[Congressional Record Volume 165, Number 118 (Monday, July 15, 2019)]
[House]
[Pages H5796-H5800]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
SAUDI ARABIA HUMAN RIGHTS AND ACCOUNTABILITY ACT OF 2019
Mr. ENGEL. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill
(H.R. 2037) to encourage accountability for the murder of Washington
Post columnist Jamal Khashoggi, as amended.
The Clerk read the title of the bill.
The text of the bill is as follows:
H.R. 2037
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 ``Saudi Arabia Human Rights
and Accountability Act of 2019''.
SEC. 2. REPORT ON INTELLIGENCE COMMUNITY ASSESSMENT RELATING
TO THE KILLING OF WASHINGTON POST COLUMNIST
JAMAL KHASHOGGI.
(a) In General.--Not later than 30 days after the date of
the enactment of this Act, the Director of National
Intelligence shall submit to the appropriate congressional
committees a report consisting of--
(1) a determination and presentation of evidence with
respect to the advance knowledge and role of any current or
former official of the Government of Saudi Arabia or any
current or former senior Saudi political figure over the
directing, ordering, or tampering of evidence in the killing
of Washington Post columnist Jamal Khashoggi; and
(2) a list of foreign persons that the Director of National
Intelligence has high confidence--
(A) were responsible for, or complicit in, ordering,
controlling, or otherwise directing an act or acts
contributing to or causing the death of Jamal Khashoggi;
(B) knowingly and materially assisted, sponsored, or
provided financial, material, or technological support for,
or goods or services in support of, an activity described in
subparagraph (A); or
(C) impeded the impartial investigation of the killing of
Jamal Khashoggi, including through the tampering of evidence
relating to the investigation.
(b) Form.--
(1) In general.--The report required by subsection (a)
shall be submitted in unclassified form, but may include a
classified annex.
(2) Names of foreign persons listed.--The name of each
foreign person listed in the report described in subsection
(a)(2) shall be included in the unclassified portion of the
report unless the Director of National Intelligence
determines that such disclosure would undermine United States
intelligence sources and methods or threaten the national
security interests of the United States.
[[Page H5797]]
(c) Definitions.--In this section:
(1) Appropriate congressional committees.--The term
``appropriate congressional committees'' means--
(A) the Committee on Foreign Affairs and the Permanent
Select Committee on Intelligence of the House of
Representatives; and
(B) the Committee on Foreign Relations and the Select
Committee on Intelligence of the Senate.
(2) Knowingly.--The term ``knowingly'', with respect to
conduct, a circumstance, or a result, means that a person has
actual knowledge, or should have known, of the conduct, the
circumstance, or the result.
SEC. 3. SANCTIONS WITH RESPECT TO FOREIGN PERSONS THAT ENGAGE
IN ACTIVITIES DESCRIBED IN SECTION 2(A)(2).
(a) Imposition of Sanctions.--On and after the date that is
120 days after the date of the enactment of this Act, the
sanctions described in subsection (b) shall be imposed with
respect to each foreign person listed in the report described
in section 2(a)(2).
(b) Sanctions Described.--
(1) In general.--The sanctions described in this subsection
are the following:
(A) Ineligibility for visas and admission to the united
states.--
(i) Inadmissibility to the United States.
(ii) Ineligibility to receive a visa or other documentation
to enter the United States.
(iii) Ineligibility to otherwise be admitted or paroled
into the United States or to receive any other benefit under
the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1101 et seq.).
(B) Current visas revoked.--
(i) Revocation of any visa or other entry documentation
regardless of when the visa or other entry documentation is
or was issued.
(ii) A revocation under clause (i) shall--
(I) take effect immediately; and
(II) automatically cancel any other valid visa or entry
documentation that is in the foreign person's possession.
(2) Exception to comply with international obligations.--
Sanctions under paragraph (1) shall not apply with respect to
a foreign person if admitting or paroling the person into the
United States is necessary to permit the United States to
comply with the Agreement regarding the Headquarters of the
United Nations, signed at Lake Success June 26, 1947, and
entered into force November 21, 1947, between the United
Nations and the United States, or other applicable
international obligations.
(3) Waiver in the interest of national security.--The
President may waive the application of this section with
respect to a foreign person who is A-1 visa eligible and who
is present in or seeking admission into the United States for
purposes of official business if the President determines and
transmits to the appropriate congressional committees written
notice and justification not later than 15 days before the
granting of such waiver, that such a waiver is in the
national security interests of the United States.
(c) Suspension of Sanctions.--
(1) In general.--The President may suspend in whole or in
part the imposition of sanctions otherwise required under
this section for periods not to exceed 180 days if the
President certifies to the appropriate congressional
committees that the following criteria have been met in Saudi
Arabia:
(A) The Government of Saudi Arabia has released any
individual who is a journalist, blogger, human rights
defender, advocate for religious liberty, or civil society
activist detained by the Government of Saudi Arabia.
(B) The Government of Saudi Arabia is cooperating in
outstanding criminal proceedings in the United States in
which a Saudi citizen or national departed from the United
States while the citizen or national was awaiting trial or
sentencing for a criminal offense committed in the United
States.
(C) The Government of Saudi Arabia is refraining from the
obstruction of the free expression of opinion and restriction
of individuals from engaging in public criticism of the
political sphere.
(D) The Government of Saudi Arabia has made verifiable
commitments to cease the practice of harming citizens of
Saudi Arabia conducting peaceful dissent, whether or not
those citizens reside in Saudi Arabia, including enforced
repatriation, disappearance, arrest, imprisonment, or
harassment.
(E) The Government of Saudi Arabia has taken verifiable
steps to hold accountable Saudi violators of human rights,
whether or not those violations took place in Saudi Arabia.
(F) The Government of Saudi Arabia has taken verifiable
steps to repeal any law or regulation that requires Saudi
women to obtain approval from a male guardian in order to
leave the country.
(G) The Government of Saudi Arabia--
(i) has made public the names of all individuals under
prosecution for the murder of Jamal Khashoggi and associated
crimes and the details of the charges such individuals face;
(ii) has made public the trial proceedings and all evidence
against the accused;
(iii) has invited international, independent experts to
monitor the trials;
(iv) has made public details of efforts to establish the
location of Mr. Khashoggi's remains and associated findings
and returned his body to his family; and
(v) has made public the rationale for why ten of the
individuals initially detained were later released without
charge.
(H) The Government of Saudi Arabia has disbanded any units
of its intelligence or security apparatus dedicated to the
forced repatriation of dissidents in other countries.
(I) The Government of Saudi Arabia is cooperating with
efforts to investigate the murder of Jamal Khashoggi being
conducted by law enforcement authorities in the United States
and Turkey, or by the United Nations.
(2) Report.--Accompanying the certification described in
paragraph (1), the President shall submit to the appropriate
congressional committees a report that contains a detailed
description of Saudi Arabia's adherence to the criteria
described in the certification.
(d) Definitions.--In this section:
(1) Admitted; alien.--The terms ``admitted'' and ``alien''
have the meanings given those terms in section 101 of the
Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1101).
(2) Appropriate congressional committees.--The term
``appropriate congressional committees'' means--
(A) the Committee on Foreign Affairs, the Committee on the
Judiciary, and the Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence
of the House of Representatives; and
(B) the Committee on Foreign Relations, the Committee on
the Judiciary, and the Select Committee on Intelligence of
the Senate.
(3) Foreign person.--The term ``foreign person'' has the
meaning given such term in section 595.304 of title 31, Code
of Federal Regulations (as in effect on the day before the
date of the enactment of this Act), except that such term
does not include an entity (as such term is described in such
section).
(4) Foreign person who is a-1 visa eligible.--The term
``foreign person who is A-1 visa eligible'' means an alien
described in section 101(a)(15)(A)(i) of the Immigration and
Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1101(a)(15)(A)(i)).
(5) 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.
SEC. 4. REPORT ON SAUDI ARABIA'S HUMAN RIGHTS RECORD.
(a) In General.--Not later than 30 days after the date of
the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of State, in
accordance with section 502B(c) of the Foreign Assistance Act
of 1961 (22 U.S.C. 2304(c)), shall submit to the appropriate
congressional committees report in writing that--
(1) includes the information required under paragraph (1)
of such section 502B(c) with respect to Saudi Arabia;
(2) describes the extent to which officials of the
Government of Saudi Arabia, including members of the military
or security services, are responsible for or complicit in
gross violations of internationally recognized human rights,
including violations of the human rights of journalists,
bloggers, human rights defenders, and those who support
women's rights or religious freedom;
(3) describes violations of human rights in Saudi Arabia by
officials of the Government of Saudi Arabia, including
against journalists, bloggers, human rights defenders, and
civil society activists;
(4) describes United States actions to address Saudi
violations of human rights, including against journalists,
bloggers, human rights defenders, and civil society
activists, including demands for clemency review of these
cases;
(5) describes any intolerant content in educational
materials published by Saudi Arabia's Ministry of Education
that are used in schools both inside Saudi Arabia and at
schools throughout the world; and
(6) describes United States actions to encourage Saudi
Arabia to retrieve and destroy materials with intolerant
material and revise teacher manuals and retrain teachers to
reflect changes in educational materials and promote
tolerance.
(b) Form.--The report required by subsection (a) shall be
submitted in unclassified form, but may include a classified
annex.
(c) Appropriate Congressional Committees Defined.--In the
section, the term ``appropriate congressional committees''
means--
(1) the Committee on Foreign Affairs and the Permanent
Select Committee on Intelligence of the House of
Representatives; and
(2) the Committee on Foreign Relations and the Select
Committee on Intelligence of the Senate.
SEC. 5. DETERMINATION OF BUDGETARY EFFECTS.
The budgetary effects of this Act, for the purpose of
complying with the Statutory Pay-As-You-Go Act of 2010, shall
be determined by reference to the latest statement titled
``Budgetary Effects of PAYGO Legislation'' for this Act,
submitted for printing in the Congressional Record by the
Chairman of the House Budget Committee, provided that such
statement has been submitted prior to the vote on passage.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from New
York (Mr. Engel) and the gentleman from South Carolina (Mr. Wilson)
each will control 20 minutes.
The Chair recognizes the gentleman from New York.
[[Page H5798]]
General Leave
Mr. ENGEL. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members have
5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks and
include extraneous material on H.R. 2037.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the
gentleman from New York?
There was no objection.
Mr. ENGEL. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
Mr. Speaker, I rise today to report the Saudi Arabia Human Rights and
Accountability Act of 2019.
I want to take this opportunity to thank the gentleman from New
Jersey (Mr. Malinowski) for his leadership, his thoughtfulness, and his
vision in authoring this legislation. Mr. Malinowski came to this body
with a long track record of fighting for human rights, and he arrived
ready to tackle one of the thorniest issues: How do we ensure justice
for those responsible for the murder of Jamal Khashoggi? How do we
demand accountability when the President refuses?
Jamal Khashoggi was a Washington Post contributing columnist and
legal permanent U.S. resident. He was killed by Saudi Government
personnel on October 2, 2018, during his visit to the Saudi consulate
in Istanbul, Turkey.
Circumstances surrounding his disappearance and death have been
extensively reported on by media outlets, briefed to some Members in
classified settings, and investigated by the United Nations special
rapporteur on extrajudicial killings.
We still haven't seen any real accountability for this heinous crime.
The Saudis originally denied any involvement and then made the
outlandish claim that this killing was an accident--yes, accidental
killing by bone saw. Give me a break.
The Trump administration said it would hold those responsible to
account, but they have been dragging their feet. We still haven't seen
any real action, so Congress must step in.
This important legislation mandates a report from the Director of
National Intelligence about those who were responsible for, complicit
in, or played a supporting role in the murder of Jamal Khashoggi. The
legislation then imposes a visa ban on those individuals.
This bill, though, has a thoughtful off-ramp. In an effort to reshape
our relationship with Saudi Arabia, which is a very important U.S.
partner, the legislation says that if Saudi Arabia releases the
journalists and activists currently imprisoned in the kingdom, fully
cooperates in the investigation of the murder of Jamal Khashoggi, and
reforms its systems to value human rights, those visa bans will not be
imposed.
If Saudi Arabia is looking for a way to reset the U.S.-Saudi
relationship, I invite them to look at this legislation. I hope they
do.
The Saudis are an important security partner, but we cannot just look
the other way when they ignore international norms and basic human
rights and when they murder a journalist in broad daylight in a
diplomatic facility.
Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to join me in supporting this
important legislation, and I reserve the balance of my time.
House of Representatives,
Committee on Foreign Affairs,
Washington, DC, July 9, 2019.
Hon. Jerrold Nadler,
Chairman, Committee on the Judiciary,
House of Representatives, Washington, DC.
Dear Mr. Chairman: I am writing to you concerning H.R.
2037, the Saudi Arabia Human Rights and Accountability act of
2019.
I appreciate your willingness to work cooperatively on this
legislation. I recognize that the bill contains provisions
that fall within the jurisdiction of the Committee on the
Judiciary. I acknowledge that the Committee will not formally
consider H.R. 2037 and agree that the inaction of your
Committee with respect to the bill does not waive any future
jurisdictional claim over the matters contained in H.R. 2037
which fall within your Committee's Rule X jurisdiction.
I will ensure that our exchange of letters is included in
the Congressional Record during floor consideration of the
bill. I appreciate your cooperation regarding this
legislation and look forward to continuing to work with you
as this measure moves through the legislative process.
Sincerely,
Eliot L. Engel,
Chairman.
____
House of Representatives,
Committee on the Judiciary,
Washington, DC, July 12, 2019.
Hon. Eliot L. Engel,
Chairman, Committee on Foreign Affairs,
House of Representatives, Washington, DC.
Dear Mr. Chairman: This is to advise you that the Committee
on the Judiciary has now had an opportunity to review the
provisions in H.R. 2037, the ``Saudi Arabia Human Rights and
Accountability Act of 2019'' that fall within our Rule X
jurisdiction. I appreciate your consulting with us on those
provisions. The Judiciary Committee has no objection to your
including them in the bill for consideration on the House
floor, and to expedite that consideration is willing to waive
sequential referral, with the understanding that we do not
thereby waive any future jurisdictional claim over those
provisions or their subject matters.
In the event a House-Senate conference on this or similar
legislation is convened, the Judiciary Committee reserves the
right to request an appropriate number of conferees to
address any concerns with these or similar provisions that
may arise in conference.
Please place this letter into the Congressional Record
during consideration of the measure on the House floor. Thank
you for the cooperative spirit in which you have worked
regarding this matter and others between our committees.
Sincerely,
Jerrold Nadler,
Chairman.
____
House of Representatives,
Committee on Foreign Affairs,
Washington, DC, July 15, 2019.
Hon. Adam Schiff,
Chairman, House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence,
House of Representatives, Washington, DC.
Dear Mr. Chairman: I am writing to you concerning H.R.
2037, the Saudi Arabia Human Rights and Accountability act of
2019.
I appreciate your willingness to work cooperatively on this
legislation. I recognize that the bill contains provisions
that fall within the jurisdiction of the Permanent Select
Committee on Intelligence. I acknowledge that the Committee
will not formally consider H.R. 2037 and agree that the
inaction of your Committee with respect to the bill does not
waive any future jurisdictional claim over the matters
contained in H.R. 2037 which fall within your Committee's
Rule X jurisdiction.
I will ensure that our exchange of letters is included in
the Congressional Record during floor consideration of the
bill. I appreciate your cooperation regarding this
legislation and look forward to continuing to work with you
as this measure moves through the legislative process.
Sincerely,
Eliot L. Engel,
Chairman.
____
House of Representatives, Permanent Select Committee on
Intelligence,
Washington, DC, July 15, 2019.
Hon. Eliot Engel,
Chairman, House Foreign Affairs Committee,
House of Representatives, Washington, DC.
Dear Chairman Engel: I am writing to you concerning H.R.
2037, the Saudi Arabia Human Rights and Accountability Act of
2019. Certain provisions in the legislation fall within the
jurisdiction of the House Permanent Select Committee on
Intelligence, as set forth in Rule X of the House of
Representatives for the 116th Congress.
In the interest of permitting your committee to proceed
expeditiously to floor consideration of this important bill,
I am willing to waive this committee's right to sequential
referral. By waiving consideration of H.R. 2037, the House
Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence does not waive any
future jurisdictional claim over the subjects contained in
the bill which fall within the Rule X jurisdiction of the
House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence. I further
request that you urge the Speaker to appoint members of the
House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence to any
conference committee which is named to consider provisions
addressing such subjects.
Please place this letter into the committee report on H.R.
2037 and into the Congressional Record during consideration
of the measure on the House floor. Thank you for the
cooperative spirit in which you have worked regarding this
matter and others between our respective committees.
Sincerely,
Adam B. Schiff,
Chairman.
Mr. WILSON of South Carolina. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time
as I may consume.
Mr. Speaker, I rise in strong support of H.R. 2037, the Saudi Arabia
Human Rights and Accountability Act.
The killing of Jamal Khashoggi, a prominent Saudi journalist and
former diplomatic adviser, was a hideous and gruesome crime. The United
States must ensure that everyone involved in this appalling human
rights violation must be identified and held accountable.
Intimidation and violence by any government against peaceful dissent
must be met with strong disapproval by responsible nations. If we do
not respond forcefully to this brutal attack,
[[Page H5799]]
we invite future violations of international norms. Peaceful dissidents
all over the world are watching us, waiting to see if we will stand up
for their cause.
That is why I am grateful to support H.R. 2037, which requires a
report to identify those responsible for this heinous assault and
blocks visas for those directly involved with this murder. We cannot
have business as usual with those who carried out an extrajudicial
murder in cold blood. They should not get to come to the United States
and pretend like nothing happened.
I thank my colleagues on both sides of the aisle for their commitment
to ensuring that Jamal is not forgotten. He deserves justice, and his
family deserves justice.
I thank the chairman and Mr. Malinowski for working to ensure that
even as we press for accountability, we can continue diplomatic
engagements with our partner of Saudi Arabia. These diplomatic
engagements are crucial in pushing for human rights improvements
mutually beneficial to our Saudi allies, such as the release of
wrongfully detained Americans and other matters.
Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
Mr. ENGEL. Mr. Speaker, I yield 5 minutes to the gentleman from New
Jersey (Mr. Malinowski), who is the author of this bill and a valued
member of the House Foreign Affairs Committee.
Mr. MALINOWSKI. Mr. Speaker, I thank Chairman Engel for his
leadership on this issue. I also want to recognize Ranking Member
McCaul and all my colleagues on the Foreign Affairs Committee for
working with me to ensure that we could move forward with this bill in
a bipartisan way.
All of us agree that our relationship with Saudi Arabia is important,
but we equally agree that how the Saudi Government treats its people
and the people of other countries is important.
{time} 1600
We have known this for a long time, I think, but last year's murder
of Jamal Khashoggi by the Saudi Government makes it especially
important that we take meaningful action in defense of our interest and
our values.
When I was campaigning for Congress last year in New Jersey, foreign
policy issues did not come up very often, and yet the murder of Jamal
Khashoggi somehow broke through the noise. I was asked about it a lot.
I think this is because people understand that, while human rights
violations in countries like Saudi Arabia are all too common, what
happened to Khashoggi was not common. He was not killed, after all,
inside Saudi Arabia. He was a resident of the United States. And yet
the Saudi Government lured him into one of their embassies on the soil
of a NATO country, where they brutally slaughtered him.
Many governments around the world abuse their people. Very few
governments reach out beyond their borders to kidnap or kill people
living in other countries. Russia has done it; Iran has reportedly done
it.
But this kind of crime is very rare. It is profoundly in our interest
to keep it rare, and that is why it is essential that we name and hold
accountable those who are responsible for the killing of Jamal
Khashoggi.
We need to do this not because what the Saudi Government did was
wrong, but because it crossed a line that no partner of the United
States should ever be allowed to cross--not just because it showed a
lack of respect for human rights, but because it demonstrated a lack of
respect for the United States.
Let's remember that there are thousands of Jamal Khashoggis living in
America today. Men and women who have taken refuge in our country from
dictatorships around the world and who sometimes speak up about
injustices in their countries of origin.
If the Saudi Government gets away with what it did to a resident of
the United States, what is to stop China or Russia or Cuba or Iran or
North Korea or Venezuela or any other dictatorship from doing the same.
We know it is not their scruples that hold them back. The only thing
that stops them is their fear of the consequences if they do this to
somebody living in our country or to an American abroad. That is why
there have to be consequences.
Our bill ensures that there will be. It requires the Director of
National Intelligence to give us a list of everyone--without
exception--whom the intelligence community believes to be responsible
for planning, executing, or covering up this terrible crime. All on
this list will be subject to a visa ban. The sanctions can only be
lifted if the Saudi Government takes meaningful steps to reform human
rights conditions in the kingdom.
Mr. Speaker, it is clear that, while the Saudi Government has faced a
lot of rhetorical condemnation for what they did to Jamal Khashoggi, it
has not yet gotten the message. We know that the FBI has visited at
least four Saudi dissidents living in the United States since
Khashoggi's murder to warn them about the threats to their life from
Saudi Arabia, including as recently as 6 weeks ago.
The Saudis also continue to imprison American citizens without trial
or charge, despite repeated requests from the Trump administration for
their release. While I appreciate that the State Department has
sanctioned several Saudis for their involvement in Khashoggi's murder,
this action also risks sending the wrong message.
By only sanctioning the rogues, whom the Saudis themselves are
willing to throw under the bus for this crime, we risk reinforcing the
Saudi Crown Prince's lie that the murder of Khashoggi was a rogue
operation.
The relationship with Saudi Arabia is important, but it is not so
important that we have to lie for the Saudis or allow them, literally,
to get away with murder. No relationship and no individual is so
important that we need to debase ourselves in that way.
Now is the time to send the message, especially now, before Mohammad
bin Salman ascends to the Saudi throne, that this is wrong.
Now is the time to make clear that reckless behavior, whether the
murder of an American resident or the kidnapping of the Lebanese Prime
Minister or the blockade of Qatar, carries a price, that the men who
rule Saudi Arabia, who, after all, depend far more on us than we depend
on them, need to take our interests and values into account rather than
always counting on us to cover up for them.
Mr. WILSON of South Carolina. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time
as I may consume.
Mr. Speaker, in closing, I would like to, once again, thank Chairman
Engel and the Committee on Foreign Affairs' membership for their
bipartisan work to respond to the terrible injustice of Jamal
Khashoggi's murder.
Mr. Speaker, I urge all Members to support this legislation, and I
yield back the balance of my time.
Mr. ENGEL. Mr. Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from
Oregon (Mr. DeFazio).
Mr. DeFAZIO. Mr. Speaker, I also want to thank Representative
Malinowski for bringing this forward.
Again, I have long expressed concern about the cozy relationship
between the United States and Saudi Arabia across a number of
Presidencies, both Democrat and Republican. For years, we have turned a
blind eye toward their human rights abuses at home, their repression of
women, and their export of radical Wahhabism, destabilizing the Middle
East, Pakistan, and, now, up into the Balkans.
It is long past time for the United States to take action, but Trump
has taken the U.S. blind eye toward Saudi abuses to a new extreme. He
and Pompeo have cozied up to Mohammad bin Salman, who was, according to
U.S. intelligence agencies, European intelligence agencies, and, now, a
report from the United States, involved in the brutal murder of a U.S.
resident, a noted journalist because he had the temerity to write
articles critical of His Highness MBS.
And what does Trump do? He goes to Saudi Arabia. He does the sword
dance. He calls them up on the phone and cozies up to them day after
day after day.
This legislation here in the House will help to begin to right the
wrongs of the past, right the wrongs of this administration, and to
send a strong message to the Saudis that what they are doing in Yemen
is not acceptable, what they are doing throughout the Middle East and
other parts of the world, exporting radical Wahhabism and
destabilizing, murder is not acceptable. None of these things are
acceptable.
[[Page H5800]]
The President wants to arm them. We need to disarm this relationship
and hold them accountable.
Mr. ENGEL. Mr. Speaker, I yield 4 minutes to the gentleman from
Massachusetts (Mr. McGovern), the chairman of the Rules Committee and
co-chairman of the Tom Lantos Human Rights Commission.
Mr. McGOVERN. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman for yielding me the
time.
Mr. Speaker, I rise in strong support of H.R. 2037. I am very proud
to be a cosponsor of this bill, and I want to commend the gentleman
from New Jersey (Mr. Malinowski), my good friend and colleague, for his
long commitment to human rights and his leadership on this issue. I
also want to thank Chairman Engel for working to ensure that this bill
came before the House for consideration.
Mr. Speaker, it has been nearly 10 months since Jamal Khashoggi, a
Saudi dissident, journalist for The Washington Post, and former general
manager and editor-in-chief of Al-Arab News Channel entered the Saudi
Consulate in Istanbul, Turkey, and was never, ever again seen. He was
assassinated by agents of the Saudi Arabian Government. Despite having
arrested some of its own security personnel for this crime, the Saudi
Government continues to refuse to disclose the location of Khashoggi's
remains.
In June, the United Nations Special Rapporteur on extrajudicial,
summary or arbitrary executions concluded that Khashoggi was ``the
victim of a deliberate, premeditated execution, an extrajudicial
killing for which the State of Saudi Arabia is responsible.''
She called the trial in Saudi Arabia of the 11 suspects to be
suspended, saying it would ``not deliver credible accountability.''
``The trial is held behind closed doors. The identity of those
charged has not been released nor is the identity of those facing the
death penalty. At the time of writing, at least one of those identified
as responsible for the planning and organizing of the execution of Mr.
Khashoggi has not been charged,'' she noted.
She also found there was ``credible evidence that Saudi Crown Prince
Mohammad bin Salman and other high-level officials were individually
liable.''
Not surprisingly, the Saudi Government, which denies the Prince was
involved, has rejected the report. Meanwhile, despite all the
international handwringing and denunciations, there has been little
effective international response.
This bill requires an intelligent assessment on responsibility for
Jamal Khashoggi's murder, and it would sanction those named by imposing
Magnitsky-style sanctions against them.
It also requires the Secretary of State to provide Congress with a
report on Saudi Arabia's human rights record, which, personally, I find
to be among the most egregious in the world.
Mr. Speaker, the U.S., Canada, France, and the U.K. all levied some
level of sanctions against 18 Saudis allegedly linked to the killing.
The Saudi Crown Prince is not among them. Germany, Finland, and Denmark
have canceled arms deals with Saudi Arabia. The U.K. was also forced to
cancel its armed sales to the Saudi Government, under court order.
The Senate and the House have voted to condemn Jamal Khashoggi's
murder and to end U.S. armed sales to Saudi Arabia because of Saudi
Arabia's role in the Yemen civil war.
President Trump has chosen to ignore the will of Congress, going so
far as to invoke an imaginary emergency in order to continue selling
arms to the Saudis. The Senate has voted to overturn those arms sales
by passing resolutions of disapproval, which the House will consider
later this week or next. I have introduced a bill in the House, H.R.
643, that would end U.S. arms sales to Saudi Arabia.
Now is the time for the House to act strongly and definitely. There
must be consequences for the murder of Jamal Khashoggi. Such a heinous
crime must not be met with impunity. H.R. 2037 is an appropriate step
in ensuring that those responsible are named and held accountable.
Again, I thank the gentleman from New Jersey for his leadership and
urge all my colleagues to support this legislation.
Mr. ENGEL. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume for
the purpose of closing.
Mr. Speaker, the horrific murder of Jamal Khashoggi demands
accountability and justice. After the astounding evidence we have seen,
it just cannot be business as usual; and since the administration is
dragging its feet, Congress must step forward.
So I urge my colleagues to join me today and support the Saudi Arabia
Human Rights and Accountability Act, and I thank the gentleman from New
Jersey (Mr. Malinowski) for his leadership on this issue.
Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
The SPEAKER pro tempore (Mr. Malinowski). The question is on the
motion offered by the gentleman from New York (Mr. Engel) that the
House suspend the rules and pass the bill, H.R. 2037, as amended.
The question was taken.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. In the opinion of the Chair, two-thirds
being in the affirmative, the ayes have it.
Mr. ENGEL. Mr. Speaker, on that I demand the yeas and nays.
The yeas and nays were ordered.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to clause 8 of rule XX, further
proceedings on this motion will be postponed.
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