liberty of our citizens wrongfully imprisoned in Iran, especially Xiyue Wang, a graduate student from my home state of New Jersey who has spent the past 519 days in the Evin prison complex.
Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to support this timely and critical measure to demonstrate our solidarity with all the victims of Tehran’s repression.