Social Upheaval

SAMPLE FAX*
Dear Speaker Hastert,

As a member of Women's International League for Peace and Freedom (WILPF), I urge you to allow a full and open debate on HR4681, the Palestinian Anti-Terrorism Act of 2006.

I implore you in the strongest possible terms not to recognize any Representative to offer a motion to suspend the rules on this resolution. HR4681 would impose draconian economic and diplomatic sanctions against the Palestinian people for voting; therefore, full and open debate is needed.

Thank you for your help in this matter.

Sincerely,
Your Name

*This is an addition to the action alert based on the fax I sent. I believe in brevity, so feel free to go call Speaker Hastert now and not read the rest of this post.

BACKGROUND INFORMATION
As Congress reconvenes this week from its spring recess, there is a good chance that supporters of HR4681, the Palestinian Anti-Terrorism Act of 2006, will try to rush this legislation to a vote "under suspension", a procedure that prevents amendments from being offered and limits debate.

According to House Practice: A Guide to the Rules, Precedents and Procedures of the House, "Under the modern practice, the motion to suspend the rules is used frequently to pass reported legislative measures that are perceived to have a broad degree of support and little need for prolonged debate." Congressional Research Services notes that suspending the rules "is a procedure that the House of Representatives often uses on the floor to act expeditiously on relatively noncontroversial legislation", such as naming a post office.

However, the so-called Palestinian Anti-Terrorism Act is far more momentous than the naming of a post office. It is a bill that would impose draconian economic and diplomatic sanctions against the Palestinian people for voting, including:

* Restricting US humanitarian aid and potentially eliminating entire US aid projects, such as infrastructure and small business development;

* Threatening to withhold a portion of US dues to the United Nations because it maintains bodies that advocate for Palestinian human rights and seek to hold Israel accountable to international law;

* Defining territory controlled nominally by the Palestinian Authority as a "terrorist sanctuary", thereby requiring US businesses to obtain special export licenses for most goods destined for the Occupied Palestinian Territories and gutting the provisions of the US free trade agreement with the West Bank and Gaza;

* Refusing visas to members of the Palestinian Legislative Council, even those who belong to political parties that the United States does not classify as "foreign terrorist organizations";

* Restricting the movement of PLO diplomats at the United Nations and threatening to close the PLO's office in Washington, and;

* Instructing the US representative to the World Bank to use the considerable strength of the United States in international financial institutions to vote against the continuation of humanitarian aid projects.

Only the Speaker of the House can recognize a Representative to offer a motion to suspend the rules and dispense with a full debate and prevent amendments from being offered. Don't allow Speaker Hastert to authorize this bill going forward without a transparent and democratic debate! Contact the Speaker today at:

Office of the Speaker of the House of Representatives
Phone: 202-225-0600
Fax: 202-226-1996

TALKING POINTS
* It has come to my attention that supporters of HR4681, the Palestinian Anti-Terrorism Act, will try to rush this legislation to a vote "under suspension". According to House practice and precedent, this procedure is used to pass non-controversial legislation that has a broad degree of support, such as naming a post office.

* HR4681, the Palestinian Anti-Terrorism Act, is controversial and does not have a broad degree of support. Many organizations in the country have joined to protest the resolution. Despite intense arm-twisting from the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC), more than 160 Representatives have refused to cosponsor this resolution. HR4681 is both controversial and divisive and therefore should not be allowed to come up "under suspension".

* HR4681, the Palestinian Anti-Terrorism Act, would impose draconian economic and diplomatic sanctions on the Palestinian people for voting. Surely such a potentially momentous shift in US foreign policy should be subject to transparent and democratic debate and Representatives should have the opportunity to offer amendments to this ill-conceived resolution.

Below is a copy of a letter to Speaker Hastert delivered today by the US Campaign to End the Israeli Occupation. The US Campaign urges its member organizations to send similar letters by fax to Speaker Hastert.

April 24, 2006
Speaker of the House of Representatives
Representative Dennis Hastert
US Capitol, Room H-232
Washington, DC

Dear Mr. Speaker,

It has come to the attention of the US Campaign to End the Israeli Occupation that supporters of HR4681, the Palestinian Anti-Terrorism Act of 2006, will try to rush this important resolution to a vote "under suspension" shortly after the House reconvenes this week from its spring recess.

We urge you in the strongest possible terms not to recognize any Representative to offer a motion to suspend the rules on this resolution of far-reaching consequence.

As you are well aware, suspending the rules is a procedure used to pass non-controversial bills that have broad support. According to House Practice: A Guide to the Rules, Precedents and Procedures of the House, "Under the modern practice, the motion to suspend the rules is used frequently to pass reported legislative measures that are perceived to have a broad degree of support and little need for prolonged debate." Congressional Research Services notes that suspending the rules "is a procedure that the House of Representatives often uses on the floor to act expeditiously on relatively noncontroversial legislation", such as naming a post office.

However, HR4681, the Palestinian Anti-Terrorism Act of 2006, is both controversial and lacks broad support, thereby disqualifying it from coming to the floor "under suspension". The US Campaign to End the Israeli Occupation has mobilized more than 300 US-based organizations in opposition to this resolution (please see the attached letter). Our supporters also have sent more than 10,000 letters to their Members of Congress against this resolution. Because of this unprecedented and diverse grassroots opposition to anti-Palestinian legislation, and despite intense arm-twisting from the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC), more than 160 Representatives have refused to cosponsor this resolution. In addition, two of the three committees assigned jurisdiction over the bill have not reported it out of committee, another indication that broad support for this bill does not exist.

HR4681, the Palestinian Anti-Terrorism Act of 2006, is a far-reaching and momentous resolution that would impose draconian economic and diplomatic sanctions against the Palestinian people for voting, including:

* Restricting US humanitarian aid and potentially eliminating entire US aid projects, such as infrastructure and small business development;

* Threatening to withhold a portion of US dues to the United Nations because it maintains bodies that advocate for Palestinian human rights and seek to hold Israel accountable to international law;

* Defining territory controlled nominally by the Palestinian Authority as a "terrorist sanctuary", thereby requiring US businesses to obtain special export licenses for most goods destined for the Occupied Palestinian Territories and gutting the provisions of the US free trade agreement with the West Bank and Gaza;

* Refusing visas to members of the Palestinian Legislative Council, even those who belong to political parties that the United States does not classify as "foreign terrorist organizations";

* Restricting the movement of PLO diplomats at the United Nations and threatening to close the PLO's office in Washington, and;

* Instructing the US representative to the World Bank to use the considerable strength of the United States in international financial institutions to vote against the continuation of humanitarian aid projects.

This is a substantive bill that has dramatic ramifications for the course of our country's foreign policy toward Israel/Palestine. It is the right of the people of the United States and the obligation of Congress to ensure that our elected representatives have a full, open, and transparent debate about this bill in particular and our country's foreign policy toward Israel/Palestine in general. Members of Congress must have the ability to debate this resolution and offer amendments to it. The fact that more than 160 Representatives have not cosponsored this bill indicates that many Members of Congress do not agree that the United States should impose draconian economic and diplomatic sanctions against the Palestinian people for practicing democracy, the spread of which ostensibly is one of our country's primary foreign policy objectives.

We hope that you strengthen the democratic processes of this country by allowing a full and open debate on HR4681, the Palestinian Anti-Terrorism Act of 2006, and not permitting this important resolution to be rushed to a vote "under suspension". That, more so than sanctioning the Palestinian people for voting, would be a much more effective display at home of the values that we seek to promote abroad.

Thank you for your time and consideration on this matter.

US Campaign to End the Israeli Occupation