[Pages H6058-H6081]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]

AMERICAN EMBASSY SECURITY ACT OF 1999

The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to House Resolution 247 and rule
XVIII, the Chair declares the House in the Committee of the Whole House
on the State of the Union for the further consideration of the bill,
H.R. 2415.

{time} 1458

In the Committee of the Whole

Accordingly, the House resolved itself into the Committee of the
Whole House on the State of the Union for the further consideration of
the bill (H.R. 2415) to enhance security of United States missions and
personnel overseas, to authorize appropriations for the Department of
State for fiscal year 2000, and for other purposes, with Mr. Barrett of
Nebraska (Chairman pro tempore) in the chair.
The Clerk read the title of the bill.
The CHAIRMAN pro tempore. When the Committee of the Whole rose
earlier today, the amendment offered by the gentlewoman from California
(Ms. Waters) had been withdrawn.
It is now in order to consider amendment No. 33 printed in Part B of
House Report 106-235.

Amendment No. 33 Offered by Mr. Bilbray

Mr. BILBRAY. Mr. Chairman, I offer an amendment.
The CHAIRMAN pro tempore. The Clerk will designate the amendment.
The text of the amendment is as follows:

Part B Amendment No. 33 offered by Mr. Bilbray:
Page 84, after line 16, insert the following:

SEC. 703. SENSE OF CONGRESS REGARDING SEWAGE TREATMENT ALONG
THE BORDER BETWEEN THE UNITED STATES AND
MEXICO.

(a) Findings.--
(1) The Congress finds that it must take action to address
the comprehensive treatment of sewage emanating from the
Tijuana River, so as to eliminate river and ocean pollution
in the San Diego border region.
(2) Congress bases this finding on the following factors:
(A) The San Diego border region is adversely impacted from
cross border raw sewage flows that effect the health and
safety of citizens in the United States and Mexico and the
environment.
(B) The United States and Mexico have agreed pursuant to
the Treaty for the Utilization of Waters of the Colorado and
Tijuana Rivers and of the Rio Grande, dated February 3, 1944,
``to give preferential attention to the solution of all
border sanitation problems''.
(C) The United States and Mexico recognize the need for
utilization of reclaimed water to supply the growing needs of
the City of Tijuana, Republic of Mexico, and the entire
border region.
(D) Current legislative authority limits the scope of
proposed treatment options in a way that prevents a
comprehensive plan to address the volume of cross border raw
sewage flows and the effective utilization of reclamation
opportunities.
(E) This section encourages action to address the
comprehensive treatment of sewage emanating from the Tijuana
River, so as to eliminate river and ocean pollution in the
San Diego border region, and to exploit effective reclamation
opportunities.

[[Page H6059]]

(b) Sense of Congress.--The Congress--
(1) encourages the Secretary of State to give the highest
priority to the negotiation and execution of a new treaty
minute with Mexico, which would augment Minute 283 so as to
allow for the siting of sewage treatment facilities in
Mexico, to provide for additional treatment capacity, up to
50,000,000 gallons per day, for the treatment of additional
sewage emanating from the Tijuana area, and to provide
direction and authority so that a comprehensive solution to
this trans-border sanitation problem may be implemented as
soon as practicable;
(2) encourages the Administrator of the Environmental
Protection Agency and the United States section of the
International Boundary and Water Commission to enter into an
agreement to provide for secondary treatment in Mexico of
effluent from the International Wastewater Treatment Plant
(IWTP);
(3) encourages the United States section of the
International Boundary and Water Commission to provide for
the development of a privately-funded Mexican Facility,
through the execution of a fee-for-services contract with the
owner of such facility, in order to provide for--
(A) secondary treatment of effluent from the IWTP, if found
to be necessary, in compliance with applicable water quality
laws of the United States, Mexico, and California; and
(B) additional capacity for primary and secondary treatment
of up to 50,000,000 gallons per day, for the purpose of
providing additional sewage treatment capacity in order to
fully address the trans-border sanitation problem;
(C) provision for any and all approvals from Mexican
authorities necessary to facilitate water quality
verification and enforcement at the Mexican Facility to be
carried out by the International Boundary and Water
Commission or other appropriate authority;
(D) any terms and conditions deemed necessary to allow for
use in the United States of treated effluent from the Mexican
Facility if there is reclaimed water surplus to the needs of
users in Mexico; and
(E) return transportation of whatever portion of the
treated effluent which cannoted by reused to the South Bay
Ocean Outfall; and
(4) in addition to other terms and conditions considered
appropriate by the International Boundary and Water
Commission, in any fee-for-services contract, encourages the
International Boundary and Water Commission to include the
following terms and conditions--
(A) a term of 30 years;
(B) appropriate arrangements for the monitoring and
verification of compliance with applicable United States,
California, and Mexican water quality standards;
(C) arrangements for the appropriate disposition of sludge,
produced from the IWTP and the Mexican Facility, at a
location or locations in Mexico; and
(D) payment of appropriate fees from the International
Boundary and Water Commission to the owner of the Mexican
Facility for sewage treatment services, with the annual
amount payable to be reflective of all costs associated with
the development, construction, operation, and financing of
the Mexican Facility.

The CHAIRMAN pro tempore. Pursuant to House Resolution 247, the
gentleman from California (Mr. Bilbray) and a Member opposed each will
control 5 minutes.
The Chair recognizes the gentleman from California (Mr. Bilbray).

{time} 1500

Mr. FILNER. Mr. Chairman, although I am not opposed, I ask unanimous
consent to claim the 5 minutes in opposition to the amendment.
The CHAIRMAN. Is there objection to the request of the gentleman from
California?
There was no objection.
Mr. BILBRAY. Mr. Chairman, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
Today the House has the pleasure of supporting a bipartisan amendment
that will help clean up the environment and could possibly save
hundreds of millions of dollars for the American taxpayer. It is an
amendment that is supported by not only the chairman, but also the
ranking member of the committee. It is an amendment that hopefully can
be used as an example of bipartisan ship and international cooperation,
for the good of the taxpayers of this country and for the environment
in the United States and Mexico.
Mr. Chairman, my amendment specifically addresses an issue that has
gone on for much too long, it is something that addresses the issue of
the Tijuana sewage problem that has for so long polluted the beaches of
southern California. The gentleman from California (Mr. Filner) has
worked with me on this issue in order to pursue a solution that may be
able to save hundreds of millions of dollars.
The issue really is tied to the fact that Tijuana does not have
adequate sewage treatment capabilities at this time and has not
historically had those. This amendment would encourage a bipartisan
minute order between Mexico and the United States, through the vehicle
of the International Boundary and Water Commission, that specifically
states that the agencies will work together and cooperate in finally
addressing the treatment of the sewage and the appropriate disposal of
that sewage, in consistency with not only the Clean Water Act of the
United States, but also with Mexican environmental regulations.
This amendment specifically is a sense of Congress, and it is a sense
of Congress supporting the concept that the Administration, working
with Mexico, will look at the most cost-effective alternatives and
opportunities of treating Mexican sewage. That opportunity may exist in
the United States, but it may also exist in Mexico.
It may seem like a rather novel idea to some people, but I think if
we have the potential to treat Mexican sewage in Mexico and do it
cheaper and in a more environmentally sensitive manner, than what we
could do on our side of the border, we not only have a right, Mr.
Chairman, we have a responsibility to look into this.
I would like to include for the Record a statement from the Surfrider
Foundation of San Diego County dated July 9, 1999. It is titled, the
Surfrider Policy Regarding Delays in Achieving Secondary Treatment at
the U.S.-Mexico Border. Mr. Chairman, I will just quote briefly from
this statement. Surfrider states in their communique that ``a
comprehensive solution will offer the benefits of timeliness as well as
the consideration of other priority issues such as the ability to treat
all of the sewage problems within the region.'' It says that the
proposal is within the existing systems of wastewater treatment that
will benefit both Mexico and the United States.
Mr. Chairman, I rise today in strong support of this simple,
bipartisan, and common-sense amendment. This may seen like a relatively
minor element of such an important and sweeping bill, but it has a
potentially huge positive impact on the public health and environment
of the international border region between the cities of Tijuana and
San Diego. I would ask our colleagues to focus on it for just a moment,
and give it your attention and support.
Many of you are well aware of the ongoing health and environmental
threats which have existed along this border region for decades as a
result of renegade flows of untreated sewage from Mexico. You have
heard me and my colleague Mr. Filner speak to this problem on a number
of occasions, and I am happy to report that progress has been made in
recent years and months, and is being made even now. An International
Wastewater Treatment Plant (IWTP) has been constructed on the U.S. side
right at the border and is operating now, treating Mexican sewage to
primary levels, with a second treatment component to follow. After a
lengthy environmental review of alternatives for providing the required
levels of secondary treatment, a decision must be made as to how to
proceed with selecting and implementing an environmentally preferable
secondary alternative. Right now, the leading alternative is a 25 mgd
plant which would consist of an arerated ponding system, which under
existing international agreement would be constructed on the U.S. side
of the border.
We have come a long way to reach this point, and we now find
ourselves at something of a strategic crossroads. I wholeheartedly
support secondary treatment of these sewage flows, in order to better
protect the beaches, estuaries, and citizens on both sides of the
border region. However, it has become clear that the secondary ponds
alternative which could be constructed on the U.S. side, while clearly
benefited, will be overwhelmed and operating beyond its capacity--25
million gallons per day (mgd)--from its day of operation. Under these
circumstances, we would need to immediately begin working on
establishing a means to treat the excess capacity of flows--50 mgd and
higher--on the U.S. side of the border. This will necessarily take
additional time to develop, and additional U.S. tax dollars to
construct and implement. I am more than willing to spend whatever time
and money may be needed in order to deal with this problem
conclusively, but both time and available dollars are precious
commodities, especially when the public health continues to be at risk.
An opportunity has emerged to ``think outside the box'' and carefully
consider a progressive and comprehensive strategy which would entail a
public-private partnership, and benefit the entire region well into the
future, by constructing in Mexico a 25 mgd treatment plant, using the
same ponding technology,

[[Page H6060]]

but with the capacity for safely treating anticipated future flows of
50 to even 100 mgd. In the process, this facility would be able to
reclaim treated wastewater and make it available to the rapidly
expanding business and industrial sectors of Tijuana. In this growing
and arid border region, water is a scarce commodity, and water
reclaimed from treatment facilities could free up precious potable
water for use in Mexican households.

There is tremendous potential in this innovative approach, and the
intent of our amendment is to provide every encouragement that it be
pursued to the fullest. We simply want to send the message that
Congress supports the idea of a binational agreement, which would be
needed in order to facilitate the development and implementation of
such a public-private arrangement, with the consent of both federal
governments. This potential strategy has considerable popular support
in the region, including the City of San Diego and other local elected
officials, and respected environmental organizations such as the
Surfrider Foundation. I have a brief statement on this topic from the
Surfrider Foundation which I would ask to be entered into the record at
this point.
If it can be developed and implemented, a long-term and comprehensive
solution to a chronic environmental problem will be at hand, U.S. tax
dollars will be saved, a new source of reclaimed water will be
available to a ready market in Mexico, and the children and families of
both Tijuana and San Diego will be able to go to their beaches, play in
the estuaries, fish in the oceans, and live their lives in their
communities without the chronic stigma and health threat of sewage
pollution which is an unfortunate fact of life in the region.
The amendment is respectful of the sovereignty of both nations, and
the missions of local, state, and federal governments and agencies
which are working on this issue on both sides of the border. Its intent
is simply to establish some momentum behind this strategy, and indicate
that this Congress is serious in encouraging that it be fully explored
and evaluated by both governments and other involved stakeholders as a
solution for the region's sewage problem.
There is work that remains to be done at several levels for such a
scenario to unfold, but its potential is tremendous, and we can help
grow this potential today by supporting this amendment, and laying the
groundwork for what could be the final chapter of one of the biggest
and for too long most overlooked environmental problems this country
has ever seen.
Please help explore this possibility by supporting the Bilbray-Filner
amendment.

Surfrider Foundation Policy Regarding Delays in Achieving Secondary
Treatment at the U.S. Mexican Border

Currently, more than 50 million gallons per day (mgd) of
raw, untreated sewage enters the Tijuana River and the
Tijuana Municipal Wastewater System. Less than half of this,
approximately 25 mgd, is treated to advanced primary
standards at the International Wastewater Treatment Plant
(ITP) and discharged into the ocean via the South Bay ocean
outfall. A portion of the remaining untreated sewage, up to
17mgd, receives some indeterminate level of treatment at the
San Antonio de Los Buenos Treatment Plant in Mexico. The
remainder of untreated sewage is discharged directly into the
nearshore marine environment at the mouth of the Tijuana
River and at Punta Banderas, 5 miles south of the Border.
Together with numerous other groups, the San Diego County
Chapter of the Surfrider Foundation is concerned about the
environmental impacts and human health risks of discharging
any raw sewage into the ocean, as well as effluent that
receives anything less than secondary treatment.
The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and International
Boundary and Water Commission (IBWC) are required to achieve
secondary standards of treatment for all sewage discharged
from the ITP by December 2000. Several options for an
appropriate treatment plant have been considered by EPA and
IBWC, however, no final preferred option has been chosen. The
frontrunner to date is a 25mgd secondary treatment plant
using ``Completely Mixed Aerated'' pond technology at the
``Hofer'' site adjacent to the ITP. Because the deadline to
begin construction of a secondary treatment plant which would
be operational by the December date has passed, the agencies
have sought more time to select a preferred alternative.
Additionally, this added time as been sought to fully
consider options not previously considered, which would
provide for a comprehensive solution to the known and future
anticipated volume of sewage.
The Surfrider Foundation agrees with many others that
secondary treatment must be achieved as quickly as possible.
The harmful effects to the deep ocean environment, the
public, as well as to the beaches and beach communities of
southern San Diego County must not continue. However,
recognizing that a partial solution is no solution, the
Surfrider Foundation is strongly in favor of a comprehensive
solution, fully aware of the risk of slight delay. A
comprehensive solution will offer the benefits of timeliness
as well as the consideration of other priority issues such as
the ability to treat all present and future flows, impact of
the plant location upon the immediate environment and
population, plant expansion capability, feasibility of
beneficial water reuse, proper sludge handling, and the
relationship and compatibility of the proposal within the
existing system of wastewater treatment in both the U.S. and
Mexico.
Therefore, the Surfrider Foundation will support the EPA
and the IBWC in their efforts to provide comprehensive
secondary treatment of all sewage flowing from the Tijuana
River as quickly as possible.

Mr. BILBRAY. Mr. Chairman, I yield such time as he may consume to the
gentleman from Huntington Beach, California (Mr. Rohrabacher), my
fellow colleague.
Mr. ROHRABACHER. Mr. Chairman, I would like to commend the gentlemen
from California (Mr. Filner and Mr. Bilbray) for working together on
this important piece of legislation. We all live along the coastline of
Southern California and this issue of sewage, especially from Mexico
going into our waters, is of utmost importance to the health of our
people; and both of the gentlemen from California (Mr. Filner and Mr.
Bilbray) have put out an enormous effort. They have shown bipartisan
spirit.
I want to commend both of them, and I appreciate the efforts they
have been putting out, especially those of us who do surf in the ocean,
recognize the importance of the quality of that water.
Mr. BILBRAY. Mr. Chairman, I reserve the balance of my time.
Mr. FILNER. Mr. Chairman, I yield myself 3 minutes.
Mr. Chairman, I want to thank the gentleman from New York (Mr.
Gilman), the chairman of the committee, and the gentleman from
Connecticut (Mr. Gejdenson), the ranking member, for working with us to
have this amendment in order and to support it. And of course I want to
thank the gentleman from California (Mr. Bilbray), my colleague, for
being the chief sponsor of this amendment.
The two of us have been knee deep, literally, in this problem for
probably 50 years between us; he when he started as a city council
member and the mayor of Imperial Beach, California; myself since I was
a city council member in San Diego. The two of us in local government
have worked very hard to deal with an issue that few people in this
House could face, and that is 50 million gallons a day of raw sewage
flowing through their districts. This occurs because Mexico simply does
not have the facilities to treat this sewage.
We are in the process of solving that. Because of timing, because of
the processes of budgeting, we are in an interesting and unique
situation. We have a chance, with this House's support, to have a
bipartisan, binational environmental-friendly, taxpayer-friendly
solution, finally, to a problem that has plagued us for nearly 5
decades.
What we want this House to go on record to do with this amendment is
to approve in concept an innovative public-private partnership that
says, we can treat this raw sewage originating in Mexico in Mexico with
the highest standards to which we would be accustomed to in this
country, with an environmentally-sound process which would be paid for
up front by the private sector, and which would provide a comprehensive
solution, finally, to this problem.
This is a rare opportunity where an innovative solution can be
considered. It is not in the box of thinking of the traditional
bureaucracies. They have had some trouble studying this to the degree
that we would have liked, and so this Congress we are asking to go on
record to approve the concept of studying this innovative public-
private partnership, environmentally-friendly approach.
Mr. Chairman, it is time for this problem in Southern California, in

[[Page H6061]]

southern San Diego which crosses the borders of not only Mexico, the
districts of Mr. Bilbray and myself, to solve this problem.
Mr. Chairman, I reserve the balance of my time.
Mr. BILBRAY. Mr. Chairman, may I inquire on how much time remains?
The CHAIRMAN pro tempore (Mr. Barrett of Nebraska). The gentleman
from San Diego (Mr. Bilbray) has one 1 minute remaining; the other
gentleman from San Diego (Mr. Filner) has 2 minutes remaining.
Mr. BILBRAY. Mr. Chairman, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
We are talking about the basic decency of allowing our children and
families not to have to face pollution and sewage closing our beaches,
polluting our estuaries, and especially sewage that is not coming from
our neighborhoods or our area. It is actually coming from a foreign
country.
Now, the Federal Government has finally awoken to the fact that we
have a legal and moral obligation to address this environmental issue.
This is a chance for both Republicans and Democrats to stand up to
protecting American soil, making sure that the environment really does
count, and also saving the taxpayers massive amounts of money. It is, I
hate to use the cliche, a classic example of a win-win. I think that is
why we see both the ranking member and the chairman of the committee
supporting this, with such diverse political views as Mr. Filner and
myself supporting this.
It really comes down to the fact that those of us who have lived in
this area have been suffering under huge amounts of pollution for
decades. Sadly, my children are second generation sewage kids. It is
time Congress sends a clear signal that this will come to an end now,
and I urge my colleagues to support this amendment.
Mr. Chairman, I reserve the balance of my time.
Mr. FILNER. Mr. Chairman, I yield 1 minute to the gentlewoman from
Georgia (Ms. McKinney).
Ms. McKINNEY. Mr. Chairman, I would just like to lend my voice of
support for this amendment. It is a bipartisan amendment. It gets rid
of raw sewage that originates in Mexico and finds its way on to our
shores.
Mr. Chairman, the gentlemen from California have found a way to clean
up this issue and to protect American soil. It is very important that
we support this amendment, and I am pleased to lend my voice of
support.
Mr. FILNER. Mr. Chairman, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
I again want to thank certainly the gentleman from California (Mr.
Bilbray) and his staff for working with me and my staff in preparing
this comprehensive amendment. The gentleman from New York (Mr. Gilman)
and the gentleman from Connecticut (Mr. Gejdenson) have been very
supportive. Also, I want to acknowledge the experts on the Clean Water
Act and these issues as they relate to the Committee on Transportation
and Infrastructure, the gentleman from Pennsylvania (Mr. Shuster), the
gentleman from Minnesota (Mr. Oberstar), the gentleman from
Pennsylvania (Mr. Borski), and the gentleman from New York (Mr.
Boehlert) for their support of this approach.
Again, it is a win-win situation. We are going to save taxpayers'
money. We have an environmentally sustainable solution that is being
applied. It allows Mexico to make use of reclaimed sewage water for its
agriculture and commercial purposes. It solves the problem that has
been with us for 50 years.
Mr. Chairman, I ask my colleagues in the Congress to support this
approach and finally close out a problem that too many of us have
suffered with too long.
Mr. Chairman, I yield back the balance of my time.
Mr. BILBRAY. Mr. Chairman, I yield myself the balance of my time.
I would like to thank the chairman for cooperating with us on this
issue. This is good for the environment on both sides of the border, as
well as on both sides of the aisle. It is time that Congress sends a
clear message that we should do whatever we can to help the environment
in the most cost-effective, reasonable, and intelligent way. All this
says is let us do it the right way with the least amount of cost.
Mr. Chairman, I yield back the balance of my time.
The CHAIRMAN pro tempore. The question is on the amendment offered by
the gentleman from California (Mr. Bilbray).
The question was taken; and the Chairman pro tempore announced that
the ayes appeared to have it.
Mr. BILBRAY. Mr. Chairman, I demand a recorded vote.
The CHAIRMAN pro tempore. Pursuant to House Resolution 247, further
proceedings on the amendment offered by the gentleman from California
(Mr. Bilbray) will be postponed.
Pursuant to the order of the House, it is now in order to consider
Amendment No. 31 printed in Part B of the House report 106-235.

Amendment No. 31 Offered by Ms. Waters

Ms. WATERS. Mr. Chairman, I offer an amendment.
The CHAIRMAN pro tempore. The Clerk will designate the amendment.
The text of the amendment is as follows:

Part B Amendment No. 31 offered by Ms. Waters:
Page 84, after line 16, insert the following:

SEC. 703. SENSE OF CONGRESS CONCERNING SUPPORT FOR DEMOCRACY
IN PERU AND THE RELEASE OF LORI BERENSON, AN
AMERICAN CITIZEN IMPRISONED IN PERU.

It is the sense of the Congress that--
(1) the United States should increase its support to
democracy and human rights activists in Peru, providing
assistance with the same intensity and decisiveness with
which it supported the pro-democracy movements in Eastern
Europe during the Cold War;
(2) the United States should complete the review of the
Department of State investigation of threats to press freedom
and judicial independence in Peru and publish the findings;
(3) the United States should use all available diplomatic
efforts to secure the release of Lori Berenson, an American
citizen who was accused of being a terrorist, denied the
opportunity to defend herself of the charges, allowed no
witnesses to speak in her defense, allowed no time to
privately consult with her lawyer, and declared guilty by a
hooded judge in a military court; and
(4) in deciding whether to provide economic and other forms
of assistance to Peru, the United States should take into
consideration the willingness of Peru to assist in [the
release of] Lori Berenson.

The CHAIRMAN pro tempore. Pursuant to House Resolution 247, the
gentlewoman from California (Ms. Waters) and a Member opposed each will
control 5 minutes.
The Chair recognizes the gentlewoman from California (Ms. Waters).
Ms. WATERS. Mr. Chairman, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
As my colleagues know, I offered an amendment that would instruct the
State Department to use all diplomatic efforts for the release of Lori
Berenson. Again, I reiterate that Lori Berenson is a young woman who
hails from New York. She is a journalist. She comes from a fine family.
She went to Peru to work on human rights issues. She has been jailed by
Fujimori. She has been placed high in the Andes in a room, in a prison
where the temperature never gets above 40. Her health is failing her.
She has been accused of being a terrorist, and she has been sentenced
to life in prison.
We have done everything in our power to try and persuade President
Fujimori to give her a fair trial. The trial that she received was
certainly not fair. It was a trial by a military tribunal. They were
hooded. She did not have a chance to offer a defense. She did not have
a chance to offer any evidence. She did not have a chance to do
anything that would ensure that she could have a fair trial. And so,
she has been in prison now for 3 years and 8 months. She has been in
prison for 3 years and 8 months with Americans trying to go down there
to visit her.
The gentlewoman from New York (Mrs. Maloney) has been there. We are
working with her parents. Mr. Chairman, 176 Members of Congress on both
sides of the aisle have joined in a campaign for her release, Democrats
and Republicans. We are outraged that we would allow Fujimori to do
this to a young American woman.
There is no reason that we should allow Fujimori, who has basically
dismantled his government, who has taken over and appointed all of his
judges, who really literally has shut down the media, we should not
allow him to continue to imprison this young lady. She has said she is
not a terrorist, she was not involved in any terrorist activities; and
the human rights groups throughout this Nation have asked for a fair
trial. He has refused a fair trial.

[[Page H6062]]

Now the gentleman from New Jersey (Mr. Smith) is saying that he would
like to see her get a fair trial.

{time} 1530

We have some compromise language. Our language would concede to his
concerns about a fair trial, even though we do not think she can get
one. We would amend our language to say that she should have a fair
trial according to international standards, within a year, and failing
that, that she should be released.
Now, everything is fair about this. Number one, the gentleman from
New Jersey (Mr. Smith) said he wanted to see a fair trial. Despite the
fact that we do not think she can get one, we are conceding to him that
we will ask one more time, by way of this formal procedure that we are
involved with here in the Congress on the floor of the House, to ask
for a fair trial, but we want it according to international standards.
We want to make sure that we are on the same track and we have the
same definition for what is fair. Failing that, and only failing that,
for example, if they say, no, we will not give her a fair trial, if
they say, no, wait 10 more years, if they say we do not know what is
meant by a fair trial, if they do not do it, if they do not actually
carry out, rather, a fair trial, then we are asking for her release.
Mr. Chairman, I do not know what could be any fairer than that. We do
not believe, again, that she can get a fair trial; but we are going to
go along, and we are going to ask for it. We do not think it should
hang out there forever, with them saying 5, 10 years from now we are
trying to give her a fair trial.
So we have asked for a fair trial according to international
standards within 1 year and, failing that, and only failing that, she
should be released.
I would say to the Members of this House that I think that we can at
least do this for this American, for a young woman who has not been
proven guilty of anything; for a young woman who may be idealistic, but
she does not deserve to have her life taken away from her.
Her parents are people who live up in the district of the gentlewoman
from New York (Mrs. Maloney). They travel throughout this country. They
knock on the doors of the Members of Congress. They are begging us to
please, to please, understand what is going on.
Mr. SMITH of New Jersey. Mr. Chairman, I rise in opposition to the
amendment, and yield myself such time as I may consume.
Mr. Chairman, again, I want to repeat my request to the gentlewoman
from California (Ms. Waters). We were unable to work it out in that
short time we had together.
I wanted to put, in lieu of ``the release of'' Lori Berenson, ``a
fair trial pursuant to international standards.'' Regrettably, the
gentlewoman from California (Ms. Waters) wanted to add the words, ``or
release,'' or, as she just pointed out, 1 year later there would be a
release.
I can say this having raised this issue myself before, with all my
force. I have been concerned about it, like many Members on both sides
of the aisle. But the issue here is one of fair trial and not of
judging the evidence, because there is a lot of evidence, pro and con.
Regrettably, in a sense of the Congress, which is a very serious
matter, we should not go on record calling for the release of someone
about whose innocence we are not persuaded one way or the other when
the allegation is of a very, very serious terrorism charge.
The MRTA, with which Ms. Berenson has been identified--and I think
this should be underscored--is exceedingly violent. It was responsible,
as I said earlier in the debate, among other acts of terrorism, for the
seizure of the Japanese ambassador's residence in Peru.
Remember, I say to my colleagues, day in and day out, as we watched
CNN and we watched the news clips of those ambassadors and support
personnel and everyone else who were caught behind those closed doors.
Those hostages lived in agony for 5 months. To be associated with that
group is a serious charge.
Although we cannot effectuate it, we must at least use the moral
suasion of Congress to emphasize that there needs to be a fair trial,
pursuant to international standards. The gentlewoman from California
(Ms. Waters) goes far beyond what we should be recommending in this
situation.
I would also point out that I have raised this issue. I take a back
seat to no one regarding human rights violations that occur in Peru, or
anywhere else in the world. My Subcommittee on International Operations
and Human Rights has had something on the order of 100 hearings since I
have been chairman. We have had fact-finding missions, including one to
Peru, to raise issues of human rights.
I believe in due process rights. I believe that she deserves them. As
the gentlewoman from California (Ms. Waters) knows, our embassy was
trying, our personnel were trying, to get her to serve out her sentence
here in the United States in what, hopefully, would be a more pleasant
situation or circumstance, relatively speaking.
So I really reluctantly rise in opposition to this.
Mr. WATERS. Mr. Chairman, will the gentleman yield?
Mr. SMITH of New Jersey. I yield to the gentlewoman from California.
Ms. WATERS. Mr. Chairman, will the gentleman from New Jersey (Mr.
Smith) articulate where we differ? We have agreed that there should be
a fair trial. We agree on that.
Where do we differ? We have said that if they do not give her a fair
trial within a year, then that would be what would trigger release. We
do not say release without a fair trial. Now, where do we differ?
Mr. SMITH of New Jersey. Reclaiming my time, the word ``release''
should not appear in this document, in this Sense of the Congress,
because we should not be coming down on the side of releasing someone
who has been accused of a very, very serious offense in cooperation
with a terrorist organization that has a despicable record in Peru.
But, again, we must demand that the charges against her be properly
adjudicated.
Let me remind Members that there were Americans who were held hostage
in the Japanese ambassador's residence by this very group. I would urge
a no vote on this, and I say that with reluctance. This is not a
properly constructed amendment.
Mrs. MEEK of Florida. Mr. Chairman, I rise in support of the
amendment offered by the gentlelady from California, Maxine Waters.
This amendment expresses the sense of the Congress that the United
States should increase support to democracy and human rights activities
in Peru; urge the Organization of American States to investigate
threats to judicial independence and freedom of the press in Peru; use
all diplomatic means to get Peru to release Lori Berenson (a U.S.
citizen sentenced to life in prison by a military judge in 1996 for
alleged terrorist acts); and take into consideration the willingness of
Peru to release Lori Berenson before providing economic or other
assistance to Peru.
While I understand that Peru is a sovereign nation, the country is
lacking three principles that are fundamental for a democratic society
governed by law: (1) freedom of expression; (2) integrity of a judicial
system in a constitutional government; and (3) due process.
In its annual human rights report on Peru, the U.S. State Department
has flagged several serious violations, with particular emphasis on
freedom of the press. Peru has been condemned by several international
organizations for serious ``freedom of the press'' abuses.
On Thursday, July 1, 1999, the House Committee on International
Relations passed by voice vote H. Res. 57, expressing concern with the
interferences with both the freedom of the press in Peru, as well as
the judicial institutions of Peru.
Due process is a fundamental human right and completely necessary to
a functioning democracy. Without due process, there can be no fairness,
no justice, and no protection for any of the other fundamental freedoms
of expression.
In November 1995, a U.S. citizen, Lori Berenson was arrested and
subjected to a secret, hooded military tribunal in which she was denied
due process, according to the State Department, human rights groups and
the United Nations Commission on Human Rights. She was convicted of
treason and given a life sentence without parole for allegedly being a
leader of a terrorist group. Lori has proclaimed her innocence to these
charges and in a letter to the human rights community, has denounced
violence and terrorism.
Lori has continuously been denied the opportunity to speak with human
rights groups and the media. She has been held under horrendous prison
conditions in the Peruvian Andes and we are all very concerned with her

[[Page H6063]]

failing health. Lori has been subjected to long periods of isolation
which have been cited by Amnesty International as cruel, inhumane and
degrading treatment, in violation of Article 5 of the Universal
Declaration of Human Rights.
Dennis Jett, the U.S. Ambassador to Peru, has publicly stated that
Lori Berenson has been singled out and treated badly simply because she
is a U.S. citizen. The Peruvian military tribunal that convicted Lori
was in secret. Additionally, the Peruvian government has never
demonstrated any significant evidence against Lori because it does not
exist. Meanwhile, Lori has continued to proclaim her innocence.
Mr. Chairman, if we are to carry out the full intent of Title 22
U.S.C. section 1732, by which Congress has given the President the
authority, short of war, to gain the release of a U.S. citizen who has
been wrongly incarcerated abroad, then we must do all that we can do to
bring Lori home.
The CHAIRMAN pro tempore (Mr. Hastings of Washington). The question
is on the amendment offered by the gentlewoman from California (Ms.
Waters).
The question was taken; and the Chairman pro tempore announced that
the noes appeared to have it.

Recorded Vote

Ms. WATERS. Mr. Chairman, I demand a recorded vote.
A recorded vote was ordered.
The CHAIRMAN pro tempore. This will be a 15-minute vote followed by a
5-minute vote on the Bilbray amendment.
The vote was taken by electronic device, and there were--ayes 189,
noes 234, answered ``present'' 5, not voting 5, as follows:

[Roll No. 326]

AYES--189

Abercrombie
Allen
Andrews
Baird
Baldacci
Baldwin
Becerra
Berkley
Berman
Berry
Bishop
Blagojevich
Blumenauer
Bonior
Borski
Boswell
Boucher
Boyd
Brady (PA)
Brown (FL)
Brown (OH)
Callahan
Campbell
Capps
Capuano
Cardin
Carson
Clay
Clayton
Clement
Clyburn
Conyers
Costello
Coyne
Crowley
Cummings
Danner
Davis (FL)
Davis (IL)
DeFazio
DeGette
Delahunt
Deutsch
Dicks
Dixon
Doggett
Dooley
Doyle
Edwards
Engel
English
Eshoo
Etheridge
Evans
Farr
Fattah
Filner
Ford
Frost
Gejdenson
Gephardt
Gonzalez
Gordon
Green (TX)
Gutierrez
Hall (OH)
Hastings (FL)
Hilliard
Hinchey
Hinojosa
Hobson
Hoeffel
Holden
Holt
Hooley
Horn
Hoyer
Inslee
Jackson (IL)
Jackson-Lee (TX)
Jefferson
Johnson (CT)
Johnson, E. B.
Jones (OH)
Kaptur
Kelly
Kildee
Kilpatrick
Kleczka
Kucinich
LaFalce
Lampson
Lantos
Larson
Lee
Levin
Lewis (GA)
Lipinski
Lofgren
Lowey
Lucas (KY)
Luther
Maloney (CT)
Maloney (NY)
Markey
Martinez
Mascara
Matsui
McCarthy (MO)
McCarthy (NY)
McGovern
McIntyre
McKinney
McNulty
Meehan
Meek (FL)
Meeks (NY)
Millender-McDonald
Miller, George
Mink
Moakley
Moore
Moran (VA)
Morella
Nadler
Napolitano
Neal
Oberstar
Obey
Olver
Ortiz
Ose
Owens
Pallone
Pascrell
Pastor
Payne
Pelosi
Phelps
Pickett
Pomeroy
Price (NC)
Pryce (OH)
Rahall
Rangel
Rivers
Rodriguez
Rothman
Roybal-Allard
Rush
Sabo
Salmon
Sanchez
Sanders
Sandlin
Sawyer
Scarborough
Schakowsky
Scott
Serrano
Sherman
Sherwood
Skelton
Slaughter
Spratt
Stabenow
Stark
Strickland
Tanner
Tauscher
Thompson (CA)
Thompson (MS)
Thurman
Tierney
Turner
Udall (CO)
Udall (NM)
Velazquez
Vento
Waters
Watt (NC)
Waxman
Weiner
Wexler
Weygand
Whitfield
Woolsey
Wu
Wynn

NOES--234

Ackerman
Aderholt
Archer
Armey
Bachus
Baker
Ballenger
Barcia
Barr
Barrett (NE)
Bartlett
Barton
Bass
Bateman
Bentsen
Bereuter
Biggert
Bilbray
Bilirakis
Bliley
Blunt
Boehlert
Boehner
Bonilla
Bono
Brady (TX)
Bryant
Burr
Burton
Buyer
Calvert
Camp
Canady
Cannon
Castle
Chabot
Chambliss
Coble
Coburn
Collins
Combest
Condit
Cook
Cooksey
Cox
Cramer
Crane
Cubin
Cunningham
Davis (VA)
Deal
DeLauro
DeLay
DeMint
Diaz-Balart
Dickey
Dingell
Doolittle
Dreier
Duncan
Dunn
Ehlers
Ehrlich
Emerson
Everett
Ewing
Fletcher
Foley
Forbes
Fossella
Fowler
Frank (MA)
Franks (NJ)
Frelinghuysen
Gallegly
Ganske
Gekas
Gibbons
Gilchrest
Gillmor
Gilman
Goode
Goodlatte
Goodling
Goss
Graham
Granger
Green (WI)
Greenwood
Gutknecht
Hall (TX)
Hansen
Hastings (WA)
Hayes
Hayworth
Hefley
Herger
Hill (MT)
Hilleary
Hoekstra
Hostettler
Houghton
Hulshof
Hunter
Hutchinson
Hyde
Isakson
Istook
Jenkins
John
Johnson, Sam
Jones (NC)
Kanjorski
Kasich
Kind (WI)
King (NY)
Kingston
Klink
Knollenberg
Kolbe
Kuykendall
LaHood
Largent
Latham
LaTourette
Lazio
Leach
Lewis (CA)
Lewis (KY)
Linder
LoBiondo
Lucas (OK)
Manzullo
McCollum
McCrery
McHugh
McInnis
McIntosh
McKeon
Menendez
Metcalf
Mica
Miller (FL)
Miller, Gary
Minge
Mollohan
Moran (KS)
Murtha
Myrick
Nethercutt
Ney
Northup
Norwood
Nussle
Oxley
Packard
Paul
Pease
Peterson (MN)
Petri
Pickering
Pitts
Pombo
Porter
Portman
Quinn
Radanovich
Ramstad
Regula
Reynolds
Riley
Roemer
Rogan
Rogers
Rohrabacher
Ros-Lehtinen
Roukema
Royce
Ryan (WI)
Ryun (KS)
Sanford
Saxton
Schaffer
Sensenbrenner
Sessions
Shadegg
Shaw
Shays
Shimkus
Shows
Shuster
Simpson
Sisisky
Skeen
Smith (MI)
Smith (NJ)
Smith (TX)
Smith (WA)
Souder
Spence
Stearns
Stenholm
Stump
Stupak
Sununu
Sweeney
Talent
Tancredo
Tauzin
Taylor (MS)
Taylor (NC)
Terry
Thomas
Thornberry
Thune
Tiahrt
Toomey
Traficant
Upton
Visclosky
Vitter
Walden
Walsh
Wamp
Watkins
Watts (OK)
Weldon (FL)
Weldon (PA)
Weller
Wicker
Wise
Wolf
Young (AK)
Young (FL)

ANSWERED ``PRESENT''--5

Barrett (WI)
Hill (IN)
Reyes
Snyder
Wilson

NOT VOTING--5

Chenoweth
Kennedy
McDermott
Peterson (PA)
Towns

{time} 1544

Messrs. SHOWS, WELDON of Florida, BENTSEN and WISE and Mrs. BONO
changed their vote from ``aye'' to ``no.''
Mrs. KELLY, Mr. HOBSON, Mr. ENGLISH and Ms. KAPTUR changed their vote
from ``no'' to ``aye.''
So the amendment was rejected.
The result of the vote was announced as above recorded.

ANNOUNCEMENT BY THE CHAIRMAN PRO TEMPORE

The CHAIRMAN pro tempore (Mr. Hastings of Washington). Pursuant to
House Resolution 247, the Chair announces he will reduce to a minimum
of 5 minutes the period of time within which a vote by electronic
device will be taken on each amendment on which the Chair has postponed
further proceedings.

Amendment No. 33 Offered by Bilbray

The CHAIRMAN pro tempore. The pending business is the demand for a
recorded vote on amendment No. 33 offered by the gentleman from
California (Mr. Bilbray) on which further proceedings were postponed
and on which the ayes prevailed by voice vote.
The Clerk will redesignate the amendment.
The Clerk redesignated the amendment.

Recorded Vote

The CHAIRMAN pro tempore. A recorded vote has been demanded.
A recorded vote was ordered.
The CHAIRMAN pro tempore. This will be a 5-minute vote.
The vote was taken by electronic device, and there were--ayes 427,
noes 0, not voting 6, as follows:

[Roll No. 327]

AYES--427

Abercrombie
Ackerman
Aderholt
Allen
Andrews
Archer
Armey
Bachus
Baird
Baker
Baldacci
Baldwin
Ballenger
Barcia
Barr
Barrett (NE)
Barrett (WI)
Bartlett
Barton
Bass
Becerra
Bentsen
Bereuter
Berkley
Berman
Berry
Biggert
Bilbray
Bilirakis
Bishop
Blagojevich
Bliley
Blumenauer
Blunt
Boehlert
Boehner
Bonilla
Bonior
Bono
Borski
Boswell
Boucher
Boyd
Brady (PA)
Brady (TX)
Brown (FL)
Brown (OH)
Bryant
Burr
Burton
Buyer
Callahan
Calvert
Camp
Campbell
Canady
Cannon
Capps
Capuano
Cardin
Carson
Castle
Chabot
Chambliss
Clay
Clayton
Clement
Clyburn
Coble
Coburn
Collins
Combest
Condit
Conyers
Cook
Cooksey
Costello
Cox
Coyne
Cramer
Crane
Crowley
Cubin
Cummings

[[Page H6064]]

Cunningham
Danner
Davis (FL)
Davis (IL)
Davis (VA)
Deal
DeFazio
DeGette
Delahunt
DeLauro
DeLay
DeMint
Deutsch
Diaz-Balart
Dickey
Dicks
Dingell
Dixon
Doggett
Dooley
Doolittle
Doyle
Dreier
Duncan
Dunn
Edwards
Ehlers
Ehrlich
Emerson
Engel
English
Eshoo
Etheridge
Evans
Everett
Ewing
Farr
Fattah
Filner
Fletcher
Foley
Forbes
Ford
Fossella
Fowler
Frank (MA)
Franks (NJ)
Frelinghuysen
Frost
Gallegly
Ganske
Gejdenson
Gekas
Gephardt
Gibbons
Gilchrest
Gillmor
Gilman
Gonzalez
Goode
Goodlatte
Goodling
Gordon
Goss
Graham
Granger
Green (TX)
Green (WI)
Greenwood
Gutierrez
Gutknecht
Hall (OH)
Hall (TX)
Hansen
Hastings (FL)
Hastings (WA)
Hayes
Hayworth
Hefley
Herger
Hill (IN)
Hill (MT)
Hilleary
Hilliard
Hinchey
Hinojosa
Hobson
Hoeffel
Hoekstra
Holden
Holt
Hooley
Horn
Hostettler
Houghton
Hoyer
Hulshof
Hunter
Hutchinson
Hyde
Inslee
Isakson
Istook
Jackson (IL)
Jackson-Lee (TX)
Jefferson
Jenkins
John
Johnson (CT)
Johnson, E. B.
Johnson, Sam
Jones (NC)
Jones (OH)
Kanjorski
Kaptur
Kasich
Kelly
Kildee
Kilpatrick
Kind (WI)
King (NY)
Kingston
Kleczka
Klink
Knollenberg
Kolbe
Kucinich
Kuykendall
LaFalce
LaHood
Lampson
Lantos
Largent
Larson
Latham
LaTourette
Lazio
Leach
Lee
Levin
Lewis (CA)
Lewis (GA)
Lewis (KY)
Linder
Lipinski
LoBiondo
Lofgren
Lowey
Lucas (KY)
Lucas (OK)
Luther
Maloney (CT)
Maloney (NY)
Manzullo
Markey
Martinez
Mascara
Matsui
McCarthy (MO)
McCarthy (NY)
McCollum
McCrery
McGovern
McHugh
McInnis
McIntosh
McIntyre
McKeon
McKinney
McNulty
Meehan
Meek (FL)
Meeks (NY)
Menendez
Metcalf
Mica
Millender-McDonald
Miller (FL)
Miller, Gary
Miller, George
Minge
Mink
Moakley
Mollohan
Moore
Moran (KS)
Moran (VA)
Morella
Murtha
Myrick
Nadler
Napolitano
Neal
Nethercutt
Ney
Northup
Norwood
Nussle
Oberstar
Obey
Olver
Ortiz
Ose
Owens
Oxley
Packard
Pallone
Pascrell
Pastor
Paul
Payne
Pease
Pelosi
Peterson (MN)
Petri
Phelps
Pickering
Pickett
Pitts
Pombo
Pomeroy
Porter
Portman
Price (NC)
Pryce (OH)
Quinn
Radanovich
Rahall
Ramstad
Rangel
Regula
Reyes
Reynolds
Riley
Rivers
Rodriguez
Roemer
Rogan
Rogers
Rohrabacher
Ros-Lehtinen
Rothman
Roukema
Roybal-Allard
Royce
Rush
Ryan (WI)
Ryun (KS)
Sabo
Salmon
Sanchez
Sanders
Sandlin
Sanford
Sawyer
Saxton
Scarborough
Schaffer
Schakowsky
Scott
Sensenbrenner
Serrano
Sessions
Shadegg
Shaw
Shays
Sherman
Sherwood
Shimkus
Shows
Shuster
Simpson
Sisisky
Skeen
Skelton
Slaughter
Smith (MI)
Smith (NJ)
Smith (TX)
Smith (WA)
Snyder
Souder
Spence
Spratt
Stabenow
Stark
Stearns
Stenholm
Strickland
Stump
Stupak
Sununu
Sweeney
Talent
Tancredo
Tanner
Tauscher
Tauzin
Taylor (MS)
Taylor (NC)
Terry
Thomas
Thompson (CA)
Thompson (MS)
Thornberry
Thune
Thurman
Tiahrt
Tierney
Toomey
Traficant
Turner
Udall (CO)
Udall (NM)
Upton
Velazquez
Vento
Visclosky
Vitter
Walden
Walsh
Wamp
Waters
Watkins
Watt (NC)
Watts (OK)
Waxman
Weiner
Weldon (FL)
Weldon (PA)
Weller
Wexler
Weygand
Whitfield
Wicker
Wilson
Wise
Wolf
Woolsey
Wu
Wynn
Young (AK)
Young (FL)

NOT VOTING--6

Bateman
Chenoweth
Kennedy
McDermott
Peterson (PA)
Towns

{time} 1554

So the amendment was agreed to.
The result of the vote was announced as above recorded.
The CHAIRMAN pro tempore (Mr. Hastings of Washington). The Chair
understands amendments No. 34 and 35 will not be offered.
It is now in order to consider amendment No. 36 printed in part B of
House Report number 106-235.

Amendment No. 36 Offered by Mr. Doggett

Mr. DOGGETT. Mr. Chairman, I offer an amendment made in order under
the rule.
The CHAIRMAN pro tempore. The Clerk will designate the amendment.
The text of the amendment is as follows:

Part B amendment No. 36 offered by Mr. Doggett:
Page 84, after line 16, insert the following new title:
TITLE VIII--GULF WAR VETERANS' IRAQI CLAIMS PROTECTION

SEC. 801. SHORT TITLE.

This title may be cited as the ``Gulf War Veterans' Iraqi
Claims Protection Act of 1999''.

SEC. 802. ADJUDICATION OF CLAIMS.

(a) Claims Against Iraq.--The United States Commission is
authorized to receive and determine the validity and amounts
of any claims by nationals of the United States against the
Government of Iraq. Such claims must be submitted to the
United States Commission within the period specified by such
Commission by notice published in the Federal Register. The
United States Commission shall certify to each claimant the
amount determined by the Commission to be payable on the
claim under this title.
(b) Decision Rules.--In deciding claims under subsection
(a), the United States Commission shall apply, in the
following order--
(1) applicable substantive law, including international
law; and
(2) applicable principles of justice and equity.
(c) Priority Claims.--Before deciding any other claim
against the Government of Iraq, the United States Commission
shall, to the extent practical, decide all pending non-
commercial claims of active, retired, or reserve members of
the United States Armed Forces, retired former members of the
United States Armed Forces, and other individuals arising out
of Iraq's invasion and occupation of Kuwait or out of the
1987 attack on the USS Stark.
(d) Applicability of International Claims Settlement Act.--
To the extent they are not inconsistent with the provisions
of this title, the provisions of title I (other than section
802(c)) and title VII of the International Claims Settlement
Act of 1949 (22 U.S.C. 1621-1627 and 1645-1645o) shall apply
with respect to claims under this title.

SEC. 803. CLAIMS FUNDS.

(a) Iraq Claims Fund.--The Secretary of the Treasury is
authorized to establish in the Treasury of the United States
a fund (hereafter in this title referred to as the ``Iraq
Claims Fund'') for payment of claims certified under section
802(a). The Secretary of the Treasury shall cover into the
Iraq Claims Fund such amounts as are allocated to such fund
pursuant to subsection (b).
(b) Allocation of Proceeds From Iraqi Asset Liquidation.--
(1) In general.--The President shall allocate funds
resulting from the liquidation of assets pursuant to section
804 in the manner the President determines appropriate
between the Iraq Claims Fund and such other accounts as are
appropriate for the payment of claims of the United States
Government against Iraq, subject to the limitation in
paragraph (2).
(2) Limitation.--The amount allocated pursuant to this
subsection for payment of claims of the United States
Government against Iraq may not exceed the amount which bears
the same relation to the amount allocated to the Iraq Claims
Fund pursuant to this subsection as the sum of all certified
claims of the United States Government against Iraq bears to
the sum of all claims certified under section 802(a). As used
in this paragraph, the term ``certified claims of the United
States Government against Iraq'' means those claims of the
United States Government against Iraq which are determined by
the Secretary of State to be outside the jurisdiction of the
United Nations Commission and which are determined to be
valid, and whose amount has been certified, under such
procedures as the President may establish.

SEC. 804. AUTHORITY TO VEST IRAQI ASSETS.

The President is authorized to vest and liquidate as much
of the assets of the Government of Iraq in the United States
that have been blocked pursuant to the International
Emergency Economic Powers Act (50 U.S.C. 1701 et seq.) as may
be necessary to satisfy claims under section 802(a), claims
of the United States Government against Iraq which are
determined by the Secretary of State to be outside the
jurisdiction of the United Nations Commission, and
administrative expenses under section 805.

SEC. 805. REIMBURSEMENT FOR ADMINISTRATIVE EXPENSES.

(a) Deduction.--In order to reimburse the United States
Government for its expenses in administering this title, the
Secretary of the Treasury shall deduct 1.5 percent of any
amount covered into the Iraq Claims Fund to satisfy claims
under this title.
(b) Deductions Treated as Miscellaneous Receipts.--Amounts
deducted pursuant to subsection (a) shall be deposited in the
Treasury of the United States as miscellaneous receipts.

SEC. 806. PAYMENTS.

(a) In General.--The United States Commission shall certify
to the Secretary of the Treasury each award made pursuant to
section 802. The Secretary of the Treasury shall make
payment, out of the Iraq Claims Fund, in the following order
of priority to the extent funds are available in such fund:
(1) Payment of $10,000 or the principal amount of the
award, whichever is less.
(2) For each claim that has priority under section 802(c),
payment of an additional $90,000 toward the unpaid balance of
the principal amount of the award.
(3) Payments from time to time in ratable proportions on
account of the unpaid balance of the principal amounts of all
awards according to the proportions which the unpaid

[[Page H6065]]

balance of such awards bear to the total amount in the Iraq
Claims Fund that is available for distribution at the time
such payments are made.
(4) After payment has been made of the principal amounts of
all such awards, pro rata payments on account of accrued
interest on such awards as bear interest.
(b) Unsatisfied Claims.--Payment of any award made pursuant
to this title shall not extinguish any unsatisfied claim, or
be construed to have divested any claimant, or the United
States on his or her behalf, of any rights against the
Government of Iraq with respect to any unsatisfied claim.

SEC. 807. AUTHORITY TO TRANSFER RECORDS.

The head of any Executive agency may transfer or otherwise
make available to the United States Commission such records
and documents relating to claims authorized to be determined
under this title as may be required by the United States
Commission in carrying out its functions under this title.

SEC. 808. STATUTE OF LIMITATIONS; DISPOSITION OF UNUSED
FUNDS.

(a) Statute of Limitations.--Any demand or claim for
payment on account of an award that is certified under this
title shall be barred on and after the date that is one year
after the date of publication of the notice required by
subsection (b).
(b) Publication of Notice.--
(1) In general.--At the end of the 9-year period specified
in paragraph (2), the Secretary of the Treasury shall publish
a notice in the Federal Register detailing the statute of
limitations provided for in subsection (a) and identifying
the claim numbers of, and the names of the claimants holding,
unpaid certified claims.
(2) Publication date.--The notice required by paragraph (1)
shall be published 9 years after the last date on which the
Secretary of the Treasury covers into the Iraq Claims Fund
amounts allocated to that fund pursuant to section 803(b).
(c) Disposition of Unused Funds.--
(1) Disposition.--At the end of the 2-year period beginning
on the publication date of the notice required by subsection
(b), the Secretary of the Treasury shall dispose of all
unused funds described in paragraph (2) by depositing in the
Treasury of the United States as miscellaneous receipts any
such funds that are not used for payments of certified claims
under this title.
(2) Unused funds.--The unused funds referred to in
paragraph (1) are any remaining balance in the Iraq Claims
Fund.

SEC. 809. DEFINITIONS.

As used in this title:
(1) Executive agency.--The term ``Executive agency'' has
the meaning given that term by section 105 of title 5, United
States Code.
(2) Government of iraq.--The term ``Government of Iraq''
includes agencies, instrumentalities, and entities controlled
by that government (including public sector enterprises).
(3) United nations commission.--The term ``United Nations
Commission'' means the United Nations Compensation Commission
established pursuant to United Nations Security Council
Resolution 687 (1991).
(4) United states commission.--The term ``United States
Commission'' means the Foreign Claims Settlement Commission
of the United States.

The CHAIRMAN pro tempore. Pursuant to House Resolution 247, the
gentleman from Texas (Mr. Doggett) and a Member opposed will each
control 5 minutes.
The Chair recognizes the gentleman from Texas (Mr. Doggett).
Mr. DOGGETT. Mr. Chairman, I yield myself 1 minute.
Mr. Chairman, since 1990, over $1 billion in frozen Iraqi assets
sitting in American banks have been available to satisfy the just
claims of American citizens. But almost a decade later, this Congress
has still not approved legislation that would let Americans collect.
This amendment would authorize the Secretary of the Treasury to vest
this Iraqi money in an account known as the Iraqi Claims Fund and
authorize the Foreign Claims Settlement Commission to begin the process
of resolving these claims against that Iraqi money with just one
stipulation: The first claims to be resolved should be those of our
Desert Storm and Desert Shield veterans, many of whom have been plagued
with all the physical ailments that are referred to as Gulf War
Syndrome.
Mr. Chairman, these men and women gave their all against an enemy of
the United States, and now these brave veterans deserve nothing less
from the government of the United States.
The House has already gone on record twice to support this objective.
In 1994, by a vote of 398 to 5, in support of a similar provision in a
State Department bill, and in 1997, in support of my motion to instruct
conferees to reject an outrageous Senate provision in the State
Department authorization bill by a vote of 412 to 5, we stood up at
those times and declared that the men and women who put their lives on
the line for our country are second to no one. Now we must do so again.
Mr. Chairman, I yield 1 minute to the gentleman from Missouri (Mr.
Skelton), the distinguished ranking member on the Committee on Armed
Services.
Mr. SKELTON. Mr. Chairman, I thank the gentleman for yielding me this
time and allowing me to speak on this very important issue.
What we do today on this amendment not only draws a lot of attention
but it sends a sincere and straigthforward message to those young men
and young women who today find themselves in uniform defending the
interests of the United States of America.
The money is there, Mr. Chairman. The fund is there. What is wrong
with following the precedent that we have already set by voting in this
House to allow that trust fund to be created from the Iraqi funds in
order to take care of those young men and young women who might well be
suffering from the Gulf War Syndrome?
Saddam Hussein, the country of Iraqi, did very, very wrong, and the
Americans righted that wrong by getting them out of Kuwait. But in the
process, those young men and young women, those veterans of that
conflict, as a result of the toxics that they ingested in themselves,
became victims. And I certainly think we can follow through and help
them reclaim what is rightfully theirs; the dollars from that fund.

{time} 1600

Mr. DOGGETT. Mr. Chairman, if no one is claiming time in opposition
to this bill, I ask unanimous consent to control the 5 minutes
allocated for opposition.
The CHAIRMAN pro tempore (Mr. Hastings of Washington). Is there
objection to the request of the gentleman from Texas?
There was no objection.
The CHAIRMAN pro tempore. The gentleman from Texas (Mr. Doggett) is
recognized for an additional 5 minutes.
Mr. DOGGETT. Mr. Chairman, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from
Illinois (Mr. Evans), the ranking member of the Committee on Veterans'
Affairs.
Mr. EVANS. Mr. Chairman, I rise in strong support of the amendment
offered by the gentleman from Texas (Mr. Doggett).
The intent of this amendment is clear, to give our veterans in the
Persian Gulf War first priority in seeking claims against Iraqi assets
frozen by our Government during the war.
This amendment has the strong support of veterans groups, including
Gulf War veterans. They know that while we can never make up the losses
that were incurred in the Gulf War, veterans and their families should
have the assurances that we will continue to seek every chance to
collect damages against those injuries that they have suffered from.
Mr. DOGGETT. Mr. Chairman, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from
Texas (Mr. Edwards) who represents the largest military base in the
world, Ft. Hood, Texas.
Mr. EDWARDS. Mr. Chairman, it is not good enough to honor veterans on
just Veterans' Day and Memorial Day. It is not good enough to just
honor veterans with our speeches and our words. It is time we honored
veterans with our actions.
Veterans do not need our rhetoric. They need our support. A vote for
the Doggett amendment today is a vote to put veterans first where they
should be. We have a clear choice. We can vote to give Desert Storm and
Desert Shield veterans first claim on $1 billion of frozen Iraqi
assets, or we can vote to let countries who sold cigarettes to Saddam
Hussein put their claims before our American veterans.
We can vote to support those who put their lives on the line fighting
against Saddam Hussein, or we can vote to support those who made
profits selling to Saddam Hussein.
Whose side are we on? That is the question before us. American
veterans who were on the front lines in fighting against Saddam should
not be put in the back of the line when Iraqi assets are unfrozen. Vote
for our veterans. Vote for the Doggett amendment.
Mr. DOGGETT. Mr. Chairman, I yield 1 minute to the gentleman from
Connecticut (Mr. Gejdenson), the ranking member on the Committee on
International Relations.

[[Page H6066]]

Mr. GEJDENSON. Mr. Chairman, I would like to commend the gentleman
from Texas (Mr. Doggett) for bringing this to the floor. This is the
right action to take here.
We ask our military personnel to take the first action in defending
America's interests, the West's interests, our economic interests, our
political interests, and our security interests. They should not be
anyplace else in line but first when it comes to claiming their duly
deserved compensation.
This is an excellent amendment. The gentleman from Texas (Mr.
Doggett) is doing the right thing, and we should unanimously support
him.
Mr. DOGGETT. Mr. Chairman, how much time remains, Mr. Chairman?
The CHAIRMAN pro tempore. The gentleman from Texas (Mr. Doggett) has
6 minutes remaining.
Mr. DOGGETT. Mr. Chairman, I yield myself an additional 3 minutes.
Mr. Chairman, it appears that no one will rise to speak against this
amendment. I am pleased about that, and I know that our Nation's
veterans will be pleased about it.
The Veterans of Foreign Wars and the Gulf Veterans Resource Center
have been active in supporting this measure. When this measure came
before the Committee on International Affairs back in 1993, these
organizations and other veterans organizations spoke out in favor of
this provision.
Yet, why is it that with such strong support from veterans, with a
near unanimous vote of this House in 1994 on a strong bipartisan basis,
again on my motion in 1997 a strong bipartisan basis, we have not
provided our veterans with the mechanism to have a chance to get some
recovery from the frozen assets of Saddam Hussein that are sitting in
banks right here in the United States?
It is because there are some who have claims that are competing with
the veterans and do not want veterans to have a first claim on these
assets.
Some of the entities that have registered their claims with regard to
these assets are the very companies that supplied Saddam Hussein with
the means to have weapons of mass destruction, chemical and biological
weapons, components that could be used in the development of nuclear
weaponry, conventional weapons that were made available to Saddam
Hussein. They now are competing with our veterans.
Another group of entities that are competing and seem to have played
a big role in this bill during the last Congress are the major tobacco
companies. They also have claims. One has a claim of some $12 million.
Now, I am not suggesting that any of those, even those that supplied
Saddam Hussein with the means for his war machine, ought not to have
their day in court or the day before the commission. But I am
suggesting that before they have their day in court we should at least
resolve the claims of those who put their lives on the line and some of
whom actually sacrificed and gave their lives and others of whom will
be plagued for the rest of their lives, bright young men and women with
a shining future who now suffer disability as the result of Gulf War
Syndrome.
I would say, as to those young men and women who gave their all to
this country, who put their country first and made this sacrifice, that
they deserve to have their claims put ahead of the companies that
supplied weaponry and the means to develop weaponry to Saddam Hussein
and that they deserve to be placed ahead of the major tobacco companies
that say they want their claims settled, not that they are left out,
but that our veterans go first.
I know that there are others across this Capitol, Mr. Jesse Helms in
particular, that disagree with this approach. But I believe this House,
for a third time having spoken out with, I hope, a unanimous voice and
a recorded vote, will be sending a message that we will not leave our
veterans behind anymore and that, as we close out this millennium, we
will finally put our Gulf War veterans first and let them have a claim,
a legitimate claim, against these assets of Saddam Hussein.
Mr. Chairman, I yield 1\1/2\ minutes to the gentleman from Texas (Mr.
Edwards).
Mr. EDWARDS. Mr. Chairman, I just want to thank the gentleman for his
efforts.
I would like to point out that I think it is outrageous if Members do
not have the courage to come in the light of day on the floor of this
House to say they oppose the amendment of the gentleman, an effort to
put veterans first, and yet behind closed doors in conference committee
this effort seems to be killed.
I would hope that the silence and opposition to this amendment would
indicate that this will pass through the conference committee. I hope
that the veterans organizations in America will be watching this effort
very, very carefully.
Mr. DOGGETT. Mr. Chairman, will the gentleman yield?
Mr. EDWARDS. I yield to the gentleman from Texas.
Mr. DOGGETT. Mr. Chairman, I ask the gentleman to respond to this
question.
I believe the gentleman was here on the floor in 1997 when we had our
motion to instruct. It took up an entire hour of time. Am I not correct
that, in the course of that debate, only one Member of this entire
House on either side of the aisle or a Republican colleague of ours
rose to oppose the motion to instruct and after the debate he voted
with us in favor of the motion to instruct to tell Jesse Helms and all
the members of the conference committee do not put veterans last,
because if we put them last, given the size of the claims of some of
these companies that helped fuel Saddam Hussein's war machine and
supplied tobacco to the children and adults of Iraq, if we put the
veterans down behind them, the veterans will not get a penny; it will
not be a matter of putting veterans last, it will be a matter of
putting veterans out and they will never get a dime? Is that not
correct?
Mr. EDWARDS. Mr. Chairman, reclaiming my time, that is correct.
It is my hope, Mr. Chairman, that every major veterans group in
American will watch like a hawk what happens in conference committee on
this. It would be unfair and morally wrong to our Nation's veterans to
take this language out in conference committee.
Mr. DOGGETT. Mr. Chairman, I have no further speakers, and I yield
back the balance of my time.
The CHAIRMAN pro tempore. The question is on the amendment offered by
the gentleman from Texas (Mr. Doggett).
The question was taken; and the Chairman pro tempore announced that
the ayes appeared to have it.
Mr. DOGGETT. Mr. Chairman, I object to the vote on the ground that a
quorum is not present and make the point of order that a quorum is not
present.
The CHAIRMAN. Pursuant to House Resolution 247, further proceedings
on the amendment offered by the gentleman from Texas (Mr. Doggett) will
be postponed.
The point of no quorum is considered withdrawn.
It is now in order to consider Amendment No. 37 printed in Part B of
House Report 106-235.

Amendment No. 37 Offered by Mr. Engel

Mr. ENGEL. Mr. Chairman, I offer an amendment.
The CHAIRMAN pro tempore. The Clerk will designate the amendment.
The text of the amendment is as follows:

Part B amendment No. 37 offered by Mr. Engel:
Page 84, after line 16, add the following (and conform the
table of contents accordingly):

SEC. 703. KOSOVAR ALBANIAN PRISONERS HELD IN SERBIA.

(a) Findings.--The Congress makes the following findings:
(1) At the conclusion of the NATO campaign to halt the
Serbian and Yugoslav ethnic cleansing in Kosova, a large, but
undetermined number of Kosovar Albanians held in Serbian
prisons in Kosova were taken from Kosova before and during
the withdrawal of Serbian and Yugoslav police and military
forces from Kosova.
(2) Serbian Justice Minister Dragoljub Jankovic has
admitted that 1,860 prisoners were brought to Serbia from
Kosova on June 10, 1999, the day Serbian and Yugoslav police
and military forces began their withdrawal from Kosova.
(3) International humanitarian organizations, including the
International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) and Human
Rights Watch, have expressed serious concern with the
detention of Kosovar Albanians in prisons in Serbia.

[[Page H6067]]

(4) On June 25, 1999, Serbia released 166 of the detained
Kosovar Albanian prisoners to the ICRC.
(5) On July 10, 1999, the Parliamentary Assembly of the
Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe,
comprised of parliamentarians from Across Europe, the United
States and Canada, adopted a resolution calling upon Serbia
and Yugoslavia, in accordance with international humanitarian
law, to grant full, immediate and ongoing ICRC access to all
prisoners held in relation to the Kosova crisis, to ensure
the humane treatment of such prisoners, and to arrange for
the release of all such prisoners.
(b) Sense of Congress.--It is the sense of the Congress
that--
(1) the Serbian and Yugoslav Governments should immediately
account for all Kosovar Albanians held in their prisons and
treat them in accordance with all applicable international
standards;
(2) the ICRC should be given full, immediate, and ongoing
access to all Kosovar Albanians held in Serbian and Yugoslav
prisons; and
(3) all Kosovar Albanians held in Serbian and Yugoslav
prisons should be released and returned to Kosova.

The CHAIRMAN pro tempore. Pursuant to House Resolution 247, the
gentleman from New York (Mr. Engel) and a Member opposed each will
control 5 minutes.
Mr. GILMAN. Mr. Chairman, I ask unanimous consent to claim the time
in opposition to the Engel amendment although I am not opposed to the
amendment.
The CHAIRMAN pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the
gentleman from New York?
There was no objection.
The CHAIRMAN pro tempore. The Chair recognizes the gentleman from New
York (Mr. Engel).
Mr. ENGEL. Mr. Chairman, I yield myself 2\1/2\ minutes.
Mr. Chairman, after the allies won the war in Kosovo, when the
Serbian forces left Kosovo to go back to Serbia, they kidnapped
anywhere from 1,800 prisoners, Kosovar Albanian prisoners, to up to
5,000 Kosovar Albanian prisoners, and took them back to Serbia, away
from their homes, and jailed them.
The Serbian justice minister mentions a total of 1,860 Kosovar
Albanians jailed. But I have from a very respected newspaper, Koha
Ditore, a list of 5,000 ethnic Albanian prisoners who are now detained
in jails in Serbia.
This amendment simply would call on the International Committee of
the Red Cross to be allowed to visit these prisoners to call for an
accounting of these prisoners and to give the International Committee
of the Red Cross access to all Kosovar Albanians detained in Serbian
prisons.
It also asks for the release and return to Kosovo of all these people
and is virtually identical to a resolution that was passed by the OSCE
recently which contained the same provisions and was the European
parliamentarians' same request.
We cannot allow Slobodan Milosevic to capture these people and to
keep them there as virtual prisoners. It is absolutely important that
the world community stand up and say that we will not tolerate the
continued Serbian aggression.
Mr. Chairman, I include for the Record the list of prisoners and two
articles, one from the Washington Post and one from the Los Angeles
Times, which highlights this problem and the problem of the Kosovar
Albanians who are captured and kidnapped in Serbian prisons.

The List of Kosovar Prisoners Held in Serbia Taken From Koha Ditore

City Prison-Pozharevc (Serbia):
Lutfi Xhaferi, Muhamet Bajrami, Fadil Salihu, Naser Osmani,
Rijad Begu, Isak Abazi, Xhemshit Ferati, Shaqir Pllana, Afrim
Salihu, Ibrahim Bajrami, Sylejman Bejtullahu, Xhevdet
Bejtullahu, Agron Pllana, Nexhat Brahimi, Hazir Peci, Milaim
Hajrizi, Fehmi Hasani, Shaban Duraku, Adem Tahiri, Rushit
Strana, Isa Aliu, Ferit Pllana, Kaplan Salihu, Sami Hasani,
Nuhi Januzi, Behxhet Maloku, Besim Brahimi, Sabit Strana,
Rexhep Uka, Hamit Maleta, Ismet Pllana, Xhelal Bejtullahu,
Hajrullah Peci, Agim Peci, Ismail Peci, Miftar Gashi, Feti
Asllanaj, Sejdi Lahu, Skender Sadiku, Sejdi Zekaj, Fazli
Kadriu, Ramadan Bislimi, Skender Haxha, Shaban Zuhranaj,
Bajram Rukolli, Imer Haziraj, Xhevat Mustafa, Zani Mustafa,
Sabit Arifi, Bexhet Zeneli, Miftar Sahiti, Mustafa Ramadani,
Sabri Osmani, Agim Islami, Aziz Islami, Kadri Durguti, Abdyl
Klecka, Behajdin Klecka, Burim Ejupi, Sabit Shehu, Zeqir
Shehu, Jusuf Kollari, Xhevdet Durguti, Mehdi Kollari, Arben
Shala, Destan Nurshaba, Mujedin Korenica, Veton Mulija, Beqir
Kollari, Fahredin Dina, Bashkim Hoxha, Arsim Haska, Fadil
Isma, Esad Kasapi, Zijadin Miftari, Eshref Klecka, Selami
Sharku, Lan Isufaj, Rasim Isufaj, Njazi Isufaj, Naim
Hadergjonaj, Rasim Selmanaj, Jahir Agushi, Visar Muriqi,
Ragip Ahmeti, Ramadan Gashi, Fatmir Shishani, Agim Leka,
Hazir Stoliqi, Gani Ahmetxhekaj, Muje Zekaj, Salih Zariqi,
Jakup Rexhepi, Bajram Gashi, Nezir Bajraktari, Mustafe
Mehmetaj, Arben Bajraktaraj, Nexhat Dervishaj, Deme Ramosaj,
Shaban Mehmetaj, Sadik Haradini, Ramiz Isufaj, Ministet
Shala, Ismet Pacarizi, Izet Zenuni, Gani Baqaj, Sali Gashi,
Skender Bajraktari, Llmi Zeneli, Xhafer Qufaj, Gezim Zecaj,
Bujar Goranci, Muhamet Gashi, Xheme Morina, Florim Zukaj,
Asllan Asllani, Shpend Dobrunaj, Luan Ahmetxhekaj, Besnik
Ismaili, Xhavit Museshabanaj, Driton Zukaj, Llmi Karaxha,
Nikolle Markaj, Uke Golaj, Dervish Zukaj, Rasim Gjota,
Skender Hajdari, Ardian Kumnova, Flamur Krasniqi, Isak Hoti,
Ramadan Morina, Ismet Krasniqi, Demir Limaj, Lavdim Tetaj,
Arsim Krasniqi, Arton Krasniqi, Avni Shala, Hazir Krasniqi,
Llir Krasniqi, Fahri Krasniqi, Zhuje Gashi, Muhamed Avdiaj,
Bekim Istogu, Azem Buzhala, Faik Topalli, Nysret Hoti,
Nazim Zenelaj, Adnan Topalli, Musli Leku, Remzi Morina,
Avni Memia, Avdi Kabashi, Ibrahim Ferizi, Visar Demiri,
Bekim Rama, Tahir Rraci, Blerim Camaj, Reshat Nurboja,
Brahim Gashi, Astrit Elshani, Hasan Verslaku, Avdullah
Lushi, Lush Marku, Mustafe Gjocaj, Rrustem Jetishi, Bekim
Maci, Asllan Nebihi, Afrim Verslaku, Kujtim Jetishi, Avdyl
Maci, Skender Hoxha, Muhamet Kicina, Fadil Avdyli, Bajram
Avdyli, Sokol Syla, Hasan Berisha, Luan Mazrreku, Enver
Hoxhaj, Ismet Gashi, Zeqir Gashi, Fadil Topalli, Bujar
Sylaj, Agim Gashi, Hetem Elshani, Isa Topalli, Flurim
Haxhymeri, Haki Haxhimustafa, Beqir Alimusaj, Bajram
Shala, Gazmend Zeka, Fadil Jetishi, Isa Shala, Isuf Shala,
Ylber Dizdari, Milaim Cekaj, Musa Krasniqi, Ismet Berbati,
Ramiz Gjocaj, Deme Batusha, Reshat Suka, Tahir Panxhaj,
Syle Salihu, Ismet Isufi, Uke Rexha, Fehmi Kukiqi, Arsllan
Selimi, Fetah Shala, Milazim Shehu, Nait Hasani, Riza
Alia, Gani Cekaj, Sefedin Morina, Sadri Terdevci, Habib
Morina, Elmi Morina, Rexhep Morina, Isa Morina, Lajet
Mola, Sylejman Bajgora, Feriz Corri, Raif Hasi, Smail
Hasi, Rrahim Limani, Sadik Limani, Jakup Limani, Agim
Nimani, Besnik Heta, Afrim Rucaj, Qamil Pllana, Hashim
Mecinaj, Shemsi Shaqiri, Avdush Hysi, Miftar Dobra, Nexhat
Ahmeti, Fadil Ajeti, Bahri Istrefi, Bedri Qerimi, Nexhat
Mustafa, Izet Miftaraj, Fuat Bucinca, Reci Dosti, Naim
Haziri, Sali Azemi, Kenan Hasani, Rifat Dobra, Shaban
Rexhepi, Daut Rrahmani, Ali Haradini, Latif Ismaili
(minor), Fehmi Jashari, Naim Peci, Gani Arslani, Muharrem
Zymeri, Elmaz Hasani, Ukshin Hasani, Hakif Duraku,
Sherafedin Hasani, Jashar Istrefi, Rrahman Istrefi, Gani
Muja, Rrahman Ahmeti, Ferid Zeneli, Duka Aliu, Nuredin
Jashari, Ilmi Jashari, Hajro Brahimi, Fahri Berisha, Naim
Pllana, Shkelzen Pllana, Fehmi Pllana, Megdia Pllana,
Behxhet Sejdiaj, Faik Sejdiaj, Bekim Sejdiaj, Tafil
Prokshi, Shemsi Miftaraj, Ahmet Murati, Dibran Krasniqi,
Shefki Tahiri, Shefqet Duraku, Beqir Bialku, Brahim
Krasniqi, Mehmet Xhelili, Idriz Klinaku, Ahmet Hasani,
Perparim Mustafa, Halil Mustafa, Milazim Mustafaj, Fatos
Asllanaj, Enes Kalludra, Hajriz Islami, Ismet Laka, Fazli
Ademi, Muje Shabani, Avdyl Sejdiu, Rifat Hasani, Ejup
Sejdiu, Nasuf Deliaj, Agim Ahmetaj, Kasem Ahmetaj, Mustafe
Ahmetaj, Ekrem Avdiu, Nexhmedin Llausha, Shpend Kopriva,
Lulzim Ymeri, Ertan Bislimi, Krenar Telciu, Bashkim
Gllogovci, Ilir Hoxha, Luan Sejdiu, Agim Morina, Fehmi
Muharremi, Brahim Berisha, Mustafe Berisha, Gani Baliqi,
Osman Kastrati, Shaban Cupi, Arben Jahaj, Ardian Haxhaj,
Mehmet Memcaj, Agim Lumi, Skender Hoti, Sokol Morina,
Fazli Gashi, Besim Kastrati, Sherif Berisha, Shefget
Topojani, Naim Krasniqi, Muje Prekuni, Elmi Cujani, Qazim
Sejdia, Ali Culiqi, Isak Shabani, Selim Gashi, Shkelzen
Zariqi, Agron Tolaj, Hajdin Ramaj, Ismet Gashi, Muhamet
Rama, Esat Shehu, Selman Ukehaxhaj, Agim Syla, Hasan Rama,
Ramadan Nishori, Hidajim Morina, Sadik Bytyci, Enver
Hashani, Besim Rama, Valon Berisha, Nexhat Shulaku, Edmond
Dushi, Naser Shurnjaku, Visar Dushi, Agim Hoda, Mustafe
Ahmeti, Arsim Bakalli, Menduh Duraku, Muhedin Zeka,
Kreshnik Hoda, Admir Pruthi, Nexhmedin Baraku, Mehdi
Ferizi, Fisnik Zhaveli, Muhamet Guta, Faik Mustafaj,
Selami Curraj, Artan Nasi, Yll Kusari, Yll Ferizi,
Peraprim Efendija, Arbnor Koshi, Petrit Vula, Idriz Feta,
Jeton Rizniqi, Genc Xhara, Behar Hoti, Qamil Haxhibeqiri,
Fahri Hoti, Adnan Hoti, Fatmir Tafarshiku, Shpetim Hoxha,
Esat Ahma, Hysen Juniku, Yll Pepa, Erdogan Mati, Shkelzen
Nura, Esat Zherka, Shpend Musacana, Adriatik Pula, Labinot
Pula, Gezim Sada, Bekim Jota, Emin Delia, Zog Delia, Alb
Delia, Yll Delia, As Ahmeti, Yll Kastrati, Adnan
Haxhibeqiri, Gazmend Zhubi, Gent Nushi, Enver Dula, Mithat
Buza, Bekim Rragomi, Aliriza Truti, Skender Zhina, Petrit
Jakupaj, Elmi Tahiri, Agim Muhaxheri, Faton Hoda, Agron
Pula, Tahir Kajdomcaj, Florent Trudi, Adriatik Vokshi,
Ymri Ahmeti, Armond Koshi, Atli Kryeziu, Dukagjin Pula,
Jusuf Brovina, Gani Gexha, Sulejman Brovina, Hasan
Halilaj, Halil Guta, Albert Koshi, Fatos Dautaga, Sami
Morina, Luan Xheka, Tahir Skenderaj, Bjerem Juniku, Sabit
Beqiri, Dijamant Mici, Nexhat Vehapi, Fadil Lushaj, Binak
Haxhija, Avdyl Precaj, Xhamajl Thaci, Nazim Morina,

[[Page H6068]]

Flamur Pana, Fatos Deva, Musat Ukaj, Ardian Tetrica,
Driton Aliaga, Bekim Mullahasani, Bashkim Mustafa, Besfort
Mullahasani, Driton Ballata, Diamant Manxhuka, Rinor Lama,
Fatmir Pruthi, Ferhat Luhani, Bekim Musa, Petrit Kepuska,
Mithat Guta, Agim Hasiqi, Gembi Batusha, Hysni Hoda, Hivzi
Perolli, Mazllom Grushti, Jeton Bytyci, Bujar Hasiqi,
Petrit Sahatqija, Vllaznim Radogoshi, Imer Guta, Shefqet
Bokshi, Kastriot Zhubi, Florent Zhubi, Edmond Shtaloja,
Burim Dobruna, Isa Axhanela, Driton Xhiha, Hasan Zeneli,
Rasim Rexha, Haqif Ilazi, Bilbil Duraku, Sejdi Bellanica,
Defrim Rifaj, Nehat Binaku, Enver Berisha, Jakif Mazreku,
Hysni Krasniqi, Haki Elshani, Avni Koleci, Shaban Kolgeci,
Rexhep Agilaj, Arif Kabashi, Azem Nedrotaj, Xhevat
Shukolli, Zaim Catapi, Milaim Kabashi, Xhavit Kolgeci,
Maliq Sokoli, Haxhi Ukaj, Ramadan Kokollari, Arben Basha,
Feriz Haziri, Sedji Haziraj, Hazir Zenelaj, Xhavit
Krasniqi, Milaim Matoshi, Mustafe Kolgeci, Arsim Gashi,
Emin Kryeziu, Sherif Ilazi, Arsim Ziba, Defrim Kiqina,
Zenel Ademi, Fadil Xhulani, Qamil Rama, Pjeter Cira,
Bilbil Shehu, Isuf Bardoshi, Ilir Kortoshi, Osman
Tortoshi, Sulo Kuqi, Sulejman Deliu, Gazmend Krasniqi, Zil
Qipa, Shaban Rama, Jahe Sadrija, Muharrem Pajaziti, Naser
Tahirsylaj, Muhamet Tahiri, Arben Dobani, Besim Zogaj,
Xhavit Gashi, Sali Cunaj, Fatmir Kokollari, Nezir Zogaj,
Naim Baleci, Agron Borani, Rakip Mirena, Bekim Krasniqi,
Rexhep Luzha, Ramiz Bajrami, Ali Gashi, Ramadan Berisha,
Abdullah Cunaj, Sinan Bytyci, Shemsi Gallopeni, Shefqet
Kabashi, Fazli Pranca, Musli Avdyli, Ibrahim Isufaj,
Sulejman Bytyci, Muharrem Qypaj, Ahmet Demiri, Xhafer
Shala, Sami Gashi, Agron Berisha, Sahit Ziba, Nijazi
Kryeziu, Hasan Shala, Abaz Beqiri, Filip Pjetri, Nazmi
Haliti, Agim Ibraj, Haxhi Barjaktari, Ruzhdi Morina,
Bashkim Jusufi, Burim Musliu, Hime Shala, Haki Haziraj,
Valdet Rama, Gasper Selmanaj, Besnik Kuqi, Adem Kuqi,
Jeton Alia, Ademali Metaj, Naim Balaj, Halit Ndrecaj,
Bajram, Bajraj, Xhavit Kacaniku, Naim Zejnaj, Feriz
Zabelaj, Nexhat Sylaj, Nuhi Boka, Hajrullah Samadraxha,
Naser Kalimoshi, Qazim Krasniqi, Ali Isa, Kadri Jaha, Ymer
Krasniqu, Sali Ahmedi, Hajdin Alia, Asllan Lumi, Xhemajl
Sallauka, Murat Kabashi, Hamit Buzhala, Lumni Matoshi,
Gazmend Bytyci, Xhavit Malaj, Daut Gashi, Zymer Gashi,
Mehdi Gashi, Nasuf Gorani, Osman Llugaxhia, Fatmir
Berisha, Hasan Istogu, Milaim Kastrati, Rexhep Alimusaj,
Abdullah Shala, Uke Kolgeci, Hasan Kuqi, Sali Loshi, Burim
Bllaca, Sedat Kolgeci, Albert Kolgeci, Emri Loshi, Sherif
Hamza, Uke Thaci, Nazmi Franca, Naim Leku, Riza Krasniqi,
Tafe Kurtaj, Ismet Beqiraj, Bahri Beqaj, Sali Maliqaj,
Muhedin Nivokazi, Ramadan Zymeraj, Haki Ademaj, Hajzer
Hajrullahu, Hekuran Cari, Adem Zenuni, Dul Cunaj, Ferit
Tafallari, Sinan Tafilaj, Shaqir Selmanaj, Hasan Sadikaj,
Blerim Krasniqi, Maki Begolli, Behar Jetishi, Agim
Jetishi, Kastriot Jetishi, Zenel Jetishi, Skender
Kelmendi, Nexhat Krasniqi, Bashkim Dvorani, Bekim
Mazrreku, Izet Sejfijaj, Rexhep Xhemajli, Xhemajl
Muharremi, Ismet Sukaj, Besim Ramaj, Blerim Shala, Adem
Morina, Hasan Mulaj, Frasher Shabani, Xhevat Haziri, Ismet
Musaj, Fatos Malaj, Haki Mahmutademaj, Kamber Goxholi,
Mustafe Shala, Avni Syla, Ahmet Kapitaj, Pashk Quni,
Driton Berisha, Luan Bajrami, Selim Sutaj, Riza Tahirukaj,
Rexhe Jakupi, Hamdi Hyseni, Mersin Berisha, Nexhdet Kida,
Lahe Mataj, Naim Kidaj, Ismet Ademi, Tahir Salihi, Arben
Bazi, Arif Ahmeti, Istref Sadrija, Sadik Zeqiri, Bajram
Merqa, Gezim Abazi, Sahit Haxhosaj, Idriz Asllanaj, Agim
Makolli, Halil Deliu, Bektesh Qahili, Adil Kollari, Avdyl
Jetishi, Burim Jetishi, Shkelzen Kida, Skender Cakolli,
Qerim Jetishi, Mikel Dodaj, Leke Pevorfi, Brahim Pepshi,
Rrahmon Jonuzaj, Fitim Halimi, Behar Jetishi, Bedri
Shabanaj, Shkumbin Malaj, Zenel Kurmehaj, Jeton Malaj,
Sejdi Begaj, Misin Rexha, Hasan Daloshi, Fatmir Kurtaj,
Agim Reqica, Shpetim Krasniqi, Zeqir Leshani, Ylber
Topalli, Shefqet Beqa, Besim Zymberi, Qamil Abazi, Brahe
Beqiraj, Din Gjoni, Skender Gashi, Shaban Beka, Agron
Ramadani, Arif Vokshi, Nebi Tahiri, Skender Racaj, Ilaz
Bislimi, Rexhe Gashi, Sabri Arifaj, Nizat Morina, Ahmet
Ahmeti, Burim Brovina, Perparim Zejnullahu, Abdurrahman
Naha, Artan Morina, Falmur Godeni, Valdet Krasniqi, Adnan
Brovina, Fatmir Bytyqi, Mexhit Zenelaj, Rizo Bekiq,
Milazim Kolgeci, Vesel Llugaxhia, Arben Llugaxhia, Selim
Hasani, Arben Morina, Gani Igalli, Genc Kida, Ajet Ibraj,
Muje Ibraj, Tarap Kida, Samat Gati, Leonard Krasniqi,
Bashkim Haziraj, Bashkim Kabashi, Caush Sevgja, Ramiz
Berisha, Gjon Sefaj, Arsim Kullashi, Hasan Zariqi, Mehmet
Rexhaj, Agim Hulaj, Muje Tafilaj, Ramadan Avdiu, Raim
Aliu, Isuf Zekaj, Smajl Smajli.
Prison of Sremska Mitrovica (Serbia):
Bedri Zymer Shabanaj, Liman Shefki Haxholli, Sami Kamer
Ajeti, Rasim Xheladin Muja, Luan Ajet Statovci, Gezim Nazmi
Statovci, Enver Hamit Sekiraqa, Bekim Ilmi Istogu, Sylejman
Bejtullah Sopjani, Isak Iljaz Kurshumlija, Lek Mihilja
Pervulfi, Ragip Syle Ahmeti, Fehim Rustem Vrelaku, Ilmi Musli
Karagjani, Bekim Avdulla Mazreku, Agim Sylejman Kelmendi,
Rexhep Rushit Musliu, Hysni Rrustem Nursedi, Izet Sadik
Sadriu, Faton Zymer Malaj, Muharrem Jahe Krasniqi, Naser
Bajram Istogu, Abdyl Jusuf Jetishi, Riza Hajdar Dembogaj,
Zeqir A. Pacolli, Gani Asllan Daci, Liman Fazli Aliu, Muhamer
Avdiu, Shkumbin S. Malaj, Lah Haxhi Mataj, Sheremet Zenel
Ahmeti, Halip Hajrullah Reshica, Bajrush Muharrem Xhemaili,
Gent Jakup Nushi, Dem Halil Ranoshaj, Xhemajl Muharrem
Muharremi, Xhavit Shaban Mustapani, Ahmet Sefe Ahmeti,
Skender Sylejman Gjiha, Fahri Rexhep Ejupi, Bastri Jahim
Azemi, Iljaz Gani Gashi, Shefqet Aziz Kosumi, Jakup Hasan
Ademi, Behar Kadri Zymeri, Florijan Hilmi Istogu, Habib
Shaban Shabani, Shaip Male Berisha, Hasan Ahmet Jashari,
Halim Ramadan Musliu, Abullah Haxhi Hoxha, Ajet Liman Zariqi,
Agron Beqir Ejupi, Asllan Jusuf Zekaj, Skender Haxhi
Kelmendi, Ridvan Shaip Salihu, Rasim Ramadan Zota, Bekim
Nevruz Ragipi, Bajram Mustafe Tahi, Uke Mehmet Goxhaj, Halil
Hajrullah Nashica, Bajrush Muharrem Gjemaili, Xhemail
Muharrem Muharremi, Ahmet Sefa Ahmeti, Fahri Rexhep Ujupi,
Iljaz Gani Gashi, Jakup Hasan Ademi, Ergjylent Elbasan Gashi,
Arben Ahmet Bajraktari, Adem Jusuf Morina, Nezir Tafil Sh.,
Bekim Ibrahim Istogu, Afrim Ismet Uka, Drestan Islam Sukaj,
Fadil Kosum Gashi, Bujar Xhafer Goranci, Fejzullah Hasim N.,
Ramiz Ibrahim Isufaj, Avdyl Beqir Kreqka, Imer Bajram Zhushi,
Mirsad Vesel Bashota, Izet Sabri Zenuni, Mehmet Rexhep
Gashi, Osman Haxhi T., Fejzullah Zenel Abdyli, Bexhet Ise
Gashi, Zeqir Abdullahu, Shkeqim Rrahim Selimi, Syle R.
Murati, Kujtim H. Sh., Musa Hajriz Gashi, Abedin Mugaj,
Osman Isuf Hoti, Ramiz Riza Sopjani, Braim Muharrem Isufi,
Muhamet Bexhet Thaci, Azem Hazir Sylejmani, Avdi Zejnullah
Ajeti, Sokol Xhafer Jakupi, Xhevat Esat Aziri, Qamil Abaz
Abazi, Sinan Sylejman Kelmendi, Kastriot Qazim Jetishi,
Beqe Isuf Ukshini, Arber Shefqet Pervuku, Ahmet Mustafe
Kapitaj, Besim Muhamet Zymberi, Mexhdet Ramadan Kida,
Mustafe Emin Shaqa, Rexhe Brahim Jakupi, Faton Vesel
Istogu, Bahtir Hamdi Bahtiri, Rexhep Tafil Topalli, Feriz
Aziz Kaqili, Isuf Asllan Sylaj, Besim Hasan Jashari,
Rrahim Avdi Nika, Florim Sadri Dervishi, Tomorr Haxhi
Hoxha, Shaban Haxhi Hoxha, Agim Like Brahimi, Shkelzen
Ramadan Kida, Mersin Beqir Berisha, Durak Riza Gerbeshi,
Shaban Hamez Frasheri, Bujar Ibrahim Cuni, Beqir Akil
Abazi, Kamber Syle Bucolli, Hasan Beqir Mula, Haxhibeqir
Masar Ajdini, Avdyl Xhabir Skilferi, Enver Muhamed Dula,
Agim Sadri Ceku, Gani Elez Baqaj, Behxhet Kadir Krasniqi,
Sabri Bajram Arifaj, Hazir Mustafe Stoliqi, Hysen Abdyl
Blakqorri, Idriz Bajram Cufaj, Basri Mehmet Dragusha,
Shpetim Feriz Gashi, Arben Jakup Gashi, Zenel Asllan
Myftari, Gani Xheme Ahmetgjekaj, Hajredin Hajdar Hyseni,
Arton Ruzhdi Bashota, Shpend Fazli Dobruna, Xhemsat Male
Shehaj, Avni Brahim Memija, Haki Osman Haziraj, Adnan
Ismajl Topalli, Hysni Xhelaladin Dautaj, Bujar Hasan
Sylaj, Sylejman Faik Bytyci, Fadil Zenun Xhavitaj, Fazli
Myftar Franca, Zijadin Abdullah Blakqorri, Valdet Qazim
Jetishi, Nebi Dibran Rama, Fitim Nazmi Halimi, Remzi Idriz
Dacolli, Fehmi Zejnullah Uka, Zenel Myftar Jetishi, Nazim
Xhavit Halili, Gazmend Mustafe Tahiraj, Halil Sylejman
Xhelili, Agim Nure Jetishi, Hilmi Tahir Begolli, Ekrem
Zejnel Jusufi, Azem Hasan Hasani, Skender Sokol Topalli,
Sevdie Rrahman Muratoviqi, Xhevat, Shaban Tahiri, Sherif
Zeqir Demaj, Halil Muhamet Kadrijaj, Nizat Morina, Ylber
Shane Kastrati, Mehmet Bane Kelmendi, Luan Selman
Ahmetgjekaj, Skender Rame Bajraktari, Arsim Shaban
Berisha, Hashim Ramadan Krasniqi, Halil Sahit Lika, Suat
Beqir Lushtaku, Refik Hamdi Hasani, Bedri Izet Ademi, Sali
Syle Ramaj, Bashkim Mehdi Sadiku, Hysni Sejdi Drenica,
Azem Ramadan Jegrova, Afrim Feriz Seferi, Zymer Hamit
Toplani, Safet Rexhep Kelmendi, Blerim Sadik Shatri,
Behxhet Ymer Rmoku, Rexhep Selim Koca, Rexhe Fazli Gashi,
Rasim Muhamet Selmanaj, Enver Ibrahim Thaci, Luan Syle
Bajrami, Behar Gani Jetishi, Jeton Zymber Mala, Strellci i
eperm, Abedin Mursel Meha, Prekazi ulte, Sahit Musli
Pllana, Leskoshiq, Valon Idriz Gashi, Balince, Kline,
Besim Muse Ramaj, Prishtina, Nexhat Murat Krasniqi,
Negroc, Gllogoc, Bekim Sadri Cikaqi, Doberdelan, Bislim
Selan Bajraktari, Klina e eperme, Bashkim Shefqet Diorani,
Terstenik, Gllogoc, Isat Selim Shala Barileve, Prishtine,
Sali Syle Gashi, Kline, Hysni Rrustem Podrimcaku, Krejkovm
Gllogoc, Arben Rize Shabani, Dashevc Skenderaj, Dervish
Kadri Zukaj, Peje, Ministet Xhafer Shala, Prizren, Syl
Abdullah Abdyli, Likoshan, Skender Smail Asani, Likoshan,
Sylejman Sali Bajgora, Hertice Podujeve, Ekrem Selim Leci,
Barileve, Fadil Jashar Makolli, Prishtina, Gani Kadri
Elshani, Gllogoc, Xhevat Bexhet Podvorica, Dumosh,
Podujeve, Abaz llaz Krasniqi, Vucjak, Gllogoc, Muj Halil
Zekaj, Cerobreg, Decan Ismet Islam Suljka, Obri Gllogoc,
Aziz Ibrahim Hamzaj, Gjinovce Suha Reke, Gazmend Rafret
Zhubi, Gjakove, Qerkin Mehmet Brajshori, Sharban
Prishtine, Gezim Muhamet Zecaj, Samodrexh, Suhareke,
Fatmir Bajram Canolli, Marevc, Prishtine, Selim Sadri
Sutaj, Lluka e Eperme, Decan Xhemshir Rafat Aliti,
Cikatov, Gllogoc, Alban Muharrem Elshani, Korotic,
Gllogoc, Muharrem Gashi, Prishtine, Isuf Haxhi Hadri,
Gjakove Skender Beke Mekaj, Nabrgje, Peje, Pashk Pren
Cuni, Talibare, Gjakove, Burim Syl Morina, Suhareke,
Ramadan Bajram Jakupi, Prapashtice, Safet Balja, Gllareve,
Kline, Ramiz Shefki Sylejmani, Koncul Bujanoc, Yenel Haxhi
Kolmehaj, Strellci i eperm, Decan, Hasan Mustafe Alija
Kraljan, Gjakove, Agron Shaban Prokshi, Brbatovc, Gllogoc,

[[Page H6069]]

Abdullah Islam Bajraktari, Gllogoc, Arsim Idriz Hasani,
Podujeve, Fatmir Ismail Shishani, Dobroshec, Ramiz Shefki
Vitia, Marevc, Xhevdet Sherif Murseli, Shtrubullov,
Gllogoc, Sadri Idriz, Krasniqi, Makoc, Osman Rrahman
Murati, Tupall, Medvegj, Xhevdet Adem Stublla, Alabak,
Podujeve, Xhavit Xhafer Ajazi, Dobratin, Brahim Bahtir
Grbeshi, Marec, Ali Rrustem Berisha, Graboc, Agim Muse
Buzoku, Marec, Bajram Pacolli Marec, Nysret Sadik Sadiku,
Veternik, Ilir Idriz Krasniqi, Vrahovc Peje, Yoje Sefer
Gashi, Peje, Arsim Isa Krasniqi, Prishtine, Agim Isa
Krasniqi, Prishtine, Naser Selim Pajaziti, Orlan Podujeve,
Shaban Imer Mehmetaj, Rudice, Kline, Blerim Zeqir Shala,
Vucjak Gllogoc, Kadri, Shyqyri Derguti, Rahovec, Arbnor
Nexhat Xhemajli, Peje, Remzi Zenel Tetrica, Gjakove, Jahir
Sadik Agushi, Drenoc, Avni Sylja, Mulliq, Xhem Sadri
Morina, Ratkovc, Florin Zokaj Belege, Decan, Salih Selman
Zariqi, Baice, Xhemail Avdi Elshani, Krajkove, Ekrem
Shejki Ejupi, Sekirac, Podujeve, Sejdi Tahir Bega, Jezerc,
Nezir Rexhep Bajraktari, Radice, Kline, Hasan, Ali Ademi,
Karaq, Vushtrri, Nazif Ahmet, Culani, Baice, Neki Selajdin
Sadiku, Gjakove, Isuf Smajl Hajrizj, Kecekoll, Avdi
Abdullah Vitija, Hajvali, Barsi Bajram Gashi, Vrbica,
Gjilan, Ismet Mahmuti, Podujeve, Arif Toskaj, Novo Selle,
Peje, Driton Osman Berisha, Gjakove, Avdi Zeqir Pacolli,
Marec, Agim Vrshevci, Domanek, Bekim Shala, Trud,
Prishtine, Nexhid Hamid Zani, Abedin Mustafe, Mehmeti,
Kline e mesme, Ismet Pacarizi, Dragobil, Namon Murati,
Topalle, Enver Beselica, Prishtine, Pjeter Buzhalja, Peje,
Tefik Shabani, Prishtine, Albert Sadiku, Peje, Mitat Buza,
Gjakove, Valdet Halilaj, Trdevc, Haki Mahmut Demaj,
Sreoce, Decane, Rrustem Letaj, osekhil, Gjakove, Hazir
Krasniqi, Negroc, Mustafe Mehmetaj, Rodice, kline, Tefik
Salihu, Trstenik, Fatmir Krasniqi, Lukare, Brahim Beke
Pepoci, Dujake, Gjakove, Jakup Rexhepi, Gilogoc, Ramadan
Gashim Svrhe, Kline, Visar Muriqi, Peje, Fazli Hajdari,
Dobroshec, Besnik Ismaili, Tucevac, Kamenice, llmi Zenili,
Petric, Kline, Xhafer Cufaj, Prilep, Decan, Aslan Selim
Asllani, Brovine, Gjakove, Predrag Ismail Hasani,
Dobruska, Istok, Zija Xhelili, Prelepnica Gjilane, Haki
Kastrati, Radost Rahovec, Nikoll Markaj, Radac Gjakove,
Naser Shporta, Prizren, Migjen Shala, Truda, Prishtine,
Baki kamani, Prishtine, Bekim Begolli, Trnove, Podujeve,
Sabit Thaci, Ilapushnik, Faruk Dakaj, Cerovik, Veli
Kajtazaj, Prishtine, Nexhmedin Gashi, Hajvali, Shefqet
Beqa, Dac, Kacanik, Bujar Maksuti, Prishtine, Muhamet
Bega, Jezerc, Ferizaj, Riza Tahirukaj, Luka e eperme,
Decan, Hajriz Murati, Shakovice, Rexhep Veseli, Shkup,
Abdullah Gjunaji, Konjush, Sali Kautaj, Shillove.
City Prison of Krushevc (Serbia):
Veli Zogaj, Agim Qemal Bajrami.
City Prison of Vranje (Serbia):
Njazi Hajdari, Besim Ramadani, Fadil Kallaba, Sabit Hoxha,
Mubijan Arifi, Ejup Morina, Bekim Bunjaku, Shefik Maksuti,
Ziadin Mehmeti, Murat Baralia, Fehmi Lecaj, Naim Shaqiri,
Muharrem Bajrami, Xhemajl Xhemajli, Rasim Rulani, Bejtullah
Novobrdalia, Jeton Vllasalia, Besim Ahmeti, Shaban Asani,
Adem Asani, Ramiz Bajrami, Ahmet Aliu, Zulfi Gashi, Ruzhdi
Jashari, Bajram Demiqi, Rrustem Demiqi, Fahri Baftia, Islam
Lipovica, Zeqir Morina, Fevzi Lekiqi, Fazil Abdullahu, Xhevat
Demiri.
City Prison of Zajecar (Serbia):
Braim Mehmet Shala, Cane Nimon Shoshaj, Isat Ramadan
Shoshaj, Agim Syle Shoshaj, Fazli Zenel Shoshaj, Kamber Zenel
Shoshaj, Vedat Ramadan Shoshaj, Selman Sadik Cekaj, Xhevdet
Rama Qorraj, Afrim Avdi Blakaj, Afrim Shaban Alilaj, Mustafa
Rrustem Alilaj, Fetah Uke Alilaj, Sali Shaban Asllani, Mentor
Dervish Balaj, Fahri Rrustem Balaj, Arbnor Xhelal Bajraktari,
Arianit Xhelal Barjaktari, Ilir Avdi Barjaktari, Avni Musa
Barjaktari, Muharrem Rexhep Barjaktari, Ibish Musa Pepaj,
Agim Halil Berisha, Muhamet Iber Berisha, Aziz Iker Kerisha
Xhavit Idriz Berisha, Skender Isa Berisha, Rasim Maxhun
Berisha, Mujo Maxhun Berisha, Ramiz Muharrem Berisha, Osman
Rame Berisha, Zenun Selim Berisha, Kujtim Smajl Berisha,
Shefqet Sokol Berisha, Tahir Musa Berisha, Muharrem Musa
Berisha, Driton Ibish Blakaj, Gezim Muharrem Blakaj, Rexho
Haxhi Bucollli, Bujar Ismajl Mavraj, Ramiz Emshir
Cernovrshanin, Rashid Emshir Cernovrshanin, Bekim Caush
Dautaj, Fidan Aziz Dervishaj, Kemajl Hasan Dobra, Shefqet
Arif Dreshaj, Arif Bajram Dreshaj, Agim Zymer Dreshaj, Hasim
Kadri Dukaj, Avni Kadri Dukaj, Fadil Smajl Berisha, Florent
Isa Ukaj, Atdhe Bajram Gashi, Isuf Bajram Gashi, Bashkim Caca
Gashi, Jusuf Ibish Gashi, Haxhi Smajl Gashi, Arif Smajl
Gashi, Ajet Mujo Gecaj, Armend Ibrahim Grudi, Sadri Muharrem
Haxhiaj, Jahe Sali Haxhiaj, Adem Zeqe Halili, Dem Isuf
Haradinaj, Armend Shpend Hasaj, Zeqo Adem Hasaj, Afrim Smajl
Hasaj, Agron Zenel Hasanaj, Islam Ajet Hysenaj, Isa Smajl
Hysenaj, Rrustem Sadri Husaj, Zenel Idriz Husaj, Huharem
Sadri Idrizaj, Burim Osman Kabashi, Faruk Isuf Kabashi, Imer
Sherif Kelmendi, Milazim Haxhi Kelmendi, Mustafa Jusuf
Kelmendi, Fidan Rama Kelmendi, Erzen Ramaden Kelmendi, Safet
Rama Kabashi, Agron Avdyl Krasniqi, Gani Tahir Krasniqi,
Xhavit Selman Kuqi, Kujtim Mehmet Leka, Labinot Ali Lipoveci,
Tahir Adem Madonaj, Ahmet Binak Mahmutaj, Bedri Binak
Mahmutaj, Lavdim Beqir Mavraj, Besar Dema Mavraj, Petrit Emin
Mavraj, Hamdi Feriz Mavraj, Ragip Januz Mavraj, Fadil Miftar
Mavraj, Nazmi Muharem Navraj, Aush Musa Mavraj, Kadri Musa
Mavraj, Abedin Nezir Mavraj, Nesret Nezir Mavraj, Muhamet
Nezir Mavraj, Hasan Ali Mazrekaj, Rustem Ali Mazrekaj, Rame
Selman Mazrekaj, Avni Adem Mehmetaj, Durim Ramadan Mehmetj,
Hajdar Ramo Mekaj, Miftar Ramo Mekaj, Smajl Shaban Miftaraj,
Selim Binak Morina, Arkin Azem Muqkurtaj, Muhamet Qamil
Thaqi, Muhamet Mustaf Qetaj, Shaban Bajram Muriqi, Kaplan
Bajram Muriqi, Kaplan Selim Nikqi, Hys Selim Nikqi, Ymer Beko
Nitaj, Sefer Beko Nitaj, Besim Ismet Nitaj, Zenel Miftar
Nitaj, Zeke Hajdar Osmanaj, Arben Sadri Osmanaj, Shaqir
Ahmet Osmanaji, Shaqir Ahmet Osmanaj, Faton Ymer Osmani,
Fitim Osman Osmani, Ymer Ukshin Osmani, Xhemaji Justafe
Lajiqi, Valdet Muhemet Lekaj, Ramadan Tahir Keimendi, Sulo
Qazim Rexhaj, Elzen Ahmet Rexhaj, Agush Muherem Rexhaj,
Mehmet Musa Rexhaj, Mustafa Tahir Rexhaj, Agron Zenun
Rexhaj, Rexho Ahmet Fetahaj, Qazim Sejdi Sejdijaj, Ahmet
Haxhi Sulaj, Shefqet Hasan Thaqi, Ismet Xhemo Tuzi, Azem
Xhemo Tuzi, Azem Xhemo Tuzi, Hajim Haki Vranezi, Zeqe Mete
Zeqa, Mexhid Mehmed Zeqaj, Aziz Mehmed Zeqaj, Nukman Zeqir
Zemaj, Agim Haxhi Zumeri, Vegim Qamil Zuna.
City Prison of Leskovac (Serbia)
Ali Hajdin Zeneli, Bekim Syl Kalamoshi, Murtez Dam Islamaj,
Shkelzen Selmon Zukaj, Sherif Zeqir Krasniqi, Shaban Binak
Thaqi, Shkelzen Xhemaji; Muslijaj, Beqir Arif Beqiraj, Isuf
Smajl Ymeri, Kadri Smajl Ymeri, Gazmend Siqan Bajrami,
Xhevdet Rem Bajrami, Beqir Tahir Loxhaj, Vllaznim Brahim
Perxhexhaj, Agron Ibrahim Koqaku, Binak Mislim Selmonaj, Beke
Smajl Selmonaj, Sadik Lush Danaj, Musa Nazir Beqiraj, Nimon
Maxhun Zekaj, Islam Miftar Qestaj, Kujtim Ymer Salihaj,
Xhafer Meta Maloku, Rexhe Xhemajl Abdulahu, Arif Salih
Fetahaj, Skender Ali Mehmeti, Abdulah Sadik Hoxha, Behar Adem
Bahri, Shaban Rustem Hadergjonaj, Ndrec Zef Kqiro, Idriz
Halil Ramoni, Zef Ndue Markaj, Ali Dervish Curaj, Shaqir Azem
Hajdaraj, Fazli Zeke Rexhaj, Kristijan Gjoke Bibiqaj, Brahim
Rexhep Salcaj, Nikol Frat Berisha, Islam Rame Qekaj, Isuf
Bajram Krasniqi, Isuf Bajram Krasniqi, Shpetim Bajram Hoti,
Deme Hasan Bunjaku, Lutfi Zeke Miroci, Smajl Muharem Ramqaj,
Haxhi Muharem Zubaj, Zija Rasim Humaj, Xhafer Zenel Lotaj,
Bekim Adem Memaj, Riza Rustem Mavraj, Xheme Elez Mavraj, Sami
Rame Shala, Him Misin Balaj, Valdet Beqir Barjaktari, Naim
Gjon Tuzi, Rame Mehmet Muqaj, Musli Qazim Berisha, Hamdi Elez
Mavraj, Arif Deme Neziraj, Afrim Bilal Shabani, Selmon Hisen
Osmanaj, Haxhi Duqa Mehmetaj, Izet Nezir Kuqi, Ferad Sali
Berisha, Zenel Syle Iberdemaj, Musa Tahir Blakaj, Deme Maxhun
Berisha, Nexhmedin Tahir Mavraj, Avni Zenun Balaj, Ilo Shefki
Seniku, Zef Pren Bicaj, Deli Mustafe Mavraj, Sali Musa Belaj,
Ragip Azem Vranezi, Mahmutaj Rame Nexhaj, Fadil Ramadan
Quliqi, Milazim Sadik Blakaj, Iso Rexhep Kelmendi, Xhelo
Shaban Shala, Naim Dervish Balaj, Faruk Azem Kelmendi, Riza
Rame Ceku, Ismajl Sherif Kelmendi, Nexhat Januz Kabashi,
Bajram Rexhep Kelmendi, Nexhdet Isuf Bajramaj, Avni Nimon
Shoshaj, Idriz Zeko Blakaj, Halil Sait Gashi, Hamdi Ymer
Shoshaj, Blerim Ymer Kelmendi, Hasan Adem Cocaj, Adem
Sheremet Berisha, Tahir Isuf Barjaktari, Skender Hasan
Shoshaj, Skender Rizo Shabaj, Avdyl Mahmut Husaj, Xhavit
Musa Dresh, Arif Cafe Hysaj, Luarez Jusuf Kelmendi,
Muhamed Zeke Bajraj, Fadil Binak Qalaj, Florim Deme Gashi,
XHafer Deli Gashi, Halil Adem Gashi, Arif Rexhep Gashi,
Sejdi Qerim Gashi, Gezim Rame Kabashi, Ise Ali Kabashi,
Mustafe Duat Bajramaj, Riza Ibish Ukaj, Flakron Hajdar
Nekaj, Blerim Bajram Beqiraj, Qerim Bajram Elshani, Rifat
Hasan Nurina, Shaban Osman Gashi, Xheme Rexhep Berisha,
Ali Deme Qelaj, Sejdi Binak Ahmeti, Sulejman Sejdi Zekaj,
Ismajl Rexhe Zekaj, Abdulla Avdi Zekaj, Ise Rame Tahiraj,
Sadri Ali Zekaj, Tahir Rize Alijaj, Valon Osman Zekaj,
Zeqir Osman Morina, Rexhep Tahir Kurtaj, Ramadan Avdije
Zekaj, Mustafe Feka Nimonaj, Ismajl Shaban Hysa, Bashkim
Deme Gashi, Shaban Deme Gashi, Syle Rexhep Bytyqi, Pajzit
Hazir Gashi, Xhevat Xhemaj Gashi, Arben Mehmet Gashi,
Zenun Bajram Bajrami, Enver Mehmet Gashi, Bajram Zenun
Bajrami, Nezir Tahir Gashi, Haser Sadik Gashi, Fadil Daut
Gashi, Nimon Nezir Gashi, Mehmet Ibrahim Gashi, Avni
Rrustem Mavraj, Mehdi Memet Zeqaj, Driton Bali Hysaj,
Hajredin Binak Mavraj, Agim Myftar Abdullahu, Bajram Rame
Kelmendi, Sadri Rexhep Kelmendi, Berat Murat Kabashi, Isa
Shaban Shabaj, Ramiz Sadik Berisha, Valdet Sali Mavraj,
Jahe Elez Mavraj, Mentor Qaush Dautaj, Rrustem Hajdar
Mamaj, Florent Ali Lipoveci, Rame Tahir Haziraj, Gazmend
Hasan Kameraj, Albert Rexhep Salihi, Bekri Sadik
Rrustemaj, Avni Rezi Shala, Nezir Hajdar Latifi, Hasan
Jusuf Ukaj, Pjeter Matej Ndrecaj, Pal Pren Ndrecaj, Riza
Mete Sadrijaj, Xhafer Musa Zeneli, Rasim Adem Hysenaj,
Hasan Puka, Muharem Donaj, Vesel Murta, Bashkim Arif
Bajrami, Eduard Rifat Muharemi, Mal Tahir Ajdinaj,
Vladimir Momqillo Vrdar, Vladimir Tonko Dupalo, Blerim Uke
Hetaj, Suad Etem Hetaj, Shefqet Isuf Osmanaj, Xhafter Isuf
Osmanaj, Mehmet Qazim Krasniqi, Qaush Nezir Shpatollaj,
Ramadan Ahmet Sopjani, Neset Xhemajl Zhabeli, Esat Ibrahim
Zeka,

[[Page H6070]]

Musa Omer Sinani, Tahir Arslan Mehmetaj, Dede Mark Gecaj,
Hamze Gani Luboja.
City Prison of Nish (Serbia):
Hasan Zeneli, Ramadan Kokulaj, Arben Basha, Jahir Mazreku,
Sejdi Haziraj, Haxhi Ukaj, Ferik Haziri, Mustafe Alimusaj,
Hasan Shala, Haqif Ilazi, Enver Berisha, Milaim Kabashi,
Hysni Krasniqi, Mexhit Zenelaj, Arif Kabashi, Arsim Kabashi,
Defrim Rifaj, Rexhep Aliaj, Hazir Zenelaj, Sejdi Belanica,
Bylbyl Duraku, Selim Kadriu, Rizo Gjekiq, Zaim Qatani, Zadin
Berisha, Xhavit Krasniqi, Nijazi Kryeqiu, Xhevat Daciq,
Sylejman Ziba, Arsim Ziba, Xhemajl Salauka, Murat Kabashi,
Arben Llugaxhiu, Arben Kolgeci, Emri Loshi, Arben Morina,
Jemin Kryeziu, Hasan Istogu, Milaim Kastrati, Hasan Muqa,
Burim Bllaca, Selim Gashani, Uke Ndrecaj, Nazmi Franca,
Zymer Gashi, Vesel Llugaxhiu, Uke Kolgeci, Osman
Llugazhiu, Mehdi Gashi, Avni Kolgeci, Daut Gashi, Xhevat
Shukolli, Agron Perteshi, Maliq Shukolli, Nasuf Dvorani,
Mustafe Kolgeci, Naser Hysaj, Sokol Morina, Sherif
Berisha, Ismet Krasniqi, Shaban Quipi, Neqir Shala, Hilmi
Krasniqi, Arton Krasniqi, Shaban Kolgeci, Hamit Buzhala,
Xhavit Mala, Abdullah Shala, Shefqet Topolani, Riza
Krasniqi, Sahit Ziba, Gezim Ziba, Asllan Lumi, Skender
Hoti, Milazim Kolgeci, Lum Matoshi, Naim Leku, Gani Ibali,
Milaim Matoshi, Haki Elshani, Sali Loshi, Uke Thaqi,
Xhavit Kolgeci, Gazmend Bytyqi, Sherif Hamza, Sedat
Kolgeci, Isa Ismalaj, Ramadan Morina, Asim Morina, Selim
Lokaj, Selim Gashi, Demir Limaj, Ali Xhulliqu, Mustafe
Berisha, Brahim Berisha, Muhamet Rama, Mehemet Memqia,
Agim Lumi, Shkelzen Zllanoga, Halim Shatri, Gani Balia,
Isak Hoti, Adrian Haxhaj, Vehbi Mhuarremi, Lavdim Tetaj,
Fazli Gashi, Arben Lukaj, Asman Kastrati, Muje Prekupi,
Visar Balovci, Ralif Qela, Libum Aliu, Shaban Beka, Arif
Vokshi, Agim Sylaj, Ilaz Dugolli, Ilaz Bislimi, Brahe
Beqiraj, Agron Ramadani, Enver Dugolli, Ramadan Nisholli,
Skender Recaj, Besim Rama, Avdija Mehmedoviq, Dine Gjocaj,
Zejnullah Shala, Selman Ukehazhaj, Maliq Muharemoviq,
Rexhep Oruqi, Shabedin Asallri, Valon Berisha, Idriz
Musliu, Luz Marku, Blerim Camaj, Naim Lushi, Musa
Krasniqi, Leonard Krasniqi, Hasan Vrelaku, Ismet Berbati,
Isa Shalaj, Arif Vrelaku, Fadil Jetishi, Arbnor Koshi,
Hasan Rama, Esat Shehu, Luan Sejdia, Shefqet Vokshi, Elmi
Gjulani, Naim Krasniqi, Ismet Alia, Maki Degolli, Hil
Qira, Nazim Zenelaj, Artan Hasi, Blerim Krasniqi, Arsim
Jullashi, Naser Shunjaku, Meduh Duraku, Faik Mustafa,
Kreshnik Hoxha, Fisnik Zhaveli, Bislim Zoqaj, Asllan
Selimi, Dylber Beka, Arben Selmoni, Avdi Kabashi, Faton
Hoxha, Fatmir Tafarshiku, Asim Bakalli, Filip Pjetri,
Shefqet Kabashi, Mithat Zeka, Shpend Ganinmusa, Besnik
Mezini, Muhamet Guta, Muhedin Zeka, Jeton Xharra,
Nexhmedin Varaku, Lulzim Qerimi, Yll Kusari, Endogand
Mati, Mustafe Gjocaj, Agron Dvorani, Bekim Krasniqi, Fadil
Topalli, Bashkim Jusufi, Ruzhdi Morina, Huhamet Kiqina,
Ylber Dizdari, Astrit Elshani, Rrustem Jetishi, Ramiz
Gjocaj, Enver Hoxha, Hekuran Qarri, Rexhep Sejdiu, Jusuf
Shala, Hysen Reka, Xhavit Gashi, Naim Baleci, Ismajl Musa,
Naser Kalimshi, Isa Alia, Gani Quekaj, Hddin Alia, Esat
Afma, Hysen Juniku, Ismet Gashi, Shpejtim Hoxha, Naim
Zejna, Hamdi Hareqi, Azem Krasniqi, Hasan Berisha, Selim
Qekaj, Sali Hameli, Kadri Jahaj, Naser Qerimi, Ramadan
Avdiu, Boge Hereqi, Riza Alia, Jeton Alia, Bekim Maqi,
Kujtim Jetishi, Bajram Avdyli, Naim Lulaj, Sami Gashi,
Avdyl Maqi, Luan Mazreku, Sami Hasani, Arton Morina, Genc
Kida, Sali Mariqi, Bali Beqaj, Nuhi Bokaj, Avdi Rrahmani,
Flamur Godeni, Isuf Zekaj, Hajrullah Samadraxha, Gani
Gexha, Fatmir Bytyqi, Afrim Caka, Skender Sina, Adnan
Brovina, Sylejman Brovina, Agim Muhaxheri, Remzi Krasniqi,
Jusuf Brovina, Jahir Shala, Skender Tasholli, Bashkim
Berisha, Ymer Krasniqi, Arif Meta, Ismet Beqirai, Tahir
Hyseni, Feriz Zabelaj, Fejzi Krasniqi, Sadik Rexhaj,
Rrahim Aliu, Fatmir Malaj, Reshat Behluli, Adriatik
Vokshi, Flamur Hana, Genc Batusha, Rifat Thaci, Xhemajl
Thaci, Dritero Baleta, Befort Mullahasani, Binak Haxhijai,
Shefki Frazlijaj, Kastriot Gerkuqu, Tahir Kajdomqai,
Florent Rudi, Feriz Bozhdaraj, Driton Aliaga, Hysni Hoxha,
Luan Xheka, Bashkim Mustafa, Sabit Lushaj, Rinor Lamaj,
Avdyl Ndrecaj, Nazim Morina, Mustaf Ukaj, Ferat Luhani,
Jeton Bytyqi, Mazllom Grushi, Hasan Aliaj, Hivzi Perolli,
Bujar Hasiqti, Sami Morina, Burim Hasiqi, Ramadan Xhogaj,
Adem Morina, Agim Hasiqi, Valdet Krasniqi, Avni Bytyqi,
Ardian Tetrica, Naser Mema, Ruzhdi Abazi, Beqir Belani,
Azem Buzhala, Merxhan Zhubi, Visar Dushi, Mustaf Ahmeti,
Isa Axhanela, Istref Hasani, Halil Ademaj, Hesed Jaija,
Ndre Matiqi, Hilmi Hajdari, Kastriot Zhubi, Bajram
Mustafa, Adrian Kumnova, Alban Koshi, Admand Shtaloja,
Edmond Dushi, Nexhat Shujaku, Driton Xhiha, Burim Dobruna,
Agron Lama, Florent Zhubi, Mehdi Ferizi, Yll Ferizi, Agron
Syla, Yll Pepa, Sadik Zeqiri, Limon Abazi, Emin Deliu,
Shkelzen Nura, Selim Curraj, Lulzim Delia, Burim Zhubi,
Petrit Vula, Idriz Pepa, Adnan Koshi, Adratik Pula, Genc
Xharra, Fahri Koshi, Jeton Rezniqi, Admir Pruthi, Behar
Koshi, Labinot Pula, Genc Sada, Bekim Lota, Llir Lota, Zog
Delia, Vllazerim Radogoshi, Ahmet Asllani, Agim Hoda,
Istref Sadrija, Fatmir Pruthi, Jusuf Kollari, Zeqir
Hyseni, Perparim Zejnullahu, Agim Mehmeti, Nexhat Vehapi,
Dijamant Mici, Arben Abazi, Mithat Guta, Fatos Deva, Bekim
Musa, Petrit Kepuska, Dijamant Manxhuka, Qamil Beqiri,
Tahir Skenderaj, Dukogjin Pula, Agron Pula, Fatos Dautaga,
Bruim Brovina, Ymer Guta, Petrit Sahatqiu, Muhamet Zymi,
Ahmet Hyseni, Arben Shala.
____

[From the Washington Post, July 10, 1999]

Among the Missing: Prisoners of Serbia

(By William Booth)

Pozarevac, Yugoslavia.--The most famous prisoner in Serbia
shuffled into the deputy warden's office today, her boots
missing their laces and her hands clasped behind her back.
She was pale and her fingers trembled, but she was defiant
and angry.
Flore Brovina, a middle-aged pediatrician and poet with
dyed blond hair, beloved in her native Kosovo but accused of
being an enemy of the state by Yugoslav authorities, is among
hundreds of ethnic Albanians who were taken from jails in
Kosovo in the last days of the war last month and moved to
prisons in Serbia.
Brovina is among the lucky ones; she has been found. Most
of the prisoners have yet to be accounted for, and they are
among the larger ranks of missing ethnic Albanians whose fate
is one of the great human rights mysteries of the Kosovo
conflict. Over the three months of war, thousands of ethnic
Albanians in Kosovo, mostly men of fighting age, were pulled
from their homes and from columns of refugees streaming into
Albania, Macedonia and Montenegro.
They vanished without a trace.
Some were killed, and only the digging in graves and
forensic investigations will tell their stories. But many
were incarcerated in seven prisons around Kosovo. Many were
held without formal charges, allowed under a martial law
decree that governed Yugoslavia during the war.
At war's end, as NATO forces advanced into Kosovo province,
some prisoners escaped--how many is unknown. At least 800
were marched to the Albanian border and released by Yugoslav
security forces. The rest were taken in a long convoy of
buses and trucks to Serbia.
Today, Brovina took a seat before her captors and announced
to her first visitor since her arrest in April, ``I do not
consider myself a prisoner, but a slave.''
She said, ``I have only one question: Why am I here?''
For the next two hours, as the deputy warden and a guard by
turns grimaced with shame or anger, disbelief or disgust,
Brovina, 50, described her journey through the Serbian
criminal justice system, where she is charged with being a
terrorist.
Serbian Justice Minister Dragoljub Jankovic said in an
interview this week that his staff has accounted for 1,860
prisoners brought to Serbia from Kosovo on June 10, the day
Yugoslav forces began withdrawing from the province. The
prisons of Kosovo are now empty, and the largest, at Istok,
was bombed into rubble--and prisoners killed--by NATO
airstrikes in late May.
According to Jankovic, there are 800 of the missing at the
prison here in Pozarevac; 400 in Nis; 330 in Sremska
Mitrovica; 180 in Leskovac; 95 in Prokuplje; and 55 in
Zajecar. These cities are all in Serbia.
The minister said he will soon turn over the names and
locations, still being tabulated, to the International
Committee for the Red Cross.
The 1,860--or more--brought to Serbia from Kosovo are
approximately the same number of missing prisoners
circulating among humanitarian groups and lawyers in Serbia
and Kosovo, its southern province. But even Jankovic
acknowledged the final tally may grow. He said that many
prisoners were moved, but their case files and other
documentation, including investigative and trial
proceedings, were lost in the race by Yugoslav forces and
Serbian authorities to withdraw from Kosovo. Serbia is the
dominant republic in the Yugoslav federation.
``We're doing the best we can under very difficult
circumstances,'' Jankovic said.
The Belgrade government released 166 ethnic Albanian
prisoners in June. Jankovic said another 200 would probably
be freed soon.
The chief warden here, Stipe Marusic, said he received 647
prisoners from Kosovo on the last day of the war, of which
579 were ethnic Albanians, most of whom are not yet convicted
of any crime but are listed on his manifests as ``detainees''
or ``under investigation.'' Others are simply prisoners
arrested in the last four months by the Serbian special
police.
``We expect some to be convicted'' of charges of terrorist
activities, he said, ``and some to be exchanged.''
Human rights activists here and in Kosovo have faulted NATO
leaders for not including in the peace accords more language
about what is to be done with the prisoners.
Brovina said she believed they were being held as
``bargaining chips,'' and were being ``fattened'' up in
Serbian prisons before some are eventually released.
For weeks, Brovina's lawyer was not sure where she was. The
Serbian Ministry of Justice could not find her. Confused
about her misspelled name, the authorities said they were
looking for a man, Jankovic assisted a reported in finding
Brovina. Brovina has been in trouble with Serbian authorities
since the early 1990s, when ethnic Albanians in Kosovo began
actively resisting a decree by Slobodan Milosevic, who was
then president of Serbia, to strip the province of its
limited autonomy and bring the majority ethnic Albanian
population to heel.
In the purges that followed, Brovina was fired from her job
at the hospital in Pristina,

[[Page H6071]]

the Kosovo capital, but then founded the League of Albania
Women, which sponsored protests against massacres and
repression. She also opened a center for vulnerable women and
children.
``Our slogan was very simple,'' she said. ``It was STOP.''
Brovina said they just wanted peace. But she admitted today
that her sympathies clearly lie with the separatist Kosovo
Liberation Army, which battled Yugoslav forces for 16 months
in an effort to win independence. ``We didn't have anything
to do with the KLA.'' Brovina said. ``But if those were our
sons, our husbands, our fathers, of course we liked them.''
Brovina remained in Pristina at the start of the NATO
airstrikes on March 24. But on April 20, she was arrested.
She was taken to he prison in Lipljan, on the outskirts of
Pristina. She claims to have seen ethnic Albanian prisoners,
arrested under Articles 125 and 136 as terrorist enemies of
the state, lying naked on the floor, being beaten with ropes
on the genitals in cells in the Lipljan jail.
She charges that the Yugoslav army erected an antiaircraft
battery at the prison. ``We were not prisoners,'' she said.
``We were made targets.''
Brovina said the prisoners at Lipljan were forced to say
``Long Live Serbia'' before they were allowed to use the
toilets. Many complained about the food and the stingy
rations, but Brovina and her warden agreed that the whole
Kosovo was doing without.
At the prison here today, two men held in Lipljan gave
differing accounts. Neither saw an antiaircraft battery or
soldiers, but one man, Hajdari Mursel, 63, a retiree, said
he spent two weeks at Lipljan, where the guards ``screwed
with us,'' and ``beat people with rubber hoses.''
All prisoners at Lipljan said that conditions there were
much worse than in their new Serbian jails. Indeed, several
prisoners went out of their way to say that they were well
treated here at Pozarevac.
``They have not harassed me in any way,'' said Becir
Bilalli, 44, the owner of a small shop. ``I have only one
problem now, that I am away from my family, and these charges
against me.''
Bilalli said that he was arrested at a checkpoint outside
Kosovska Mitrovica in Kosovo last August. He is charged with
terrorist activities. The reason, Bilalli said, is that like
many in Kosovo he stood duty with a rifle on his shoulder
outside his village at night.
``Everybody was on guard in Kosovo,'' he said. Bilalli,
like the other prisoners, said he has not communicated with
his family since the NATO air war began, and that he does not
know where his wife and sons are. They do not know he is in
prison in Serbia.
On the eve of the final withdrawal of all Yugoslav army and
security forces from Kosovo on June 10, Brovina and hundreds
of other prisoners were loaded onto buses and driven to other
parts of Serbia. They were ordered to keep their heads down,
Brovina said, and told not to look out of the windows.
``We did not know where we were being taken,'' she said.
Some prisoners feared they would be taken to a field and
shot. Others wore all their clothes so that in event they
were beaten, the blows would not be as punishing. There were
few women in the prison convoys, Borvina said, but all the
young ones feared they might be raped. There were not.
Many of the 579 ethnic Albanians taken to this prison came
from Dubrava prison in the Kosovo town of Istok. Before the
war, the Istok prison was the largest, and most modern, in
Serbia. Built on the Swedish model, the prison had recreation
rooms, a motel for conjugal visits and a decent library.
Enver Ramadani, 21, who was convicted of racketeering
before the war, and confessed today he was indeed guilty of
the crime, was at Istok. He called the prison ``super.''
But that was before the NATO bombing. In late May, Istok
prison was hit for five days by NATO airstrikes. The exact
number of dead and wounded are still unknown. What is known
is that the prison was filled with prisoners, many of them
ethnic Albanians detained in the last weeks of the war.
Initially, Serbian officials said that 44 prisoners and
guards were killed. Jankovic, the Serbian justice minister,
said his latest information is that only six were killed, and
196 wounded, 20 seriously.
Ramadani said that he saw 30 dead bodies in the prison
yard, covered from the sun by blankets. For five days, NATO
bombed, and he described a scene from hell: The guards fled
into the woods, leaving the prisoners to fend for themselves.
They raided the kitchens. They hid from the bombs down
manholes into the sewers, packed like rats, waiting for the
concussions to end. He said that many were wounded and were
treated by ``so-called doctors'' among them, who did the best
they could. There was blood everywhere.
Ramadani did not see prisoners executed by Serbian security
forces, although reporters who returned to Istok saw bullet
holes in the walls and bloody mattresses, where heads would
have lain.
Jankovic said that for the five days of the bombing, his
people were not in charge. He does not know what happened
during the bombardment, and seemed to suggest that if any
atrocities occurred, it was others--special police,
paramilitaries--who were responsible. NATO officials stated
that the site was a legitimate military target. ``That was a
military barrack, and we attacked it twice,'' said NATO
spokesman Jamie Shea after the initial bombings. ``Whether
the Serbs were using it to house other people--that's a
different thing.''
Husnija, an ethnic Albanian attorney working in Serbia and
Brovina's newly appointed lawyer, said that one of the most
disturbing things he has uncovered is that during the war,
Serb prisoners in Kosovo were moved north to Serbia, while
ethnic Albanians incarcerated in Serbia were moved to Kosovo.
He does not know why.
Natasa Kandic, a human rights attorney based in Belgrade,
said that she initially feared that many of the missing were
dead. Now, she believes they are in prisons around Serbia.
That is not good, she said, but it is better than the missing
being found in mass graves.
____

[From the Los Angeles Times, July 9, 1999]

Detainees Lost in Maze of Yugoslav Prison System

(By Mark Fineman)

Belgrade, Yugoslavia.--When they boarded the Fati Tours bus
from Slovenia to Kosovo last July, Baljaj Naim, Zogaj Enver
and Hrecaj Haljit were much like the 51 other ethnic Albanian
passengers.
Like the others, the three men were contract workers going
home--their pockets full of hard-earned construction wages--
to wives, children and parents they hadn't seen for months.
But nearly a year after all the workers were detained at a
Serbian police checkpoint in Kosovo on suspicion of being
terrorists, the three men and 12 others still haven't made it
home.
After a torturous eight months of trials and appeals that
moved them from prison to prison, the 15 men--who were
convicted on vague terrorist charges just weeks before NATO
launched its air war March 24--personify the problem now
known simply as ``the prisoners.''
They are among an estimated 2,000 ethnic Albanian detainees
and convicts who, the Yugoslav government acknowledges, were
in Kosovo's prisons during NATO's air war. An undetermined
number of those prisoners were moved to jails elsewhere in
Serbia during the final weeks of the conflict.
The fate of imprisoned ethnic Albanians is moving to center
stage in the aftermath of NATO's war on Yugoslavia. And the
saga of the men from the bus, say their lawyers here,
epitomizes their advocates' frustrated search for justice.
Eight of the 15 passengers, missing since May, finally
turned up this week in a Serbian prison in Nis. The other
seven--including Naim, Enver and Haljit--simple vanished in
the chaos and killing that was Kosovo during and after NATO's
11-week air war. They are among hundreds of prisoners whose
fate is unknown.
On Thursday, the head of an International Committee of the
Red Cross delegation, which interviewed its first 330 ethnic
Albanian prisoners in Serbia this week, said tracing the rest
and resolving their cases rank among the most enduring and
confounding problems of the postwar period.
``It's Benedictine work,'' Dominique Dufour said. ``This
will probably keep us busy for many, many years to come.''
Compounding the problem, he and other Western officials
said, is the fact that the North Atlantic Treaty Organization
and Yugoslav officials never addressed the issue of the
ethnic Albanian prisoners when they negotiated the withdrawal
of Yugoslav troops from Kosovo last month.
``The attitude of the Serbian government about these
Albanian prisoners is, `We are holding a number of Yugoslav
citizens detained within Yugoslavia and still being detained
within Yugoslavia for crimes committed in Yugoslavia,' ''
explained Dufour, who stressed that the Justice Ministry of
Serbia, the dominant republic in Yugoslavia, has been
cooperating in the effort to trace them.
``So now, in their eyes, you're talking about some form of
amnesty,'' Dufour said. ``But there was no agreement reached
between the Western powers and Yugoslavia regarding these
prisoners, and there probably needs to be.''
Human rights workers in Kosovo and elsewhere in Serbia say
that, in addition to prisoners who were formally charged
before and during the air war, Serbian authorities searching
for members and supporters of the separatist Kosovo
Liberation Army, or KLA, plucked hundreds of ethnic Albanian
refugees out of the columns of those fleeing last spring and
detained them despite having little or no known documentation
of a crime.
Serbian authorities have, in fact, released about 1,000 of
those prisoners in recent weeks: About 800 were freed near
the Albanian border last month as Yugoslav troops withdrew
from the province, and 166 prisoners were turned over to the
Red Cross here this month.
The Yugoslav government says the issue is further
complicated by the rapid withdrawal from the province last
month of Yugoslav troops, court personnel and judicial staff,
which left prisoners' court files in disarray.
But Dufour and others working to resolve the issue say
that, in most of the cases involving ethnic Albanian
prisoners who were removed from Kosovo or are missing,
Serbian authorities kept detailed records of court
proceedings and prisoner transfers. Justice Ministry
officials, defense lawyers and the Red Cross are working to
reconstruct the records.
Extensive court records exist in the case of the 15
``terrorists'' seized from the Fati Tours bus.

[[Page H6072]]

The records obtained by The Times, help illustrate just why
so many ethnic Albanians landed in prisons in the first
place. Combined with witness accounts during the war and
other documents here, the records also indicate that NATO
might have helped obscure the fate of those prisoners and
hundreds of other missing ethnic Albanians when its warplanes
bombed Kosovo's largest prison, in the town of Istok, at the
height of the air war.
For the Fati 15, returning last year to the province with
pockets filled with wages, the nightmare began when they
reached a Serbian police checkpoint in the city of Podujevo
on July 20 during heavy fighting between Yugoslav forces and
KLA rebels.
Here's how the Serbian judge, who found all 15 guilty after
a four-day trial in February, described in this final
judgment what happened next:
``Police stopped them. They checked the passengers and
luggage and found on them the hard currency. [Police]
immediately understood that it was being carried to Kosovo,
that they were bound to join the terrorist organization [KLA]
to buy arms and ammunition for the hard currency. They were
escorted to Pristina . . . and arrests ensued.''
After an investigation that lasted months--during which
Serbia's justice minister labeled the 15 passengers
``terrorists'' in an article that appeared in a state-run
newspaper months before the trial--prosecutors dropped all
charges against 39 other passengers and released them.
For the remaining 15, the court record shows, not a single
witness testified against them during their trial in the
Serbian city of Prokuplje, about 120 miles southeast of
Belgrade, the capital of Yugoslavia and Serbia. No hard
evidence was introduced linking them to the KLA, and the
judge wrote that his guilty finding was based on the $56,000
worth of German marks the men carried, the fact that they
were construction workers who left Slovenia at the height of
that former Yugoslav republic's building season, and that
they were ``smuggling'' the money into Yugoslavia ``in their
pockets.''
In his appeal to Serbia's Supreme Court in April, the
passengers' Belgrade-based ethnic Albanian lawyer, Husniya
Bitic, called the verdict ``totally upside down . . . an
attack on the legal system and the state . . . a political
pamphlet or a speech of some political leader at one of his
[Serbian] nationalist rallies.''
Bitic stressed in his Supreme Court brief that few of the
54 passengers knew each other when they boarded the bus; that
witnesses told the court that the cash was for the workers
families and for the families of their co-workers; that
the money had come from performing legitimate construction
work; and that the bus was on a regularly scheduled,
twice-weekly route.
``Had such a verdict been delivered somewhere in
Afghanistan [or] Papua New Guinea . . . perhaps it may be
said this was being done by people who know nothing of the
law,'' Bitic stated in the appeal. ``But for such a verdict
to be passed in the middle of civilized Europe . . . this we
could not expect.''
That was in April, after NATO had begun bombing Yugoslavia.
The court rejected the appeal, and the 15 men continued to
serve sentences ranging from 3\1/2\ to 4 years.
Then the real trouble started.
``Until April 23, those 15 people were in Prokuplje,''
Bitic said here Wednesday. ``On April 26, they moved them to
Istok. And on June 10, all prisons in Kosovo were deserted.
Until today, I've only found eight of them in prison in Nis.
I'm still searching for the others.''
Given what happened at Istok's Dubrava penitentiary on May
19, it's a miracle Bitic managed to find the eight. NATO
bombed the prison several times that day, and foreign
journalists who visited the scene between bombing runs
described tense, hellish scenes of prison guards struggling
to control about 1,000 inmates after the bombs killed 19
inmates and guards, breached the prison wall and left the
facility's records in ruin.
When asked that day why NATO had bombed the modern,
Swedish-built prison complex, which was widely known
throughout Europe as one of the continent's largest such
facilities, NATO spokesman Jamie Shea replied: ``That was a
military barracks, and we attacked it twice. . . . Whether
the Serbs were using it to house other people--that's a
different thing.''
But the overwhelming majority of the 1,004 inmates that
Serbian authorities and the Red Cross say were being held in
Dubrava when the bombs fell were ethnic Albanians. Most of
them were like the Fati 15, charged or convicted under
counter-terrorism laws. Western reporters and camera crews
who visited the abandoned prison after the Yugoslav
withdrawal found bullet-pocked walls, bloodied bedclothes and
other signs of possible reprisals by prison guards.
An Italian film crew also found 94 fresh, unmarked graves a
few miles from the prison, where unconfirmed reports persist
among villagers of an unsuccessful prison break and a
massacre of inmates after the NATO bombardment.
For Bitic, who is in touch almost daily with relatives of
the missing seven, their case is ``a tremendous weight on my
back. What will I tell the family? Well, at least for now,
we're still looking.''

Mr. GILMAN. Mr. Chairman, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
Mr. Chairman, I strongly support the Engel amendment.
Only last week we passed a resolution calling on Mr. Milosevic to
release the humanitarian workers for the CARE organization. Those
workers had his thugs arrested and convicted.
It is also reported that Milosevic's troops have imprisoned up to
2,000 citizens of Kosovo inside Serbia long after the war's end. Those
prisoners must be released. Serb authorities must provide the Red Cross
access to those prisoners and then turn them over to the custody of the
U.N.
Our committee is going to be taking a long look at the manner in
which Milosevic has been holding on to power and ways in which we can
help to bring the Democratic opposition to power through elections in
Serbia.
The world now knows Milosevic is a war criminal, and the list of his
crimes will only grow as the investigations and investigators continue
their work in Kosovo.
This amendment serves notice that we are watching what is happening
with regard to the 2,000 prisoners that he is holding. Accordingly, I
urge our colleagues to fully support the Engel amendment.
Mr. Chairman, I reserve the balance of my time.
Mr. ENGEL. Mr. Chairman, I yield 1 minute to the gentleman from
Virginia (Mr. Moran).

{time} 1615

Mr. MORAN of Virginia. Mr. Chairman, I thank the gentleman from New
York for yielding me the time, but more importantly for his leadership
on this issue. This is an important amendment. I would hope that it
would pass unanimously.
The gentleman from New York has mentioned a list of 5,000 people who
are unaccounted for. We know the ruthless, lawless way in which the
Serbian military, paramilitary and police have treated Kosovar
Albanians. But these 5,000 people are represented by families,
thousands of people who do not know whether their loved ones have been
executed in any number of the brutal massacres that we know have
occurred in Kosovo or whether they are being held in prison.
If we allow access by the International Committee of the Red Cross,
we will at least enable the parents, the families, to know what might
have happened to their loved ones. It also means that we will be able
to impose some limits on the conditions in which these people are
living.
There is a good reason why the Red Cross has not been allowed access,
we are afraid, and, that is, that they do not want us to know what they
are doing, how they are treating the prisoners in their jails.
This is a good amendment and it should pass unanimously.
Mr. GILMAN. Mr. Chairman, I am pleased to yield the balance of my
time to the gentleman from New Jersey (Mr. Smith), the distinguished
chairman of our Subcommittee on International Operations and Human
Rights.
The CHAIRMAN pro tempore (Mr. Hastings of Washington). The gentleman
from New Jersey is recognized for 3\1/2\ minutes.
Mr. SMITH of New Jersey. Mr. Chairman, I thank my very good friend
for yielding me this time and rise in strong support of the Engel
amendment and thank him for offering it to us this afternoon.
Mr. Chairman, the people of Kosovo suffered greatly in the past 18
months, especially during the brutal ethnic cleansing campaign which
paralleled the NATO air strikes from March to June of this year.
While now is the time for Kosovars to return and rebuild their homes
and their lives, many continue to be held in Serbian prisons, wrongly
held, and illegally held.
Over the 3 months of the conflict, thousands of Albanians in Kosovo,
mostly men, were pulled from their homes and from columns of refugees.
Some were killed and only the excavation of mass graves and subsequent
forensic investigations will tell their stories. But many were
incarcerated in seven prisons around Kosovo, without formal charges,
under a martial law decree that governed Yugoslavia during the war. At
war's end as NATO forces advanced into Kosovo province, some prisoners
escaped, others were marched to the Albanian border and released by
Yugoslav forces, and the rest were taken in a long convoy of buses and

[[Page H6073]]

trucks to Serbia. We do not know the exact numbers, but these are the
people that we speak to in this amendment.
I would like to point out that recently I led a delegation to the
Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe Parliamentary
Assembly of the OSCE in St. Petersburg. I want to commend the gentleman
from Maryland (Mr. Cardin) because he was able to raise the issue
during the course of those deliberations and we got language in the
concluding document, the St. Petersburg Declaration, that raised this
issue in a way that hopefully will get the attention of the entire
international community and especially of Belgrade to let them go.
The bottom line, Mr. Chairman, is that the continued incarceration of
Kosovar Albanians by Serbian authorities is in violation of the Geneva
Conventions, as is the denial of outside access by other international
observers like the Red Cross. This must be corrected. It is very
important that we go on the record, hopefully unanimously, saying: Let
these people go.
Mr. ENGEL. Mr. Chairman, as I mentioned before, the Parliamentary
Assembly of the OSCE, Organization for Security and Cooperation in
Europe, passed a resolution similar to our amendment.
Mr. Chairman, I yield 1 minute to the gentleman from Maryland (Mr.
Cardin), the author of that resolution.
Mr. CARDIN. Mr. Chairman, I thank the gentleman from New York (Mr.
Engel) for authoring this amendment. It is a very important amendment.
It does carry out what we have done in the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly.
Mr. Chairman, international organizations, including U.N. officials,
have reported that between 1,500 to 5,000 prisoners were transferred
from Kosovo to jails in Serbia around the time of the entry of
international forces into Kosovo and that the Serbian Ministry of
Justice has acknowledged that such transfers were made.
International humanitarian law requires humane treatment of all
prisoners seized in conjunction with the Kosovo crisis, and Red Cross
access to such prisoners is guaranteed under international law. They
must be released without delay after the cessation of active
hostilities. That has not occurred.
The Belgrade authorities have provided inaccurate lists and have not
allowed access by the Red Cross. The illegal detention of these
individuals is unacceptable. The OSCE has adopted a resolution that I
authored on behalf of the United States delegation, a very similar
resolution.
It is time that the United States Congress also acts. I encourage my
colleagues to approve this resolution.
Mr. ENGEL. Mr. Chairman, I ask unanimous consent for an additional 2
minutes.
The CHAIRMAN pro tempore. Without objection, both sides will be
granted an additional 2 minutes.
There was no objection.
Mr. ENGEL. Mr. Chairman, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from
Massachusetts (Mr. Olver).
Mr. OLVER. Mr. Chairman, I appreciate the indulgence of the body for
that additional time. This resolution seems not to have any significant
opposition and I assume it is going to be adopted unanimously, but I
thought I would make just a couple of comments and also describe a
little bit of the experience of the congressional delegation that went
to Kosovo that was built out of the leadership of the chairman of the
Subcommittee on Military Construction of the Committee on
Appropriations of which I am the ranking member just a matter of a week
or so ago.
The men and boys that are involved in this resolution are those
largely that were randomly pulled from columns of refugees and taken
without trial, held without trial, without contact as an act really of
terrorism on the part of the paramilitary Serbian forces at that time.
Now, they should be released. They should be, and we should adopt
that resolution unanimously. If there are problems, if there are people
who were actively law-breakers, then what should happen is that the
detention process that is happening in every one of the occupation
zones in Kosovo should take over.
We visited a detention camp where there were several Serbs and about
twice as many Albanian ethnics, Kosovars, who were being detained
because they had committed some crime, which could have been murder or
arson or robbery or whatever after the agreement had been reached. And
ultimately if there are people who have committed a crime, they should
be dealt with in the same way because we need to build a system, a
legal system in which people can trust.
I would hope that this amendment would be adopted unanimously without
dissent.
Mr. ENGEL. Mr. Chairman, I just want to thank my colleagues. This
obviously is supported on both sides of the aisle very strongly. I want
to thank the gentleman from New Jersey (Mr. Smith) for his wonderful
work on human rights and the gentleman from New York (Mr. Gilman) and
all the people on both sides of the aisle who have supported this.
Mr. Chairman, I yield back the balance of my time.
Mr. SMITH of New Jersey. Mr. Chairman, I yield such time as she may
consume to the gentlewoman from New York (Mrs. Kelly).
Mrs. KELLY. Mr. Chairman, I rise today in support of the amendment
offered by my colleague and good friend from New York. The Kosovar
Albanians that are being held in the Serbian prisons must be released
and accounted for. Think of the agony felt by the families of these
5,000 men who do not know what happened to their fathers, husbands and
sons. The events that have taken place that have affected the families
in Kosovo during the last several years have been atrocious and we
cannot stand by and continue to allow this blatant disregard for the
peace agreement. With the implementation of the Military Technical
Agreement on June 9, the peacekeeping forces in Kosovo have been
working to bring peace and stability back to this historically troubled
region, but this job has only begun. The Kosovar Albanians held in
these prisons are there without any formal charge, are being held in
clear violation of international law, and this can only prove to erode
the faith in the peace agreement.
Mr. Chairman, despite the end of the military action that the
international community had engaged in to bring about an end of the
Serbian aggression, the war is not over for these 5,000 people. They
still have a long way to go, they have lived through a terrible time,
until they can live in peace and not fear for their safety.
Mr. Chairman, Congress has to weigh in on this important issue.
The CHAIRMAN pro tempore. The question is on the amendment offered by
the gentleman from New York (Mr. Engel).
The question was taken; and the Chairman pro tempore announced that
the ayes appeared to have it.
Mr. ENGEL. Mr. Chairman, I demand a recorded vote.
The CHAIRMAN pro tempore. Pursuant to House Resolution 247, further
proceedings on the amendment offered by the gentleman from New York
(Mr. Engel) will be postponed.

Amendments En Bloc Offered by Mr. Gilman

Mr. GILMAN. Mr. Chairman, pursuant to the authority granted in H.
Res. 247, I offer amendments en bloc.
The CHAIRMAN pro tempore. The Clerk will designate the amendments en
bloc.
The text of the amendments en bloc is as follows:

Part B amendments en bloc offered by Mr. Gilman, consisting
of the following:
Amendment No. 4 offered by Mr. Gejdenson:
Page 8, after line 12, insert the following:
(c) Civil Budget of the North Atlantic Treaty
Organization.--For the fiscal year 2000, there are authorized
to be appropriated such sums as may be necessary to pay the
full amount for the United States assessment for the civil
budget of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization.
____

Amendment No. 11 offered by Mr. Gejdenson:
Page 35, after line 9, insert the following:

SEC. 211. REPORT CONCERNING PROLIFERATION OF SMALL ARMS.

Not later than 180 days after the date of enactment of this
Act, the Secretary of State shall submit to the appropriate
congressional committees a report containing--
(1) an assessment of whether the global trade in small arms
poses any proliferation problems including--
(A) estimates of the numbers and sources of licit and
illicit small arms and light arms in circulation and their
origins;
(B) the challenges associated with monitoring small arms;
and

[[Page H6074]]

(C) the political, economic, and security dimensions of
this issue, and the threats posed, if any, by these weapons
to United States interests, including national security
interests;
(2) an assessment of whether the export of small arms of
the type sold commercially in the United States should be
considered a foreign policy or proliferation issue;
(3) a description and analysis of the adequacy of current
Department of State activities to monitor and, to the extent
possible ensure adequate control of, both the licit and
illicit manufacture, transfer, and proliferation of small
arms and light weapons, including efforts to survey and
assess this matter with respect to Africa and to survey and
assess the scope and scale of the issue, including stockpile
security and destruction of excess inventory, in NATO and
Partnership for Peace countries;
(4) a description of the impact of the reorganization of
the Department of State made by the Foreign Affairs Reform
and Restructuring Act of 1998 on the transfer of functions
relating to monitoring licensing, analysis, and policy on
small arms and light weapons, including--
(A) the integration of and the functions relating to small
arms and light weapons of the United States Arms Control and
Disarmament Agency with those of the Department of State;
(B) the functions of the Bureau of Arms Control, the Bureau
of Nonproliferation, the Bureau of Political-Military
Affairs, the Bureau of International Narcotics and Law
Enforcement, regional bureaus, and any other relevant bureau
or office of the Department of State, including the
allocation of personnel and funds, as they pertain to small
arms and light weapons;
(C) the functions of the regional bureaus of the Department
of State in providing information and policy coordination in
bilateral and multilateral settings on small arms and light
weapons;
(D) the functions of the Under Secretary of State for Arms
Control and International Security pertaining to small arms
and light weapons; and
(E) the functions of the scientific and policy advisory
board on arms control, nonproliferation, and disarmament
pertaining to small arms and light weapons; and
(5) an assessment of whether foreign governments are
enforcing their own laws concerning small arms and light
weapons import and sale, including commitments under the
Inter-American Convention Against the Illicit Manufacturing
of an Trafficking in Firearms, Ammunition, Explosives, and
Other Related Materials or other relevant international
agreements.
____

Amendment No. 23 offered by Mr. Gejdenson:
Page 84, after line 16, insert the following:

SEC. 703. SENSE OF THE CONGRESS REGARDING COLOMBIA.

(a) Findings.--Congress makes the following findings:
(1) Colombia is a democratic country fighting multiple
wars--
(A) a war against the Colombian Revolutionary Armed Forces
(FARC);
(B) a war against the National Liberation Army (ELN);
(C) a war against the United Self-Defense Forces of
Colombia (AUC) and other paramilitary organizations; and
(D) a war against drug lords who traffic in deadly cocaine
and heroin.
(2) In 1998 alone, 308,000 Colombians were internally
displaced in Colombia. Over the last decade, 35,000
Colombians have been killed.
(3) The operations of the FARC, ELN, AUC, and other
extragovernmental forces have profited from, and become
increasingly dependent upon, cooperation with the illicit
narcotics trade.
(4) The FARC and ELN have waged the longest-running anti-
government insurgenices in Latin America and control roughly
60 percent of the country, including a demilitarized zone
ruled by the FARC.
(5) Representatives of the Government of Colombia and the
FARC are scheduled to begin peace talks on July 20, 1999.
(b) Sense of the Congress.--It is the sense of the Congress
that--
(1) the United States should recognize the crisis in
Colombia and play a more pro-active role in its resolution,
including offering U.S. political support to help Colombia
with the peace process:
(2) all extragovernmental combatant groups, including the
FARC, ELN, and AUC, should demonstrate their commitment to
peace by ceasing to engage in violence, kidnapping, and
cooperation with the drug trade; and
(3) the United States should mobilize the international
community pro-actively engage in resolving the Colombian
wars.
____

Amendment No. 25 offered by Mr. Hastings of Florida:
Page 84, after line 16, insert the following:

SEC. 703, SENSE OF THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES CONCERNING
HAITIAN ELECTIONS.

The House of Representatives supports the critically
important Haitian parliamentary and local elections scheduled
for November 1999 and urges the Department of State to review
embassy operations to ensure that the embassy has sufficient
personnel and resources necessary to carry out its important
responsibilities during the run-up to the fall elections.
____

Amendment No. 32 offered by Mrs. Capps:
Page 84, after line 16, insert the following new section:

SEC. 703. SENSE OF CONGRESS COMMENDING THE PEOPLE OF ISRAEL
FOR REAFFIRMING THE DEMOCRATIC IDEALS OF ISRAEL
IN ITS ELECTIONS.

(a) Findings.--The Congress makes the following findings:
(1) Since its creation in 1948, Israel has fulfilled the
dreams of its founders who envisioned a vigorous, open, and
stable democracy.
(2) The centerpiece of Israeli democracy is its system of
competitive and free elections.
(3) On May 17, 1999, the Israeli people--Israeli Jews and
Israeli Arabs--went to the polls in large numbers in a
remarkably peaceful election.
(4) This election is only the latest example of Israel's
commitment to the democratic ideals of freedom and pluralism,
values that it shares with the United States.
(b) Sense of Congress.--The Congress--
(1) commends the people of Israel for reaffirming, in the
May 17, 1999, election, its dedication to democratic ideals;
(2) congratulates Ehud Barak on his election as Prime
Minister of Israel; and
(3) pledges to work with the President of the United States
and the new Government of Israel to strengthen the bonds
between the United States and Israel and to advance the cause
of peace in the Middle East.
____

Amendment No. 34 offered by Mr. Andrews:
Page 84, after line 16, insert the following:

SEC. 703. SENSE OF CONGRESS REGARDING THE SOVEREIGNTY OF
TERRITORIES IN THE AEGEAN SEA.

(a) Findings.--Congress makes the following findings:
(1) The maritime borders between Greece and Turkey in the
Aegean have been delimited in international law and are
regarded as having been agreed, established, and settled.
(2) A fundamental principle of international law is that,
once agreed, a boundary shall remain stable and predictable.
(3) Turkey is claiming sovereignty to numerous islands and
islets and unspecified ``gray areas'' in the Aegean Sea.
(4) In Article 15 of the Treaty of Peace with Turkey, and
Other Instruments, signed at Lausanne on July 24, 1923,
Turkey renounced in favor of Italy all right, title, and
interest of Turkey in the 12 enumerated island in the
Dodecanese region that were occupied at the time of the
treaty by Italy, including the Island of Calimnos, and the
islets dependent on such islands.
(5) The Convention Between Italy and Turkey for the
Delimitation of the Territorial Waters Between the Coasts of
Anatolia and the Island of Castellorizo, signed at Ankara on
January 4, 1932, established the rights of Italy and Turkey
in coastal islands, waters, and rocks in the Aegean Sea and
delimited a maritime frontier between the two countries.
(6) A protocol dated December 28, 1932, annexed to that
Convention memorialized an agreement on a water boundary
between Italy and Turkey which placed the Imia Islets under
the sovereignty of Italy.
(7) In Article 14 of the 1947 Paris Treaty of Peace with
Italy, Italy ceded to Greece the Dodecanese Islands under
Italy's control, including the Island of Calimnos and the
adjacent Islets of Imia.
(8) By resolution dated February 15, 1996, the European
Parliament resolved that the water boundaries established in
the Treaty of Lausanne of 1923 and the 1932 Convention
Between Italy and Turkey, including the protocol annexed to
such Convention, are the borders between Greece and Turkey.
(9) Greece, as the successor state to Italy under the
above-enumerated treaties, conventions, and protocols,
acceded to sovereignty under the same treaties, conventions,
and protocols.
(10) Turkish Government claims to territories in the Aegean
delimited as Greek sovereign territory under the above-
enumerated treaties, conventions, and protocols contravene
these same treaties, conventions, and treaties.
(11) Both Greece and Turkey are members of the North
Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) and allies of the United
States.
(12) It is in the interest of the United States and other
nations to have disputes resolved peacefully.
(13) The Eastern Mediterranean region, in which the Aegean
Sea is located, is a region of vital strategic importance to
the United States.
(b) Sense of Congress.--It is the sense of the Congress
that--
(1) the water boundaries established in the Treaty of
Lausanne of 1923 and the 1932 Convention Between Italy and
Turkey, including the Protocol annexed to such Convention,
are the borders between Greece and Turkey in the Aegean Sea;
and
(2) any party, including Turkey, objecting to these
established boundaries should seek redress in the
International Court of Justice at The Hague.
____

Amendment No. 35 offered by Mr. Andrews:
Page 84, after line 16, insert the following:

[[Page H6075]]

SEC. 703. SENSE OF CONGRESS THAT THE PRESIDENT SHOULD SEEK A
PUBLIC RENUNCIATION BY THE PEOPLE'S REPUBLIC OF
CHINA OF ANY USE OF FORCE, OR THREAT TO USE
FORCE, AGAINST TAIWAN, AND THAT THE UNITED
STATES SHOULD HELP TAIWAN IN CASE OF THREATS OR
A MILITARY ATTACK BY THE PEOPLE'S REPUBLIC OF
CHINA.

(a) Findings.--The Congress makes the following findings:
(1) In March of 1996, the political leadership of the
People's Republic of China used provocative military
maneuvers, including missile launch exercises in the Taiwan
Strait, in an attempt to intimidate the people of Taiwan
during their historic, free, and democratic presidential
elections.
(2) The People's Republic of China refuses to renounce the
use of force against Taiwan.
(3) The House of Representatives passed a resolution by a
vote of 411-0 in June 1998 urging the President to seek,
during his July 1998 summit meeting in Beijing, a public
renunciation by the People's Republic of China of any use of
force, or threat of use of force, aainst democratic Taiwan.
(4) Senior United States executive branch officials have
called upon the People's Republic of China to renounce the
use of force against Taiwan.
(5) The use of force, and the threat to use force, by the
People's Republic of China against Taiwan threatens peace and
stability in the region.
(6) The Taiwan Relations Act, enacted in 197, states that
``[i]t is the policy of the United States . . . to consider
any effort to determine the future of Taiwan by other than
peaceful means, including by boycotts or embargoes, a threat
to the peace and security of the Western Pacific area and of
grave concern to the United States''.
(7) The Taiwan Relations Act states that it is the policy
of the United States to provide Taiwan with arms of a
defensive character.
(b) Sense of Congress.--
(1) The Congress commends the people of Taiwan for having
established a democracy in Taiwan over the past decades and
repeatedly reaffirming their dedication to democratic ideals.
(2) It is the sense of the Congress that--
(A) the President of the United States should seek a public
renunciation by the People's Republic of China of any use of
force, or threat to use force, against Taiwan, especially in
Taiwan's March 2000 free Presidential elections; and
(B) the United States should help Taiwan defend itself in
case of threats or a military attack by the People's Republic
of China against Taiwan.

The CHAIRMAN pro tempore. The Clerk will report the amendment, as
modified.
The Clerk read as follows:

Amendment No. 41, as modified, offered by Mr. Gilman:
Page 84, after line 16, insert the following:

SEC. 703. SENSE OF CONGRESS REGARDING SUPPORT FOR THE IRAQI
DEMOCRATIC OPPOSITION.

It is the sense of Congress that the United States
Government should support the holding of a plenary session of
the Iraqi National Assembly in the near future.

Mr. GILMAN (during the reading). Mr. Chairman, I ask unanimous
consent that the amendment, as modified, be considered as read and
printed in the Record.
The CHAIRMAN pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the
gentleman from New York?
There was no objection.
The CHAIRMAN pro tempore. Pursuant to House Resolution 247, the
gentleman from New York (Mr. Gilman) and the gentleman from Connecticut
(Mr. Gejdenson) each will control 10 minutes.
The Chair recognizes the gentleman from New York (Mr. Gilman).
Mr. GILMAN. Mr. Chairman, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
(Mr. GILMAN asked and was given permission to revise and extend his
remarks.)
Mr. GILMAN. Mr. Chairman, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
I appreciate the contributions that our Members have made to the bill
and their willingness to en bloc their provisions.
One of the provisions included in this group in the en bloc is the
amendment offered by the gentleman from Connecticut (Mr. Gejdenson),
the ranking Democrat of the Committee on International Relations, that
addresses the situation in Colombia.
I believe that the gentleman from Connecticut has made a good faith
effort in this amendment to identify many of the concerns that we all
share regarding the situation in Colombia, and I thank the gentleman
for his agreement to include a reference to increased aid in this
amendment. We have an obligation to provide political support but
appropriate forms of aid as well for a democracy in real trouble. I
would hope that the administration would get off the dime and get the
aid down where we have already appropriated the moneys for to fight
drugs.
I note Colombian President Pastrana himself has stated today,
according to news reports, that he is losing patience with the rebels
and that they are throwing obstacles in his path to find peace. We may
be praising a peace process headed for the dustbin of history as
another failed effort at appeasement.
With regard to the amendment offered by the gentleman from New Jersey
(Mr. Andrews) on Taiwan, the President should continue to call upon the
People's Republic of China to renounce the use of force against Taiwan
in determining the future of that island democracy. Our Nation has
indeed had an abiding interest in peace and stability in East Asia and
China's refusal to renounce the use of force against Taiwan is
provocative and destabilizing. Any use of force by the PRC against
Taiwan would be of grave concern to our Nation as stated in the 1979
Taiwan Relations Act.
I call upon the parties on both sides of the Taiwan Strait to make
certain that Taiwan's future will be resolved in a peaceful manner and
consistent with the desire of the people of Taiwan.
Let me also state that there are reports circulating that the
administration has been considering curtailing security assistance to
Taiwan due to its displeasure with President Lee's recent statements
and a desire to mend relations with Beijing. If that is true, these
shortsighted, wrongheaded sanctions are not in our Nation's best
interest, they will undermine Taiwan's fundamental security, and could
destabilize the fragile peace in Northeast Asia.
Recently, the appropriate committees in the Congress have expressed
willingness to consider two notifications for armed transfers to
Taiwan. It appears that these transfers were never notified to the
Congress due to the administration's decision to punish Taiwan and to
curry favor with China. I cannot accept undercutting Taiwan's national
security and its rights under the 1979 Taiwan Relations Act to receive
appropriate security assistance from our Nation to meet its legitimate
self-defense needs.

{time} 1630

Accordingly, as a result of these concerns, I plan at this point to
withhold my approval for arms transfers notified to the Congress until
this matter is resolved to our satisfaction.
Finally, Mr. Chairman, I note that the en bloc amendment includes my
amendment calling on our Nation's government to support the holding of
a plenary session of the Iraqi National Assembly in the near future.
This amendment is our response to the July 7, 1999, letter from the
Executive Council of the Iraqi National Congress to Secretary of State
Albright seeking our support for holding an Iraqi National Assembly
meeting in Salahuddin in Iraq. I am supporting the holding of such a
meeting. We are reiterating our continued support for the Iraqi
democratic opposition and the policy of replacing the Saddam Hussein
regime which we endorsed in last year's Iraq Liberation Act.
Mr. Chairman, we have discussed a number of important issues during
the debate of this measure and the many amendments for this bill, AIDS
in Africa, the North Korean threat and international family planning.
Here at the end of this day, however, we must focus on one vital issue,
security for those brave Americans who serve our Nation abroad.
Last year, and let me remind our colleagues, 12 Americans were killed
when our embassies in Kenya and in Tanzania were bombed by Osama bin
Ladin's cowardly terrorists. Bipartisan Review Board chaired by Admiral
William Crowe recommended that we fund upgrades to our embassy security
at the level of $1.4 billion per year for a 10-year period.
This bill meets those recommended levels, and Admiral Crowe has
endorsed it along with several former secretaries of state. Last year,
we in Congress indicated our commitment to Americans serving our
government abroad by appropriating an initial $1.4 billion for embassy
security. Today we have the opportunity to follow through on that
commitment.
This measure has been endorsed, as I noted, by former Secretary of
State James Baker and Secretary Larry

[[Page H6076]]

Eagleburger. It is the right thing to do, and I urge my colleagues to
fully support this bill, the American Embassy Security Act.
Mr. Chairman, I reserve the balance of my time.
Mr. GEJDENSON. Mr. Chairman, I yield 2 minutes to the gentlewoman
from California (Mrs. Capps) who has done such exemplary work on the
peace process in the Middle East, a former member of the committee that
we miss.
Mrs. CAPPS. Mr. Chairman, I thank my colleague for yielding me the
time, and I am very pleased to rise in support of this en bloc
amendment, and I thank the gentleman from New York (Mr. Gilman) and the
gentleman from Connecticut (Mr. Gejdenson) for their hard work and kind
support.
This amendment contains a provision that I have authored with the
gentleman from New York (Mr. Houghton) commending Israel for
reaffirming its democratic ideals in the recent election. The amendment
reminds the American people that Israel and the United States share the
values of freedom and pluralism.
The amendment also congratulates Ehud Barak on his election as prime
minister, and it reaffirms the commitment of Congress to strengthen the
bonds between our two nations and to advance the cause of peace.
Yesterday, Mr. Barak concluded his first visit to Washington as prime
minister. He spent the day here in this capital meeting with many of us
in Congress. The Prime Minister has pledged to work hard to nuture warm
relations with our country. His trip to Washington has breathed new
life into the peace process.
Mr. Chairman, I ask the House to formally congratulate Mr. Barak and
commend our friend and ally, Israel, for its magnificent display of
democracy.
Mr. GEJDENSON. Mr. Chairman, I yield 2 minutes to the distinguished
gentleman from New Jersey (Mr. Andrews).
(Mr. ANDREWS asked and was given permission to revise and extend his
remarks.)
Mr. ANDREWS. Mr. Chairman, I thank Mr. Gejdenson for yielding this
time. I would like to express my appreciation to the gentleman from New
York (Mr. Gilman) and the gentleman from Connecticut (Mr. Gejdenson)
for their cooperation in including two items of legislation I have
proposed in the en bloc amendment.
I am very proud of my country. Throughout history, great powers have
used their power usually when they are attacked or to gain treasure or
territory. I am very proud of the fact that our country, as a great
power, has chosen to exert its considerable power and influence to
promote a cause, and that cause is that nations should resort to
peaceful means of negotiation and law to resolve their disputes rather
than resorting to violence.
My two amendments speak to that principle. Amendment No. 34 expresses
our sense that the water boundaries established in the Treaty of
Lausanne of 1923 and the 1932 convention between Italy and Turkey
established the borders between Greece and Turkey in the Aegean today,
and it calls upon Turkey to resort to the ordinary processes of
international law and not violence if it objects to that conclusion.
I appreciate the gentleman from New York mentioning my amendment with
respect to China. It calls upon the President to continue to urge the
People's Republic of China to renounce any offensive strike policy
against the free people of Taiwan. Certainly there are differences
between Taiwan and the People's Republic of China, but we recognize
that the proper method to resolve those differences is by international
law and negotiation, not by conflict. The free people of Taiwan and the
free people of the United States deserve no less.
Again I appreciate the cooperation of the chairman and the ranking
member, and I urge my colleagues to support these amendments as well as
the entire en bloc amendment.
Mr. GILMAN. Mr. Chairman, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from
Florida (Mr. Bilirakis).
(Mr. BILIRAKIS asked and was given permission to revise and extend
his remarks.)
Mr. BILIRAKIS. Mr. Chairman, I thank the chairman for yielding this
time to me.
Mr. Chairman, as to the Andrews amendment and the water boundaries in
the Aegean, I rise in support. My parents were born on the island of
Kalymnos only miles from an occupied islet of Imia. The group of islets
have always been considered Greek territory, and at no previous time
has Turkey questioned Imia's territorial ownership.
The European Parliament overwhelmingly approved a resolution which
stated that, and I quote, the islets of Imia belong to the Dodecanese
group of islands on the basis of the Lausanne Treaty of 1923, the
protocol between Italy and Turkey of 1932, the Paris Treaty of 1947,
and whereas even on Turkish maps from the 1960s the islets are shown as
Greek territory. Turkey has been invited by Greece to take their case
to the International Court of Justice at the Hague; and to this day,
Turkey has not sought redress. Although Turkey is an ally, Mr.
Chairman, its actions must not go unquestioned. Turkey must respect and
abide by international law. As President Eisenhower once stated and I
quote him, there can be no peace without law, and there could be no law
if we were to invoke one code of international conduct for those who
oppose us and another for our friends.
Mr. Chairman, enough is enough. We must support the amendment.
Mr. Chairman, I rise also in support of the Andrews amendment
regarding Taiwan. Taiwan has been one of our oldest and closest friends
in Asia since 1949. The people of that republic live in a free
democratic society, and we should commend Taiwan for its dedication to
democratic ideals. Last year, the House overwhelmingly approved a
resolution reaffirming the importance of the Taiwan Relations Act and
our commitment to the people of Taiwan. Congress must once again send a
strong message to the People's Republic of China and the world that we
intend to stand by our friends and allies. The United States must
dispel any notion on the part of China's leaders that we will tolerate
the use of force in determining the future of Taiwan. The people of
Taiwan must be responsible for determining their own future in a
peaceful and democratic fashion.
Mr. Chairman, I rise in support of the Andrews amendment on
recognition of the Sovereignty of the Territories in the Aegean Sea. On
December 25, 1995, a Turkish cargo ship ran aground on one of the Imia
islets. The ships' captain refused assistance from the Greek Coast
Guard on the basis that the Islet was Turkish.
Tensions began to mount and by January 29, 1996, both Greece and
Turkey had dispatched naval vessels to the area. On January 31st,
through U.S. mediation, both sides agreed to withdraw. While I am
thankful that this incident did not lead to an armed conflict then,
this matter still remains unresolved today because Turkey continues to
breach international law.
As you may know, my parents were born on the island of Kalymnos--only
miles from Imia. The group of Islets have always been considered Greek
territory and at no previous time has Turkey questioned Imia's
territorial ownership. Indeed, past Greek foreign minister Theodore
Pangalos stated ``This is the first time that Turkey has actually laid
claim to Greek territory.''
The European parliament overwhelmingly approved a resolution which
stated that ``The Islets of Imia belong to the Dodecanese group of
islands, on the basis of the Lausanne Treaty of 1923, the protocol
between Italy and Turkey of 1932, the Paris Treaty of 1947, and whereas
even on Turkish maps from the 1960's, the Islets are shown as Greek
territory.''
Moreover, the governments of Italy and France have publicly stated
their support of Greek sovereignty over Imia, as provided by
international law.
Turkey has been invited by Greece to take their case to the
international court of justice at the Hague. To this date, Turkey has
not sought redress.
Although Turkey is an ally, its actions must not go unquestioned.
Turkey must respect and abide by international law. As President
Eisenhower once stated, ``There can be no peace without law. And there
can be no law if we were to invoke one code of international conduct
for those who oppose us and another for our friends.''
Mr. Chairman, enough is enough.
Mr. GILMAN. Mr. Chairman, I yield 1\3/4\ minutes to the distinguished
gentleman from Nebraska (Mr. Bereuter), vice chairman of our committee.

[[Page H6077]]

(Mr. BEREUTER asked and was given permission to revise and extend his
remarks.)
Mr. BEREUTER. Mr. Chairman, I thank the gentleman for this time as we
wind up debate on the Embassy Security Act of 1999. We have had good
debate here on a variety of issues. We have had some close votes
occasionally; but I think despite those close votes, all Members of
this body should feel good about this legislation. The proper emphasis
has been on embassy security, as the title implies, and as we close
debate, I want to remind my colleagues of our responsibilities here.
Think back just to last August. On August 7, terrorists successfully
attacked U.S. embassies in Nairobi and Dar es Salaam. Over 220 people
were killed including 12 Americans, 40 local hires. While all in this
body would like to believe this could never happen again,
unfortunately, it can. And terrorist attacks are becoming more
sophisticated, more deadly all the time.
We had a rocket attack against our embassy in Moscow, we had a rocket
attack a couple years ago against our embassy in Athens, a NATO
country, a friendly country. Only because of technical failures did we
escape any damage and loss of life. We had the windows blown out of our
embassy in Uzbekistan in February from an auxiliary explosion nearby.
In fact, there have been too many attacks, and we had to close our
embassies in Africa last month because of extraordinary threat against
a number of them by Bin Ladin. The Crowe report urges a total of $1.4
billion be authorized. In this bill we are and appropriated for dealing
with the security issues for our embassies and consulates abroad.
Remember it is our responsibility ultimately for the safety and
soundness of the people that represent us abroad, the State Department
personnel, but it goes beyond that to include personnel from many other
agencies that are housed in our consulates and embassies and the people
that we hire from those countries. None of us want to have a
responsibility falling on this body because we fail to do what is
recommended to us by a blue ribbon commission. I urge my colleagues to
strongly support an excellent piece of legislation.
Mr. GILMAN. Mr. Chairman, I yield myself the balance of my time.
The CHAIRMAN pro tempore. The gentleman from New York is recognized
for 15 seconds.
Mr. GILMAN. Mr. Chairman, I want to indicate that the legislative
history of this bill is the same as the legislative history of the
provisions of H.R. 1211 that were identical to those in H.R. 2145. H.R.
1211 was a bill from which H.R. 2415 was derived, and, Mr. Chairman, I
want to thank the staff, and I want to thank the Chairman pro tempore
for his patience in this bill and thank our minority members for being
patient and helping us get this bill through at this point.
Mr. Chairman, I yield back the balance of my time.
Mr. GEJDENSON. Mr. Chairman, I yield myself such time as I may
consume.
Mr. Chairman, I would just like to join the gentleman from New York
in expressing my appreciation for the cooperation and support for
Members on both sides of the aisle and staff in accomplishing our work
in a good spirit and an effort to try and achieve a bipartisan goal
here of a better policy. Sometimes we succeed, sometimes we fail, but
we are all working for the best interests of the country.
Mr. PALLONE. Mr. Chairman, I rise in strong support of the Andrews
amendment, part of the en bloc, and thank my colleague from New Jersey
for offering it. In February of this year, I introduced a bill, H. Con.
Res. 36, that is very similar to my colleague's amendment. Like the
amendment, it expresses the Sense of the Congress that the islets of
Imia in the Aegean Sea are sovereign Greek territory under
international law.
As those who are familiar with this issue know, for some three and a
half years now Turkey has stood firm in its totally groundless claim
that it has sovereignty over the Greek islets of Imia.
On December 25, 1995 a Turkish bulk carrier ran ashore on the islets
of Imia, one of two uninhabited islets which are part of the Dodecanese
islands group in the Aegean Sea. This incident nearly escalated into
armed conflict between NATO allies Turkey and Greece due to Turkey's
belligerent claim that the islets, which are sovereign Greek territory,
belonged to Turkey. Hostilities were avoided after the Greek government
refused to attack a detachment of Turkish commandos who had been
dispatched to the islets and President Clinton personally intervened to
help defuse the crisis.
Despite Turkey's continued insistence that the islets are Turkish
territories, the historical record on this issue is clear. As this
amendment, as well as my bill details, the Dodecanese islands group was
ceded by Turkey to Italy in the Lausanne Treaty of 1923. The boundaries
delineating the exact sovereignty between Turkey and the islands group
were finalized in a December 1932 protocol between Turkey and Italy.
That protocol, which was annexed to the Convention Between Italy and
Turkey for the Delimitation of Anatolia and the Island of
Castellorizio, placed the islets of Imia under the sovereignty of
Italy. In the 1947 Paris Treaty of Peace with Italy, Italy ceded the
Dodecanese islands groups to Greece.
The legal status of the Dodecanese islands group remained
unchallenged by Turkey until its bulk carrier ran aground in late 1995
and Ankara began making its unfounded claims in 1996. That same year,
the European Parliament approved a resolution reaffirming the
historical record. The 1996 resolution stated that the water boundaries
established in the Treaty of Lausanne of 1923 and the 1932 protocol to
the convention between Italy and Turkey, are the borders between Greece
and Turkey.
Despite all of these readily available and irrefutable facts, Turkey
continues to promote instability in the region by ignoring the
historical record with its claim of sovereignty over the islets of
Imia.
Mr. Chairman, Turkey's unfounded claim should not go unnoticed by
Congress. The United States Congress should follow the precedent of the
European Parliament and reaffirm the historical record in a show of
support for territory that is unquestionably sovereign to Greece and
for the rule of international law in general. The United States should
also pressure Turkey to resolve this issue, and all other outstanding
territorial disputes with Greece--the most notable of which is the
nearly 25 year old invasion of Cyprus--in a peaceful fashion. To that
end, in addition to reaffirming Greece's sovereignty over the islets of
Imia, both my bill and the Andrews amendment include language urging
Turkey to agree to bring the dispute in the Aegean over Imia to the
International Court of Justice at the Hague for a resolution.
I encourage all Members to join myself and Mr. Andrews in formally
putting the United States on record in support of Greek sovereignty and
in opposition to Turkey's seemingly endless campaign to subvert
international law and destabilize the entire Mediterranean region.
I urge support of the en bloc amendment.
Mr. McGOVERN. Mr. Chairman, I rise in strong support of the Andrews
amendment, which expresses the Sense of Congress that the water
boundaries established by the 1923 Treaty of Lausanne and the 1932
Convention between Italy and Turkey are the borders between Greece and
Turkey in the Aegean Sea. The amendment further states that any party,
including Turkey, that objects to these boundaries should seek redress
in the International Court of Justice at The Hague.
What could be more reasonable? Certainly, the stability of the
eastern Mediterranean and the stability of international boundaries are
of fundamental interest to the United States, as well as respect for
international law.
Yet the Government of Turkey continues to claim sovereignty to the
islets in the Aegean Sea called Imia by Greece and Kardak by Turkey.
These disputes were settled over 67 years ago. The international
community regards them as agreed and settled, yet Turkey continues to
raise unilateral objections to these boundaries, but has cited no legal
authority for such claims.
As recently as February 15, 1996, the European Parliament adopted a
resolution that the water boundaries established in the Treaty of
Lausanne of 1923 and the 1932 Convention between Italy and Turkey are
indeed the borders between Greece and Turkey. The United States should
accept this position, as well as supporting Greece's proposal to Turkey
that it should refer its claims to the International Court of Justice
in The Hague for adjudication. Turkey has thus far refused to take such
a step and has rejected the Greek proposal.
Clearly it is in the interest of the United States, Europe and the
Mediterranean region to have this dispute resolved once and for all,
and resolved peacefully. Turkey needs to agree to bring this matter
before the International Court of Justice at The Hague, Netherlands,
for a resolution. And the United States needs to recognize that the
islets of Imia in the Aegean Sea are the sovereign territory of Greece
under international law and to state that it accepts the present
maritime boundaries between Greece and Turkey in the Aegean.

[[Page H6078]]

I urge my colleagues to stand up for international law and support
the Andrews amendment.
Mrs. MEEK of Florida. Mr. Chairman, I ask unanimous consent to revise
and extend my remarks.
I rise in strong support of the gentleman from Florida, Mr. Hastings'
amendment (#36) to the State Department authorization bill, expressing
the sense of the House's support for the parliamentary and local
elections scheduled for November 1999 in Haiti.
The establishment of a constitutional government and functioning
parliament in Haiti demands a commitment to support free and fair
elections. It is essential that the State Department ensure that the
U.S. Embassy in Haiti have sufficient personnel and resources to carry
out its election-related activities.
Earlier this year, President Rene Preval's government and six
political parties signed an agreement aimed at resolving a costly and
contentious political standoff that has left Haiti without a
functioning government for the past two years.
This agreement paves the way for new parliamentary elections. The
gentleman's amendment will help to assure that these elections are
successful.
Mr. Chairman, the situation in Haiti is fragile. We know that since
the resignation of the Prime Minister in June 1997, this impoverished
country has been experiencing some very disturbing violence.
These conditions have alerted the country's landscape in ways that,
among other things, have limited Haiti's ability to advance business
deals and to provide needed services to a desperate people.
The United States has made a significant commitment to democracy in
Haiti. A Democratic Haiti is in our national interest. The United
States should stay the course and support democracy in Haiti.
Supporting the Hastings amendment.
Mr. GILMAN. Mr. Chairman, along with my colleagues Mr. Goss, Mr.
Ranger and Mr. Conyers, I returned from a visit to Haiti in January of
this year convinced that good elections were essential in Haiti. Judge
Hastings recently brought a resolution before our International
Relations Committee regarding the Haitian elections which was approved.
I thank him for his gracious efforts to achieve a consensus with this
side of the aisle on that measure.
I thank the gentleman from Florida for offering this amendment which
underscores U.S. congressional support for Haiti. However, I am
concerned that the upcoming parliamentary and local elections must be
credible in order to help Haiti move forward.
Regrettably, the election process in Haiti is getting off to a rocky
start. President Preval finally signed a decree prepared by Haiti's
electoral authorities on Friday of last week. That measure was
carefully framed by Haiti's provisional electoral council to be the
cornerstone of the upcoming elections.
I am deeply disappointed that President Preval modified the electoral
law and, in particular, eliminated a provision in the law calling for
elections for 19 Senate seats. This particular element of the electoral
measure would have provided for a transparent resolution of the
disputed April 1997 elections.
The State Department is hoping that Haiti's electoral council can act
to correct President Preval's elimination of the ``19 seat'' provision.
There must not be any further delay in fully enacting this critically
important measure.
The United States and our allies in the international community stand
poised to provide substantial support for these elections. However,
statutory restrictions and common sense require there to be a
transparent settlement of the disputed 1997 elections. Only then will
U.S. assistance be able to flow to these critically important elections
that can and should be Haiti's way out of its protracted and costly
crisis.
I support the Hastings amendment. However, I hope that the gentleman
from Florida will agree with me that securing a good election first
requires a transparent resolution of the 1997 elections, and will then
require both support and sustained vigilance from the international
community.
Mr. HASTINGS of Florida. Mr. Chairman, since the time for debate on
this amendment is limited, I will be brief. I traveled recently to
Haiti with Senator Bob Graham and Congressman Delahunt. What I saw
there reinforced my strong belief that Haiti is in dire need of our
support. The stability of Haiti rests on the transparency and
legitimacy of the upcoming parliamentary elections.
Our approach to Haiti must be multi-dimensional. To assist in
maintaining stability in Haiti and strengthening the roots of the rule
of law there we must do the following: illustrate our support for the
election monitors on the ground; recognize the invaluable good works
that our armed forces have carried out in Haiti; salute the electoral
authorities for striving to be fair and judicious; and condemn any
person or persons, including President Preval, who attempts to
abrogate, alter, or delay the implementation of the electoral laws
which have been so painstakenly crafted.
Mr. Chairman, my amendment is simple: it expresses the sense of this
body in support of parliamentary elections in Haiti, and urges the
Department of State to ensure that the U.S. Embassy in Haiti has
sufficient personnel and resources necessary to carry out its
responsibilities related to these elections.
I believe that all persons in this body, no matter where they stand
on the issue of U.S. involvement in Haiti, can support this simple
resolution. While it demands little of us in the way of expenditures of
personnel and resources, it illustrates the importance which the U.S.
places on free, fair and transparent elections in Haiti. Please support
this amendment.
Mr. GOSS. Mr. Chairman, the Hastings amendment is well meaning in
restating the obvious that it is the sense of Congress to support
Democratic elections scheduled for November 1999 in Haiti. Continued
encouragement is appropriate considering the fact that the Clinton-Gore
administration has already committed millions of dollars in election
assistance, as have other countries. So I would characterize the
Hastings amendment as a benign placebo--the problem is Haiti needs
strong medicine--in large doses. Since January, 1999, there has been
plenty of bad news from Haiti, only one small piece of it good. Now
even that has been spoiled by Haiti's own home-style power mongers. An
independent election commission has tentatively announced a transparent
reasonable resolution of the fraudulent 1997 elections, which were the
trigger event of today's Government crisis in Haiti.
But a spokesman for former President Aristide described this
development this way: ``You are declaring war on Aristide. This is a
second coup d'etat against Aristide . . . The CEP (electoral council)
must correct it immediately if it wants elections to really take place
. . . '' Mr. Chairman, with all due respect to former President
Aristide, these are not the words of a democrat or someone committed to
the rule of law. They are the threatening words of a dictator intent on
maintaining his control over the country at any price. And now
Aristide's handpicked successor, President Rene Preval, did not sign
the election law as drafted but he gutted it first. Mr. Chairman the
United States has given Haiti every possible opportunity to embrace
democracy. It is an absolute tragedy that some of the Haitian leaders
care more about power than they do democracy and the needs of the
Haitian people. I wish my friends on the other side of the Aisle and
the political advisors in the Clinton administration would end the
pretense and admit that poor Haiti is sick--really sick. My good friend
and colleague from Florida's placebo isn't going to cure what's wrong.
And neither are the current expensive and misguided policies of the
Clinton-Gore administration, which seems to focus more on happy face
diagnoses, over-optimistic prognoses and expensive treatments that cure
nothing. Democracy in Haiti is dying fast. It is being deliberately
smothered by emerging dictatorship. What's worse is that the Clinton-
Gore administration is tolerating it--if not helping people hold the
pillows. This is equivalent of Dr. Kevorkian foreign policy and it
needs to stop.

Mr. GALLEGLY. Mr. Chairman, as Chairman of the Western Hemisphere
Subcommittee, I rise in support of the amendment offered by the Ranking
Democrat of the International Relations Committee and the other
cosponsors who have joined in this bi-partisan effort to support a
peaceful resolution of the conflict in Colombia.
I want to thank the distinguished Chairman of the International
Relations Committee, Ben Gilman, for including this important
initiative in the en bloc amendment.
This amendment condemns the continued violence being carried out by
the FARC and ELN guerrillas and the paramilitaries of the United Self-
Defense Forces in the conflict and urges the leadership of the
Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia to begin substantive
negotiations to end the conflict.
I especially want to commend our colleagues, Mr. Ackerman, our
Subcommittee's Ranking Democrat, Mr. Ballenger, and Mr. Delahunt, for
helping to bring this provision to the Floor.
As Subcommittee Chairman I have been very supportive of the counter-
narcotics efforts of the Colombian National Police and our own law
enforcement agencies to stem the flow of dangerous drugs from Colombia.
But despite the valiant efforts of the Colombian Police, who have
sacrificed so much in their thus far successful efforts against drugs,
I am concerned that their 4,000 strong elite DANTE

[[Page H6079]]

counter-narcotics force may be no match for the 20,000 strong guerrilla
forces of the FARC and the ELN. And, as long as the FARC and ELN
continue to use their substantial military power to protect the drug
trade, I fear the police will not be able to achieve ultimate success
over drugs.
Therefore, I believe it is critical that we support the Colombian
government's attempts to bring the long and deadly guerrilla insurgency
to an end. Despite the recent announcement that the peace talks have
been suspended because of the continued violence, a condition which
lies squarely on the shoulders of the FARC, it will only be through a
negotiated settlement of this insurgency that Colombia can
realistically expect to end the violence and turn its full attentions
to a nationwide commitment to end the deadly narcotics trade which
plagues that nation and brings so much destruction, human suffering and
violence to communities around the world.
While we should support peace efforts, as embodied in this amendment,
we must be firm in condemning the unacceptable kidnappings and violence
of the guerrillas and paramilitaries against innocent civilian
populations, and especially against human rights workers and American
citizens. These unprovoked attacks and acts of violence strain the
patience of many Americans and others who are willing to give peace a
chance.
At the same time, Mr. Speaker, we as a nation, should reassess our
current limited support for the Colombian military in the event the
peace process fails to bring an end to the violence. The fact that the
FARC refuse to enter into a cease fire and continue to attack Colombian
government institutions, can only lead one to doubt the sincerity of
the FARC's real interest in a peaceful resolution. If this is true, we
must help the Colombian government and its military protect the
democracy and those freedoms we in this country so cherish.
This amendment expresses our support for the efforts to bring about a
peaceful resolution to the conflict being pursued by President Pastrana
and will help him in those efforts.
Mr. Chairman, I urge the House to adopt this amendment.
Mr. FARR of California. Mr. Chairman, Colombia, South America is one
of the most beautiful and diverse countries in the world. Its location
on both the Caribbean and Pacific Oceans where the snow capped
mountains can be seen from tropical beaches is the second most
biologically diverse country on the planet.
The people of Colombia created and maintain what is now the oldest
democracy in Latin America. As one of the original Peace Corps
countries, Colombia was a leader in the Alliance for Progress during
the 1960's.
Drug demand in North America created a market for illegal cultivation
in a country once rich in agricultural diversity. Now, whole regions
are dependent on illegal crops. Drug profits corrupted the Colombian
economy and led many farmers to stop growing sustenance crops in favor
of marijuana, coca, and poppies.
The war against drugs, combined with regional violence, has led
Colombia to near collapse. Hundreds of thousands of people are
displaced and tens of thousands have died in the civil war that is
tearing the country apart. With the election of President Andres
Pastrana, Colombians were given new hope that the killings and
kidnapings would finally come to an end.
The willingness of the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC)
to negotiate with the Pastrana Administration was a much needed leap
toward peace. I was extremely pleased that long sought negotiations
between the Colombian government and the FARC were set to begin this
week. Unfortunately, those talks have been postponed.
This, however, does not diminish the importance of Mr. Gejdenson's
amendment to support the peace process in Colombia. In fact, it is all
the more important to support peace now when it is in jeopardy of
falling apart. I feel that, as their neighbors, we have a
responsibility to foster an environment in which that peace can
blossom. This will affect the daily lives of Colombians, the stability
of the region and the ability to combat drug traffickers.
Having lived in Colombia during my service in the Peace Corps, I have
a special affinity for the Colombian people. I know they want peace. I
know they are willing to work for it. I know they will be successful
given time and support. And I want to do everything possible to help
them through this long process. This amendment is one step in that
process.
I encourage my colleagues to support this amendment, and send a
strong message to the Colombian people that we stand behind them and
encourage them to continue to work toward peace.
Mr. GEJDENSON. Mr. Chairman, I yield back the balance of my time.
The CHAIRMAN pro tempore. The question is on the amendments en bloc
offered by the gentleman from New York (Mr. Gilman).
The amendments en bloc were agreed to.

Sequential Votes Postponed In Committee of the Whole

The CHAIRMAN. Pursuant to House Resolution 247, proceedings will now
resume on those amendments on which further proceedings were postponed
in the following order: Amendment No. 36 in Part B offered by the
gentleman from Texas (Mr. Doggett); Amendment No. 37 in Part B offered
by the gentleman from New York (Mr. Engel).
The Chair will reduce to 5 minutes the time for any electronic vote
after the first vote in this series.

Amendment No. 36 Offered by Mr. Doggett

The CHAIRMAN pro tempore. The pending business is a demand for a
recorded vote on amendment No. 36 offered by the gentleman from Texas
(Mr. Doggett) on which further proceedings were postponed and on which
the ayes prevailed by voice vote.
The Clerk will redesignate the amendment.
The Clerk redesignated the amendment.

recorded vote

The CHAIRMAN pro tempore. A recorded vote has been demanded.
A recorded vote was ordered.
The vote was taken by electronic device, and there were--ayes 427,
noes 0, not voting 6, as follows:

[Roll No. 328]

AYES--427

Ackerman
Aderholt
Allen
Andrews
Archer
Armey
Bachus
Baird
Baker
Baldacci
Baldwin
Ballenger
Barcia
Barr
Barrett (NE)
Barrett (WI)
Bartlett
Barton
Bass
Bateman
Becerra
Bentsen
Bereuter
Berkley
Berman
Berry
Biggert
Bilbray
Bilirakis
Bishop
Blagojevich
Bliley
Blumenauer
Blunt
Boehlert
Boehner
Bonilla
Bonior
Bono
Borski
Boswell
Boucher
Boyd
Brady (PA)
Brady (TX)
Brown (FL)
Brown (OH)
Bryant
Burr
Burton
Buyer
Callahan
Calvert
Camp
Campbell
Canady
Cannon
Capps
Capuano
Cardin
Carson
Castle
Chabot
Chambliss
Clay
Clayton
Clement
Clyburn
Coble
Coburn
Collins
Combest
Condit
Conyers
Cook
Cooksey
Costello
Cox
Coyne
Cramer
Crane
Crowley
Cubin
Cummings
Cunningham
Danner
Davis (FL)
Davis (IL)
Davis (VA)
Deal
DeFazio
DeGette
Delahunt
DeLauro
DeLay
DeMint
Deutsch
Diaz-Balart
Dickey
Dicks
Dingell
Dixon
Doggett
Dooley
Doolittle
Doyle
Dreier
Duncan
Dunn
Edwards
Ehlers
Ehrlich
Emerson
Engel
English
Eshoo
Etheridge
Evans
Everett
Ewing
Farr
Fattah
Filner
Fletcher
Foley
Forbes
Ford
Fossella
Fowler
Frank (MA)
Franks (NJ)
Frelinghuysen
Frost
Gallegly
Ganske
Gejdenson
Gekas
Gephardt
Gibbons
Gilchrest
Gillmor
Gilman
Gonzalez
Goode
Goodlatte
Goodling
Gordon
Goss
Graham
Granger
Green (TX)
Green (WI)
Greenwood
Gutierrez
Gutknecht
Hall (OH)
Hall (TX)
Hansen
Hastings (FL)
Hastings (WA)
Hayes
Hayworth
Hefley
Herger
Hill (IN)
Hill (MT)
Hilleary
Hilliard
Hinchey
Hinojosa
Hobson
Hoeffel
Hoekstra
Holden
Holt
Hooley
Horn
Hostettler
Houghton
Hoyer
Hulshof
Hunter
Hutchinson
Hyde
Inslee
Isakson
Istook
Jackson (IL)
Jackson-Lee (TX)
Jefferson
Jenkins
John
Johnson (CT)
Johnson, E. B.
Johnson, Sam
Jones (NC)
Jones (OH)
Kanjorski
Kaptur
Kasich
Kelly
Kildee
Kilpatrick
Kind (WI)
King (NY)
Kingston
Kleczka
Klink
Knollenberg
Kolbe
Kucinich
Kuykendall
LaFalce
LaHood
Lampson
Lantos
Largent
Larson
Latham
LaTourette
Lazio
Leach
Lee
Levin
Lewis (CA)
Lewis (GA)
Lewis (KY)
Linder
Lipinski
LoBiondo
Lofgren
Lowey
Lucas (KY)
Lucas (OK)
Luther
Maloney (CT)
Maloney (NY)
Manzullo
Markey
Martinez
Mascara
Matsui
McCarthy (MO)
McCarthy (NY)
McCollum
McCrery
McGovern
McHugh
McInnis
McIntosh
McIntyre
McKeon
McKinney
McNulty
Meehan
Meek (FL)
Meeks (NY)
Menendez
Metcalf
Mica
Millender-McDonald
Miller (FL)
Miller, Gary
Miller, George
Minge
Mink
Moakley
Mollohan
Moore
Moran (KS)
Moran (VA)
Morella
Murtha
Myrick
Nadler
Napolitano
Neal
Nethercutt
Ney
Northup
Norwood
Nussle
Oberstar
Obey
Olver
Ortiz
Ose
Owens
Oxley
Packard
Pallone
Pascrell
Pastor
Paul
Payne
Pease
Pelosi
Peterson (MN)
Petri
Phelps
Pickering

[[Page H6080]]

Pickett
Pitts
Pombo
Pomeroy
Porter
Portman
Price (NC)
Pryce (OH)
Quinn
Radanovich
Rahall
Ramstad
Rangel
Regula
Reyes
Reynolds
Riley
Rivers
Rodriguez
Roemer
Rogan
Rogers
Rohrabacher
Ros-Lehtinen
Rothman
Roukema
Roybal-Allard
Royce
Rush
Ryan (WI)
Ryun (KS)
Sabo
Salmon
Sanchez
Sanders
Sandlin
Sanford
Sawyer
Saxton
Scarborough
Schaffer
Schakowsky
Scott
Sensenbrenner
Serrano
Sessions
Shadegg
Shaw
Shays
Sherman
Sherwood
Shimkus
Shows
Shuster
Simpson
Sisisky
Skeen
Skelton
Slaughter
Smith (MI)
Smith (NJ)
Smith (TX)
Smith (WA)
Snyder
Souder
Spence
Spratt
Stabenow
Stark
Stearns
Stenholm
Strickland
Stump
Stupak
Sununu
Sweeney
Talent
Tancredo
Tanner
Tauscher
Tauzin
Taylor (MS)
Taylor (NC)
Terry
Thomas
Thompson (CA)
Thompson (MS)
Thornberry
Thune
Thurman
Tiahrt
Tierney
Toomey
Traficant
Turner
Udall (CO)
Udall (NM)
Upton
Velazquez
Vento
Visclosky
Vitter
Walden
Walsh
Wamp
Waters
Watkins
Watt (NC)
Watts (OK)
Waxman
Weiner
Weldon (FL)
Weldon (PA)
Weller
Wexler
Weygand
Whitfield
Wicker
Wilson
Wise
Wolf
Woolsey
Wu
Wynn
Young (AK)
Young (FL)

NOT VOTING--6

Abercrombie
Chenoweth
Kennedy
McDermott
Peterson (PA)
Towns

{time} 1704

Mr. RADANOVICH changed his vote from ``no'' to ``aye.''
So the amendment was agreed to.
The result of the vote was announced as above recorded.

Announcement by the Chairman Pro Tempore

The CHAIRMAN pro tempore (Mr. Hastings of Washington). Pursuant to
House Resolution 247, the Chair announces that he will reduce to a
minimum of 5 minutes the period of time within which a vote by
electronic device will be taken on the additional amendment on which
the Chair has postponed further proceedings.

Amendment No. 37 Offered by Mr. Engel

The CHAIRMAN pro tempore. The pending business is the demand for a
recorded vote on amendment No. 37 offered by the gentleman from New
York (Mr. Engel) on which further proceedings were postponed and on
which the ayes prevailed by voice vote.
The Clerk will redesignate the amendment.
The Clerk redesignated the amendment.

Recorded Vote

[Roll No. 329]

AYES--424

Abercrombie
Ackerman
Aderholt
Allen
Andrews
Archer
Armey
Bachus
Baird
Baker
Baldacci
Baldwin
Ballenger
Barcia
Barr
Barrett (NE)
Barrett (WI)
Bartlett
Barton
Bass
Bateman
Becerra
Bentsen
Bereuter
Berkley
Berman
Berry
Biggert
Bilbray
Bilirakis
Bishop
Blagojevich
Bliley
Blumenauer
Blunt
Boehlert
Boehner
Bonilla
Bonior
Bono
Borski
Boswell
Boucher
Boyd
Brady (PA)
Brady (TX)
Brown (FL)
Brown (OH)
Bryant
Burr
Burton
Buyer
Callahan
Calvert
Camp
Campbell
Canady
Cannon
Capps
Capuano
Cardin
Carson
Castle
Chabot
Chambliss
Clay
Clayton
Clement
Clyburn
Coble
Collins
Combest
Condit
Conyers
Cook
Cooksey
Costello
Cox
Coyne
Cramer
Crane
Crowley
Cubin
Cummings
Cunningham
Danner
Davis (FL)
Davis (IL)
Davis (VA)
Deal
DeFazio
DeGette
Delahunt
DeLauro
DeMint
Deutsch
Diaz-Balart
Dickey
Dicks
Dingell
Dixon
Doggett
Dooley
Doolittle
Doyle
Dreier
Duncan
Dunn
Edwards
Ehlers
Ehrlich
Emerson
Engel
English
Eshoo
Etheridge
Evans
Everett
Ewing
Farr
Fattah
Filner
Fletcher
Foley
Ford
Fossella
Fowler
Frank (MA)
Franks (NJ)
Frelinghuysen
Frost
Gallegly
Ganske
Gejdenson
Gekas
Gephardt
Gibbons
Gilchrest
Gillmor
Gilman
Gonzalez
Goode
Goodlatte
Goodling
Gordon
Goss
Graham
Granger
Green (TX)
Green (WI)
Greenwood
Gutierrez
Gutknecht
Hall (OH)
Hall (TX)
Hansen
Hastings (FL)
Hastings (WA)
Hayes
Hayworth
Hefley
Herger
Hill (IN)
Hill (MT)
Hilleary
Hilliard
Hinchey
Hinojosa
Hobson
Hoeffel
Hoekstra
Holden
Holt
Hooley
Horn
Hostettler
Houghton
Hoyer
Hulshof
Hunter
Hutchinson
Hyde
Inslee
Isakson
Istook
Jackson (IL)
Jackson-Lee (TX)
Jefferson
Jenkins
John
Johnson (CT)
Johnson, E. B.
Johnson, Sam
Jones (NC)
Jones (OH)
Kanjorski
Kaptur
Kasich
Kelly
Kildee
Kilpatrick
Kind (WI)
King (NY)
Kingston
Kleczka
Klink
Knollenberg
Kolbe
Kucinich
Kuykendall
LaFalce
LaHood
Lampson
Lantos
Largent
Larson
Latham
LaTourette
Lazio
Leach
Lee
Levin
Lewis (CA)
Lewis (GA)
Lewis (KY)
Linder
Lipinski
LoBiondo
Lofgren
Lowey
Lucas (KY)
Lucas (OK)
Luther
Maloney (CT)
Maloney (NY)
Manzullo
Markey
Martinez
Mascara
Matsui
McCarthy (MO)
McCarthy (NY)
McCollum
McCrery
McGovern
McHugh
McInnis
McIntosh
McIntyre
McKeon
McKinney
McNulty
Meehan
Meek (FL)
Meeks (NY)
Menendez
Metcalf
Mica
Millender-McDonald
Miller (FL)
Miller, Gary
Miller, George
Minge
Mink
Moakley
Mollohan
Moore
Moran (KS)
Moran (VA)
Morella
Murtha
Myrick
Nadler
Napolitano
Neal
Nethercutt
Ney
Northup
Norwood
Nussle
Oberstar
Obey
Olver
Ortiz
Ose
Owens
Oxley
Packard
Pallone
Pascrell
Pastor
Paul
Payne
Pease
Pelosi
Peterson (MN)
Petri
Phelps
Pickering
Pickett
Pitts
Pombo
Pomeroy
Porter
Portman
Price (NC)
Pryce (OH)
Quinn
Radanovich
Rahall
Ramstad
Rangel
Regula
Reyes
Reynolds
Riley
Rivers
Rodriguez
Roemer
Rogan
Rogers
Rohrabacher
Ros-Lehtinen
Rothman
Roukema
Roybal-Allard
Royce
Rush
Ryan (WI)
Ryun (KS)
Sabo
Salmon
Sanchez
Sanders
Sandlin
Sanford
Sawyer
Saxton
Scarborough
Schaffer
Schakowsky
Scott
Sensenbrenner
Serrano
Sessions
Shadegg
Shaw
Shays
Sherman
Sherwood
Shimkus
Shows
Shuster
Simpson
Sisisky
Skeen
Skelton
Slaughter
Smith (MI)
Smith (NJ)
Smith (TX)
Smith (WA)
Snyder
Souder
Spence
Spratt
Stabenow
Stark
Stearns
Stenholm
Strickland
Stump
Stupak
Sununu
Sweeney
Talent
Tancredo
Tanner
Tauscher
Tauzin
Taylor (MS)
Taylor (NC)
Terry
Thomas
Thompson (CA)
Thompson (MS)
Thornberry
Thune
Thurman
Tiahrt
Tierney
Toomey
Traficant
Turner
Udall (CO)
Udall (NM)
Upton
Velazquez
Vento
Visclosky
Vitter
Walden
Walsh
Wamp
Waters
Watkins
Watt (NC)
Waxman
Weiner
Weldon (FL)
Weldon (PA)
Weller
Wexler
Weygand
Whitfield
Wicker
Wilson
Wise
Wolf
Woolsey
Wu
Wynn
Young (AK)
Young (FL)

NOT VOTING--9

Chenoweth
Coburn
DeLay
Forbes
Kennedy
McDermott
Peterson (PA)
Towns
Watts (OK)

{time} 1714

So the amendment was agreed to.
The result of the vote was announced as above recorded.
Stated for:
Mr. DeLAY. Mr. Chairman, on rollcall No. 329, I was inadvertently
detained. Had I been present, I would have voted ``yes.''
Mr. BERMAN. Mr. Chairman, Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty's
remarkable response to the Kosovo crisis demonstrates why we need to
continue to support this station at current or even enhanced funding
levels. As you know, I have been a longtime supporter of RFE/RL both
because of its contribution to the cause of freedom during the cold war
and because of its continuing assistance to post-communist countries
who are still struggling to complete the transition to democracy and
free market economies. But RFE/RL's effort during the Kosovo crisis
convinces me that we need RFE/RL now more than ever.
As the crisis deepended last year, RFE/RL and in particular its South
Slavic Service rapidly expanded their broadcasts to the region. In
April, 1999 the Prague-based radios increased surge broadcasting in
cooperation with other American and European stations to ensure that
the Serbs received the kind of reliable information 24 hours a day that
their government sought to prevent them from obtaining. And they set up
an Albanian language unit that provided news to Kosovars both in that
region and in the refugee camps.
Our government and NATO commanders have praised RFE/RL's efforts,
noting that just as in Bosnia, such broadcasting has helped to

[[Page H6081]]

calm the situation, explain NATO's mission, and thus helped the
alliance to overcome the resistance of those who had earlier opposed
it. And perhaps even more important, those listening to these
broadcasts have sent letters and e-mails pointing out that these
broadcasts helped them to survive through a most difficult time.
But despite these contributions, contributions that cost very little,
many question why we should maintain RFE/RL when we also spend money to
support the Voice of America. To my mind, there are several good
reasons for this, all of which have been highlighted by the Kosovo
crisis.
First of all, RFE/RL's South Slavic Service is unique in broadcasting
to all the peoples of the former Yugoslavia in different languages but
with a common perspective on the need for peaceful, democratic
development. RFE/RL did not broadcast to Yugoslavia during the Cold
War. Had it done so, we might be facing fewer problems today.
In addition, RFE/RL continues to be a ``home service'' for people
whose governments often deny them the chance to have a free media. The
Voice of America proudly presents America's position on the issues;
RFE/RL makes sure that its listeners be they in Belgrade or in Kosovo
have the information they need about their own country as well. These
are complementary missions; we need both.
And finally, in Eastern Europe, RFE/RL not only has real brand
loyalty but also represents an important symbol of American concern
about the region. People there continue to listen to RFE/RL because it
provides reliable information that they need, and they see the
existence of this station as reflecting America's longstanding
commitment to freedom and democracy in their own countries. VOA also
plays a role, and it also enjoys this kind of support. But in our time
particularly, symbols matter, and RFE/RL's broadcasts remain an
extraordinarily important one.
Not only is RFE/RL effective in promoting our national interests, but
it is remarkably efficient: It now broadcasts more hours each week than
it did a decade ago when both its budget and its number of employees
were three times larger than they are now. That is a record few other
broadcasters or government agencies can match. And it is one that we
should reward rather than punish, continue rather than stop.
As the tragic events of Kosovo and NATO's recent military conflict
with Serbia have demonstrated, the transition to a peaceful and
democratic Europe is far from complete. We should support RFE/RL's
vital work as we enter the 21st century.

{time} 1715

The CHAIRMAN pro tempore (Mr. Hastings of Washington). Under the
rule, the Committee rises.
Accordingly, the Committee rose; and the Speaker pro tempore (Mr.
Pease) having assumed the chair, Mr. Hastings of Washington, Chairman
pro tempore of the Committee of the Whole House on the State of the
Union, reported that the Committee, having had under consideration the
bill (H.R. 2415) to enhance security of United States missions and
personnel overseas, to authorize appropriations for the Department of
State for fiscal year 2000, and for other purposes, pursuant to House
Resolution 247, he reported the bill back to the House with sundry
amendments adopted by the Committee of the Whole.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Under the rule, the previous question is
ordered.
Is a separate vote demanded on any amendment? If not, the Chair will
put them en gros.
The amendments were agreed to.
The bill was ordered to be engrossed and read a third time, was read
the third time, and passed, and a motion to reconsider was laid on the
table.

____________________