,,iii  #aaeth ,,congress  #ast ,session 
,s4 ,,res4 #baa  ,,in ,,the ,,senate    
,,of ,,the ,,united ,,states  ,june #bi1
 #bjag,mr4 ,toomey 7for himself1 ,mr4   
,markey1 ,ms4 ,murkowski1 ,ms4 ,baldwin1
 ,ms4 ,collins1 ,mr4 ,coons1 ,mr4       
,lankford1 ,mrs4 ,feinstein1 ,mr4       
,tillis1 ,mr4 ,brown1 ,mr4 ,rubio1 ,ms4 
,warren1 ,mr4 ,gardner1 ,mr4            
,blumenthal1 ,mr4 ,portman1 ,mr4        
,merkley1 ,mr4 ,young1 ,mr4 ,leahy1 ,mr4
 ,heller1 ,mrs4 ,gillibrand1 ,mr4       
,cassidy1 ,mr4 ,wyden1 ,mr4 ,hatch1 ,mr4
 ,casey1 ,mr4 ,inhofe1 ,mr4 ,franken1   
,mr4 ,whitehouse1 ,ms4 ,klobuchar1 ,mr4 
,kaine1 ,mr4 ,van ,hollen1 ,mr4 ,durbin1
 ,mr4 ,booker1 ,mrs4 ,murray1 ,mr4      
,menendez1 ,ms4 ,harris1 ,mrs4 ,shaheen1
 ,ms4 ,hassan1 ,mr4 ,murphy1 ,mr4       
,sanders1 ,mr4 ,udall1 and ,mr4 ,reed7  
submitted the following resolution2     
which was referred to the ,committee on 
,foreign ,relations  ,,resolution       
,condemning the violence and persecution
 in ,chechnya4  ,whereas1 on ,april #a1 

#bjag1 the ,russian newspaper ,novaya   
,gazeta reported that authorities in    
,chechnya1 a republic of the ,russian   
,federation1 had abducted1 detained1 and
 tortured over #ajj men due to their    
actual or suspected sexual orientation2 
,whereas multiple independent and       
first-hand accounts have subsequently   
corroborated the ,novaya ,gazeta report1
 and describe a campaign of persecution 
by ,chechen officials against men due to
 their actual or suspected sexual       
orientation2 ,whereas1 as a result of   
this persecution1 at least three deaths 
have been reported and many individuals 
have been forced to flee ,chechnya2     
,whereas ,chechen officials have denied 
the existence of such persecution1      
including through a statement by the    
spokesman for ,chechen leader ,ramzan   
,kadyrov that ,you cannot arrest or     
repress people who don't exist in the   
republic42 ,whereas the same spokesman  
for ,ramzan ,kadyrov has also stated    
that ,if such people existed in         

,chechnya1 law enforcement would not    
have to worry about them1 as their own  
relatives would have sent them to where 
they could never return1 and credible   
reports indicate that ,chechen          
authorities have encouraged families to 
carry out so-called honor killings of   
relatives due to their actual or        
suspected sexual orientation2 ,whereas  
,chechnya is a constituent republic of  
the ,russian ,federation and subject to 
its laws1 and ,ramzan ,kadyrov was      
installed as the leader of ,chechnya by 
,russian ,president ,vladimir ,putin2   
,whereas ,chechen authorities have a    
long history of violating the           
fundamental human rights of their       
citizens1 including through             
extrajudicial executions1 forced        
disappearances1 and torture of          
government critics2 ,whereas ,kremlin   
spokesman ,dmitry ,peskov dismissed     
reports of persecution in ,chechnya and 
termed them phantom complaints2 ,whereas
 ,russia's ,human ,rights ,ombudsman1   

,tatyana ,moskalkova1 has also claimed  
that such reports should not be believed
 because formal complaints have not been
 registered with the appropriate        
authorities2 ,whereas the ,russian      
,federation is a participating ,state of
 the ,organization for ,security and    
,cooperation in ,europe and a signatory 
to the ,universal ,declaration of ,human
 ,rights1 and thus has agreed to        
guarantee the fundamental human rights  
of all of its citizens2 ,whereas1 on    
,april #g1 #bjag1 the ,united ,states   
,department of ,state issued a statement
 saying ,we categorically condemn the   
persecution of individuals based on     
their sexual orientation and urging the 
,government of the ,russian ,federation 
to take steps to ensure the release of  
all those wrongfully detained in        
,chechnya1 and to conduct a credible    
investigation of the reports2 and       
,whereas1 on ,april #ag1 #bjag1 ,united 
,states ,ambassador to the ,united      
,nations ,nikki ,haley issued a         

statement saying ,chechen authorities   
must immediately investigate these      
allegations1 hold anyone involved       
accountable1 and take steps to prevent  
future abuses4 ,we are against all forms
 of discrimination1 including against   
people based on sexual orientation4     
,when left unchecked1 discrimination and
 human rights abuses can lead to        
destabilization and conflict43 ,now1    
therefore1 be it  ,that the ,senate--   
7#a7 condemns the violence and          
persecution in ,chechnya and calls on   
,chechen officials to immediately cease 
the abduction1 detention1 and torture of
 individuals on the basis of their      
actual or suspected sexual orientation1 
and hold accountable all those involved 
in perpetrating such abuses2  7#b7 calls
 on the ,government of the ,russian     
,federation to protect the human rights 
of all its citizens1 condemn the        
violence and persecution1 investigate   
these crimes in ,chechnya1 and hold     
accountable all those involved in       

perpetrating such abuses2  7#c7 calls on
 the ,united ,states ,government to     
continue to condemn the violence and    
persecution in ,chechnya1 demand the    
release of individuals wrongfully       
detained1 and identify those individuals
 whose involvement in this violence     
qualifies for the imposition of         
sanctions under the ,sergei ,magnitsky  
,rule of ,law ,accountability ,act of   
#bjab 7,public ,law #aab-bjh2 #bb       
,u4,s4,c4 #ehaa note7 or the ,global    
,magnitsky ,human ,rights               
,accountability ,act 7,public ,law      
#aad-cbh72 and  7#d7 affirms that the   
rights to freedom of assembly1          
association1 and expression and freedom 
from extrajudicial detention and        
violence are universal human rights that
 apply to all persons1 and that         
countries that fail to respect these    
rights jeopardize the security and      
prosperity of all their citizens4