Legislative Watch
| Legislative Watch reports on pending U.S. legislation relevant to human rights and humanitarian law. This list is not meant to be comprehensive. |
Sudan Peace Act, S. 180/H.R.
931
Major
Sponsors: Sen. Bill Frist (R-TN)/Rep. Thomas G. Tancredo
(R-CO)
Status:
Referred to Senate Committee on Foreign Relations on January 25,
2001. Referred to House Committee on International Relations on
March 7, 2001.
Substance:
These bills denounce the Sudanese government for massive human
rights violations, the ongoing slave trade, use of civilian defense
forces, and general targeting of civilians during military attack.
The bills proclaim U.S. disapproval of Sudan's low-intensity
ethnic cleansing campaign that primarily targets Christians and
animists in the south of the country. In this regard, the bills
condemn Sudan's organization of irregular forces for the
purpose of carrying out raiding and slaving parties against the
Dinka, Nyer, and Nuba peoples. The bills also authorize the
secretary of state's use of State Department personnel for
supporting ongoing negotiations and eventual implementation of a
peace settlement between the Sudanese government and opposition
forces. In the event Sudan imposes a ban on UN air transport relief
flights, these bills direct the U.S. president to develop a
contingency plan outside UN auspices to provide U.S. government and
privately donated relief to all affected areas.
Federal Death Penalty
Abolition Act of 2001, S. 191
Major
Sponsor: Sen. Russell D. Feingold (D-WI)
Status:
Referred to the House Committee on the Judiciary on January 25,
2001.
Substance:
This bill repeals death penalty provisions in federal statutes and
prohibits the sentencing to death or execution of anyone for any
violation of federal law. The bill has retroactive effect: any
person sentenced to death under federal law prior to the enactment
date will instead serve a life sentence without the possibility of
parole. Senator Feingold advocates this repeal for a number of
reasons. He notes that support for the death penalty has reached a
20-year low due to rising concerns of fairness. Numerous studies
show the death penalty is implemented in a racially discriminatory
manner. Defendants who kill white victims are four times more
likely to be sentenced to death than defendants who kill black
victims. According to a Department of Justice report released in
September 2000, whether one receives the death penalty appears to
be related to the color of one's skin or the federal district
in which the prosecution takes place. Of the 20 defendants
currently on the federal government's death row, 14 are
African-American, 1 is Hispanic-American, 1 is Asian-American, and
only 4 are European-American. Since the 1976 reinstatement of the
death penalty, the United States has found 93 death row inmates-one
out of every seven-innocent. The death penalty draws heavy
criticism from abroad, especially because only five other
countries-Iran, Nigeria, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, and Yemen-impose
the death penalty on persons below the age of 18. Finally,
comparative country studies indicate the death penalty is not an
effective crime deterrent.
Transparency and
Responsibility for United States Trade Health Act of 2001, H.R.
460
Major
Sponsor: Rep. Cynthia A. McKinney (D-GA)
Status:
Referred to the House Committee on International Relations on
February 6, 2001.
Substance:
This bill requires U.S. nationals who directly or indirectly employ
one or more individuals in a foreign country to provide full
transparency and public disclosure in all their operations. The
bill mandates, inter alia, that the following information be
disclosed: workers' rights, labor standards, and employee
complaints; programs educating employees about dangers and safety
precautions regarding workplace chemicals; environmental
performance, including an inventory of released pollutants and any
natural resources extracted; security arrangements with state
police, military, or paramilitary forces; human rights policies;
complaints from local communities; and human rights lawsuits filed
against the national. In effect, the bill increases U.S. corporate
accountability for activities conducted abroad by providing both
domestic and foreign individuals and organizations access to vital
statistics.
The proper citation for this article in the Human Rights Brief Volume 8, Issue 3, beginning at page 24 is: 8 No. 3 Hum. Rts. Brief 24 (2001).
