H-0867.1                  _______________________________________________

                                             HOUSE JOINT MEMORIAL 4005

                              _______________________________________________

State of Washington                              53rd Legislature                             1993 Regular Session

By Representatives Basich, Linville, Kessler, Riley, Romero, Orr, Brumsickle, Chappell, Leonard, Quall, Jacobsen, Ballard, Dunshee, Miller, Heavey, Sheldon, Anderson, Eide, Bray, Lemmon, G. Cole, Kremen, Vance, Wineberry, Pruitt, Sheahan, Campbell, King, Cothern, Flemming, Johanson, Padden, Schoesler, J. Kohl and Lisk

Read first time 01/27/93.  Referred to Committee on State Government.

Asking the White House to condemn rape and ethnic cleansing in Bosnia and create a war crimes tribunal.

          TO THE HONORABLE BILL CLINTON, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES, AND TO THE PRESIDENT OF THE SENATE AND THE SPEAKER OF THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES, AND TO THE SENATE AND HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE UNITED STATES, IN CONGRESS ASSEMBLED, AND TO THE MEMBERS OF THE UNITED NATIONS:

          We, your Memorialists, the Senate and House of Representatives of the State of Washington, in legislative session assembled, respectfully represent and petition as follows:

          WHEREAS, The rape of women in Bosnia appears to be deliberate, massive, and systematic; and

          WHEREAS, A fact-finding team of the European Community estimated that thirty thousand to fifty thousand Muslim women had been raped and tortured since the fighting began last April; and

          WHEREAS, The team concluded that the mass rapes there were a strategy of war for purposes of "ethnic cleansing," and not just crimes of opportunity by individual soldiers; and

          WHEREAS, All Americans should speak out against the most sadistic violence, systematic torture, and murder haunting Europe since the Nazi campaigns; and

          WHEREAS, United States groups seeking action on Bosnia include the American Jewish Committee, the American Muslim Council, the Anti-Defamation League of B'nai B'rith, the American Task Force for Bosnia, the National Association of Arab Americans, and the Albanian American Civic League;

          NOW, THEREFORE, Your Memorialists respectfully pray that the White House condemn the rape of women in Bosnia and the ethnic cleansing and create an international war crimes tribunal.

          BE IT RESOLVED, That copies of this Memorial be immediately transmitted to the Honorable Bill Clinton, President of the United States, the Members of the United Nations, the President of the United States Senate, the Speaker of the House of Representatives, and each member of Congress from the State of Washington.

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