HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

H.R. NO.

193

TWENTY-SECOND LEGISLATURE, 2004

 

STATE OF HAWAII

 
   


HOUSE RESOLUTION

 

REaffirMING HAWAII'S commitment to human rights, civil liberties, and all protections guaranteed by the constitutions of the United states and hawaii, and other international charters and covenants BY urging President bush and his administration to change its position on the Uniting and Strengthening OF America by Providing Appropriate Tools Required to Intercept and Obstruct Terrorism (USA PATRIOT ACT) Act of 2001 and authority to withhold fundamental rights to detainees AND REQUESTING CONGRESS TO ENACT THE IMMEDIATE REPEAL of the USA patriot act.

 

WHEREAS, Hawaii has a long and distinguished history of protecting and expanding human rights, civil liberties, and constitutional protections, often serving as a beacon for our country's citizens when their rights, liberties, and protections are threatened; and

WHEREAS, Hawaii has one of the most diverse populations in the nation, and the contributions of citizens and non-citizens are vital to its character, harmony, and spirit of aloha; and

WHEREAS, the people of this State are in a unique position to understand the gravity and horror of a massive, lethal attack, as the December 7, 1941 attack on Pearl Harbor was the last time American territory was attacked by foreign forces prior to the events of September 11, 2001; and

WHEREAS, numerous American citizens from Hawaii have served in the Armed Forces of the United States with courage and honor, including in the 442nd Regimental Combat Team, the most decorated unit for its size in American military history; and

WHEREAS, the Hawaii has many sites that memorialize the gratitude felt by the State and the nation for the supreme sacrifice made by those in the Armed Forces who have died in battle to protect these same cherished rights, liberties, and protections, including the National Military Cemetery at Punchbowl and the U.S.S. Arizona Memorial; and

WHEREAS, after the tragic events of September 11, 2001, hasty reaction led to the adoption of the Uniting and Strengthening America by Providing Appropriate Tools Required to Intercept and Obstruct Terrorism (or "USA Patriot Act") and Homeland Security Act, and the promulgation of several executive orders and departmental rules and regulations has lead the federal government to sacrifice fundamental human rights and civil liberties that are guaranteed by the constitutions of this State and the United States, United Nations Charter, International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, Convention Against Torture, and other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment, and Convention on Elimination of Racial Discrimination, which require the United States to promote human rights for all without distinction; and

WHEREAS, at least two American citizens have already been held incommunicado without charges or access to defense counsel, in violation of their right to a public trial guaranteed by the Sixth Amendment of the Constitution of the United States; and

WHEREAS, on January 16, 2004, the United States Supreme Court agreed to decide the fate of these citizens currently being held at a military base in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba and determine whether holding United States citizens, indefinitely and without access to counsel or courts violates their rights guaranteed by the United States Constitution; and

WHEREAS, Hawaii is further uniquely situated as it witnessed and bore the burden of having its citizens of Japanese ancestry, interned and subject to governmental scrutiny, under the same guise of "national security" during World War II, so it is alarming that, even today, the government may act to deny any United States citizen their inherent and supposedly inalienable fundamental rights guaranteed by the United States Constitution; and

WHEREAS, the USA Patriot Act defines "domestic terrorism" so broadly as to potentially apply to certain acts of civil disobedience by lawful advocacy groups, which may be labeled as terrorist organizations and subjected to invasive surveillance, signal and electronic intelligence gathering, harassment, and criminal penalties for protected political advocacy; and

WHEREAS, the USA Patriot Act grants unchecked power to the Secretary of State to designate domestic groups as "terrorist" organizations and greatly expands the government's ability to conduct secret searches without warrants; and

WHEREAS, the Justice Department has issued a directive limiting compliance with the Freedom of Information Act, citing the threat of terrorism as justification, and thereby limiting disclosure of public documents and records covering all government information, much of which has no connection to national security or law enforcement; and

WHEREAS, the United States Attorney General unilaterally, without consulting Congress, eased long-standing intelligence guidelines which were put in place in 1976 as a result of gross intelligence abuses by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and issues surrounding the Watergate Hotel break-in by operatives linked to the Nixon White House; and

WHEREAS, new guidelines allow Federal Bureau of Investigation agents to spy on religious groups, political rallies, and organized meetings without any suspicion that the organization is involved in terrorism or any other criminal activity; and

WHEREAS, recently, information about the government's surveillance powers was obtained through a Freedom of Information Act lawsuit filed jointly with the Electronic Privacy Information Center and the American Booksellers Foundation for Free Expression and the Freedom to Read Foundation wherein it was revealed that the government employs "National Security Letters" -- signed by Attorney General Ashcroft or a delegate and with no judicial approval -- to "compel the production of a substantial amount of relevant information" and allows the government to obtain records about people living in the United States, including American citizens, without probable cause that the person has committed any crime and without disclosing to any customers -- or to anyone else -- that the FBI has demanded the records; and

WHEREAS, the Department of Justice drafted the "Domestic Security Enhancement Act", which has been publicly circulated and caused wide concern that there are not only efforts to enact a multitude of new and sweeping law enforcement and intelligence gathering powers -- many of which are not related to terrorism -- that would severely undermine basic constitutional rights and checks and balances and, if adopted, would diminish personal privacy by removing important checks on government surveillance authority, reduce the accountability of government to the public by increasing official secrecy, and expand on the definition of "terrorism" in a manner that threatens the constitutionally protected rights of Americans; and

WHEREAS, the USA Patriot Act will expire in 2005; however, efforts towards repeal have not yet met with success, and there have also been efforts to have the USA Patriot Act extended; and

WHEREAS, this issue goes beyond any party affiliation, for certain members of the United States Congress have recognized the inherent dangers and extreme breadth of scope of the USA Patriot Act and have introduced the Security and Freedom Ensured (SAFE) Act of 2003, which would represent a significant first step toward rolling back some of the USA Patriot Act's worse excesses; and

WHEREAS, the SAFE Act legislation would:

(1) Ensure that intelligence agents cannot search library records unless there is suspicion that an individual is involved with a foreign power;

(2) Limit the use of sneak and peek searches by government agents; and

(3) Limit the government's ability to conduct widespread searches of citizens' personal information without probable cause or individualized suspicion; and

WHEREAS, even though the SAFE Act, if enacted, would not hinder the investigative powers law enforcement agencies need to keep us safe but would instead ensure proper checks and balances on these powers to help keep us free, this modest bill drew the wrath of Attorney General Ashcroft who falsely stated that it would "make it even more difficult to mount an effective anti-terror campaign than it was before the [USA] Patriot Act was passed"; and

WHEREAS, in 2003, this Legislature, by Senate Concurrent Resolution No. 18, urged the Hawaii Congressional delegation to work to repeal any sections of the USA Patriot Act or recent executive orders that limit or violate fundamental rights and liberties protected by the Constitutions of Hawaii and the United States; and

WHEREAS, along with Hawaii, as of March 9, 2004, two-hundred sixty-two governing political bodies, comprised of three states and hundreds of cities, municipalities, and towns in the United States have affirmatively adopted official positions in opposition to or questioning the broad scope of the USA Patriot Act; now, therefore,

BE IT RESOLVED by the House of Representatives of the Twenty-second Legislature of the State of Hawaii, Regular Session of 2003, that actions recently taken by the federal government pose a threat to the human rights, civil liberties, and constitutional protections of the residents of this State and run a very serious risk of destroying freedom, security, and prosperity in a misguided attempt to save them; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Legislature remains firmly committed to the protection of the human rights, civil liberties, and constitutional protections of all people residing within this State, including those who are citizens of other nations, and affirms its commitment to embody the true spirit of democracy, to embrace and defend the rights, liberties, and protections now under siege, and to make them equally viable for all -- regardless of citizenship status, gender, sexual orientation, racial identification, religious affiliation, age, or country of origin; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that President Bush and his administration are urged to change their position on the Uniting and Strengthening America by Providing Appropriate Tools Required to Intercept and Obstruct Terrorism (USA Patriot Act) Act of 2001 and authority to withhold fundamental rights to detainees; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that federal, state, and county law enforcement officials acting within the State are requested to work in accordance with the policies of the respective police departments, and in cooperation with those departments, and not engage in law enforcement activities that threaten human rights, civil liberties, and constitutional protections of people residing in Hawaii; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Legislature requests that Hawaii's delegation to the Congress of the United States monitor the implementation of the USA Patriot Act, Homeland Security Act, executive orders, and federal departmental rules and regulations cited herein, and actively work for the repeal of those Acts and the withdrawal of those executive orders, and federal department rules and regulations that violate human rights and civil liberties stated in the constitutions of the Hawaii and United States, United Nations Charter, International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, Convention Against Torture, and other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment, and Convention on Elimination of Racial Discrimination; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that certified copies of this Resolution be transmitted to the President of the United States, United States Attorney General, Director of Homeland Security, Director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, President of the United States Senate, Speaker of the United States House of Representatives, members of Hawaii's delegation to the Congress of the United States, the Governor, Attorney General, the United States Attorney for the District of Hawaii, and Mayors, Prosecuting Attorneys, and Police Chiefs of Hawaii County, Kauai County, Maui County, and the City and County of Honolulu.

 

 

 

OFFERED BY:

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Report Title:

Hawaii's commitment to human rights, civil liberties, and all protections guaranteed by the constitutions of the United States and Hawaii and other international charters and covenants.