January 22, 2020 Senator James Risch Senator Robert Menendez Chairman Ranking Member Committee on Foreign Relations Committee on Foreign Relations 483 Russell Senate Building 528 Hart Senate Building United States Senate United States Senate Washington, DC 20510 Washington, DC 20002 Dear Chairman Risch and Ranking Member Menendez: We write as members of the Jewish Rohingya Justice Network (JRJN), the consortium of 25 Jewish organizations representing all four major denominations of Judaism, advocating for the rights of the persecuted Rohingya people and for a meaningful U.S. response to the crisis in Burma (Myanmar), as well as 27 other Jewish organizations and 511 Rabbis and Cantors from 40 states. We strongly urge you to take up and pass the Burma Human Rights and Freedom Act of 2019 (S. 1186), which is before your Committee. Passing this legislation will send a powerful message to the Burmese military that the United States will not stay silent in the face of genocide. We encourage the U.S. Congress to once again display moral courage and leadership as it sets the standard and defends democratic values in this crucial time for Burma. No other country has the might and moral authority to set the standard. In the two years since the Burmese military escalated its genocidal campaign against the Rohingya people, more than 700,000 Rohingya people have fled their homes for Bangladesh as a direct result of this state-sanctioned persecution and expulsion. They now live in squalid conditions in Bangladesh without any access to formal education, employment and freedom of movement. Hundreds of thousands more remain unable to travel and lack access to basic humanitarian aid, education or livelihoods. Meanwhile, the Burmese military continues to attack other ethnic minorities across Burma, perpetrating some of the worst crimes known to humanity, including killing, rape and torture. The Rohingya people are targeted simply because of their ethnicity and religion. It is unconscionable to allow more time to pass without strongly addressing this crisis—and these crimes. We are encouraged by actions taken last year by both the State and Treasury Departments to deny visas and to sanction the U.S. assets of the top four Burmese military officials, including the Commander-in- Chief of the military forces, for gross human rights abuses throughout the country. We hope this is only the beginning of even stronger U.S. action in pursuit of full justice and accountability for all who suffered at the hands of the Burmese military. The House of Representatives has recently taken decisive action by adopting a similar measure, the Burma United through Rigorous Military Accountability Act (H.R. 3190), by an overwhelming majority. We urge the Foreign Relations Committee and the rest of the Senate to follow suit and send a powerful message to the Burmese military that we will act in the face of the violent campaign against the Rohingya people and other ethnic minorities. This bill, championed by many members of your own Committee, calls for targeted U.S. sanctions against Burmese military officials and military-owned enterprises thereby cutting off support to the perpetrators of genocide, war crimes and crimes against humanity. The bill also demands involvement of the Rohingya community in taking an active part in crafting the solutions to the crisis, including safe, dignified and voluntary repatriation and restoration of full citizenship. The legislation also authorizes crucial increases to humanitarian assistance for Rohingya refugees and calls for international justice mechanisms to ensure accountability for the victims of mass atrocities. With the failure of the final conferenced version of the National Defense Authorization Act to include this crucial support for the Rohingya people, which would have been a significant step in the fight against impunity and seeking justice for the Rohingya and other victims of gross human rights abuses in Burma, we call on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee to prioritize S. 1186 and H.R. 3190 immediately. The military is threatening the viability of Burma’s nascent democracy. As Jews, we know all too well from our history the cost of silence from the global community in the face of ethnic and religious persecution. For us, the words “never again” compel us to stand with the Rohingya people and call on you, Chairman Risch and Ranking Member Menendez, to take immediate action to address the magnitude of these egregious human rights violations. The survival of the Rohingya community is at stake. The rights of all ethnic and religious minorities in Burma are at stake. The Senate Foreign Relations Committee must act now by taking up and approving the Burma Human Rights and Freedom Act on an upcoming business meeting and subsequently ensuring its successful passage through the full Senate with all due haste. Sincerely, 511 American Rabbis and Cantors and 52 American Jewish Organizations Organizations: American Jewish Committee* Community Relations Council, United Jewish Federation of Tidewater Anti-Defamation League* Congregation B'nai Yisrael, Armonk, New Association of Rabbis and Cantors* York Buffalo Jewish Community Relations Foundation for Ethnic Understanding* Council Hebrew College* Cantors Assembly* Indianapolis Jewish Community Relations Carolina Jews for Justice Council* Carolina Jews for Justice - Greater Charlotte Jewish Alliance of Concern over Burma Colorado Jewish Community Relations (JACOB)* Council Jewish Community Relations Council, Community Relations Council of the Jewish Federation of Greater New Haven Columbia Jewish Federation Jewish Community Relations Council of Community Relations Council, Jewish Greater Boston Federation of Greater Pittsburgh Jewish Community Relations Council of Greater Phoenix Jewish Community Relations Council of St. Louis Jewish Community Relations New York* Council Jewish Community Relations Council of T’ruah: The Rabbinic Call for Human San Francisco, the Peninsula, Marin, Rights* Sonoma, Alameda, Contra Costa Counties Temple Beth El, Charlotte, North Carolina Jewish Community Relations Council of the Temple Beth El, Jersey City, New Jersey Jewish Federation of Greater Charlotte Temple Kol Tikvah, Davidson, North Jewish Community Relations Council of the Carolina Jewish Federation of Greater Rochester The Muslim-Jewish Solidarity Committee* Jewish Community Relations Council of the Milwaukee Jewish Federation The New York Board of Rabbis* Jewish Community Relations Council, The Orthodox Union* American Jewish Committee - Detroit The Shalom Center* Jewish Council for Public Affairs* The Union for Reform Judaism* Jewish Federation and Jewish Foundation of Nashville and Middle Tennessee Uri L’Tzedek* Jewish Federation of Central Massachusetts Jewish Federation of Charlotte *Indicates membership in the Jewish Rohingya Justice Network Jewish Federation of Chicago Jewish Federation of Louisville Jewish Labor Committee* Jewish World Watch* Ma'yan Tikvah, Wayland, Massachusetts Never Again Coalition* Rabbinical Assembly* Rabbinical Council of America Reconstructing Judaism* Reconstructionist Rabbinical Association* Religious Action Center of Reform Judaism* Sha'ar Communities, Fort Lee, New Jersey Rabbis and Cantors: Rabbi Joel Abraham Rabbi Katy Allen Scotch Plains, New Jersey Wayland, Massachusetts Rabbi Harvey Abramowitz Cantor Sheri Allen Huntington, New York Ft. Worth, Texas Rabbi Laura Abrasley Rabbi Doug Alpert Newton, Massachusetts Kansas City, Missouri Rabbi Ruth Abusch-Magder Rabbi Thomas Alpert Atlanta, Georgia Franklin, Massachusetts Rabbi Martyn Adelberg Cantor Dana Anesi Morton Grove, Illinois White Plains, New York Rabbi David Adelson Rabbi Camille Shira Angel New York, New York San Francisco, California Rabbi Sara Adler Rabbi Batsheva Appel Ann Arbor, Michigan Tucson, Arizona Rabbi Sanford Akselrad Rabbi Julia Appel Henderson, Nevada Brookline, Massachusetts Rabbi Mona Alfi Rabbi Teri Appleby Sacramento, California Lincoln, Nebraska Rabbi Stephen Arnold Rabbi RBO Bat-Or Hingham, Massachusetts Los Angeles, California Cantor Marsha Attie Rabbi David Baum Corte Madera, California Boca Raton, Florida Rabbi Nicole Auerbach Rabbi Shelley Kovar Becker New York, New York New York, New York Rabbi Guy Austrian Rabbi Anne Belford New York, New York Houston, Texas Rabbi Ari Averbach Rabbi Marc Belgrad Thousand Oaks, California Buffalo Grove, Illinois Cantor Roslyn Barak Rabbi Lisa Bellows San Rafael, California Glenview, Illinois Rabbi George Barnard Rabbi Allen Bennett Cincinnati, Ohio San Francisco, California Rabbi Benjamin Barnett Rabbi Aaron Benson Portland, Oregon Port Jefferson Station, New York Rabbi Jessica Barolsky Rabbi Aaron Bergman Milwaukee, Wisconsin Farmington Hills, Michigan Rabbi Marc Berkson Rabbi Lisa Bock Milwaukee, Wisconsin Westlake Village, California Rabbi Donald Berlin Rabbi Jill Borodin Bethesda, Maryland Seattle, Washington Rabbi Howard Berman Rabbi Analia Bortz Boston, Massachusetts Sandy Springs, Georgia Rabbi Marjorie Berman Rabbi Erin Boxt Clarks Summit, Pennsylvania Knoxville, Tennessee Rabbi Phyllis Berman Rabbi Rachael Bregman Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Brunswick, Georgia Rabbi Binyamin Biber Rabbi Gary Bretton-Granatoor Silver Spring, Maryland Brooklyn, New York Rabbi Amy Bigman Rabbi Deborah Brin East Lansing, Michigan Albuquerque, New Mexico Rabbi Yosef Blau Rabbi Charles Briskin New York, New York Newtown, Pennsylvania Rabbi Neil Blumofe Rabbi Colin Brodie Austin, Texas Trumbull, Connecticut Rabbi Daniel Bronstein Rabbi Carol Caine