Prevention of Genocide Act of 1988
Encyclopedia
The Prevention of Genocide Act of 1988 was a United States Senate
bill to punish Iraq
for chemical weapons attacks on the Kurds
at Halabja
during the Iran–Iraq War. It was defeated after intense lobbying of Congress by the Reagan-Bush White House which then supported Iraq
's Saddam Hussein
as a counterbalance to post-revolutionary
Iran
.
of March 16–March 17, 1988, Iraqi government forces used chemical weapons against the Iraqi Kurdish
town of Halabja
- killing 3,200-5,000, most of them civilians. This was during the Iran–Iraq War, in which the US government supported Iraq's Saddam Hussein.
On learning of the use of poison gas on Kurdish civilians the US government
sought to obscure the facts by falsely suggesting Iran bore equal responsibility - and opposed any sanctions against Iraq.
, then a staff member of the U.S. Senate Committee on Foreign Relations drafted the bill. Senators Claiborne Pell
, Jesse Helms
, Christopher S. Bond, Wendell H. Ford
, Al Gore
, Carl Levin
, Richard G. Lugar and William Proxmire
sponsored it.
The bill aimed to punish Iraq by embargoing all dual-use technological exports, stopping all Export-Import bank
credits, banning US imports of Iraqi oil, and mandating US opposition to any loans by the International Monetary Fund
or any other multilateral financial institution.
The bill was defeated – in part due to intense lobbying of Congress by the Reagan-Bush White House
and a veto threat from President Reagan
. U.S. Representative Bill Frenzel
publicly opposed it, arguing it was unlikely to prevent genocide but sure to cause Americans economic pain.
, or punish those responsible. American politicians later cited the Halabja poison gas attack
to justify the 2003 invasion of Iraq
.
United States Senate
The United States Senate is the upper house of the bicameral legislature of the United States, and together with the United States House of Representatives comprises the United States Congress. The composition and powers of the Senate are established in Article One of the U.S. Constitution. Each...
bill to punish Iraq
Iraq
Iraq ; officially the Republic of Iraq is a country in Western Asia spanning most of the northwestern end of the Zagros mountain range, the eastern part of the Syrian Desert and the northern part of the Arabian Desert....
for chemical weapons attacks on the Kurds
Kurdish people
The Kurdish people, or Kurds , are an Iranian people native to the Middle East, mostly inhabiting a region known as Kurdistan, which includes adjacent parts of Iran, Iraq, Syria, and Turkey...
at Halabja
Halabja
Halabja , is a Kurdish town in Northern Iraq, located about north-east of Baghdad and 8–10 miles from the Iranian border....
during the Iran–Iraq War. It was defeated after intense lobbying of Congress by the Reagan-Bush White House which then supported Iraq
United States support for Iraq during the Iran–Iraq war
United States support for Iraq during the Iran–Iraq War, as a counterbalance to post-revolutionary Iran, included several billion dollars worth of economic aid, the sale of dual-use technology, non-U.S. origin weaponry, military intelligence, Special Operations training, and direct involvement in...
's Saddam Hussein
Saddam Hussein
Saddam Hussein Abd al-Majid al-Tikriti was the fifth President of Iraq, serving in this capacity from 16 July 1979 until 9 April 2003...
as a counterbalance to post-revolutionary
Iranian Revolution
The Iranian Revolution refers to events involving the overthrow of Iran's monarchy under Shah Mohammad Reza Pahlavi and its replacement with an Islamic republic under Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, the leader of the...
Iran
Iran
Iran , officially the Islamic Republic of Iran , is a country in Southern and Western Asia. The name "Iran" has been in use natively since the Sassanian era and came into use internationally in 1935, before which the country was known to the Western world as Persia...
.
Background
In the Halabja poison gas attackHalabja poison gas attack
The Halabja poison gas attack , also known as Halabja massacre or Bloody Friday, was a genocidal massacre against the Kurdish people that took place on March 16, 1988, during the closing days of the Iran–Iraq War, when chemical weapons were used by the Iraqi government forces in the Kurdish town of...
of March 16–March 17, 1988, Iraqi government forces used chemical weapons against the Iraqi Kurdish
Kurdish people
The Kurdish people, or Kurds , are an Iranian people native to the Middle East, mostly inhabiting a region known as Kurdistan, which includes adjacent parts of Iran, Iraq, Syria, and Turkey...
town of Halabja
Halabja
Halabja , is a Kurdish town in Northern Iraq, located about north-east of Baghdad and 8–10 miles from the Iranian border....
- killing 3,200-5,000, most of them civilians. This was during the Iran–Iraq War, in which the US government supported Iraq's Saddam Hussein.
On learning of the use of poison gas on Kurdish civilians the US government
Reagan Administration
The United States presidency of Ronald Reagan, also known as the Reagan administration, was a Republican administration headed by Ronald Reagan from January 20, 1981, to January 20, 1989....
sought to obscure the facts by falsely suggesting Iran bore equal responsibility - and opposed any sanctions against Iraq.
Support and defeat
Peter W. GalbraithPeter W. Galbraith
Peter Woodard Galbraith is an author, academic, commentator, policy advisor, and former United States diplomat. In the late 1980s and early 1990s, he helped uncover Saddam Hussein's gassing of the Kurds. From 1993 to 1998, he served as the first U.S...
, then a staff member of the U.S. Senate Committee on Foreign Relations drafted the bill. Senators Claiborne Pell
Claiborne Pell
Claiborne de Borda Pell was a United States Senator from Rhode Island, serving six terms from 1961 to 1997, and was best known as the sponsor of the Pell Grant, which provides financial aid funding to U.S. college students. A Democrat, he was that state's longest serving senator.-Early years:Pell...
, Jesse Helms
Jesse Helms
Jesse Alexander Helms, Jr. was a five-term Republican United States Senator from North Carolina who served as chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee from 1995 to 2001...
, Christopher S. Bond, Wendell H. Ford
Wendell H. Ford
Wendell Hampton Ford is a retired politician from the U.S. state of Kentucky. He served for twenty-four years in the U.S. Senate and was the 53rd Governor of Kentucky. He was the first person to be successively elected lieutenant governor, governor, and U.S. senator in Kentucky history...
, Al Gore
Al Gore
Albert Arnold "Al" Gore, Jr. served as the 45th Vice President of the United States , under President Bill Clinton. He was the Democratic Party's nominee for President in the 2000 U.S. presidential election....
, Carl Levin
Carl Levin
Carl Milton Levin is a Jewish-American United States Senator from Michigan, serving since 1979. He is the Chairman of the Senate Committee on Armed Services. He is a member of the Democratic Party....
, Richard G. Lugar and William Proxmire
William Proxmire
Edward William Proxmire was an American politician. A member of the Democratic Party, he served as a United States Senator from Wisconsin from 1957 to 1989.-Personal life:...
sponsored it.
The bill aimed to punish Iraq by embargoing all dual-use technological exports, stopping all Export-Import bank
Export-Import Bank of the United States
The Export-Import Bank of the United States is the official export credit agency of the United States federal government. It was established in 1934 by an executive order, and made an independent agency in the Executive branch by Congress in 1945, for the purposes of financing and insuring...
credits, banning US imports of Iraqi oil, and mandating US opposition to any loans by the International Monetary Fund
International Monetary Fund
The International Monetary Fund is an organization of 187 countries, working to foster global monetary cooperation, secure financial stability, facilitate international trade, promote high employment and sustainable economic growth, and reduce poverty around the world...
or any other multilateral financial institution.
The bill was defeated – in part due to intense lobbying of Congress by the Reagan-Bush White House
White House
The White House is the official residence and principal workplace of the president of the United States. Located at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW in Washington, D.C., the house was designed by Irish-born James Hoban, and built between 1792 and 1800 of white-painted Aquia sandstone in the Neoclassical...
and a veto threat from President Reagan
Ronald Reagan
Ronald Wilson Reagan was the 40th President of the United States , the 33rd Governor of California and, prior to that, a radio, film and television actor....
. U.S. Representative Bill Frenzel
Bill Frenzel
William Eldridge "Bill" Frenzel is a former Republican Congressman from Minnesota, representing Minnesota's Third District, which included the southern and western suburbs of Minneapolis.- Early life and career :...
publicly opposed it, arguing it was unlikely to prevent genocide but sure to cause Americans economic pain.
Later significance
The history of the bill marks legal efforts to deter genocideGenocide
Genocide is defined as "the deliberate and systematic destruction, in whole or in part, of an ethnic, racial, religious, or national group", though what constitutes enough of a "part" to qualify as genocide has been subject to much debate by legal scholars...
, or punish those responsible. American politicians later cited the Halabja poison gas attack
Halabja poison gas attack
The Halabja poison gas attack , also known as Halabja massacre or Bloody Friday, was a genocidal massacre against the Kurdish people that took place on March 16, 1988, during the closing days of the Iran–Iraq War, when chemical weapons were used by the Iraqi government forces in the Kurdish town of...
to justify the 2003 invasion of Iraq
2003 invasion of Iraq
The 2003 invasion of Iraq , was the start of the conflict known as the Iraq War, or Operation Iraqi Freedom, in which a combined force of troops from the United States, the United Kingdom, Australia and Poland invaded Iraq and toppled the regime of Saddam Hussein in 21 days of major combat operations...
.
- "Saddam Hussein is a man who is willing to gas his own people, willing to use weapons of mass destruction against Iraq citizens." --President Bush, March 22, 2002
- "As he said, any person that would gas his own people [sic] is a threat to the world."--Scott McClellanScott McClellanScott McClellan is a former White House Press Secretary for President George W. Bush, and author of a controversial No. 1 New York Times bestseller about the Bush Administration titled What Happened. He replaced Ari Fleischer as press secretary in July 2003 and served until May 10, 2006...
, White House Press SecretaryWhite House Press SecretaryThe White House Press Secretary is a senior White House official whose primary responsibility is to act as spokesperson for the government administration....
, May 31, 2002