Tom Lantos

Mr. LANTOS

Mr. LANTOS. Mr. Speaker, I join the Chairman of the International Relations Committee, Mr. Gilman of New York, and the Ranking Democratic Member of the Committee, Mr. Hamilton of Indiana, in strongly supporting this legislation to rename the North South Center as the Dante B. Fascell North South Center. Mr. Speaker, I had the great honor of serving in this House for 12 years without our distinguished former colleague from Florida, Dante B. Fascell, and for almost a decade of my service in the House, he was the Chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Committee. In that position he played a critical role in dealing with many of the vital foreign policy issues of that time--the Iran-Contra scandal, the collapse of the Soviet Union, the effort to encourage the democratic political transition and the development market economies in the republics of the Newly Independent States and the countries of Central and Eastern Europe, the end of the Berlin Wall and the unification of Germany, the outrageous suppression of democracy and free speech at Tiananmen Square in Beijing. Dante was a critical player, Mr. Speaker, when the House of Representatives considered the War Powers Act in 1974, and throughout his service in the Congress, he was adamantly committed to assuring the importance of the Congressional role in the formulation of our Nation's foreign policy. In the 1970's the Conference on Security and Cooperation in Europe took place with the involvement of the nations of both Western and Eastern Europe and the United States in an effort to improve relations between Western Europe and the Soviet Union and its client states. At this crucial time, Dante was one of the most insistent and effective voices in advocating the importance of respect for human rights as a key element of any agreement with the communist countries. It was largely through his leadership that the United States Commission on Security and Cooperation in Europe--the Helsinki commission--was established. Among the most farsighted concerns upon which Chairman Fascell focused his energies and attention, however, Mr. Speaker, was the effort to improve and strengthen United States relations with the nations of the Western Hemisphere, including Latin America, the Caribbean, and Canada. Among his most lasting contributions in this regard was his important legislation to establish the North South Center at the University of Miami in 1990. Mr. Speaker, Dante Fascell worked tirelessly to promote democracy and foster an open dialogue among the nations of this hemisphere. His efforts in this regard were important in advancing our nation's security, competitiveness and economic viability. The East West Center has played a vital role in the national debate on the role of the United States in the Western Hemisphere. The Center has done important work in focusing on regional topics of great importance to our nation-- trade, economic growth, immigration, drug policy and drug control, and the spread of democracy and market economics. In light of Dante's distinguished record of service in this body and the critical contributions which he and the North South Center have made in our nation's foreign policy in this hemisphere, Mr. Speaker, it is entirely appropriate and fitting that we rename the North South Center in his honor. I strongly support this legislation, and I urge my colleagues to support it as well.

Mr. LANTOS

Mr. LANTOS. Mr. Speaker, this year marks the 50th anniversary of the signature of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, which was proclaimed on December 10, 1948, after its adoption by the General Assembly of the United Nations without a dissenting vote. Mr. Speaker, the Universal Declaration sets forth fundamental human rights for women and men everywhere, and it is ``a common standard of achievement for all peoples and all nations.'' It has become the most widely accepted international statement of fundamental human rights. It is frequently referred to in resolutions and covenants adopted by international organizations, in multilateral and bilateral treaties, and in laws and decrees of many nations. Earlier this year, this House adopted H. Con. Res. 185, a resolution which I introduced with the support of our colleagues John Edward Porter of Illinois, the co-chairman of the Congressional Human Rights Caucus, and Christopher Smith of New Jersey, the Chairman of the Subcommittee on International Operations and Human Rights of the House Committee on International Relations. That resolution notes the important 50th anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights this year and recommits the United States to the principles expressed in the Universal Declaration. Mr. Speaker, earlier this week, the distinguished Deputy Secretary General of the United Nations, Louise Frechette, represented the United Nations and spoke at a reception here on Capitol Hill in honor of the 50th anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. The reception was given by the United Nations in cooperation with the Congressional Human Rights Caucus. On that occasion, Mr. Speaker, Mme. Frechette delivered an excellent statement. Louise Frechette has had a distinguished diplomatic career in her native country of Canada. Prior to her appointment as Deputy Secretary General of the United Nations, Mme. Frechette served as the Deputy Defense Minister of Canada and played a particularly important role in Canada's participation in a number of United Nations peacekeeping operations. Mr. Speaker, I ask that Mme. Frechette's speech be included in the Record, and I urge my colleagues to give it careful and thoughtful attention. Deputy Secretary-General Stresses United Nations Duty to Translate into Practice Organization's Commitment to Human Rights I would like, at the outset, to extend the appreciation of all of us in the United Nations system for the commendable work of the Human Rights Caucus in focusing the attention of Congress on human rights and violations of those rights around the world. In this fiftieth anniversary year of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, that focus has never been more important. The world is changing: modern technology, communications and open borders have led to a movement and exchange of ideas on a scale never seen before. Those nations which fail to uphold basic principles of acceptable behavior can no longer hide behind their borders. For the United Nations, that makes all the more compelling our duty to translate into practice our commitment to human rights. For decades, the primary focus in human rights was on establishing international norms and standards. That work was largely successful. In the 1990s, the emphasis has shifted to implementation. Human rights monitors are often attached to peacekeeping operations. We run advisory services to strengthen the judiciary. Special rapporteurs are investigating torture, child labor and child prostitution, religious intolerance and violence against women. I am pleased to report that we now have more staff working on human rights in the field than at Headquarters. And, of course, the United Nations provides global leadership on human rights in the person of Mary Robinson, who, as High Commissioner for Human Rights, has raised the profile of the issue around the world. Hand in hand with human rights come issues of democratization and good governance. Increasingly across the world, it has become an established norm that military coups by self-appointed juntas against democratically-elected governments are simply not acceptable. The United Nations is receiving more requests for electoral assistance than ever before. In the past five years, we had no fewer than 80 such requests. The United Nations helps teams of international observers assess the legitimacy of an electoral process and its outcome. We guide, monitor and sometimes run elections in various countries. The Declaration of Human Rights is not a legally binding document. Yet, it has been a fundamental source of inspiration for national and international efforts to protect and promote human rights and freedoms. The main principles of the Declaration have inspired the constitutions of many countries which have become independent since it was written. Conceived as a ``common standard of achievement for all peoples and all nations'' the Declaration has become a yardstick by which to measure the respect for, and compliance with, international human rights standards. The first article of the Declaration is quite simple. Let me quote it to you ``All human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights. They are endowed with reason and conscience and should act towards one another in a spirit of brotherhood.'' Nobody personified that spirit of brotherhood better than Raoul Wallenberg. That fact was acknowledged here in Washington 17 years ago yesterday, when Wallenberg became the third foreigner to be given honorary citizenship of this country--thanks to legislation written by you, Congressman [Tom] Lantos. Wallenberg's life and achievements highlighted the vital difference an individual can make amidst conflict and suffering. His intervention gave hope to victims, encouraged them to fight and resist, to hang on and bear witness. Remembering his life should be an inspiration for others to act; for future generations to act; for all of us to act. Congressman Lantos, I know that you owe much to Raoul Wallenberg. But I also know we owe much to you, to your indefatigable work in the cause of human rights and in keeping his legacy alive. You, like him, provide an example to us all. And the work of the Congressional Human Rights Caucus provides an invaluable example of what can be achieved when we join forces to achieve common goals. Such partnerships strengthen immeasurably the work of governments and the United Nations. For although the United Nations is an association of sovereign States, the rights it exists to uphold and defend belong to people. It follows that people everywhere have a responsibility to speak up for those rights, whenever they see them threatened, wherever they know them to be violated. For your work in that regard, I thank you all.

Mr. LANTOS

Mr. LANTOS. Mr. Speaker, I would like to call the attention of my distinguished colleagues in the House to an outstanding exhibition entitled ``Art of the Gold Rush,'' which will be on display at the Smithsonian Institution's National Museum of American Art from October 30, 1998 until March 7, 1999. I am pleased that the Smithsonian has chosen to celebrate the 150th anniversary of this defining moment in the history of Northern California and in the development of the American West in such an appropriate manner. On January 24, 1848--nine days before California was formally ceded to the United States by Mexico--an obscure laborer and European immigrant named James W. Marshall discovered a few nuggets of gold in the South Fork of the American River at Sutter's Mill. He presented his find to his employer, Captain John A. Sutter, who joined Marshall in a fruitless attempt to keep news of the treasure secret. Slowly, but with unabashed excitement inspired by the hope of a quick fortune, reports of the discovery leaked throughout the Bay Area. Proclaimed the Californian newspaper on May 29: ``The whole country from San Francisco to Los Angeles, and from the sea shore to the base of the Sierra Nevadas, resounds with the sordid cry of GOLD, GOLD, GOLD!'' Before long, the gold euphoria spread across the entire country and around the world. Declared President James K. Polk in a message to Congress on December 5: ``The accounts of abundance of gold are of such an extraordinary character as would scarcely command belief were they not corroborated by the authentic reports of officers in the public service.'' The following year, tens of thousands of adventurers and dreamers descended upon San Francisco, hoping for a ``lucky strike'' and a lifetime of wealth. In the process, the City by the Bay swelled from a sleepy outpost of 800 non-Native American individuals in 1848 to a major city of over 100,000 by the end of the following year. The first public schools, representative governmental bodies, and cultural institutions in the State of California evolved from this unplanned invasion of explorers, immigrants, and deserting seamen. ``Art of the Gold Rush'' highlights the social and cultural transformation wrought by these extraordinary changes. Taking place just a few years after the invention of the daguerreotype (photograph), the Gold Rush was the first major event in history to be photographed. The ``Art of The Gold Rush'' captures this historical coincidence skillfully, as emotions such as ambition, disappointment, hope, and confusion can be observed in the 150 rare images featured in the exhibition. Each of the subjects of these pictures presents a unique and evocative perspective of this turbulent time, from the mourning mother and child wearing blank expressions of loneliness and fear to the macho miner whose tough exterior hides his pain as both a failed miner and a sufferer of cholera, ``500 miles away from my wife and not a person about me who would do any thing without pay.'' Mr. Speaker, these photographs, along with the sixty-five significant paintings, watercolors, and drawings that also make up this beautiful exhibition, represent the true, lasting gold of the 49ers. The outstanding and talented curators of ``Art of the Gold Rush,'' Drew Heath Johnson and Marcia Eymann, deserve the gratitude of all who love the history of our great land and all who appreciate and cherish the city of San Francisco. I urge my colleagues to see Art of the Gold Rush at the National Museum of American Art where it will be on display from October 30, 1998, to March 7, 1999, and in celebrating the 150th anniversary of Northern California's Gold Rush.

Mr. LANTOS

Mr. LANTOS. Mr. Speaker, I rise in strong support of House Concurrent Resolution 334, advocating the participation of Taiwan in the World Health Organization. I want to pay tribute, first of all, to my distinguished colleague, Mr. Brown of Ohio, who has fought for this necessary legislation with the courage and passion that he brings to so many important policy matters in this body. He is truly a champion for human rights, and I am proud to serve with him. I also want to pay tribute to our colleague Gerald Solomon, who has been a leading supporter of Taiwan for many decades. House Concurrent Resolution 334 addresses a matter that, in my strongly held opinion, should transcend the political divides that characterize the complex China-Taiwan issue. This bill is about the health of children and adults, and about not letting the political anachronism of Taiwan's exclusion from the international community limit the ability of its children to receive medical treatments, vaccines, and support services that would allow them to fight disease with greater effectiveness and efficiency. As we debate this issue this afternoon, Taiwan is attempting to cope with a fatal outbreak of a new, virulent strain of enterovirus type 71. This disease is highly contagious, and it strikes children and infants with devastating consequences, causing sever inflammation of muscles surrounding the brain, spinal cord, and heart. In the month of June alone, more than 50 children died from this horrible affliction. Mr. Speaker, we have a moral responsibility to do everything in our power to ease the suffering of the Taiwanese people, and to achieve this end we must endorse Taiwan's participation in the WHO. The WHO has the capacity to the provide medical research and supplies to assuage the impact of the enterovirus epidemic, and we must not allow diplomatic technicalities to impede this worthy goal. It is most appropriate that we encourage involvement by Taiwan in the WHO. Taiwan is a country of some 22 million people, with an advanced medical and research infrastructure and a highly trained cadre of medical personnel--many of whom have been educated at the finest universities in the United States. Taiwan has much to contribute as a member of the WHO--it should be a member, it should be working with other nations to improve world health. The exclusion of Taiwan from the WHO has everything to do with petty politics and misguided pride in Beijing, but it is a great loss to the world community to exclude Taiwan. Mr. Speaker, I emphatically urge my colleagues to join me in standing up for the human rights of the children of Taiwan by voting for House Concurrent Resolution 334.

Mr. LANTOS

Mr. LANTOS. Mr. Speaker, I would like to ask my colleagues to join me in studying the recently released report of the Anti-Defamation League (ADL) entitled Explosion of Hate: The Growing Danger of the National Alliance. This comprehensive and well-written document addresses the activities and proclivities of one of the most dangerous hate groups in America, the neo-Nazi National Alliance. The stated goal of the National Alliance is to secure ``a racially clean area of the earth . . . no non-whites in our living space . . . a thorough rooting out of Semitic and other non-Aryan values and customs everywhere.'' To achieve this warped end, this organization of intolerance pledges ``to do whatever is necessary to achieve this White living space and to keep it White. We will not be deterred by the difficulty or temporary unpleasantness involved.'' Indeed, the ADL report details the depths of ``temporary unpleasantness'' to which the National Alliance has sunk in its pursuit of its depraved agenda, tracing numerous cold-blooded murders and other terrorist activities to National Alliance members. Declared National Alliance leader William L. Pierce: ``We should not flinch from this. We should not focus on the fact that it will be horrible and bloody, but on the fact that it is necessary, and because it is necessary it is good.'' The dramatic growth of this frightening organization over the past several years should alarm us all. Mr. Speaker, I would like to enter into the Record selected portions of ``Explosion of Hate: The Growing Danger of the National Alliance.'' I hope that my colleagues will read the entire report on the ADL's web site at www.adl.org. Explosion of Hate: The Growing Danger of the National Alliance Introduction: Thriving on Hate The Most Dangerous Organized Hate Group A new ADL investigation reveals that the neo-Nazi National Alliance (NA) is the single most dangerous organized hate group in the United States today. The NA sprang to national attention several years ago, when it was discovered that a fictitious incident in The Turner Diaries, a violent and racist novel written by the NA's leader, might have been used as a model for the Oklahoma City bombing. Convicted bomber Timothy McVeigh was a devoted reader of The Diaries, which features a bombing scenario that is eerily reminiscent of the April 19, 1995 blast. The book was also the blueprint for The Order, a revolutionary terrorist group that robbed and murdered its way to fame in the early 1980s. The ringleader of The Order was an organizer for the NA. Now, the National Alliance has leaped to prominence again. In the last several years, dozens of violent crimes, including murders, bombings and robberies, have been traced to NA members or appear to have been inspired by the groups's propaganda. At the same time, the National Alliance's membership base has experienced dramatic growth, with its numbers more than doubling since 1992. The group, headquartered near Hillsboro, West Virginia, is led by former University of Oregon physics professor and veteran anti- Semite William L. Pierce. Active Cells From Coast to Coast With 16 active cells from coast to coast, an estimated membership of 1,000 and several thousand additional Americans listening to its radio broadcasts and browsing its Internet site, the National Alliance is the largest and most active neo-Nazi organization in the nation. The group has also developed significant political connections abroad. In the past three years there has been evidence of NA activity in no fewer than 26 states across the country. The organization has been most active in Ohio, Florida, Michigan, New York, Maryland, North Carolina, Virginia, and New Mexico. The National Alliance's current strength and influence can be attributed to several factors; its skillful embrace of technology, its willingness to cooperate with other extremists, its energetic recruitment and promotional activities, and its vicious, but deceptively intellectualized propaganda. A Hate-Filled Netherworld Learning From The Turner Diaries Around the country, local National Alliance leaders are responsible for ensuring that their charges read Pierce's novel, The Turner Diaries, from cover to cover. Some of these unit coordinators have suggested that they regard the novel-- which depicts an Aryan world takeover--as a model for their own activities. For instance, The Turner Diaries describes the protagonists' defiance of the fictitious ``Cohen Act,'' a law against private ownership of weapons. Convinced that the government will one day confiscate the weapons of all citizens as it does in The Diaries, some NA leaders have instructed members to keep guns and ammunition hidden on their property. Some coordinators have further advised followers to acquire M-16s and other weapons used by the U.S. Army, so that in the event the government does disarm its citizens, NA members will be able to raid military bases and steal ammunition for their hidden guns. The Ideology of Hate Beyond these specific tactical instructions, National Alliance leaders school their adherents in an ideology of hate. The NA is determined to secure ``a racially clean area of the earth . . . no non-whites in our living space . . . a thorough rooting out of Semitic and other non-Aryan values and customs everywhere. . . . We must have new societies throughout the white world which are based on Aryan values and are compatible with the Aryan nature.'' The National Alliance claims it ``will do whatever is necessary to achieve this White living space and to keep it White. We will not be deterred by the difficulty or temporary unpleasantness involved, because we realize that it is absolutely necessary for our racial survival.'' Fundamental to the organization's doctrine is the belief that ``our world is hierarchical'' and that the Aryan race is endowed by nature with superior qualities. The National Alliance laments that ``nature'' is currently unable to take its course, because ``the sickness of multiculturalism is destroying America, Britain and every other Aryan nation in which it is being promoted.'' Rejecting Democracy The group's racist vision extends to its views on government. The National Alliance decries ``the growth of mass democracy,'' including ``the enfranchisement of women and of non-whites,'' and favors a government that will ``reverse the racially devolutionary course of the last few millennia and keep it reversed.'' NA activists are also eager to erase the special progress made by women in the last century, and believe that ``feminism is a threat to our race.'' ``A woman's battlefield is the maternity ward,'' They say, and her ``greatest `diploma' is to give birth to the `superman' or `superwoman' '' NA members believe that people are the masters of their destiny, and can control the trajectory of their lives, within the laws of nature. The doctrines of various religious groups are therefore a target. The National Alliance specifically rails against Christianity, because most of its members have Christian family backgrounds. ``We are obliged to oppose the Christian churches and to speak out against their doctrines,'' read the group's tenets. ``It is not an Aryan religion . . . like the other Semitic religions [it] is irredeemably primitive.'' Jews as THE Threat While Pierce and other NA figures dehumanize both Blacks and Jews, depicting them as threats to ``Aryan culture'' and ``racial purity,'' Jews are considered a more immediate menance to white survival. In his infamous essay, ``Who Rules America?'' Pierce's hatred of Jews turns to paranoia and conspiracy mongering, as he describes the United States as being in the thrall of a malevolent Jewish-owned media. ``The Jewish control of the mass media,'' Pierce writes, ``is the single most important fact of life, not just in America, but in the world today. There is nothing--plague, famine, economic collapse, even nuclear war--more dangerous to the future of our people.'' The National Alliance attempts to intellectualize its racist agenda in the page of its glossy magazine, the National Vanguard. The magazine, which is published irregularly, glorifies Aryan civilization and racial purity in articles such as ``Aryans: Culture Bearers to China'' and ``Miscegenation: The Morality of Death.'' The National Vanguard's highbrow tone contrasts sharply with the cruder, poorly edited propaganda materials of some other extremist groups, and perhaps heightens the NA's appeal among better- educated bigots. The Diaries: An Inspiration While he wrote ``The Turner Diaries'' more than two decades ago, Pierce continues to champion its ugly vision of a world for whites only. A National Alliance radio broadcast aired in early 1997 provides one of many examples: In 1975, when I began writing ``The Turner Diaries'' . . . I wanted to take all of the feminist agitators and propagandists and all of the race-mixing fanatics and all of the media bosses and all of the bureaucrats and politicians who were collaborating with them, and I wanted to put them up against a wall, in batches of a thousand or so at a time, and machine-gun them. And I still want to do that. I am convinced that one day we will have to do that before we can get our civilization back on track, and I look forward to the day. Following its broadcast on shortwave and conventional radio stations, a recording of Pierce's explicitly violent statement was featured on the NA's Web site. A Racist Crime Spree Other murderers and terrorists appear to have shared the racist fantasies Pierce voiced in his radio address. ``The Turner Diaries'' is thought to be the inspiration behind a crime spree in the early 1980s perpetrated by a gang of extremists called The Order. The Order's crimes included murders, robberies, counterfeiting and the bombing of a synagogue.'' After a Seattle bank robbery in 1983, the terrorist gang's leader, Robert Mathews, told an acquaintance that he had orchestrated the heist as the opening scene in what he hoped would be a reenactment of Pierce's American Nazi revolution. Prior to The Order's formation, Mathews was a Pacific Northwest representative of the National Alliance, and other founders of this terrorist gang also traced their roots to the NA. Even the group's name, ``The Order'' was chosen as a reverent nod to its inspiration--an elite, clandestine paramilitary unit featured, in ``The Turner Diaries.'' The Aryan Republican Army: Reading the Turner Diaries More recently, members of a white supremacist gang calling itself the ``Aryan Republican Army'' took its cues from The Order. Authorities say the ``Army,'' led by Peter Langan, committed 22 bank robberies and bombings across the Midwest between 1992 and 1996 using tactics reminiscent of The Order. Four members of the group have pleaded guilty to a variety of robbery charges, while Langan was convicted in two Federal trails. In a racist video discovered by the FBI, Langan praised Robert Mathews and instructed his viewers to ``learn from Bob,'' Federal prosecutors have also demonstrated that The Turner Diaries was required reading in the Aryan Republican Army. The New Order: Planning Violence The activities of The Order have also been cited as a role model for an alleged conspiracy by a group of white supremacists in East St. Louis, Illinois. In March 1998, Federal authorities arrested Dennis McGiffen, an Aryan Nations leader and former Klansman, Wallace Weicherding, also a former Klansman, and Robert Bock. The three were charged with conspiracy to possess and make machine guns. McGiffen and Bock pleaded guilty to the charges one month later. Wallace Weicherding was convicted on September 1, 1998. At the time of their indictment, an FBI agent testified that McGiffen had been forming a group called ``The New Order,'' patterned after Robert Mathews' terrorist gang. The group allegedly planned to bomb the Anti-Defamation League's New York headquarters, the Southern Poverty Law Center in Montgomery, Alabama, and the Simon Wiesenthal Center in Los Angeles. They had also talked of bombing state capitols and post offices, and poisoning public water supplies with cyanide. Like other admirers of The Order, McGiffen's beliefs were reportedly heavily influenced by ``The Turner Diaries.'' Racist Links The Fort Bragg Murders Also on the East Coast, the NA has attempted to attract members among U.S. Army personnel at Fort Bragg, in Fayetteville, North Carolina. A member of the elite 82nd Airborne Division, Robert Hunt, reportedly worked as a recruiter for the National Alliance while stationed at Fort Bragg. In April 1995, according to the NA, Hunt rented a billboard outside Fort Bragg and used it to post an advertisement and local phone number for the group. In December 1995, a Black couple was gunned down near the Army base in what prosecutors called a racially motivated killing. James Burmeister and Malcolm Wright, members of the 82nd Airborne Division, were ultimately convicted of the murders and sentenced to life in prison. (A third soldier, Randy Meadows, pleaded guilty to conspiracy and accessory charges.) Burmeister and Wright were active neo-Nazi Skinheads, and reportedly read National Alliance propaganda. Racist Shooting in Mississippi Another racial incident that can be linked to National Alliance propaganda occurred in April 1996, when Larry Wayne Shoemake killed one African American and injured seven others in Jackson, Mississippi. Police say Shoemake piled a small arsenal of weapons into an abandoned restaurant in a predominantly Black neighborhood, and from his hideout began shooting wildly into the street in a murderous rampage. As an ambulance tried to rescue a dying victim, Shoemake continued firing his rifle, preventing emergency workers from remaining on the scene. Shoemake ultimately took his own life. In a police search of Shoemake's home, authorities found a Nazi flag draped over his bed, a copy of Adolf Hitler's Mein Kampf and literature from the National Alliance. According to his ex-wife, Shoemake first encountered NA propaganda in the mid-1980s, when he borrowed ``The Turner Diaries'' from a friend. She said her husband wasn't the same after he read Pierce's novel. ``It was like an eye-opener for him,'' his wife said. ``There was a distinct difference in him.'' Shoemake also began subscribing to Pierce's monthly publications. Separation or Annihilation The October 1995 issue of ``Free Speech,'' a monthly newsletter sent to financial supporters of the NA's ``American Dissident Voices'' radio program, seems to have had a particular impact on Shoemake. The issue featured an article called ``Separation or Annihilation,'' which exhorted readers to choose between ``racial separation'' and ``annihilation'' of whites. It stated that ``attaining racial separation and avoiding racial annihilation is worth any cost. We should be willing to give up every material thing we own to achieve it.'' Along the margins of the essay, Shoemake scrawled: ``I say: Separation or annihilation! Who is crazy? Me or you? We will see.'' Shoemake repeated the NA's slogan in a final, rambling letter obtained and published by the Jackson, Mississippi, Clarion-Ledger. Shoemake wrote: ``Black is the problem. It's in their genes. . . . They will never forgive whites for all the supposedly terrible treatment we did to them. The bottom line is: Separation or annihilation.'' A Venomous Voice Broadcasting Hate Despite these crimes, Pierce continues to glorify violence, offering it as the ultimate solution to what he calls--in words reminiscent of Adolf Hitler--``the Jewish problem.'' Much like his writings, Pierce's weekly radio show is rife with incendiary speech. Moreover, while the program's topic varies from week to week depending on current events, Pierce's material never truly changes. Each broadcast is a springboard for the NA's enduring message of anti-Jewish, anti-Black and anti-government hatred. The broadcasts can be picked up in most of the country on shortwave radio, are aired on local radio stations in parts of Arkansas, Texas, Alabama, New England, Florida and California and can be downloaded in audio form from the NA's World Wide Web site. Transcripts of the speeches are sent via E-mail to subscribers and are sent to financial supporters in the form of a monthly newspaper. A Continuing Theme: Eliminating Jews and non-whites In a November 1997 broadcast discussing the revelation that a Black man in upstate New York had infected dozens of local white girls with the AIDS virus, Pierce said: Ultimately, we must separate ourselves from the Blacks and other non-whites and keep ourselves separate, no matter what it takes to accomplish this. We must do this not because we hate Blacks, but because we cannot survive if we remain mixed with them. And we cannot survive if we permit the Jews and the traitors among us to remain among us and to repeat their treachery. Eventually we must hunt them down and get rid of them. Continuing his tirade, Pierce said that while individual Blacks and Jews may seem worthy of redemption, the only tenable solution for white people is to eliminate all non- whites. Calling for Racial Cleansing In January 1998, in a speech titled, ``What Is a Patriot to Do?'' Pierce spoke of starting an armed revolution against the Jewish people. He agreed that such an act of resistance would demand sacrifice, but deemed its rewards far greater: Yes, the great cleansing which must come may destroy millions of our own people, the innocent along with the guilty, the good along with the bad. * * * But eventually it must come, because otherwise our people will die, and everything that has gone before as well as everything that might come in the future will be lost forever. The great cleansing must come, and we must do whatever it takes to ensure that it does, so that our people will live. The bottom line to listeners was a shrill cry for violence. ``We should not flinch from this,'' Pierce said. ``We should not focus on the fact that it will be horrible and bloody, but on the fact that it is necessary, and because it is necessary it is good.'' Looking Ahead The National Alliance's dramatic growth is significant because it comes at a time when other neo-Nazi organizations, as well as groups like the Ku Klux Klan, are becoming weaker and more fragmented. Moreover, the NA does not appear to be siphoning members from these declining groups, but actually recruiting a fresh cast of educated, middle-class bigots. These new followers appear to be attracted to the National Alliance's dedicated membership, its commanding presence on the Internet, its emphasis on maintaining a ``sophisticated'' image, and its powerful leadership. As the National Alliance continues to gather momentum and strength, its threat of violence grows. Crimes being plotted or committed by NA members of ``Turner Diaries'' devotees have been mounting. By publishing this report, ADL seeks to increase public awareness of the dangers posed by these individuals, as well as to encourage stepped-up vigilance by law enforcement officials at all levels.

Mr. LANTOS

Mr. LANTOS. Mr. Speaker, it is a great honor for me to invite my colleagues in the Congress to join me in recognizing the Community Baptist Church of San Mateo, which is celebrating its 50th Anniversary on October 11, 1998. The Community Baptist Church was originally dedicated as the San Mateo Chinese Baptist Community Center in 1948. The primary purpose of the church was to bring Christianity into the lives of Chinese Americans throughout the Peninsula. But what has evolved from this mission is a second purpose which is similarly special and valuable--to provide a community cultural center where the heritage, language, and customs of Chinese Americans are preserved for future generations. Mr. Speaker, the Community Baptist Church of San Mateo was the product of a mission program established by Mother Margarita Garton and the First Baptist Church of Burlingame, California. Community Baptist Church spent many years establishing itself in and contributing to the community, growing and thriving to meet the needs of its rapidly expanding membership. The church's increasing significance was evidence in 1963 by the construction of a sanctuary on its current site on South Humboldt Street in San Mateo. Three years later, Sunday School classrooms were added to the building, and during the 1980's a multi- storied Conference Center and Nursery was erected. The Community Baptist Church has endeavored to meet the needs of the expanding population of Cantonese-speaking Chinese Americans in San Mateo County. In 1990 the Community Baptist Church initiated full dual ministries in both English and Cantonese, with strong pastoral leadership serving both segments of a unified church. Since 1995, the church has provided the community with weekly classes in the Cantonese language, which have awakened interest in and informed students about their Chinese heritage. As Community Baptist Church was the product of a mission program, it has continuously supported the American Baptist Mission Program, and the church has been recognized numerous times by the American Baptist Churches, USA for its contributions to this cause. The church has also served for many years as a learning facility for the Minister-in-Training program for graduate seminary students. These students have gone on to serve as pastors of their own churches or as staff members of the American Budget Churches of the West. Most notable of its numerous achievements, the Community Baptist Church has developed into a close-knit and supportive family. Many of its young members have grown into strong church and community leaders who now serve throughout California and across our nation. Mr. Speaker, I would like to recognize and thank the Reverend Norman Owyang and his congregation at the Community Baptist Church for their outstanding contributions to the people of San Mateo and the Peninsula. I ask my colleagues to join me in wishing Reverend Owyang and the Community Church of San Mateo another half century of prosperity and continuing service to our community.

Mr. LANTOS

Mr. LANTOS. Mr. Speaker, it is a great honor for me to congratulate the democratic government and the people of Taiwan, the Republic of China, on their 87th National Day which they celebrate on October 10, 1998. Taiwan has much to celebrate this year, as it approaches the culmination of a decade marked by unparalleled economic growth, laudable political reforms, exceptional progress on human rights issues, and the general advancement of values cherished by free men and women around the world. Under the leadership of President Lee Teng-hui, Taiwan has been transformed not only into one of the world's most successful lands, but it has also been prepared to become one of the international community's foremost citizens. Mr. Speaker, it is long past time to allow this progression to reach its overdue culmination in the form of Taiwan's full participation in international organizations, including accession to the United Nation. It is nearly a century since the founder of the Republic of China, Dr. Sun Yat-sen, drafted the original plans for a free nation unencumbered by emperors and tyranny. The realization of Dr. Sun Yat- sen's ideals and dreams did not occur with the swiftness he likely intended, as his republic's initial years witnessed lengthy civil wars, brutal invasions, and a series of unforseen obstacles that forced the ROC's government to relocate to Taiwan at the end of its fourth decade. Out of the ashes of this tragedy, however, came the drive and determination to advance the fortunes and welfare of the Taiwanese people, to prove by comparison that free enterprise and political freedoms work with greater efficiency and justice than Communist alternatives. President Lee's numerous and comprehensive reforms have provided unimpeachable evidence of this fact. He has limited government authority, repealing the extraordinary powers that were provided by outdated civil war decrees, and he has focused the government's responsibilities on issues such as technological investment and environmental protection. In addition, President Lee has led the Taiwanese people in the establishment of a diverse, competitive, multi- party political system with a free press and respect for human rights. This process was capped by Taiwan's presidential election in 1996, when, for the first time in five millenniums of Chinese history, the head of state was directly elected by the people. Despite the dire warnings of those who opposed this evolution, Taiwan's economy and its people have flourished with these progressive changes. Taiwan's enrichment has not only benefitted its island's nearly 22 million citizens; in addition, the ROC's largesse has aided developing nations and those suffering from humanitarian disasters as well. Whether operating a much-needed hospital in the strife-torn capital of the Central African Republic, contributing to the recovery of my home state of California after a devastating earthquake or, most recently, using its membership in the Asian Pacific Economic Community (APEC) to employ its vast foreign exchange reserves to help ease the financial crisis suffered by its neighbors, Taiwan has proven its commitment to the welfare and health of the international community. Given this reality, Mr. Speaker, it is both unfortunate and unjust that Taiwan is still denied membership in the United Nations, the World Health Organization, the World Trade Organization, and other multilateral bodies that would benefit from the Taiwan's active involvement. Regrettably, many of Taiwan's humanitarian contributions have been shunned or rejected as a consequence of this political inequity. In 1993, for example, the ROC's Department of Health pledged to donate $200,000 to a WHO/UNICEF program in order to provide vaccines for children of Kazakhstan and four other Central Asian republics. However, this donation was rejected because the ROC is not a member of the UN or the WHO. Mr. Speaker, it is tragic when children suffer because political obstinacy was more important than human welfare. Not only does Taiwan's exclusion for participation in international organizations harm other nations, it violates the fundamental international right that countries that are affected by multilateral cooperation agreements should have the right to participate in the crafting of these agreements. Taiwan, according to the UN itself, is one of the six largest high-sea fishing countries in the world, yet it was denied the opportunity to join in the negotiation and adoption of an important UN fish conservation agreement in 1995. In a similar situation, Taiwan's offer to become a signatory to the Montreal Protocol on the Substances that Deplete the Ozone Layer was refused, resulting in the threat of international economic sanctions against Taiwan--despite the ROC's unilateral implementation of the provisions of the Protocol. Mr. Speaker, the diplomatic anachronism of Taiwan's absolute exclusion from efforts of international cooperation must come to an end. Mr. Speaker, Taiwan's 88th year appears to hold great promise, as long-stalled talks with the People's Republic of China seem likely to continue in the near future. In addition, Taiwan's economy remains strong despite serious regional difficulties. The record of success of the Taiwanese people is unmistakably clear and strong. On this important anniversary, Mr. Speaker, I wish the people of Taiwan a glorious National Day and I wish the government of Taiwan the voice that it deserves in the international community.

Mr. LANTOS

Mr. LANTOS. Mr. Speaker, I have no further requests for time, and I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. LANTOS. Mr. Speaker, on that I demand the yeas and nays.

Mr. LANTOS. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Speaker, I would just like to add a footnote to what the gentleman from New Jersey (Mr. Smith) has just said. It is beneath contempt that major art museums in major European countries should have on display on their walls stolen property, but that is in fact the case. Priceless works of art, plundered from family collections or collections of institutions, are as we speak tonight on the walls of important art institutes across Europe. My resolution calls for the return of these works of art, either to their owners or the heirs of the original owners or to the appropriate philanthropic and educational institutions or museums to which they properly belong. Mr. Speaker, I yield 5 minutes to the gentlewoman from California (Ms. Woolsey), my friend and colleague who has been so deeply concerned with this issue and has been a prominent fighter to right this wrong. (Ms. WOOLSEY asked and was given permission to revise and extend her remarks.)

Mr. LANTOS. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Speaker, at the outset, let me express my appreciation to my good friend, the gentleman from New York (Mr. Gilman), for his leadership on this matter. Let me also thank the gentleman from Indiana (Mr. Hamilton), the gentleman from New Jersey (Mr. Smith), the gentlewoman from California (Ms. Woolsey), and all the other colleagues across the political spectrum who have chosen to cosponsor my legislation. Given the lateness of time, Mr. Speaker, I shall be very brief. The Holocaust clearly was one of the most horrific crimes against humanity in this or, indeed, in any century. Most of the individuals who survived the Holocaust are no longer here. We are dealing with a passing generation, and we are dealing with their heirs. No legislation can compensate for the death of 6 million innocent people; no legislation can compensate for the unspeakable horrors and suffering that millions of innocent people have suffered. But we find a half a century after the end of the Holocaust that governmental organizations and private institutions like banks and insurance companies have seen fit to hide and to use for their own purposes assets wrongfully and illegally taken from victims of the Holocaust, from institutions that these individuals created, and from entire communities. The Nazi regime used foreign financial institutions to launder and to hold illegally confiscated assets from Holocaust victims. And some banking and insurance companies and some governments have seen fit to appropriate these assets. Mr. Speaker, in the post-Communist period, some of the countries of Central and Eastern Europe have begun to take legal action to attempt to find and return a small portion of these assets, and I commend them. Some of the private institutions, like a few banks in Switzerland and some insurance companies, have begun this same process. But I must share with my colleagues, Mr. Speaker, my outrage and my horror at noting that some allegedly civilized institutions demand the death certificates from heirs of survivors so they can prove that people who perished at Auschwitz in fact have died. Auschwitz did not issue death certificates, and to see banks and insurance companies in 1998 hiding behind some preposterous and outrageous pseudolegal claim is beyond comprehension. Now, in a couple of months our Department of State and the Holocaust Museum here in Washington will cohost a Conference on Holocaust-Era Assets, and as is the case with all such developments, it is our government that is taking the lead in attempting to identify and then to see that these assets are returned, either to the heirs of Holocaust victims, or to charitable and educational institutions in case there are no heirs. I want to commend our government, and I particularly want to commend Under Secretary of State Stuart Eizenstat for the leadership he has taken in working on this significant moral issue. I want to thank all of my colleagues for their support of my legislation. Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. LANTOS

Mr. LANTOS. I thank my friend for yielding me this time. I rise, Mr. Speaker, in support of this legislation, but also to recognize the enormous contributions of the distinguished Republican chairman of the Committee on International Relations in his fight against terrorism over many years in many capacities. At our annual meetings with the European Parliament, it was Chairman Gilman who invariably raised the issue of international terrorism, drug trafficking and international criminal activities. His unceasing efforts on behalf of these causes has paid off handsomely. I think this last measure is an appropriate indication of the change of antiterrorist legislation that Chairman Gilman has introduced. I strongly urge all of my colleagues to support it.

Mr. LANTOS

Mr. LANTOS. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman from Minnesota (Mr. Luther), my friend, for yielding me this time. Mr. Speaker, I want to pay tribute to my friend and colleague, the gentleman from New Jersey (Mr. Smith), the chairman of the Subcommittee on International Operations and Human Rights, for taking the lead on this most important item. I also want to express my appreciation to the gentleman from New York (Chairman Gilman) who has done so much on this most important issue. Mr. Speaker, my colleagues have spoken eloquently on this matter, and I do not want to take up much time, except to indicate that it is a moral obligation on the part of all of us to move this legislation. While doing so, allow me to mention that a parallel piece of legislation introduced by me, the Young American Workers Bill of Rights, is also before this body. It is extremely important for us to deal with child labor all over the world, but we should not forget the issue of child labor here in the United States. Scores of young children in the United States are exploited by unconscionable means, and the Young Workers' Bill of Rights will be an appropriate parallel legislation to this legislation which deals with the exploitation of children across the globe.

Mr. LANTOS

Mr. LANTOS. Mr. Speaker, as an enthusiastic Cosponsor of H.R. 633, I rise in strong support of this legislation and urge my colleagues to support its passage. The adoption of H.R. 633 is a simple matter of equity. It provides that a small number of diplomatic security agents at the Department of State will receive the same rate of annuity when they retire as other federal law enforcement officials now receive. The cost of the program is minimal and will be absorbed in the budget of the Department of State, but the fundamental issues is one of fairness. It is important, Mr. Speaker, to keep in mind that Diplomatic Security special agents are fully trained law enforcement officers with critical law enforcement responsibilities established in law. These agents have principal responsibilities for investigation, apprehension and detention of criminal suspects. They protect U.S. government personnel while traveling abroad, they protect our diplomatic facilities in foreign countries, they protect the integrity of foreign policy information, and they provide an important protective function in the United States for visiting foreign government leaders and our own diplomats. Mr. Speaker, I commend our distinguished colleagues, Mr. Davis and Mr. Moran of Virginia, for introducing this important piece of legislation, and I urge my colleagues to support its adoption.

Mr. LANTOS

Mr. LANTOS. Mr. Speaker, I would like to invite my colleagues to join me in congratulating my constituent and a fellow educator, Professor Cathleen Kennedy of the College of San Mateo, for her extraordinary dedication to teaching, her commitment to students, and her innovative teaching methods. Recently, Mr. Speaker, the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching named Professor Kennedy the Outstanding Community College Professor of the Year as a mark of her high achievement. Professor Kennedy was selected from among more than 500 faculty members nominated by colleges and universities across our country in the U.S. Professors of the Year program--the only national award program which recognizes college professors for their teaching. As a former professional computer systems consultant, Professor Cathleen Kennedy left consulting to serve as a role model and help others achieve their dreams. She encourages her students to envision themselves as future programmers or engineers. By persuading the Network Professional Association and several corporations to help develop an on-campus Networking Technologies Lab, Professor Kennedy has provided her students the opportunity to access the latest computer hardware and software and allowed them to work with experienced professionals on the newest technologies. Among her other numerous accomplishments, Professor Kennedy also adapted an introductory computer science course for distance learning, providing multimedia materials and support for students through voicemail, e-mail, and the World Wide Web. Mr. Speaker, Professor Cathleen Kennedy is a teacher who exemplifies the ideals of innovation and selflessness. She is truly the Outstanding Community College Professor of this nation. The College of San Mateo as well as all of San Mateo County are greatly rewarded by her presence and by the ideals of higher education that she represents so admirably. I urge my colleagues to join me in extending to her our best wishes and congratulations for her outstanding achievement.

Mr. LANTOS

Mr. LANTOS. Mr. Speaker, earlier this week on Monday September 28, the Congressional Human Rights Caucus held a briefing for members of this body on international child labor issues. Child labor has traditionally been among the most difficult and troubling of the human rights issues that we deal with. The problem is the greatest in those countries where poverty and lack of economic opportunity are the greatest. Furthermore, the extensive use of child labor only perpetuates that cycle of poverty by limiting the opportunity for these working children to attend school and gain the education they need to improve their situation. Developing countries, in their struggle to improve their national economic and social conditions, often have failed to deal with the tragedy of child laborers. The International Labor Organizations (ILO) has estimated that some 250 million children between the ages of five and fourteen are working in developing countries around the world. Some 61 percent of this total, nearly 153 million children, are found in Asia alone. To alleviate the grinding poverty and economic hardships that they face, many families in developing countries submit children to some of the worst forms of child labor such as exposure to extremely hazardous work, slave-like conditions, prostitution, pornography, and other intolerable situation. Often child victims of this practice never learn to read or write at all, and upon reaching adulthood these children can only past the legacy of poverty, illiteracy, and hardship to their own children. Mr. Speaker, in recent years, with the strong support of our Department of State and our Department of Labor, efforts have been made to raise awareness of this serious problem. In 1992 the ILO initiated the International Program on the Elimination of Child Labor to work toward the progressive elimination of child labor. These efforts must be encouraged. Mr. Speaker, at the briefing of the Congressional Human Rights Caucus, Kathie Lee Clifford, who was accompanied by her husband, Frank Gillord, made an excellent statement on this issue of child labor. I ask that her statement be placed in the Record, and I urge my colleagues to give thoughtful attention to her views. Statement of Kathie Lee Gifford In the past two and half years I have learned a great deal about sweatshops and child labor--enough to make me physically ill and at many times brokenhearted. I have learned that all it takes to create a sweatshop environment is one greedy, unethical person and one desperate one. While it seems that solutions of the past have done little to combat labor abuses, I've also learned that if the various groups represented here work together, unified by the mandate that we must end these horrible conditions, we could accomplish a great deal. When I was accused personally of being involved in labor abuses I was stunned. How could anyone possibly believe I could run a sweatshop? (1) I don't manufacture anything; (2) I don't own a factory; (3) I don't pay anyone to manufacture anything; and (4) I have an iron-clad contract that specifically states nothing can be manufactured with my name on it in an abusive manner. But, then I learned how easy it is for someone to exploit the system, ignore the compliance agreement, and profit from the misery of hard-working, vulnerable people--even children. I was angry and resolved it do whatever I could to do something about it. Although I'm an endorser, a licensor of my trademark--and not the manufacture of goods--I promised that if, and whenever I discovered that any goods bearing my name were made in a factory with abusive conditions, either these conditions would be corrected or nothing with my name would continue to be made in that factory. I hired a reputable worldwide firm of independent monitors to inspect the factories so that I would learn their working conditions. When unfair working conditions are discovered we give the factory one chance to rectify the problem. If the conditions are not corrected, we take away our business. In the case of child labor abuses we do not allow a second chance--one time and the factory's out. This monitoring program will continue so long as I lend my name to any goods or products. I learned about and campaigned for legislation on the Federal, State and local levels to address working conditions. I'm here to support legislation such as the ``Young American Workers Bill of Rights Act'' and the ``Children's Act for Responsible Employment.'' These acts must promptly be passed by Congress. In Congressman Lantos' words, ``We have neither the time nor the luxury to debate whether this is a child labor problem.'' But I've also learned that legislation alone will not solve the problem: We need the concerted effort of Government, manufacturers, unions and human interest organizations. I know that these groups, while supporting many of the same ideas, sometimes disagree on means and methods of accomplish their goals. We must continue to work together, to enact and enforce laws; but also to educate consumers--these are the ``new solutions for child labor abuses.'' I truly appreciate being asked to appear before you today. I am here as the mother of two small children from whom I hope to leave a legacy of hard work, sacrifice, fairness and a determined commitment to make this world a better place for all children, especially children less blessed than my own. I realize that in certain ways my name has become synonymous with the term ``sweatshop.'' That as been painful to me both personally and professionally, and yet I have always felt that all things work together for good for those who love God and are called according to his purpose. I find comfort and hope in this promise from the Scriptures--that indeed my struggle will result in aiding all of your efforts to end the very real and heartbreaking struggle of millions of vulnerable children around the world. There are many other celebrity endorsers lending their good names of products manufactured throughout the world. I believe each of them has a moral responsibility to take whatever steps possible to ensure the integrity of their products. A contract with strong language is simply not enough. I encourage them to hire, at their own expense a reputable independent monitoring service and use their public platform to educate consumers and pressure their manufacturers to comply with all ethical and legal standards. None of us can ignore the use of child labor. Today, in this room, there are Members of Congress and representatives of human rights organizations, unions and government and private citizens like myself. Let us together be a voice for those who cannot speak for themselves. Comfortable in our privileged world, we cannot hear the cries of the children chained to a life of abuse, but our silence at the injustices they suffer is deafening to the ears of God. Perhaps we can put a face on child labor by substituting our own children with the faceless children we only know as statistics. Today when you go to dress your six-year-old, stop to think of that six-year old being snuck into the back of a sweatshop to work long hours, cutting and sewing clothes they could never afford. Today when you watch your seven- year-old run back and forth on a soccer field, think of that seven-year-old sitting in a sweltering factory making that soccer ball he will never have a chance to play with. And today when you shoot baskets with your eight-year-old, think of the eight-year-old who sewed those sneakers and who will never, every jump for joy. Think of your own children and think of all the children all over the world who are being denied a childhood because of others' greed and our own indifference. Each of us has a responsibility and an opportunity. Our responsibility is to make the world a better place for these children to live and work in. Our opportunity is now for new solutions for child labor abuses; to enact laws like the ``Young American Workers Bill of Rights Act'' and the ``Children's Act for Responsible Employment'' to join together to form a powerful alliance of caring individuals who refuse to support companies that utilize child labor; and finally, to pray for all the children of the world that someday they may enjoy a life in the sunshine, breathing fresh air and laughing with a joy that can only come from knowing that they are loved and that they are precious just like our own children. Perhaps the most important thing I have learned about this issue is that sweatshops operators are counting on one thing--that you don't care how your products are made. These children are counting on something very different--that you do care, especially when they're made by children. Together through our efforts and the work of this Congressional Human Rights Caucus, let's prove the children are right and let's make the unspeakable shame of abusive child labor a thing of the past.

Mr. LANTOS

Mr. LANTOS. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to call the attention of my colleagues to House Resolution 557, which expresses support for U.S. government efforts to identify Holocaust-era assets and urging the restitution of individual and communal property. I introduced this resolution earlier today with my dear friend and our distinguished colleague, the Chairman of the International Relations Committee, Congressman Benjamin A. Gilman. Mr. Speaker, this resolution is a direct result of discussions which took place during a hearing of the International Relations Committee just during the first week of August. Stuart Eizenstat, our Undersecretary of State for Economic Affairs, testified before the Committee regarding the status of Holocaust restitution activities. During that hearing, he told our Committee that a resolution supporting the efforts of the Administration in its restitution activities and urging positive response from European governments would be helpful and positive action. I want to call to the attention of our colleagues, Mr. Speaker, my profound respect and great admiration for the outstanding job that Mr. Eizenstat has done in dealing with issues related to Holocaust Restitution. Under his leadership, with the unswerving support of our exceptional Secretary of State, Madeleine Albright, the United States has set the example for other countries with the issue of Holocaust restitution. In early December, Mr. Speaker, the United States will host the Washington Conference on Holocaust-era Assets, and this resolution emphasizes the importance of this conference in bringing about a resolution of matters related to restitution. Mr. Speaker, a number of our distinguished colleagues are original cosponsors of this important resolution. In addition to the distinguished Chairman of the International Relations Committee, Mr. Gilman of New York, the resolution has been cosponsored by the ranking Democratic member of the International Relations Committee, Mr. Hamilton, and Mr. Smith of New Jersey, Mrs. Maloney of New York, Ms. Woolsey, Mr. Franks of New Jersey, Mr. Ackerman, Mr. Berman, Mr. Brown of Ohio, Mr. Burton, Mr. Chabot, Mr. Deutsch, Mr. Faleomavaega, Mr. Foley, Mr. Fox, Mr. Frost, Mr. Frank of Massachusetts, Mr. Hastings of Florida, Mr. Horn, Mrs. Lowey, Mr. Menendez, Ms. Ros-Lehtinen, Mr. Sanders, Mr. Schumer, Mr. Sherman, Mr. Sisisky, Mr. Waxman, and Mr. Wexler. Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to join us as cosponsors of this important resolution. I ask that the text of the resolution be included in the Record. H. Res. 557 Expressing support of U.S. government efforts to identify Holocaust-era assets, urging the restitution of individual and communal property, and for other purposes. Whereas the Holocaust was one of the most tragic and complex horrors in this century, and survivors of that catastrophe are now reaching the end of their lives; Whereas among the many atrocities committed by the Nazis was their systematic effort to confiscate property illegally and wrongfully from individuals, institutions, and communities solely because of religion or ethnicity; Whereas the Nazi regime used foreign financial institutions to launder and hold property illegally confiscated from Holocaust victims, and some foreign financial institutions violated their fiduciary duty to their customers by converting to their own use financial assets belonging to Holocaust victims and denying heirs of these victims access to these assets through restrictive regulations and unreasonable interpretation of those regulations; Whereas in the post-Communist period of transition many of the countries of Central and Eastern Europe have begun to enact legal procedures for the restitution of property confiscated or stolen from victims of the Holocaust to communities and to individual survivors of the Holocaust and their heirs; Whereas, despite the enactment of legislation and the establishment of institutions to restore confiscated property in a number of countries, progress has been slow, difficult, and painful, and some countries have established restrictions which require those whose properties have been wrongfully plundered to reside in or be a current citizen of the country from which they now seek restitution or compensation; Whereas the Tripartite Gold Commission has now concluded its activities, and under the leadership of the United States established an international Nazi Persecutees' Relief Fund, reached agreement with most of the countries which had gold on deposit with the Tripartite Gold Commission to donate their shares to this Persecutees' Fund, and the United States has pledged to contribute $25 million to this Fund; Whereas two significant agreements have recently been reached, the first between Holocaust survivors and private Swiss banks and the second between Holocaust survivors and European insurance companies, which represent significant first steps in the international effort to provide belated justice to survivors and victims of the Holocaust and their heirs; Whereas the Department of State and the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum will co-host the Washington Conference on Holocaust-Era Assets later this year in order to review current efforts, share research across national borders, renew efforts to open Nazi-era archives, and spur greater progress on the restitution of Holocaust-era assets; and Whereas there is a growing international consensus and sense of urgency that, after a half century of indifference and inaction, justice must be obtained for victims and survivors of the Holocaust and their heirs; Now, therefore, be it Resolved That the House of Representatives-- (1) recognizes the great responsibility which the United States has to Holocaust survivors and their families, many of whom are American citizens, to continue to treat the issue of Holocaust-era assets as a high priority and to encourage other governments to do the same; (2) commends the agencies of the United States government for their untiring efforts and for the example they have set, including the publication of the May 1997 and June 1998 reports on U.S. and Allied Efforts to Recover or Restore Gold and Other Assets Stolen or Hidden by Germany in World War II and the efforts to return such assets to their rightful owners; (3) commends those organizations which have played a critical role in the effort to assure compensation and/or restitution for survivors of the Holocaust, and in particular to the World Jewish Congress and the World Jewish Restitution Organization; (4) welcomes the convening of the Washington Conference on Holocaust-Era Assets later this year by the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum and the Department of State and expresses the hope that this conference will contribute to the sharing of information and will spur greater progress on the restitution of Holocaust-era assets; (5) commends those countries which have instituted procedures for the restitution of individual and communal property confiscated from Holocaust victims, and urges those governments which have not established such procedures to adopt fair and transparent legislation and regulations necessary for such restitution; (6) calls upon countries in transition in Central and Eastern Europe to remove certain citizenship or residency prerequisites for individual survivors of the Holocaust seeking restitution of confiscated property; (7) notes that former Communist countries which seek to become members of the North Atlantic Alliance and other international organizations must recognize that a part of the process of international integration involves the enactment of laws which safeguard and protect property rights that are similar to those in democratic countries which do not require artificial citizenship and residency requirements for restitution or compensation; (8) commends those countries which have established significant commissions, such as the Presidential Advisory Commission on Holocaust Assets in the United States, to conduct research into matters relating to Holocaust-era assets, to assure that information developed by these commissions is publicly available, to complete their major historical research efforts, and to contribute to the major funds established to benefit needy Holocaust survivors no later than December 31, 1999; (9) commends those countries and organizations which have opened their archives and made public records and documents relating to the Nazi era, and urges all countries and organizations, including the United Nations, the Holy See, the International Committee of the Red Cross and national Red Cross organizations, to assure that all materials relating to that era are fully accessible to the public; (10) urges all countries to develop and include as a part of their educational curriculum material on the Holocaust, the history of the Second World War, the evils of discrimination and persecution of racial, ethnic or religious minorities, and the consequences of the failure to respect human rights; (11) appreciates the efforts of the government of Germany for successfully concluding an agreement with the Conference on Material Claims Against Germany on matters concerning restitution for Holocaust survivors from Central and Eastern Europe who have not yet received restitution, and urges the government of Germany to continue to negotiate with the Claims Conference to expand the eligibility criteria to ensure that all needy Holocaust survivors receive restitution; (12) urges all countries to continue aggressive investigation and prosecution of individuals who may have been involved in Nazi-era war crimes, such as the Government of Germany which should investigate Dr. Hans Joachim Sewering for war crimes of active euthanasia and crimes against humanity committed during World War II; (13) urges countries, especially Israel, Russia, Poland, and other Central and East European nations, and organizations such as the International Committee of the Red Cross and Israel's Jewish Agency to coordinate efforts to help reunite family members separated during the Holocaust; and (14) directs the Clerk of the House to transmit a copy of this resolution to the Secretary of State and requests that the Secretary transmit copies to all relevant parties.

Mr. LANTOS

Mr. LANTOS. Mr. Speaker, it is truly a pleasure for me to join our colleagues in paying tribute to our colleague and my friend, Congressman Lee H. Hamilton of Indiana, for his distinguished service to our nation as a Member of Congress for 34 years. I can think of few members who can rival his intelligence, wit, integrity, and commitment to public service. For the past 18 years that I have been a Member of this body, I have served on the House Committee on Foreign Affairs/International Relations, and during that entire time I have served with Lee Hamilton. For well over a decade, I sat next to him on the Subcommittee on Europe and the Middle East, which Lee chaired for two decades. When Lee served as chairman of the full Committee on Foreign Affairs, I headed one of the subcommittees, and in that capacity we worked closely together for two years. Mr. Speaker, it has been truly an honor to serve with Lee over these many years, and to admire his commitment to democracy and America's international interests in the broadest and most positive sense. From the cold war to the collapse of the Iron Curtain to the serious challenges of the post-cold-war world, Lee has stood as a pillar of principle in defending the values that we in America cherish. In combating world hunger, firmly backing foreign assistance to the developing democracies in Eastern Europe, and fighting for developing programs for sustainable development in Africa, he has never hesitated to use his superb intellect and creativity to address our national concerns. Even when we have disagreed on policy matters, I have found it impossible to keep from admiring his independence, integrity, and moral conviction underlying his beliefs. Lee Hamilton is a statesman, a leader, a champion for the American people. Mr. Speaker, I also want to say something about Lee's wife, Nancy Hamilton. Of all of Lee's many good decisions, his judgment in marrying Nancy was probably his best. She has been a steadfast and dependable companion throughout his service in the Congress. She has not only brightened Lee's office with her outstanding and original art, she has added an air of elegance and quality to all that Lee has done. While I have no doubt that Lee will continue to serve our country and the state of Indiana even though he will be retiring from the U.S. Congress. I believe that I speak for all of my colleagues in the House when I say that Lee's voice of reason and the integrity that he brings to our deliberations will be sorely missed. Mr. Speaker, we all owe the people of southeastern Indiana an enormous debt of gratitude for giving us Lee Hamilton.

Mr. LANTOS

Mr. LANTOS. Mr. Speaker, this weekend cancer survivors from across America will gather in Washington for ``The March--Coming Together to Conquer Cancer,'' a crusade to strengthen cancer research and improve methods of treatment. As we join together in support of this important event, I believe that it is appropriate to recall the spirit of one who would not let this vicious disease destroy his good heart and dauntless soul. I would like to ask my colleagues to join me in honoring the memory of Mark Fields, a brave young man from San Mateo, California, who passed away thirteen months ago after a four year fight against leukemia. Mark was an intelligent, articulate teenager with interests not unlike those of most boys and girls his age--computers, Camaros, cycling, and Star Trek. The obstacles he faced, however, were far from typical. Mark was an exceptional individual not because of his cancer--tens of thousands of children and adolescents are diagnosed with this awful disease every year--but rather as a result of his perseverance in pursuing his dreams and desires at a time when he would have been excused for allowing his spirit to be suppressed by chemotherapy, pain, and fear. Mark's inspiring character is best reflected in a letter which he wrote to President Clinton on February 11, 1997, urging that all children's hospitals be equipped with computers to help children continue their school work during periods of illness. He eloquently used his personal experiences as a child with cancer to articulate the need for such a program. Mark Fields was not able to pursue his dream of a college degree, and he did not have the opportunity to work with President Clinton to place computers in children's hospitals across America. He passed away on August 28, 1997, just six months after he authored this letter. Mark's fight is now our fight, and our efforts on behalf of children with cancer must be furthered in his memory. Mr. Speaker, I would like to enter Mark's letter to President Clinton into the Congressional Record. San Mateo, CA, February 11, 1997. President William Clinton, The White House, Washington, DC. Subject: Children's Hospital Computers Dear President Clinton: I listened to your State of the Union Address and I was very pleased to hear that you have asked that all children's hospitals be equipped with computers to help children keep up with their school work. I am very interested in this plan because I spent two and half years receiving medical treatment for leukemia at Lucille Packard Children's Hospital at Stanford, California. During this period, I spent what amounted to seven and a half months overnight at the hospital, with my longest stay being 45 days. Thankfully, those treatments are nearly two years behind me and I am feeling great. During my treatments I was able to complete some high school credits by working with home tutors, but while I was in the hospital, I was definitely alone and out of touch with my school, my teachers and my classmates. This is why I know your plan is definitely needed. Also, while I was at Children's Hospital, I was asked to participate in the Starbright Foundations's computer link of five major children's hospitals across the nation. This is an excellent way for children from one hospital to connect with children in another hospital. It offers the ability to ``chat'' and play games on-line, but a connection to schools is definitely needed. Your plan might work well with the Starbright program. During my senior year I have worked at a local computer store and have realized my interest and abilities are in the computer field, and I will earn a college degree in computer science. I not only commend you for your hospital computer plan, I would also like to offer you my services. Since I am in the unique position of having been a patient at a children's hospital as well as being very computer literate, I would appreciate the opportunity to assist you in whatever way I can. I look forward to hearing from you. Respectfully yours, Mark Fields.

Mr. LANTOS

Mr. LANTOS. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to pay tribute to Mr. P. Takis Salpeas, an extremely talented and capable manager with the San Francisco Bay Area Rapid Transit District (BART) who recently resigned his position in Millbrae, California, to take a position with the Washington Metropolitan Transportation Authority (WMATA) in Washington, DC. Mr Salpeas has served BART with distinction since 1991, first as project manager for the BART Colma Station Extension, then as Executive Manager of West Bay Extensions, and was in charge of the extension of BART to the San Francisco International Airport, which lies in my Congressional district. Under Mr. Salpeas' leadership, the BART rapid rail system cleared numerous political and financial hurdles in order to begin construction of the important 8.7 mile BART Extension to the San Francisco International Airport. The BART Extension to the airport will connect the existing 95-mile multi-county BART system with a new international terminal at the airport. Mr. Salpeas has more than 25 years experience in rail transit planning, engineering and construction, and he has been an invaluable leader at BART. Mr. Salpeas has been selected for the position of Assistant General Manger of Transit System Development at WMATA. Prior to coming to BART in 1991, Mr. Salpeas worked for the Southeastern Pennsylvania Transit Authority (SEPTA), which serves the Philadelphia metropolitan area. AT SEPTA, he was project manger for reconstruction of elevated rail guideways and stations, and later directed its engineering development program. Mr. Salpeas is a member of the American Society of Civil Engineers; the Transportation Research Board of the National Research Council, the American Public Transit Association (APTA) and the APTA Construction Committee; and the Federal Transit Administration's Construction Roundtable. A graduate of Athens University and the University of Pennsylvania, Mr. Salpeas holds two masters's degrees in systems engineering and civil engineering. He is the author of more than 30 professional papers on rail transit topics, and has taught civil and transportation engineering at Widener University in Chester, Pennsylvania. Mr. Speaker, I appreciate having the opportunity to recognize Mr. Takis Salpeas and in wishing him well in his new position at WMATA. Mr. Salpeas has served our community well and made a difference in the lives of Pennsylvania residents. Takis will be missed by those who worked with him, he will be missed by his friends in the Bay Area, and he will be missed by countless others in our community who do not know him, but who have benefitted from Takis' work and dedication in bringing BART to the airport. I would like to place a copy of an article which appeared in the San Francisco Chronicle last year, which I believe captured the essence of Mr. Salpeas' character and accomplishments at BART. [From the San Francisco Chronicle, Sept. 1, 1997] He's Helping Drive BART's Train to SFO Engineer Aims To Get It Done Fast, Inexpensively (By Benjamin Pimentel) While politicians take credit for BART's grand plan to go to San Francisco International Airport, many say an engineer named Takis Salpeas--known to few outside BART and local political circles--is the project's real driving force. Part commander and part cheerleader, the 47-year-old Greek immigrant has spent the past five years working out details for BART's eight-mile march to SFO and Millbrae, one of the biggest transit projects in Bay Area history. In many ways, Salpeas is just the person to lead BART's bulldozers when construction begins next month: a dedicated railroad-builder full of brashness and bravado who hasn't lost his optimism in the face of dozens of obstacles. ``BART is one of the best systems in the world. There will be no margin of error,'' Salpeas said. ``Everything will be efficient. We have to go for it.'' The airport project is the biggest in Salpeas' career--and the most controversial. It has been the target of lawsuits, opposition from local groups and the airlines and political battles in Congress. At a time when few believe the line will open by the early 21st century, Salpeas says he's sure he can complete the job on schedule in 50 months. And even though critics predict that the extension will cost more than its projected $1.2 billion price tag, the feisty engineer claims he can do the job efficiently enough to save up to $240 million. Salpeas' gung-ho attitude has rubbed some people the wrong way. Although local leaders are excited about the economic benefits of the BART extension, many complain that BART planned the extension without adequately consulting them--and that Salpeas has tried to steamroll them. But few are willing to publicly criticize a man they will have to negotiate with in the coming years. ``You're either on his side or (you're) the enemy,'' one government official said. ``We have this love-hate relationship with the man.'' Others, like San Bruno Mayor Ed Simon, say they appreciate Salpeas' directness. ``He's a straight shooter,'' he said. ``Some people think he's abrasive because he doesn't try to sugar-coat things.'' Salpeas acknowledges that he has been blunt in dealing with cities. ``Whatever I tell them is the truth, the honest, professional truth,'' he said. ``I never promise anything I can't deliver.'' Born and raised in Athens, Salpeas is the son and grandson of railroad engineers. His family sent him to study civil engineering at the University of Pennsylvania in the early '70s, hoping he would return to become director of Greece's national railroad system. Salpeas decided to build his career in the United States instead. After a stint with Philadelphia's rail transit agency, Salpeas moved to the Bay Area in 1991 to build BART's Colma station. He was later tapped to head BART's SFO extension team. Until recently, when BART finally got a federal funding commitment, it was unclear if the project would ever get started. The weekend before the Federal Transit Administration signed the agreement, Salpeas said he was nervously scribbling plans for radically cheaper alternatives. Because the line will pass through several cities, Salpeas has had to calm fears about how construction will affect communities. Along the way, he's had to contend with cities' demands, such as extending a sidewalk or building tracks underground--demands that usually get turned down. ``Everybody wants something out of this project--and yet I have fixed resources,'' he said. BART board member Dan Richard, who negotiated with cities for the agency, said there were times when he wished Salpeas would take a softer approach. ``There's a reason why there are few engineers in public office,'' he said. ``They sometimes use the direct approach, which is what you need to build things--but isn't always the most politic way. Every once in a while, we have to guide the missile in a different direction.'' Simon recalled how Salpeas would fidget with his tie whenever discussions seemed to be reaching a stalemate. ``It's like he wants to take his tie off and put on another shirt to start working,'' Simon said. ``He just wants to build the darn train.'' And Salpeas wants to build it fast and cheap. To do this, BART is changing the way it issues contracts. In the past, BART dealt with dozens of contractors whose job was to build whatever BART had designed. BART's recently completed East Bay extensions, roughly the length of the airport project, involved 51 contractors. By contrast, the SFO extension will involve four contractors in charge of both designing and building the line. Fewer contractors will likely mean fewer delays and shorten construction by more than a year, Salpeas said. The process, called design build, is commonly used in private construction projects--but this is the first time it will be used to build a major Bay Area transit project. Many things could still derail Salpeas' game plan. BART must lobby Congress every year for its annual appropriation, and some local groups still think the project is too expensive and impractical. But he remains optimistic. ``If we are successful, this is how railroads will be built in the 21st century,'' he said. And let no one doubt that Salpeas intends to keep building railroads in the new century. Even before the digging for the airport extension begins, he's already thinking of what he hoped would be BART's next big project. ``What about crossing the bay one more time?'' Salpeas said, laughing.

Mr. LANTOS

Mr. LANTOS. Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to take these thoughtful and carefully considered views on children working in agriculture into account and support efforts in fighting abusive child labor in this country.

Mr. LANTOS. Mr. Speaker, I would also like to place in the Record a copy of Ms. Diane Mull's statement at our press conference last week. Diane Mull is Executive Director of the Association of Farmworker Opportunity Programs, the leading national organization which represents the interests of our farmworker population. Ms. Mull is recognized both nationally and internationally as one of the leading experts September 22, 1998 on child labor in agriculture. In her statement, Diane vividly explains some of the important reasons why we need to take a hard look at ensuring that we adequately protect our nation's most precious resource--our children. Statement of L. Diane Mull, Executive Director, Association of Farmworker Opportunity Programs, September 17, 1998 Thank you, Congressmen Lantos, Waxman, Sanders and Secretary Herman for this opportunity to speak today regarding the GAO report on child labor in agriculture. I am extremely pleased that a critical step to document the problem of child labor in America has been accomplished. This can help arm the Administration and the Congress to make needed changes within the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) and its regulations to raise the level of protection of farmworker children and make it equal to that of all other children. And lastly, Congressman Lantos, I want to thank you for the leadership role that you have taken on this issue in the House of Representatives. I want to applaud the recent efforts of the Department of Labor. Through the Fair Harvest/Safe Harvest campaign, much needed information is being made available to the farmworker population. I hope that this will be an ongoing and expanded effort, until we are assured that every farmworker family in America knows and understands their rights and how to protect their children from the dangers in the agricultural workplace. Although agriculture is one of the most dangerous industries in the United States, children are legally allowed to work at very young ages, for unlimited hours before school and after school. The work is affecting their education. As many as 45 to 55 percent of farmworker children are dropping out of school. This is affecting these children's chance for a good education--an education that can help them break out of this cycle of poverty. Children are dying and being injured in our fields. Children are being sprayed with pesticides, being run over by tractors, being injured and hurt in order to put food on tables across America and around the world. Just recently, a 9 year old was run over and killed by a tractor while working in a blueberry field in Michigan, a 13 year old was knocked off a ladder where he was picking cherries in Washington state and was run over by a trailer being pulled by a tractor, and a 17 year old while picking peaches and pruning apple trees in Utah was sprayed twice with pesticides in one week, he died of a massive brain hemorrhage. Children are dying and are being injured and their precious lives and futures are being stolen. As the custodians of our children, we, as a nation, are charged with safeguarding their futures. We are charged with protecting them from exploitation on the job by prohibiting child labor for children under the age of 14 and by preventing children and minors from working in hazardous occupations that endanger their lives. Farmworkers, as an occupational group, are often excluded from such basic job protections as the federal minimum wage, workers compensation, unemployment insurance, and overtime pay. Because farmworker adults cannot earn a living wage working in agriculture and do not typically collect public assistance, farmworker families are forced to bring their children to the fields in order to put food on their table. It becomes an economic necessity for their children to work so that the family can survive. At hand are issues that reflect how we view the rights of individuals within our society. If we fail to protect adequately all segments of the work force job hazards, we risk the creation of a class system that defines the rights of some workers as superior to those of others. To continue to allow inequity in labor standard protections calls into question our integrity as a civilized society. To know that these individuals are large minority and immigrant workers speaks to an even more egregious form of discrimination. The Association of Farmworker Opportunity Programs through the Children in the Fields campaign supports both the Children's Act for Responsible Employment (CARE) and the Young American Workers Bill of Rights--badly needed legislation that addresses these disparities by providing equal protection and equal standards for children who work as hired workers in agriculture. The fruits and vegetables we eat are washed with the blood, sweat and tears of America's farmworker children. It is time for action. It is time that we stop this injustice and provide protection for these children. We must act before any more children lose their lives or are injured. We must act before more children sacrifice their futures to put food on our tables.

Mr. LANTOS. Mr. Speaker, on Thursday, September 17, 1998, my colleagues, Congressmen Henry Waxman and Bernie Sanders, and I made public an important GAO report which we requested on the use of child labor in US domestic agriculture at a press conference in front of the US Capitol. Joining us for the release of that report was the U.S. Secretary of Labor Alexis Herman. The report--entitled ``Child Labor in Agriculture: Changes Needed to Better Protect Health and Educational Opportunities''--finds that current legal protections, enforcement, and educational opportunities for children of the fields are grossly inadequate. Although these findings are quite disturbing, they validate what I and others have suggested for some time. Taken as a whole, the GAO report establishes that (1) we must have more and better information about children working in the fields and the consequences of this work for their future, (2) we must provide better protections for these children, and better enforcement of existing laws, and (3) we need better assurances that current programs designed to help these children are really working. In its report, the GAO found that children who work as migrant and seasonal workers are treated as an underclass with few opportunities to improve their future. The report acknowledges that we in Congress no longer have the time or luxury to debate whether there is a domestic child labor problem; the report finds that there is a serious problem that must be addressed without further delay by the Congress. The GAO report reached a number of very disturbing conclusions: (1) hundreds of thousands of children work in U.S. agriculture with severe, often fatal, consequences for their health, well-being, and academic achievement; (2) children working in agriculture receive less protection under the law, allowing them to work at younger ages, longer hours, and in more hazardous tasks than their counterparts working in other industries; (3) weaknesses in enforcement and data collection procedures mean that child labor violations are not being detected; and (4) a number of programs are available to help educationally and economically disadvantaged children, but little is known about how they help migrant and seasonal farmworker children. Given these findings, it would be irresponsible to stand by and do nothing. In fact, the GAO in this report challenges the Congress to carefully evaluate whether current federal laws adequately protect children working in agriculture. As GAO pointed out, current law may not only be inconsistent with the emphasis our nation places on the safety, health, and academic achievement of children, but also with the long-term economic changes in agriculture. This particular field of economic activity no longer merits separate--and unequal protections--for children. Agriculture is no longer dominated by family farms, with parents and children working together in a family enterprise and with parents who look out for their children's health and well-being. Today, Mr. Speaker, major agricultural conglomerates control much of agricultural production and the workforce are hired employees--not family members who are working together on a family farm. Given these and other changes, the GAO report raises serious questions about why children in agriculture should be treated any differently than children working in other industries. Under current federal law, children working in agriculture receive less protection than children working in other industries, because of many outdated and outmoded exceptions which have been included in the law for family farms. For example, children age 12 and 13 can work unlimited hours outside of school in nonhazardous agricultural occupations, but children that same age are absolutely prohibited from working in nonagricultural occupations. This means that a 13-year-old cannot be paid to do clerical work in an air-conditioned office, but the same youngster can pick strawberries under the blazing summer sun. In some instances, children as young as 10 years old are working in the fields harvesting our nation's produce. Mr. Speaker, I have introduced legislation to deal with many of these problems that have been identified in the GAO report. My bill is H.R. 1870, the ``Young American Workers Bill of Rights Act,'' and I am a cosponsor of H.R. 4450, the ``Children's Act for Responsible Employment (CARE),'' which would take children under the age of 14 out of the fields. This legislation was introduced by the Democratic Leader, Congressman Richard A. Gephardt of Missouri. Both of these bills would create an exception only for the family farm, where children would still be able to assist their parents in working on their own farms. These bills would raise the level of protections that are provided for children working in agriculture to be equal to the protections that are provided for children working in other industries. Mr. Speaker, I call for hearings in the next Congress to evaluate the adequacy of our existing child labor laws, particularly as they apply to children in agriculture. I also intend to submit legislation in the next Congress--if the voters of San Mateo County and San Francisco, California, make the decision that I deserve to continue to represent them in this body--to provide additional protection for children in agriculture and to deal with the specific inadequacies that have been identified in this GAO report. It is clear from this GAO report that changes are needed in how we protect children working in agriculture. I am pleased to see that the US Department of Labor has already responded to some of GAO's recommendations, and--under the outstanding leadership of Labor Secretary Herman--it has implemented some of its own initiatives to deal with child labor in agriculture within the confines of current law. It is time for the Congress to enact legislation which rids our nation of unequal protection for children working in agriculture. It is time to pass the Young American Workers' Bill of Rights Act and the CARE Act. Mr. Speaker, I would like to placed in the Record two statements which were made at our press conference last week releasing the GAO report on children working in agriculture. First, I include the statement of Secretary of Labor Alexis Herman. During Secretary Alexis Herman's tenure, the Department of Labor has undertaken new efforts to combat illegal child labor, and she has focused specifically on child labor in agriculture. This summer, the Labor Department placed major enforcement emphasis on ``salad bowl'' crops such as lettuce, tomatoes, cucumber, onions, and garlic. As a result of the ``Operation Salad Bowl'' initiative, the Department of Labor has found children as young as six years old in the fields harvesting our nation's produce, and significant fines were levied against the perpetrators. Secretary Herman also initiated the ``Work Safe This Summer'' program which launched a major effort on promoting child labor compliance through education and outreach in agriculture and rural communities. The Department of Labor is also creating partnerships with employers who have agreed to take extraordinary, pro-active steps to promote compliance with our nation's child labor laws by the agricultural industry. Mr. Speaker, we must give our Secretary of Labor the tools necessary to combat illegal child labor by supporting the President's new child labor budget, in order to have the resources to fight against abusive child labor both at home and abroad. The President's initiative to fight abusive child labor and address child labor problems will: (1) make the US the world leader in supporting programs to reduce abusive child labor around the world; (2) will reduce the potential supply of child workers in agriculture by providing an increase in migrant education to ensure that children are in the classroom, not in the fields; (3) will reduce the demand for illegal child labor for enhanced enforcement and better data; and (4) will help us review and update child labor hazardous occupation orders which regulate child safety in the workplace. Statement of Alexis M. Herman, U.S. Secretary of Labor Thank you Congressman Lantos for your introduction and leadership. Let me also thank all of the other Members of Congress for joining us today and for helping to put the spotlight on children who toil on America's farms. Let me begin by saying I am here today because fighting abusive child labor is one of my top priorities. And I wanted to be here to say that we welcome the General Accounting Office review of the Department of Labor's efforts. We are committed to ensuring that our child labor program is as effective as possible. As Secretary of Labor, my bottom-line is simple: One child working in abusive conditions is one too many. I want to see that young kids all over this country * * * grow up safe and secure * * * that they learn in schools instead of labor on the farms * * * that they spend their time on homework, not fieldwork. And that is a commitment shared by President Clinton. We must do better--and we must do more to end abusive child labor. And the President made this clear in his State of the Union address in January of this year. That's why we requested the largest increase in our nation's history to fight international child labor. But we know we can't lead internationally if we don't clean up our own backyard. And so we have pledged to work with Congressman Lantos, Senator Harkin and others to modernize our nation's domestic child labor laws. And we have launched a strategy to end illegal child labor here a home based on three principles: enforcement, education and partnerships. When it comes to enforcement, we have launched an initiative which focuses on five commodities--lettuce, tomatoes, cucumbers, garlic and onions. I call it ``Operation Salad Bowl''. We are sending strike forces to the fields to literally root out worker abuses. And we're getting results. As of the end of June, we have already completed 33 targeted sweeps. Thirteen focused on the ``salad bowl'' commodities. These sweeps include 735 separate investigations with 205 in the ``salad bowl'' commodities. And we found scores of children working illegally--including a child as young as four-years-old working in the onion fields in Arizona. We are committed to doing even more in enforcement--but we know that's not enough. Success takes education and it takes partnerships. Last month, we launched the Fair Harvest/Safe Harvest campaign--a bilingual educational effort to reduce farm injuries and keep kids safe. We are also partnering with community organizations such as the National Consumers League and the Association of Farmworker Opportunity Programs. We are partnering with the business community. And I want to make sure one other organization is a key partner in our effort--and that's the United States Congress. Because the best way to enhance our effectiveness and ensure the goal of ending abusive child labor is this: Pass the President's budget request. Pass the President's request for $30 million to make the U.S. the leader in reducing child labor around the world. And pass the request for over $60 million to beef up our child labor enforcement efforts, and strengthen the education of migrant children and migrant job training. The Senate has fully funded these proposals, but the House bill falls far short. So far, the House has refused to fund any of the President's increase in enforcement to fight abusive child labor. Let's back up our resolve with resources. And let's make a real difference in the lives of children across our country and around the world.

Mr. LANTOS

Mr. LANTOS. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Speaker, let me first express my thanks and respect to the gentleman from New York (Mr. Gilman), the chairman of our committee, for his strong support of this long overdue measure. If I may, Mr. Speaker, I would like to put this whole resolution in some historic context. Kosova, an Albanian province of Serbia, was a relatively peaceful, poor place until 1989. In 1989, without the slightest provocation, Mr. Milosevic destroyed whatever modicum of autonomy the people of Kosova had and created of 1,800,000 Albanian ethnic Kosovars colonial subjects within their own country. I visited Kosova many times during the last decade. It is, without any question, Europe's poorest region. It is the only region, Mr. Speaker, where you can meet a young man or a young woman in their twenties having only one or two or three teeth, because there are no dental services available. The grinding poverty of the Albanian ethnic population of Kosova is pitiful and heartrending. The people of Kosova have been fortunate to have reasonable, moderate, peace-loving leadership in the person of Dr. Ibrahim Rugova, a scholar of great distinction. But he could not get anyplace with the dictatorial regime of Milosevic, and gradually an extremist element emerged within the Albanian population which started military activities. In response to this, the Serbian army not only crushed this military uprising, but caused over 250,000 civilians, men, women, children, old folks, to leave their poor villages, many of them by now destroyed. As we speak, Mr. Speaker, over 50,000 civilian Kosovars are hiding in the mountains, and last week the first snow fell in Kosova. My resolution calls for two things. It calls for the Congress to denounce the brutal and inhumane activities of Serbian military and paramilitary and police forces against the civilian population of Kosova; and secondly, it calls on our government to see to it that Serbian assets frozen in this country be used to compensate, to whatever extent is feasible, these poor and destitute people, so that when they return to their destroyed and devastated villages, they can start rebuilding their lives. This is the very least that we can do for an innocent, persecuted, long-suffering people, 1,800,000 ethnic Albanian Kosovars whose sole crime is that they happen to live within the boundaries of the state of Serbia. Mr. Speaker, I strongly urge my colleagues to support this resolution. Mr. Speaker, I am very pleased to yield such time as he may consume to my distinguished friend and colleague, the gentleman from Ohio (Mr. Traficant).

Mr. LANTOS. Mr. Speaker, I have no further requests for time, and I yield back the balance of my time.