Amended in Senate August 6, 2014

Senate Joint Resolution No. 17

Introduced by Senator Anderson

September 5, 2013

Senate Joint Resolution No. 17—Relative to begin delete the Syrian government. end delete begin insert Iraq. end insert

LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL’S DIGEST

SJR 17, as amended, Anderson. begin delete Syrian government: military action. end delete begin insert Iraq: religious freedom. end insert

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This measure would urge President Barack Obama’s administration to expedite visa processing for Iraq’s minority groups and to lift the refugee quota cap for Iraqi-Christians in order to streamline the process of accepting them into the United States as refugees, would urge the Congress of the United States to pass House Resolution 663, and would urge the United States Department of State to work with, among others, the Kurdistan Regional Government, the Iraqi central government, and neighboring countries to help secure safe havens for those claiming amnesty from Iraq. The measure would also declare that there is an urgent need to protect religious minorities from persecution from the Sunni Islamist terrorist group the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria (ISIS) as it expands its control over areas in northwestern Iraq.

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This measure would urge President Barack Obama to obtain congressional authorization prior to using military force against the Assad regime in Syria in accordance with the United States Constitution, and would urge United States Senators Barbara Boxer and Dianne Feinstein to request that the President obtain congressional approval prior to taking military action against the Assad regime in Syria.

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Fiscal committee: no.

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WHEREAS, Iraq is currently embroiled in a political and religious
insurrection stemming from an Islamic State in Iraq and Syria
(ISIS)-led offensive that began in the Anbar province and has
spread to key locations such as Mosul, Tikrit, and Samarra and
continues to engulf the region in violence and instability; and

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WHEREAS, ISIS is a transnational Sunni insurgency whose
ideological and organizational roots lie in both al Qaeda in Iraq
and the Syria-based Jabhat al Nursa and has a stated mission of
establishing an Islamic state and a caliphate across the Levant
through violence towards Shiites, non-Muslims, and unsupportive
Sunnis; and

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WHEREAS, Iraq’s population is approximately 31,300,000 with
97 percent of that population identifying themselves as Muslim
while the approximately 3 percent of religious minorities groups
consist of Christians, Yezidis, Sabean Mandaeans, Bahais, Shabaks,
Kakais, and Jews; and

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WHEREAS, The Iraqi Christian population is estimated to be
between 400,000 and 850,000 with two-thirds being Chaldean,
one-fifth Assyrian, and the remainder consisting of Syriacs,
Protestants, Armenians, and Anglicans; and

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WHEREAS, The Iraqi Constitution provides for religious
freedom by stating all of the following:

(1) “No law may be enacted that contradicts the principles of
democracy”;

(2) “No law may be enacted that contradicts the rights and
basic freedoms stipulated in this Constitution”;

(3) “[This Constitution] guarantees the full religious rights to
freedom of religious belief and practice of all individuals such as
Christians, Yazidis, and Mandean Sabeans”; and

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WHEREAS, Over 500,000 people have been displaced by the
current ongoing violence in Iraq while reports have surfaced of
targeted harassment, persecution, and killings of Iraqi religious
minorities by ISIS with little to no protection from the Iraqi
government or other security forces; and

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WHEREAS, ISIS recently issued a decree to all religious
minorities stating: “We offer them three choices: Islam; the
dhimma contract - involving payment of jizya; if they refuse this
they will have nothing but the sword,"; and

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WHEREAS, The fall of Mosul has sparked terror among the
Christian population because for the first time in 1,600 years there
was no mass held in the city; and

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WHEREAS, Over 50 percent of Iraq’s Christian population has
fled since the fall of Saddam Hussein, and 1,100,000 people of
diverse religious backgrounds remain internally displaced while
the government under Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki has not
upheld its commitment to protect the rights of religious minorities;
and

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WHEREAS, Eighty-four thousand nine hundred two Iraqis
resettled in the United States between 2007 and 2013 and over
300,000 Chaldean and Assyrians currently reside throughout the
country; especially in California; now, therefore, be it

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Resolved by the Senate and the Assembly of
the State of California, jointly, That the Legislature
of the State of California, on behalf of its citizens, declares that
there is an urgent need to protect religious minorities from
persecution from the Sunni Islamist insurgent and terrorist group
the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria (ISIS) as it expands its control
over areas in northwestern Iraq; and be it further

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Resolved, That the California Legislature calls on the United
States Department of State to work with the Kurdistan Regional
Government, the Iraqi central government, neighboring countries,
the diaspora community in the United States, the United Nations
High Commissioner for Refugees, Chaldean representative leaders
in the United States, and other key stakeholders to help secure
safe havens for those claiming amnesty from Iraq; and be it further

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Resolved, That the Legislature urges the Congress of the
United States to pass House Resolution 663, which also urges the
United States to act swiftly on behalf of religious minorities that
are under the constant threat of persecution; and be it further

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Resolved, That the Legislature urges President Barack
Obama’s administration to expedite visa processing for Iraq’s
minority groups and to lift the quota cap for Iraqi-Christians in
order to streamline the process of accepting refugees; and be it
further

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Resolved, That the Secretary of the Senate transmit copies
of this resolution to the President and Vice President of the United
States, to the Speaker of the House of Representatives, to the
Majority Leader of the Senate, to each Senator and Representative
from California in the Congress of the United States, and to the
author for appropriate distribution.

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WHEREAS, Clause 11 of Section 8 of Article I of the United
States Constitution grants exclusive power to Congress to declare
war; and

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WHEREAS, Neither the Syrian Government nor President
Bashar Al-Assad has directly attacked any vital security interests
of the United States; and

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WHEREAS, Legitimate uncertainty exists as to what the
character and makeup of a post-President Al-Assad Syrian regime
will be; and

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WHEREAS, The American people through their chosen
Congressional Representatives should have their constitutional
rights defended in order to determine the true necessity of escalated
United States military involvement; now, therefore, be it

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Resolved by the Senate and the Assembly of the State of
California, jointly, That the Legislature of the State of California,
on behalf of its citizens, urges President Barack Obama to obtain
congressional authorization prior to using military force against
the Assad regime in Syria; and be it further

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Resolved, That United States Senators Barbara Boxer and Dianne
Feinstein request that President Barack Obama obtains
congressional authorization prior to any military action against the
Assad regime in Syria; and be it further

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Resolved, That the Secretary of the Senate transmit copies of
this resolution to the President and Vice President of the United
States, to the Speaker of the House of Representatives, to the
Majority Leader of the Senate, to each Senator and Representative
from California in the Congress of the United States, and to the
author for appropriate distribution.

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