No, I’m not conducting a write-in campaign. I just wanted to alert you to a campaign Code Pink has initiated asking Senate and House members to file legislation to suspend U.S. economic sanctions for the duration of the pandemic. Perhaps you have read or heard stories of how life in Venezuela has now become even more difficult. What the stories seldom mention, however, is that it remains U.S. policy to make life more difficult there, as is also the case for Iran, Syria, Cuba, North Korea, Gaza, West Bank, Yemen, and other nations.
The text of a letter to be sent to Bay Area congressional representatives follows below . If you know of any organizations you think might be interested in signing on, please let them and/or me know. And if you think that we ought not be conducting a sanctions campaign during a pandemic, your calls, texts, emails, etc. would be very helpful. You can reach all of the congressional offices at (202) 224-3121.
Tom
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Dear (Member of Congress/Senator),
We, the undersigned California-based humanitarian, research, peace building, faith-based, human rights, and civil society organizations and community leaders very much appreciate your leadership during this global pandemic. We are writing to urge you to support a humane U.S. response to the COVID-19 pandemic by including desperately needed sanctions relief in the next coronavirus stimulus package.
Please note that so far 45 Democratic Senators and members of Congress have written to President Trump and Secretaries Pompeo and Mnuchin asking for the lifting of sanctions in light of the worldwide pandemic.1
We have serious concerns for the health of people in the nations under the most severe economic sanctions, including Iran, Venezuela, Syria, Cuba, North Korea, Gaza, West Bank, and Yemen among others. It is well documented that the sanctions have resulted in thousands of deaths in the past few years among the most vulnerable populations of the poor, elderly, and those with chronic diseases in these nations due to the obstacles placed on their ability to import and purchase vital medications and medical equipment.
Unless we take action to lift the economic sanctions, many millions more will face additional risk of infection, death, as well as severe economic hardship. Unless the sanctions are lifted, it will cripple the capacity of these countries to deal with the pandemic and adequately control its spread. In the case of Iran, inadequate resources to fight the virus will lead to risk of spread to other countries in the area, many of which are considered American allies. Many Americans in Afghanistan and throughout the Middle East may be affected.
We support UN Secretary-General António Guterres’ recent call “for the waiving of sanctions that can undermine countries’ capacity to respond to the pandemic”.
We also support his call for a global ceasefire, because what is required for the peace, security, and health of all nations is cooperation and sharing of resources. The U.N. High Commissioner on Human Rights has stated that in the context of this pandemic, sanctions that undermine the efforts of any one country to control the virus creates a higher risk for all countries.
We ask you to support or introduce legislation, whether as part of the coronavirus stimulus package or separately, to urge the administration to take the following humanitarian steps:
• Create a clear general license authorizing specific medications and medical equipment to facilitate international relief efforts. This license would aid in the donation or sale of items including testing kits, respiratory devices, personal protective equipment and medicine.
• Remove barriers to financial transactions necessary in order to purchase needed items to fight the pandemic
• Publicly address the “over compliance” phenomenon, where organizations and banks have been reluctant to engage in humanitarian trade and loans for fear of violating sanctions, and emphasize that participants in such trade will not face U.S. sanctions
• Engage in collaborative efforts with other governments that establish humanitarian channels similar to the Swiss humanitarian channel to expand and facilitate humanitarian trade during the pandemic.
• Raise the limits of or make exempt funds for humanitarian trade under General Licenses
Again, please include lifting sanctions and facilitating international humanitarian trade as part of the U.S. global response to the pandemic.
Thank you for your prompt consideration of this matter. We look forward to receiving your response*.
Sincerely Bay Area Anti-Sanctions Campaign
1Letter signed by 11 U.S. Democrat Senators: Chris Murphy (D-Conn.), ( Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.), 1 Brian Schatz (D-Hawai’i), Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.), Tom Carper (D-Del.), Tim Kaine (D-Va.), Ben Cardin (D-Md.), Tom Udall (D-N.M.), Sherrod Brown (D-Ohio), Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.) and Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.). https://www.murphy.senate.gov/download/sanctions-letter
Sanctions Relief letter signed by 34 Democrats, Senate and Congress: https://winwithoutwar.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/Iran-Sanctions-Relief-Letter.pdf
