[Congressional Bills 115th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. Res. 180 Introduced in Senate (IS)]
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115th CONGRESS
1st Session
S. RES. 180
Condemning the violence against peaceful protesters outside the Turkish
Ambassador's residence on May 16, 2017, and calling for the
perpetrators to be brought to justice and measures to be taken to
prevent similar incidents in the future.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES
May 25, 2017
Mr. Markey submitted the following resolution; which was referred to
the Committee on Foreign Relations
_______________________________________________________________________
RESOLUTION
Condemning the violence against peaceful protesters outside the Turkish
Ambassador's residence on May 16, 2017, and calling for the
perpetrators to be brought to justice and measures to be taken to
prevent similar incidents in the future.
Whereas, on May 16, 2017, President Donald J. Trump hosted President Recep
Tayyip Erdogan of Turkey, a longstanding NATO ally, for an official
meeting at the White House to discuss counterterrorism cooperation and
bilateral issues;
Whereas, on the evening of May 16, 2017, over two dozen protesters gathered
outside of the Turkish Ambassador's residence in Washington, DC, to
demonstrate opposition to Turkish government policies;
Whereas after hours of peaceful protest, violence erupted when pro-Erdogan
supporters and individuals from the Turkish Embassy grounds pushed past
District of Columbia police officers to brutally attack the
demonstrators;
Whereas those Turkish officials blatantly suppressed the First Amendment rights
of United States citizens, and multiple armed Turkish security officials
beat, kicked, and choked unarmed demonstrators;
Whereas multiple video recordings of the violence and reports by the
Metropolitan Police Department of the District of Columbia and the
Department of State confirm that the demonstrators did not instigate the
violence;
Whereas at least 11 individuals were seriously injured in the ensuing brawl,
with two individuals requiring immediate hospitalization;
Whereas two armed Turkish security officers attached to a security detail were
detained at the scene for physically assaulting Federal agents;
Whereas those two Turkish security officers were later released and subsequently
allowed to leave the United States because they held Derived Head of
State immunity;
Whereas the Department of State did not request that Turkey waive the immunity
for these two security officers in order to fully investigate the
assault prior to their being released from custody;
Whereas a joint criminal investigation into the incident is ongoing with the
combined efforts of the Washington Metropolitan Police Department, the
United States Secret Service, and the Department of State Diplomatic
Security Service;
Whereas at no point was President Erdogan in danger;
Whereas immunity for diplomatic personnel and certain other foreign officials is
a core principle of international law, as is the right to protest
peacefully and freely in the United States;
Whereas this is the third instance of violence perpetrated by members of Turkish
President Erdogan's security detail in the United States;
Whereas in 2011, a brawl erupted in the halls of the United Nations General
Assembly between members of Turkish President Erdogan's security detail
and United Nations security officers, resulting in one United Nations
security officer being hospitalized due to serious injuries;
Whereas in 2016, members of Turkish President Erdogan's security detail engaged
in unwarranted violence against journalists reporting on an event at the
Brookings Institution;
Whereas Secretary of State Rex Tillerson said on May 21, 2017, that the violence
outside the Turkish Embassy was ``outrageous'' and ``simply
unacceptable''; and
Whereas the right to assembly, peaceful protest, and freedom of speech are
essential and protected rights in the United States: Now, therefore, be
it
Resolved, That it is the sense of the Senate that--
(1) the rights to peacefully assemble and freely express
one's views are essential to the fabric of American democracy;
(2) the Turkish security forces acted in an unprofessional
and brutal manner, reflecting poorly on President Erdogan and
the Government of Turkey;
(3) any Turkish security officials who directed, oversaw,
or participated in efforts by Turkish security forces to
illegally suppress peaceful protests on May 16, 2017, should be
charged and prosecuted under United States law;
(4) the United States Secret Service and the Diplomatic
Security Service of the Department of State should review this
incident and confirm with the Turkish National Police the
standards expected by visiting security details to prevent
future violent incidents;
(5) the Department of State should immediately request the
waiver of immunity of any Turkish security detail official
engaged in any assault in the United States prior to release of
that individual from custody;
(6) the Department of State should conduct a review of its
own security procedures to determine how to mitigate the
likelihood of such an event in the future;
(7) the United States respect for free speech requires
officials of the United States to speak out against such
incidents; and
(8) the United States should take steps to strengthen
freedoms for the press and civil society in countries such as
Turkey, and combat efforts by foreign leaders to suppress free
and peaceful protest in their own countries.
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