WO R L D R I G H T S
Human Rights Advocacy Worldwide

 

August 10, 2004

Ms. Dorothy Douglas Taft
Chief of Staff
Helsinki Commission
234 Ford House Office Building
Washington, DC 20515

Dear Ms. Taft:

Reference is hereby made to our letter of March 16, 2004 requesting the US Helsinki Commission hold hearings on US compliance with its OSCE human dimension commitments under articles 5.9, 6 and 7.3 of the 1990 Copenhagen Document. We also refer to the April 7, 2004 letter conveyed to Chairman Congressman Chris Smith and Co-Chairman Senator Ben Nighthorse Campbell by DC Delegate Eleanor Holmes Norton in which she reiterates our request for a hearing by the Commission on this matter.

In light of the continuing disenfranchisement of the people of Washington, D.C., which as you know, was determined to constitute human rights violation by the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights in its decision of December 29, 2003 in Case No. 11.204, Statehood Solidarity Committee v. the United States of America, we believe a hearing is essential to determine whether the U.S. is also violating its OSCE democratic election standards under the 1990 Copenhagen Document.

We note that there is ample precedent for the Commission to hold hearings on US compliance under the Helsinki Accords. On April 3 and 4, 1979, hearings were held before the Commission on Security and Cooperation in Europe on U.S. implementation of the Helsinki Accords. Titled “U.S. Compliance: Human Rights,” the hearings were held during the 96th Congress, First Session. They were chaired by Rep. Dante Fascell (D-FL).

Among those groups testifying was the Washington Helsinki Watch Committee for the United States. Contributing organizations also included: American Civil Liberties Union Foundation, National Prison Project; Indian Law Resource Center; International Human Rights Law Group; Lawyers Committee for Civil Rights Under Law; Alien Rights Law Project; Mexican American Legal Defense Fund; Micronesian Legal Services Corp.; Movement for Economic Justice; National Urban League; United States Catholic Conference, Ratification Project; and Center for National Policy Review.

In view of this precedent, we reiterate our request for the U.S. Helsinki Commission to hold hearings on U.S. government compliance with its OSCE obligations with regard to this issue of fundamental fairness. Holding this hearing will send a positive and principled message to all country ambassadors at the forthcoming Human Dimension Implementation Meeting in Warsaw that the U.S. government takes its OSCE obligations seriously, and avoid the possible perception that the U.S. does not take seriously its OSCE obligations under the 1990 Copenhagen Document, while holding other nations strictly accountable for theirs.

Sincerely,

 

Timothy Cooper
Executive Director

cc: Delegate Eleanor Holmes Norton
Chairman Representative Chris Smith
Co-Chairman Senator Ben Nighthorse Campbell
OSCE Parliamentary Assembly President, Rep. Alcee L. Hastings