I’m Brad Sherman from California
It’s an honor to be here with this distinguished panel and to follow Governor Ed Rendell and to be here on an issue that unites John Bolton and Howard Dean. And it’s good to be with so many advocates for democracy in Iran. With me here is my foreign policy adviser. If you give him your card or email address, we’ll keep you up to date on what’s going on in the Foreign Affairs Committee on the issue of Iran and, of course, Camp Ashraf.
We still have a responsibility there. That is for the residents of Camp Ashraf. The human rights tragedy may be unfolding there. This should be a priority for a bilateral relationship with Iraq.
Secretary Clinton announced an agreement between the Government of Iraq and the Government of the United States on December 2011 on the temporary relocation of MEK members of a Camp Ashraf. And she stressed this resettlement must also have the full support of the Camp’s residents.
Clearly in the way this agreement is being carried out it does not have that support. Part of the agreement involved a movement of residents to Camp Liberty near Baghdad. Unfortunately the Government of Iraq has low credibility on this issue having countenanced the violence against the residents of the camp in recent years.
And we know that President Maliki is under pressure or cajoling from the ayatollahs who run Iran to not act in good faith.
We promised the people of Camp Ashraf that we would protect them from any harm. We should do just that. We have a thousand women, many children. We have people who have been disarmed by America and now they are the tender mercies of the politics of the Middle East.
We promised to protect them and that we should do.
The area allocated to Camp Liberty has been reduced. We have heard about the concrete walls. This doesn’t sound like a refugee camp. It sounds like a forcible relocation to a prison camp. That is simply wrong.
Will the people of Camp Ashraf, if located to Camp Liberty, be allowed access to lawyers, to their families? What is the purpose of these relocation plans. And why, most importantly, can’t the United Nations staff be allowed to interview residents of Camp Ashraf right now?
It sounds like the Government of Iraq is cooperating with the regime in Teheran to tighten the noose around the people —
In April 2011 Iraqi forces entered Camp Ashraf and a violent raid began. 30 residents were killed. 300 wounded. And I had a chance to confront the Iraqi ambassador. And he said the blood isn’t really on the hands of his government. It’s partially on my government, our government, the American Government. Because the State Department continues to list the MEK as a terrorist group and accordingly Iraq feels that a lower standard of human rights respect is in order.
The solution to this is obvious. The Court has seen it. Governor Rendell has seen it as well. I am the lead sponsor of, the lead Democratic sponsor. I want to give credit to — who is the principal sponsor of House Resolution 231 introduced early last year. And it calls for all necessary steps to support the commitments of the United States to ensure the physical protection of the Camp Ashraf residents.
Similar provisions were included in the Iran — Reduction Act that I helped write and helped pass on the floor of December of last year. The House approved bill makes a policy of U.S. Government to urge Iraq to uphold its commitment to ensure continuing well-being of those residents of Camp Ashraf and to prevent involuntary return to Iran. And not to close Camp Ashraf until the United Nations Commission for Refugees can complete its process, recognize its political refugees in Camp Ashraf residents who do not wish to return to Iran and that, of course, is all Camp Ashraf residents.
To protect the people of Ashraf the State Department must work with United Nations and Iraq for a written protocol. There must be a written protocol that establishes the settlement of Ashraf residents, guarantees their safety by the UN, U.S. Government.
And without such a clear agreement relocating residents to Camp Liberty is a recipe for human rights catastrophe, similar to what we saw April 2011.
Iraq has a lot of oil. It produced $38 billion per year with most recent statistics. More now. Yet the United States is still generously providing $2 billion in aid. I don’t think we can provide aid to a country that is ignoring its human rights responsibilities.
The listing by the State Department is the problem that makes it difficult to provide, to find political asylum for the residents of Camp Ashraf. It encourages Iraq to feel it does not have to respect human rights.
And this designation was not initially reached on the merits. It was done as part of a plan to build goodwill, harmony and love between Washington and Teheran. How is that working out? That is why I’m glad to see the court involved. Insist that the decision be made based on the facts and merits and not on some hair-brain scheme of misguided diplomats who think by listing the MEK on the list they will somehow create a kumbaya regime in Teheran.
At our Foreign Affairs Committee, March 2011, I pressed Secretary Clinton directly to personally review that decision. Later that year I pressed the Secretary to protect the residents of Camp Ashraf.
I am still awaiting for the State Department, the Court is still waiting for the State Department. And it is time for the State Department to do its job.
I look forward to the day when the residents of Camp Ashraf live in security and peace. But I especially look forward to the day when they live as full participants in a free, safe and democratic Iran.