CSHJR 9(MLV): Requesting the governor to file suit in the United States Supreme Court against the United States government alleging violations of the civil rights of Americans listed as prisoners of war or missing in action in Southeast Asia, demanding that documents concerning these individuals be released; and requesting the other states to join in this suit.
00CS FOR HOUSE JOINT RESOLUTION NO. 9(MLV) 01 Requesting the governor to file suit in the United States Supreme Court against 02 the United States government alleging violations of the civil rights of Americans 03 listed as prisoners of war or missing in action in Southeast Asia, demanding that 04 documents concerning these individuals be released; and requesting the other states 05 to join in this suit. 06 BE IT RESOLVED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF ALASKA: 07 WHEREAS there is continuing controversy concerning Americans who were listed 08 as prisoners of war (POW) or missing in action (MIA) while serving in the Southeast Asian 09 nations of Vietnam, Laos, and Kampuchea (formerly Cambodia); and 10 WHEREAS the United States government has stated that all of our POWs have been 11 returned; and 12 WHEREAS a top secret Vietnamese report dating from 1972 by General Tran Von 13 Kwang, Deputy Chief of Staff for the North Vietnamese, Army reported that in September of 14 1972 Hanoi held 1,205 American prisoners; and
01 WHEREAS only 591 American POWs have been released under the 1973 Peace 02 Settlement, which means that, based on General Kwang's own report, at least 614 POWs were 03 not returned or accounted for; and 04 WHEREAS Vietnamese nationals who have moved to the United States have reported 05 the appearance of American prisoners still being held in Southeast Asia; and 06 WHEREAS Boris Yeltsin, President of Russia, let it be known that the Soviet Union 07 took members of the American armed forces into the former Soviet Union during the Vietnam 08 War and that there is no adequate explanation of the whereabouts of these Americans; and 09 WHEREAS there are still hundreds of documents concerning this issue held by the 10 United States Department of Defense that have not been released to the public, yet individuals 11 within the federal intelligence agencies have tried to discredit information concerning the 12 existence of American POWs instead of demanding a full accounting from Vietnam, Laos, 13 Kampuchea, North Korea, China, and the former Soviet Union; and 14 WHEREAS there are two missing and unaccounted for servicemen in Southeast Asia 15 from Alaska; and 16 WHEREAS the right to liberty--that inherent and inalienable right endowed by our 17 Creator, as guaranteed by the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution of the United 18 States--is being denied to any American being held prisoner as a result of the Vietnam War; 19 and 20 WHEREAS the executive branch of the federal government has not even attempted 21 to negotiate the release of Americans that may still be held prisoner as a result of the war in 22 Southeast Asia and is not actively searching for remaining Americans; and 23 WHEREAS the lower courts of the federal judiciary have not granted relief to 24 American soldiers listed as POWs or MIAs; and 25 WHEREAS the United States Supreme Court is the last bastion that an American 26 citizen has for redress of grievances and protection of constitutional liberties; and 27 WHEREAS the United States Constitution in art. III, sec. 2, states, "In all Cases 28 affecting Ambassadors, other public Ministers and Counsels and those in which a State shall 29 be a Party, the Supreme Court shall have original Jurisdiction."; 30 BE IT RESOLVED that the Alaska State Legislature respectfully requests the 31 governor to authorize suit in the United States Supreme Court against the United States
01 government, especially the Department of Defense and the intelligence agencies, and against 02 the ambassadors or other public ministers and counsels of the governments of Vietnam, Laos, 03 Kampuchea, Russia, North Korea, and China, alleging violations of the civil rights of the 04 people of Alaska, and especially alleging the violation of the right to life, liberty, and the 05 pursuit of happiness of Thomas E. Anderson, USMC, and Howard M. Koslosky, USN; and 06 be it 07 FURTHER RESOLVED that the lawsuit demand that the Department of Defense, the 08 intelligence agencies, and the governments of Vietnam, Laos, Kampuchea, Russia, North 09 Korea, and China be ordered to turn over all documents concerning Americans listed as POWs 10 or MIAs as a result of the Vietnam War; and be it 11 FURTHER RESOLVED that the lawsuit is not intended to solicit a ruling or an 12 opinion definitively declaring the POW/MIA issue moot, but rather that it is intended to 13 mandate that all evidence of law be used to prove beyond a reasonable doubt and on an 14 individual basis the fate or location of all servicemen who were POWs or MIAs; and be it 15 FURTHER RESOLVED that the Alaska State Legislature respectfully requests the 16 other 49 states of the United States to join in this action on behalf of their citizens being held 17 in captivity as a result of the war in Southeast Asia. 18 COPIES of this resolution shall be sent to the Honorable Bill Clinton, President of the 19 United States; the Honorable Al Gore, Jr., Vice-President of the United States and President 20 of the U.S. Senate; the Honorable Strom Thurmond, President Pro Tempore of the U.S. 21 Senate; to the Honorable Ted Stevens and the Honorable Frank Murkowski, U.S. Senators, and 22 the Honorable Don Young, U.S. Representative, members of the Alaska delegation in 23 Congress; and to the governors and the presiding officers of the houses of the legislatures of 24 each of our sister states.