,i #aagth ,,congress #b;d ,session ,h4 ,r4 #hhac ,,in ,,the ,,house ,,of ,,representatives ,september #ac1 #bjbb,mr4 ,sires 7for himself1 ,mr4 ,castro of ,texas1 ,mr4 ,green of ,tennessee1 ,mr4 ,connolly1 ,mr4 ,fitzpatrick1 ,ms4 ,wasserman ,schultz1 ,ms4 ,salazar1 ,mr4 ,vargas1 ,ms4 ,barragn1 ,mr4 ,vicente ,gonzalez of ,texas1 ,ms4 ,titus1 and ,mr4 ,cicilline7 introduced the following bill2 which was referred to the ,committee on ,foreign ,affairs ,a ,,bill ,to direct the ,united ,states ,government to support extending the mandate of the ,independent ,international ,fact-,finding ,mission on ,venezuela which is set to expire in ,september #bjbb4 #a4 ,short title ,this ,act may be cited as the ,assuring that the ,fact-,finding ,examination ,continues to ,track ,human ,rights in ,venezuela ,act or the ,,affect ,human ,rights in ,venezuela ,act4 #b4 ,findings ,congress makes the following findings3 7#a7 ,in its ,resolution #db_/be adopted on ,september #bg1 #bjai1 the ,united ,nations ,human ,rights ,council established an independent fact-finding mission1 the ,independent ,international ,fact-,finding ,mission on the ,bolivarian ,republic of ,venezuela 7in this section referred to as the ,fact-,finding ,mission7 to investigate extrajudicial executions1 enforced disappearances1 arbitrary detentions and torture and other cruel1 inhuman or degrading treatment since #bjad with a view to ensuring full accountability for perpetrators and justice for victims4 ,the mandate of the ,fact-,finding ,mission was extended by the ,united ,nations ,human ,rights ,council on ,october #f1 #bjbj1 for an additional two years1 until ,september #bjbb1 through its ,resolution #de_/bj4 7#b7 ,the ,fact-,finding ,mission has identified specific incidents and patterns establishing reasonable grounds to conclude that violations of international human rights and criminal law have been committed in ,venezuela1 according to its ,september #bjbj report4 7#c7 ,the ,fact-,finding ,mission has faced several constraints1 including lack of access to work in-country1 travel limitations due to the ,,covid-#ai pandemic1 disrupted interviews due to electricity and internet failures1 and limited ability to secure witness statements and key documents4 ,despite these challenges1 the ,fact-,finding ,mission was able to carry out its investigative and analytical work and generate reports that serve as an invaluable resource for victims1 civil society organizations1 and international accountability mechanisms4 7#d7 ,the ,united ,states has historically used its voice1 vote1 and influence at the ,united ,nations to address human rights abuses around the world and to seek to hold perpetrators accountable4 7#e7 ,marta ,valias1 ,chair of the ,fact-,finding ,mission1 reported at the #dith session of the ,human ,rights ,council that the ,venezuelan people have endured a decade of deepening economic1 humanitarian and human rights crises1 as well as the breaking down of ,state institutions1 all of this exacerbated1 most recently1 by the impact of ,,covid-#ai4 ,the clearest showing of this are the more than six million people who have had to leave the country44 #c4 ,actions relating to the ,independent ,international ,fact-,finding ,mission on the ,bolivarian ,republic of ,venezuela 7a7 ,support ,to extend mandate ,the ,secretary of ,state shall take such actions as may be necessary to use the voice1 vote1 and influence of the ,united ,states in the ,united ,nations ,human ,rights ,council 7,,unhrc7 and the ,united ,nations ,general ,assembly 7,,unga7 to seek to-- 7#a7 extend the mandate of the ,independent ,international ,fact-,finding ,mission on the ,bolivarian ,republic of ,venezuela 7in this section referred to as the ,fact-,finding ,mission7 by two years beyond ,september #bjbb1 as previously outlined and determined by ,,unhrc ,resolutions #db_/be 7,september #bg1 #bjai7 and #de_/bj 7,october #f1 #bjbj71 to conclude in ,october #bjbd2 7#b7 encourage international support among member states of ,,unhrc to empower the ,fact-,finding ,mission to thoroughly conduct its stated purpose of investigating gross violations of human rights perpetrated in ,venezuela since #bjad2 and 7#c7 provide investigative and technical assistance to the ,fact-,finding ,mission as requested and as permitted within ,united ,nations rules and regulations and within ,united ,states law4 7b7 ,support for further action ,the ,president is authorized to direct the ,united ,states ,permanent ,representative to the ,united ,nations to use the voice1 vote1 and influence of the ,united ,states to urge the ,united ,nations to provide greater action with respect to human rights violations in ,venezuela by-- 7#a7 urging the ,,unga to consider a resolution condemning the ,venezuelan regime's use of political prisoners and wrongfully detained foreign nationals1 including ,americans1 as leverage to extract concessions from its adversaries consistent with ,,unhrc ,resolution #db_/be2 7#b7 assisting efforts by the relevant ,united ,nations ,special ,envoys and ,special ,rapporteurs to secure the release of all political prisoners and wrongfully detained foreign nationals in ,venezuela1 promote respect for human rights1 and encourage dialogue towards a peaceful and democratic transfer of power2 7#c7 urging the ,united ,nations and specialized agencies to address the humanitarian needs of the people of ,venezuela1 including vulnerable ,venezuelan refugees and migrants in third countries through direct assistance2 and 7#d7 supporting access for humanitarian actors1 independent media1 and credible international legal and judicial entities1 including future ,united ,nations ,fact-,finding ,missions and similar investigatory mechanisms1 to people residing in ,venezuela and to the growing ,venezuelan diaspora4 7c7 ,due consideration of fact-,finding mission reports ,the ,president and ,secretary of ,state shall-- 7#a7 appropriately review all past and future reports presented by the ,fact-,finding ,mission to the ,,unhrc1 including the ,detailed ,findings published on ,september #be1 #bjbj 7,a_/,,hrc_/#de_/cc7 and ,september #af1 #bjba 7,a_/,,hrc_/#dh_/fi72 and 7#b7 give due consideration to the ,fact-,finding ,mission's reported conclusions in developing and executing the foreign policy of the ,united ,states with respect to ,venezuela4 7d7 ,report ,not later than #ij days after the date of the enactment of this ,act1 and annually thereafter until the expiration of the official mandate of the ,fact-,finding ,mission1 the ,secretary of ,state shall submit to the appropriate congressional committees a report on the implementation of the actions described in subsections 7a71 7b71 and 7c74 7e7 ,appropriate congressional committees defined ,in this section1 the term appropriate congressional committees means-- 7#a7 the ,committee on ,foreign ,affairs and the ,committee on ,appropriations of the ,house of ,representatives2 and 7#b7 the ,committee on ,foreign ,relations and the ,committee on ,appropriations of the ,senate4