Tom Lantos

Mr. LANTOS

Mr. LANTOS. Mr. Speaker, I invite my colleagues to join me today in paying tribute to one of the San Francisco Bay Area's most dedicated and distinguished public servants, recently retired Daly City Fire Chief Bob O'Donnell. During Chief O'Donnell's remarkable thirty year career in the Fire Department he left an indelible legacy on the community he served with extraordinary passion and professionalism. In the wake of September 11th, the American people have come to better understand the heroic commitment of our nations firefighters in serving the public. Risking life and limb to protect the community is part of their daily job. Bob O'Donnell lived up to the highest ideals of public service through his thoughtful leadership, and we should all thank him for his outstanding labors on behalf of the people of San Mateo. As a young boy, Bob O'Donnell dreamed of becoming a fire fighter, and that dream was realized when, in 1972, at the age of twenty-six, he joined the San Mateo Fire Department. His leadership skills and talent did not go unnoticed and was promoted to Fire Engine Operator in 1979, and then quickly rose to Fire Captain. By 1985, Bob was awarded the highest of honors when he was named firefighter of the year of Daly City. A year later, he was named Administrative Battalion Chief and then Operations Battalion Chief. In 1997, his service record and leadership skills brought him to the pinnacle of his profession, Fire Chief of Daly City. During his thirty years in service, Bob became a forerunner in the field of fire safety by becoming one of the state's most active proponents of fire prevention and community fire safety education programs. From 1989 through 1996, he served as the department's Public Education Coordinator and led numerous efforts to educate the community on fire safety. Chief O'Donnell's list of accomplishments is long. In the mid-80's he successfully fought for grants which secured smoke detectors for low- income citizens. His integrity as well as the respect he garnered from his fellow firefighters made him the natural choice to lead efforts in integrating women into the Daly City fire department in 1986. His sensitivity and leadership in the matter made Daly City a model for other fire departments. As Fire Chief, Bob O'Donnell's leadership was pivotal in developing a nationally recognized Joint Partnership Agreement engine-based paramedic program, which involved seventeen in- house paramedics. He coordinated the Vegetation Management Program to remove the highly flammable gorse plants in Daly City's Southern Hill section, thereby changing the area from a very high fire hazard zone to a low hazard zone. Daly City was the first to achieve this feat in California. Chief O'Donnell's presence will be sorely missed at the fire houses of Daly City, but his legacy of achievement will continue to inspire the brotherhood of professional firefighters. I hope he enjoys his retirement, he's earned it.

Mr. LANTOS

Mr. LANTOS. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to pay tribute to Alicia Contreras of San Francisco, California for receiving the Paul G. Hearne American Association of People with Disabilities (AAPD) Leadership Award for 2001. Alicia, herself disabled, is an inspiration to thousands of disabled individuals, and has been providing them valuable assistance through various organizations since 1994. The American Association of People with Disabilities, an outstanding organization founded by cross-disability leaders in 1995, has made an excellent choice in selecting Alicia Contreras as one the recipients of the Paul G. Hearne award. Mr. Speaker, Alicia Contreras' work for the disabled has touched the lives of many individuals by demonstrating that being disabled does not have to get in the way of enjoying life. Alicia, herself confined to a wheelchair, learned how to improve her life as she began to work for the disabled in 1994 at a one-month leadership training program sponsored by Mobility International USA. Through this experience she learned that even with a wheelchair she could play sports, dance, and live an independent life. Through this experience, she learned, in effect, how to overcome her disability. Mr. Speaker, after realizing that she had the power to take control of her life, Alicia Contreras founded the Independent Living Center for Women with Disabilities in San Luis Potosi, Mexico, so she could help other disabled women realize what she had learned. Alicia showed women, wheelchair bound like her, that being in a wheelchair does not mean one has to live in seclusion in one's own home, and that one could live a more independent life outside the home. After her efforts through the Independent Living Center, Alicia took on a newly created government position, Program Coordinator for People with Disabilities in San Luis Potosi, Mexico. While there, Alicia created the first-ever accessible taxi-van service in the state, awarded more than 700 scholarships to disabled people, and provided more than 1,000 hearing aids and 300 wheelchairs to the disability community. Through this work, Alicia became familiar with Whirlwind Women, an international organization that teaches women with disabilities how to build appropriate wheelchairs for themselves and others. In November of 2000, Alicia was hired as the Whirlwind Women Program Director and continues to serve in that capacity. Mr. Speaker, Alicia Contreras has made a valuable contribution to the disabled community; the American Association of People with Disabilities has made an intelligent choice in selecting her as one of the recipients of this award. Like Alicia, the AAPD is committed to improving the lives of people with disabilities. Founded by disabled individuals, AAPD is committed to promoting the economic and political empowerment of all people with disabilities, educating businesses and the general public about disability issues, and seeing through the full implementation of the Americans with Disabilities Act so that all disabled individuals may have an equal opportunity to fully participate in society. Mr. Speaker, with these goals in mind, it is no surprise that AAPD selected Alicia. She exemplifies the dedication and determination necessary to give disabled people a fair chance in life, and most importantly, she gives them hope. I invite my colleagues to join me in paying tribute to Alicia Contreras for receiving the Paule G. Hearne/ AAPD Leadership Award.

Mr. LANTOS

Mr. LANTOS. Mr. Speaker, I am delighted to yield 4 minutes to the gentleman from Massachusetts (Mr. McGovern), an indefatigable fighter for social justice in the hemisphere.

Mr. LANTOS. Mr. Speaker, I yield such time as he may consume to the gentleman from Massachusetts (Mr. Delahunt), who has worked tirelessly on this issue and is one of the nationally recognized authorities on Colombia.

Mr. LANTOS. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Speaker, I rise in strong support of this resolution. I commend the gentleman from Illinois (Mr. Hyde), the chairman of the Committee on International Relations, for bringing forth this measure in such a calibrated and thoughtful fashion. I would also like to express my appreciation to our colleague on the Committee on International Relations, the gentleman from Massachusetts (Mr. Delahunt), for his enormous contributions to this effort. Mr. Speaker, Colombia has entered a new and brutal phase in its history. The Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia and the United Self-Defense Forces of Colombia, better known by their Spanish acronyms, the FARC and the AUC respectively, and other illegal paramilitary groups have launched unprecedented campaigns of terror against the people and the democratically elected Government of Colombia. I strongly deplore these criminal acts of murder, abduction, and extortion that the terrorist organizations have inflicted upon the people of Colombia and which the resolution and the gentleman from Illinois (Mr. Hyde) so richly describe. I wish to extend our friendship and our support to President Pastrana and his administration as they confront this menace. Mr. Speaker, the resolution also calls upon the President to submit his legislative proposals for addressing the crisis in Colombia to Congress for our consideration and deliberation. Let me be clear with regard to this point. While I appreciate the horror of the vile acts which the FARC and the AUC are committing almost on a daily basis in Colombia, I believe that any substantial change in U.S. policy toward Colombia must occur only after we in Congress have had an opportunity to add our voices and our concerns. Thus, while we have not made any ultimate conclusions on how to assist the Colombian Government better to deal with terrorism and narcotics, we certainly look forward to an active and spirited debate on this floor. Mr. Speaker, I believe that future U.S. policy toward Colombia should be conditioned upon the Government of Colombia dealing with two very stubborn issues: first, the Colombian Government must decisively break all links with illegal paramilitary organizations, and it must launch a serious effort to combat them. According to the Colombian Commission of Jurists and international human rights groups, the paramilitaries account for over 75 percent of all concombatant killings in Colombia. The just-released human rights report of our State Department echoes this fact and states: ``Members of the security forces sometimes illegally collaborated with paramilitary forces last year.'' This link must be completely severed. Second, the Government of Colombia must dramatically increase its own contribution to both the war and the peace effort. By most estimates, the army would need to at least triple in size to take on the FARC and the AUC effectively. Currently, the Colombian Army has about 130,000 members, but only 40,000 of them can be deployed into battle. The rest are at desk jobs or tied down to guarding static infrastructure like pipelines and power lines. The United States cannot fill this need alone, and we would be foolish to try. Complicating matters, there are reasons to doubt the commitment of some of Colombia's political and economic elite to sacrifice for the war effort. For example, currently Colombian law excludes high school graduates, meaning all but the poor, from serving in combat units. I think that is an outrage. Furthermore, U.S. policy toward Colombia should include more than counternarcotics and, potentially, counterterrorism support. Colombia's long-running war is deeply rooted in historical, social, and economic causes that must also be addressed if any sustainable peace is to be achieved. Here, dramatic expansion of support to the provision of basic services to the Colombian people, but particularly in the long neglected rural areas, is absolutely paramount. Mr. Speaker, Colombia and U.S. policy toward that country is at a crossroads. How we choose to help the people of Colombia confront not only terrorism but its sources as well will determine the quality of the lasting peace we hope will be able to help them build in the region. I urge all my colleagues to support this resolution. Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. LANTOS. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Speaker, I strongly urge all of my colleagues to support this carefully crafted and balanced resolution. Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. LANTOS

Mr. LANTOS. Mr. Speaker, I invite my colleagues to join me in paying tribute to Mrs. Suzanne Mubarak, the wife of Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak, upon her receipt of the Stephen P. Duggan Award for International Understanding on Monday evening of this week. The award, presented by the Institute of International Education and named after the organization's first president, is awarded to distinguished world leaders in the fields of government, education, business and diplomacy in recognition of their commitment to educational exchange and appreciation of other peoples and cultures. Mrs. Mubarak is indeed a worthy recipient of this honor. She is a sociologist, having received both her bachelors and masters degrees from the American University in Cairo, and she has devoted her efforts to education at all levels. In particular, she has supported the television program Alam Simsim, the Egyptian production of the popular U.S. children's series of the Children's Television Workshop, Sesame Street. When this excellent Egyptian production began its third year in October 2001, Suzanne Mubarak participated in the opening. As in the American model, Alam Simsim helps to build literacy, number skills, education of young girls, and tolerance and understanding. Mr. Speaker, Mrs. Mubarak's commitment to education, particularly of young women, is most worthy of recognition, and I am delighted that the Institute of International Education (IIE) has made the decision to honor her for her life's work. The Institute was founded in 1919 by two Nobel Laureates, Elihu Root and Nicholas Murray Butler. The purpose of the Institute, in the words of its Chairman Henry Kaufman and its President Allan Goodman, is to ``replace ignorance of other cultures and peoples with knowledge and understanding.'' To this end, the IIE has fostered and supported study in the United States by foreign students and study abroad by American students. Suzanne Mubarak's commitment to education is consistent with these worthy goals. This was acknowledged in the citation of recognizing her contributions: ``For seven millennia, the world has learned from Egypt. And, even today, we are learning much for your work about the impact that early education has on a child's ability to cope with his or her environment. You have taught us that education must encompass all of life's issues and should enhance the ability of people to interact in society. By your leadership you have demonstrated the overwhelming importance of the education of girls. You have set a new standard for respect and gender equality that will make Egypt and our world safer and more secure for all.'' Mr. Speaker, I invite my colleagues in the Congress to join me in paying tribute to Mrs. Suzanne Mubarak for her contribution to international understanding and in honoring her on receiving the Stephen P. Duggan Award.

Mr. LANTOS

Mr. LANTOS. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to mark the 500th day of captivity of Elchanan Tannenbaumu--one of nine Israelis now held captive by terrorist groups and regimes that sponsor terrorism. A husband and the father of two, Elchanan is the only Israeli civilian to be counted among Israel's missing. He is being held in Lebanon and is presumed to be alive. As we all know, Mr. Speaker, terror has many faces and takes many forms. Sometimes terror targets large numbers of people in spectacular acts of destruction as we saw on September 11th. At other times it seeks to achieve its goals by targeting a single individual. Mr. Tannenbaum was such a target, as was the American journalist Daniel Pearl, whose brutal murder has sickened and saddened us all. Mr. Tannenbaum's Hisballah captors have proudly announced their crime, with their usual flair for the contemptuous. Although Mr. Tannenbaum has a medical condition that requires daily attention, Hisballah has denied the Red Cross permission to visit him. The Tannenbaum kidnaping is further proof--as if it were needed--that Hizbullah is a terrorist organization with global reach. If we ignore this case of abduction, we are granting the terrorists a cheap and formidable weapon. As long as groups like Hizbullah believe that they can commit such actions with impunity, they will be encouraged to continue to target the citizens of the world's democracies. To ignore the plight of Elchanan Tannenbaum and Israel's other missing men, would not only constitute an abandonment of our closest ally in the Middle East, but would weaken our own efforts to secure a safe future for Americans and others who have been seized by terrorists. Mr. Speaker, I must point out that not only is it in America's interest to help in this matter, but in fact it is our obligation to do so. In 1991 Israel played a critical role in securing the release of Terry Anderson and other American hostages being held in Lebanon by releasing hundreds of terrorists from Israeli jails. At that time Israel was promised that international efforts would continue on behalf of Israeli captives left behind in Lebanon. It is now more than ten years since that promise was made, and the number of captive Israelis has only grown. It is time for us to repay out debt. What can we do, Mr. Speaker? I believe the U.S. is well-positioned to make demands of the Syrian government, which is effectively the ruling power in Lebanon and is ultimately responsible for the fate of all Israelis captured or held there. Syria is a sovereign state and currently serves as a member of the UN Security Council. Syria, like Lebanon, can and must be made accountable for the behavior of the terrorist groups it harbors and supports. Greater U.S. resolve in dealing with the Syrians can be critical in bringing Elchanan Tannenbaum home alive. Mr. Speaker, for too many years, Americans presumed that the terrorist actions from which our Israeli allies suffered would not be exported to our shores. September 11th has permanently shattered that notion. We should now pay closer attention to the Israeli experience with terrorism. The murder of Daniel Pearl is a warning that the ugly specter of kidnaping that has plagued Israel for so many years is now targeting Americans as well. Let us fight back. Calling attention to Elchanan Tannenbaum's plight, and working to secure his release, would be an important first step toward stopping this scourge.

Mr. LANTOS

Mr. LANTOS. Mr. Speaker, it is with great pride that I rise to congratulate Temple Beth El of San Mateo California, in my Congressional district, on the 50th anniversary of its founding. In 1950 the San Francisco peninsula was experiencing an extraordinary growth spurt. Young families were reunited with soldiers returning from the war and began purchase homes with their G.I. loans. This resulted in the rapid growth of the Bay Area. One result of this growth was that public facilities could not meet the demand of the population explosion, and schools were required to have double session to accommodate all the new children. At the time there was only one Jewish institution housed in its own building on the Peninsula at a small synagogue in Menlo Park. Although members of the Congregations Sherith Israel and Temple Emanu-El were cosponsoring a religious school for their children, the schooling took place at a Seventh Day Adventist Church, because the congregations did not have the necessary building space for a religious school. In order to accommodate their expanding numbers concerned parents met on a Monday evening in October of 1950, calling themselves the ``Board of Directors of the Peninsula Temple Congregation.'' Their focus that evening was to create a facility for Jewish learning and worship on the peninsula. From that first night, it was obvious that this group of dedicated individuals would be a success. They elected officers, organized themselves and took the first steps towards their exciting journey that very first night. Soon they had hired a Rabbi and chose a name; Peninsula Temple Beth El. Mr. Speaker, over its fifty years Temple Beth El has grown from a few families to a congregation made up of over 700 families numbering more than 3,000 people. Their religious school has become a model of programing followed by other congregations in California and the rest of the country. Today over 600 children receive a quality Jewish education in Beth El's religious school. Two years ago the Gannon Day Care center was named the number one child-care facility on the Peninsula. In addition to providing excellent religious institutions for their children, the members of Temple Beth El sponsor numerous programs aimed at enriching the spiritual lives of adult members. They were one of the first congregations in California to establish a Havurah--a traditional Jewish prayer group. Members of Temple Beth El are also actively fulfilling their obligations to be involved in social justice. From preparing food for the homeless at the Samaritan House in San Mateo, to collecting donations for numerous charities, serving as tutors for literacy programs in public schools, the members of Temple Beth El are extraordinary examples of selflessness and giving back to their community. Mr. Speaker, after fifty years Temple Beth of San Mateo remains a vigorous, exciting and expanding congregation. Despite its growth it has remained committed to the core goal--to provide a place for Jewish worship and Jewish education and to nurture Jewish Life on the Peninsula. I urge all of my colleagues to join me in commending Temple Beth El of San Mateo on the occasion of its 50th Anniversary, and wish its members continued success for the future.

Mr. LANTOS

Mr. LANTOS. Mr. Speaker, it is with a heavy heart that I rise today and pay tribute to a dear friend and true American patriot, Rear Admiral Herschel Goldberg, who recently passed away at his San Mateo home. Rear Admiral Goldberg was born in Highland, Kansas and raised in St. Joseph, Missouri before graduating from the U.S. Naval Academy in 1935. After a year at the Navy Finance and Supply School, Rear Admiral Goldberg was transferred to the U.S. Navy supply corps. During World War II he was stationed in the South Pacific. He served as the Supply Officer of the Navy bases at Bora Bora and Guadalcanal before being promoted to Commanding Officer of the Naval Supply Depot in Noumea, New Caledonia. Mr. Speaker, it was at Noumea, where Rear Admiral Goldberg did what he described as the, ``most soul satisfying thing I've done in my entire career.'' By racially integrating his 2,000 enlisted men work force, Rear Admiral Goldberg advanced the cause of racial equality. After the war, Rear Admiral Goldberg received his MBA from Harvard Business School and then served as Logistics Planning Officer on General Eisenhower's NATO staff. After being promoted to Rear Admiral, U.S. Navy Supply Corps, he was appointed by President Lyndon Johnson to Chief of the Bureau of Supplies and Accounts and Paymaster General of the Navy. In 1966 he became the first commander to be officially named Chief of Supply Corps, were he played a dominate role in the continued development of a strong, centrally coordinated and fully integrated supply system that was essential for the maintenance and preservation of the United States as a global naval power. For his extraordinary service to the Navy Rear Admiral Goldberg was awarded both the Distinguished Service Medal and the Legion of Merit. I had the pleasure on having Rear Admiral Goldberg serve on my Service Academy Nominations board since I was elected to Congress in 1980. I urge all my colleagues to join me in wishing Rear Admiral Goldberg the traditional naval parting for a fallen naval officer, farewell and following seas.

Mr. LANTOS

Mr. LANTOS. Mr. Speaker, I invited my colleagues to join me in commending and paying tribute to Hadassah--the Women's Zionist Organization of America, on the occasion of its 90th Anniversary. This extraordinary organization, founded in February 1912 by Henrietta Szold, has worked throughout its nine decades to ensure the unity of the Jewish people. Hadassah's American activities cover the map from Anchorage, Alaska, to San Juan, Puerto Rico, and from Honolulu, Hawaii, to Bangor, Maine. In more than 800 communities around the United States, Hadassah volunteers undertake programs and activities that change and improve people's lives. These include the ``Check it Out'' breast cancer detection and awareness campaign and sponsoring Jewish family programs across the country. Members of Hadassah are also on the forefront of important public policy debates on a diverse range of issues including, women's health, church-state separation, and U.S.- Israel relations. Mr. Speaker, the wonderful work of Hadassah does not stop at our nation's borders. The organization's greatest achievement is its network of world-renowned medical and educational institutions in Israel. The Hadassah Medical Organization in Jerusalem provides the highest quality of health care to more than 600,000 people a year. Since 1984, the Hadassah Medical Organization has also been involved in global outreach programs to other countries, particularly those in Africa. Included in these initiatives are new treatments for eye diseases, AIDS education, post-natal care and public health. Numbering more than 300,000 throughout the United States, the devoted membership of Hadassah embodies the spirit of volunteerism and community service. These women are our mothers, daughters, sisters, wives and aunts. Mr. Speaker, I invite our colleagues to join me in paying tribute to Hadassah--this outstanding community service organization--and its many dedicated members, who have made outstanding contributions to our nation and to peoples throughout the world over the past 90 years.

Mr. LANTOS

Mr. LANTOS. Mr. Speaker, in a recent hearing with Secretary of State Colin Powell, I raised concerns about how we are financing the War on Terrorism. While there is no doubt that there is a need for increased defense spending, I worry that necessary resources are not being made available to finance our diplomatic and development programs overseas. As this war proceeds, it will be our responsibility to establish stable democracies to fill the vacuum left by fallen regimes. It is therefore necessary to properly fund related assistance programs. Dr. Michael McFaul wrote an article entitled ``The Other Half of the Job'' in the February fifth edition of the Washington Post that deals with this very issue. He contends that if we intend to urge governments to promote liberty and freedom, it is our responsibility to provide assistance to those nations to establish stable democracies, and thereby create friendly allied states. He cites the examples of Germany and Japan. Just sixty years ago they were the greatest security threat to this nation, and today, after sustained support, they are among our strongest allies. Dr. McFaul is an expert in the area of international relations and deserves recognition for his work in promoting world peace. He is a professor of political science at Stanford University and a senior associate at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace. His outstanding scholarship has raised awareness and given light to this, among other important issues. His insights are valuable and worthy of consideration. Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to read Dr. McFaul's thought provoking article and I request that it be included in the Record. [From the Washington Post, Tuesday, Feb. 5, 2002] The Other Half of the Job (By Michael McFaul) The United States is at war. President Bush therefore has correctly asked for Congress to approve additional resources to fight this war. The new sums requested--$48 billion for next year alone--are appropriately large. Bush and his administration have astutely defined this new campaign as a battle for civilization itself, and have wisely cautioned that the battle lines will be multifaceted and untraditional. So why are the new supplemental funds earmarked to fight this new war largely conventional and single-faceted--i.e., money for the armed forces? Without question, the Department of Defense needs and deserves new resources to conduct the next phase of the war on terrorism. The Department of Defense may even need $48 billion for next year. What is disturbing about President Bush's new budget, though, is how little creative attention or new resources have been devoted to the other means for winning the war on terrorism. The Bush budget is building greater American capacity to destroy bad states, but it adds hardly any new capacity to construct new good states. We should have learned the importance of following state destruction with state construction, since the 20th century offers up both positive and negative lessons. Many have commented that our current war is new and unprecedented, but it is not. Throughout the 20th century, the central purpose of American power was to defend against and, when possible, destroy tyranny. American presidents have been at their best when they have embraced the mission of defending liberty at home and spreading liberty abroad. This was the task during World War II. This was the objective (or should have been the mission) during the Cold War. It must be our mission again. The process of defeating the enemies of liberty is twofold: Crush their regimes or the regimes that harbor them and then build new democratic, pro-Western regimes in the vacuum. In the first half of the last century, imperial Japan and fascist Germany constituted the greatest threats to American national security. The destruction of these dictatorships, followed by the imposition of democratic regimes in Germany and Japan, helped make these two countries American allies. In the second half of the last century, Soviet communism and its supporters represented the greatest threat to American national security. The collapse of Communist autocracies in Eastern Europe and then the Soviet Union greatly improved American national security. The emergence of democracies in east Central Europe a decade ago and the fall of dictators in southeast Europe more recently have radically improved the European security climate, and therefore U.S. national security interests. Democratic consolidation in Russia, still an unfinished project, is the best antidote to a return of U.S.-Russian rivalry. The Cold War, however, also offers sad lessons of what can happen when the United States carries out state destruction of anti-Western, autocratic regimes without following through with state construction of pro-Western, democratic regimes. President Reagan rightly understood that the United States had an interest in overthrowing Communist regimes around the world. The Reagan doctrine channeled major resources to this aim and achieved some successes, including most notably in Afghanistan. State construction there, however, did not follow state destruction. The consequences were tragic for American national security. So why is the Bush administration not devoting greater capacity for state construction in parallel to increasing resources for state destruction? Bush's pledge of $297 million for Afghanistan for next year is commendable, but this one-time earmark does not constitute a serious, comprehensive strategy for state construction in Afghanistan or the rest of the despotic world that currently threatens the United States. On the contrary, in the same year that the Department of Defense is receiving an extra $48 billion, many U.S. aid agencies will suffer budget cuts. Moreover, the experience of the past decade of assistance in the post-Communist world shows that aid works best in democratic regimes. Yet budgets for democracy assistance in South Asia and the Middle East are still minuscule. Strikingly, the theme of democracy promotion was absent in President Bush's otherwise brilliant State of the Union speech. It is absolutely vital that the new regime in Afghanistan succeed. Afghanistan is our new West Germany. The new regime there must stand as a positive example to the rest of the region of how rejection of tyranny and alliance with the West can translate into democratic governance and economic growth. And the United States must demonstrate to the rest of the Muslim world that we take state construction--democratic construction--as seriously as we do state destruction. Beyond Afghanistan, the Bush administration must develop additional, non-military tools for fighting the new war. To succeed, the United States will need its full arsenal of political, diplomatic, economic and military weapons. Bush's statements suggest that he understands this imperative. Bush's budget, however, suggests a divide between rhetoric and policy.

Mr. LANTOS

Mr. LANTOS. Mr. Speaker, it is well known that the Middle East is a land of proud heritage and strong traditions, but recent world events have focused the world's attention on the region, casting shadows of doubt and fear. These concerns are not unfounded and they are the result of several factors. In an opinion article entitled ``Arabs and America: Education is the Key,'' published in the Washington Post on February 12, the eminent Middle East historian Roy Mottahedeh of Harvard University discusses one of the most important causes of this problem. Dr. Mottahedeh focuses on one of the greatest tragedies of today's Middle East, the decline of liberal education. He begins his piece with a heart-breaking but telling image: boxes of catalogue cards negligently scattered on the floors of the library of Cairo University. This, by the way, is the same university that produced the Nobel Prize winning novelist Naguib Mahfouz and so many other eminent Egyptian intellectuals. He makes the provocative point that it is in our interest to do all in our power to support liberal education in Egypt and the wider Middle East. Rather than try to educate an English speaking elite here in the U.S., we need to help build a culturally acceptable educational system of liberal values over there. The decline of liberal education in the Middle East, particularly in the Arab world's cultural and intellectual center, Egypt, is a tragic fact. I am reminded of Dr. Fouad Ajami's article a few years ago, where he pointed out, shockingly, that Egypt produces merely 375 new books per year, whereas Israel, with less than one-tenth population, produces 4,000. Indeed, the sad state of education is one of the primary reasons for the poverty and political backwardness of our key Arab ally and, indirectly, for an environment that produces, and exports, violence and extremism. Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to read Roy Mottahedeh's excellent and thought provoking article, and I ask that the text be placed in the Record. [From the Washington Post, Tuesday, February 12, 2002] Arabs and America: Education Is the Key (By Roy Mottahedeh) Anyone who has seen the card catalogue of Cairo University Library will understand how tragically far Egypt and many poorer Muslim nations are from achieving the goal that President Bush rightly said in his State of the Union address is the object of parents ``in all societies''--namely, ``to have their children educated.'' The boxes of catalogue cards scattered on the floor are emblematic of the way that poverty has caused higher education to unravel in the once proud universities in most parts of the Muslim world. Americans can and should do something about it. There is a real longing--both on the American and the Muslim side--for dialogue; and education is the obvious prerequisite for dialogue. It was President Mohammad Khatami of Iran who first called for a ``dialogue of civilizations,'' which the United Nations adopted as a theme for the last year. Americans have long been committed to education in the Muslim world. The venerable American Universities of Beirut and Cairo, as well as our outstanding Fulbright programs, have produced scholars who have had the personal depth of experience to interpret cultures to each other. But the results have been on a small scale. Now is the time to have the vision to create a plan that will, through education, create the conditions for true and extensive dialogue and also create the human capital that is essential for poorer Muslim societies such as Egypt's to advance. It is a solid but minor contribution to the dialogue of cultures if an American historian teaches for a year in Egypt or an Egyptian mathematician comes to MIT for two years and completes an advanced degree. But it would be a major contribution to such dialogue if well-funded liberal arts institutions teaching in Arabic in Cairo offered BA's to a significant number of college-age students. For good liberal arts education in the vernacular--Urdu, Tajik, Arabic or whatever--is far too rare in the poorer countries of the Muslim world. No one wants to ``Americanize'' others through education, but all of us want to see more educated populations whose education does not isolate them into an elite associated with knowledge of a European language. The unfortunate association of many of the educated elite with foreign language education only widens the gulf between them and their fellow countrymen and makes them seem unnecessarily ``alien.'' The graduates of such an expanded liberal arts education system would be forces for economic development not only because of their skills but also because of their ability to speak authentically within their cultures as native voices, impossible to label ``agents'' of an outside culture. The Egyptian Nobel prize laureate novelist Naguib Mahfouz was a graduate of Cairo University at a time when it was such an institution. And he was a man of the people, not raised speaking English, and therefore would probably never have won a place at an expensive English-speaking university. Why favor undergraduate education when the needs in these societies are so great? Because the enormous bulge of populations under 21 in these countries are hungry for education and understanding, and they are the future interpreters of their cultures. Why favor education in the vernacular? Because it will reach the underprivileged, will create the textbooks and even the language of discourse, and will allow a discourse that draws on the indigenous cultures of these countries, some of which, such as Egypt, can claim a tradition of a thousand years of higher education in their languages. Why a ``liberal'' education? Because the tradition that a ``liberal'' education teaches us to think critically and write intelligently about both the human and scientific spheres is a value that the Muslim and Western cultures have shared for more than a thousand years. As President Bush also said in his speech: ``Let skeptics look to Islam's own rich history, with its centuries of learning and tolerance and progress.'' Cairo was once the place where Maimonides, the Jewish philosopher, studied the ideas of Avicenna the Muslim philosopher and read Aristotle as translated into Arabic by, among others, Christian Arab philosophers. But its ancient madrassas and European-style institutions of learning have fallen on very hard times (not to mention the miserable neo- orthodox madrassas springing up everywhere in the Muslim world). A new Fulbright plan that would rescue them or establish parallel institutions in Cairo, Karachi and kindred places would create forums where the dialogue of civilization would truly flourish.

Mr. LANTOS

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

Mr. LANTOS. Mr. Speaker, I rise in strong support of this bill and yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Speaker, I would first like to commend my good friends and colleagues on the Committee on International Relations, the gentleman from California (Mr. Royce) and the gentleman from California (Mr. Berman), for introducing this bill, and Chairman Hyde for his leadership in bringing the legislation to the floor of the House. Mr. Speaker, much has changed in the 5 months since the attacks of September 11. Global alliances have shifted, and the world has united against the forces of barbarism and evil. The United States finds itself leading an unprecedented coalition against international terrorism. In short order, we have helped to liberate the people of Afghanistan from the repressive rule of the Taliban regime and their al Qaeda cohorts. But the fog of war has not yet lifted from Afghanistan, and the war on terrorism is very far from being over. We are fighting a new kind of war which requires new tactics. Our military is adjusting to this asymmetrical warfare with elite forces using the newest U.S. technology and the smartest weapons. But to win this war, we need more than smart bombs, we need smart diplomacy. We must have more agile tools to communicate our message more effectively. The terrorists use fear and intimidation, lies and half truth to manipulate young minds. International broadcasting and public diplomacy are critical to combating these terrorist tactics and broadening international understanding of the United States and the values that form the basis of our foreign policy. We cannot win the information war and, hence, the war against terrorism, if we shortchange our public diplomacy. I was dismayed, Mr. Speaker, to see the cuts in funding for international broadcasting in the administration's budget. Not only are there insufficient funds to meet the world-wide programming needs for Radio Free Europe-Radio Liberty, Voice of America, and Radio Free Asia; but the administration's budget does not request a single penny for Radio Free Afghanistan. Mr. Speaker, it is in this context that I rise in support of H.R. 2998, the Radio Free Afghanistan Act of 2001. Radio Free Afghanistan could be an important element of our foreign policy arsenal, and passage of this legislation will hopefully encourage the administration to seek funding for this new and worthy initiative. But the imperative of creating a Radio Free Afghanistan is just one example of the need to bolster funding for all areas of the U.S. diplomatic and public diplomacy arsenal. We must increase, not decrease, funds for the international broadcasting agencies. We must also support the Agency for International Development, which strives to help the poor, the hungry, the illiterate, and the oppressed in Afghanistan and Albania and all across Africa. And we must support the thousands of men and women who represent this Nation in our embassies and consulates across the globe. These are the individuals and the institutions who are on the front lines of the new war we are fighting. If we are to win this war, we must equip our diplomats with the best tools and the best training, boost or development assistance, and ensure that our international broadcasters are heard throughout the world. H.R. 2998 is an important step in the right direction, and I urge all of my colleagues to support it. Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

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

Mr. LANTOS. Mr. Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentlewoman from Texas (Ms. Jackson-Lee).

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, I yield such time as he may consume to the gentleman from New York (Mr. Crowley), the author of this resolution. (Mr. CROWLEY asked and was given permission to revise and extend his remarks.)

Mr. LANTOS. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Speaker, I rise in strong support of H. Con. Res. 313, and I commend the gentleman from New York (Mr. Crowley) for introducing this important resolution. I also want to thank the gentleman from Illinois (Mr. Hyde) for allowing it to move to the floor so expeditiously. The Crowley resolution extends our sincerest condolences to the families and loved ones of those who perished on January 28, 2002, in the crash of TAME flight 120. The resolution also applauds the brave efforts of the Ecuadorean and Colombian rescue teams. Tragedies strike individuals and families without regard to nationalities. At these times it is important to stand shoulder to shoulder with those affected. Although nothing we can say or do will relieve the pain of those who have lost their loved ones, learning about the cause of the accident may help in the healing process and in preventing future accidents. In this regard I want to commend the United States National Transportation Safety Board for the assistance it is offering to the Governments of Ecuador and Colombia in reviewing the black boxes of the crashed plane. I hope that the NTSB will be able to complete its review and communicate its findings to all the appropriate authorities in an expeditious manner. Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to support this measure.

Mr. LANTOS

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

Mr. LANTOS. Madam Speaker, I yield myself as much time as I might consume. I rise in strong support of this resolution. I would first like to commend the gentleman from Pennsylvania (Mr. Pitts) for introducing this important resolution, and I want to thank my friend the gentleman from Illinois (Mr. Hyde), the chairman of the Committee on International Relations, for allowing it to move so expeditiously to the floor of the House. Madam Speaker, 5 months after September 11, we now fully understand the long-term impact of that fateful day. The patterns of international power have been scrambled, and the United States has reexamined its bilateral relationship with almost every nation on the planet. Today, all the great powers are united against the forces of barbarism. Not since the end of the Second World War have all the nations of the civilized world, including China, Russia, Japan, India, Pakistan and the nations of Europe, joined in common cause against a common enemy. For some nations in this historic alliance, there was never a doubt that they would be with us in this struggle. For other nations, it was not to be an easy decision. The leaders were buffeted by competing pressures, and the course of least resistance would have been to duck and cover. Madam Speaker, Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf made a strong and courageous decision to stand with the United States in this battle against terrorism. As a result, Pakistan has become an important ally in this epic struggle. While all the nations in the global alliance have made some contributions to the battle against terrorism, Pakistan, by virtue of geography and history, has had to shoulder a uniquely heavy burden. It is true that Pakistan had a hand in creating the Taliban, and we cannot forget this, but it is also true that Pakistan is playing a critical role in ensuring that Afghanistan and Pakistan are no longer used as a base for international terrorism. In his historic speech on January 12, President Musharraf made an eloquent and compelling call for an end to the extremism and terrorism that has plagued Pakistan for the past decade. As we laud him for making the right choice, we must acknowledge that it will not be an easy commitment for him to keep. Indeed, the kidnapping of Daniel Pearl, an American journalist working in Pakistan, is only the latest manifestation of the life-and- death struggle that is being waged for the future of Pakistan. It is a battle against the anarchist forces of Islamic extremism and violence which seek to capitalize on the despair of the poor. It is a battle that Musharraf must win if he is to restore hope to the people of Pakistan and secure a future for the children of Pakistan. Madam Speaker, it is vital that the United States demonstrate to the people and Government of Pakistan our commitment to help them secure that future as long as Pakistan continues its commitment to eradicate international terrorism from within its borders. Finally, I want to reiterate to the people of Pakistan our continued support for a return to democracy in Pakistan. President Musharraf has given his word that he is committed to democracy, and we in the Congress intend to hold him to his word. I urge my colleagues to support H. Con. Res. 324. Madam Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time. General Leave

Mr. LANTOS

Mr. LANTOS. Mr. Speaker, I invite my colleagues to join me today in paying tribute to Parca, a private, nonprofit organization serving people with developmental disabilities, on the occasion of its 50th anniversary. Since 1952, Parca has enriched the lives of these special people while strengthening our community through its devoted services. Parca's impact on those with developmental disabilities, as well as on their friends and family, is recognized with great appreciation by many in our community. Mr. Speaker, in 1952, people with developmental disabilities and their families were often unable to find programs and support to help meet their special needs. Flo Nelsen organized a group of concerned parents and established Parca to provide support for individuals and families with developmental disabilities such as Down's Syndrome, autism, cerebral palsy, epilepsy, and other neurological disorders. Flo Nelsen believed that every developmentally disabled person had the right to resources and support to help them reach their highest potential and become actively and productively involved in the community. Families and individuals with developmental disabilities can turn to Parca for advocacy, information, counseling, support, and, most important, fun. Over the past fifty years, Parca has expanded to provide a variety of services and programs for different age levels, and it has expanded into Marin County, Silicon Valley, and the East Bay. Parca's Recreational Experience for All Children (REACH) program provides child care services for children with or without developmental disabilities, giving children an opportunity to appreciate and learn from one another. The recreational activities of REACH help children appreciate their differences and identify their similarities. Another great benefit of this program is the child to staff ratio is 6 to 1, and in some cases, 3 to 1, depending on the needs of the children. The result is a better learning experience because individualized attention is geared toward their pace of learning. Parca provides numerous recreational and social opportunities for families and individuals with developmental disabilities. Mr. Speaker, one of Parca's important and unique contributions is the Raji House--a unique program that allows out-of-home weekend service for children and teens with developmental disabilities. As you know, Mr. Speaker, one of the many difficult challenges of raising such a child is getting a break, and this service provides parents with a respite care service. At the same time, it gives the children a chance to learn and grow as they spend a weekend in a rich home environment with the opportunity to go on fun, exciting, and educational field trips. Both parents and children have the opportunity to become rejuvenated through Raji House. Parca also offers an adult service program that trains adults with the skills needed for self-reliance and independence. Among many of Parca's accomplishments is a collaboration with housing developers to provide affordable housing to individuals and their families, furthering Parca's efforts to promote independence. Independent Living Skills Counselors live on-site with residents to ensure their safety, and counselors help them learn the basic skills needed to live on their own, including balancing a checkbook, cooking meals, doing laundry, and planning grocery lists. These skills are something many take for granted, but for those with developmental disabilities these skills are the key to greater freedom and independence and a sense of pride and accomplishment. Sarah Hurlbut, a young woman who is currently a resident in Parca's Page Mill Court Apartments in Palo Alto, has made extraordinary progress since she moved into the apartments in 1998. With the help of Parca she has been able to live on her own for the first time. Sarah is no longer a shy young woman--through Parca's help she has become more assertive and is becoming a leader among her peers. As Sarah's experience has demonstrated, this program has been critical in our effort to help those with developmental disabilities become an integral part of our community. Parca's excellent family and counseling services provide families with information regarding individualized education, program planning, and counseling on a variety of issues. The ``Speaker Series'' provides information to those interested in learning about important issues such as child care, education, independent living, and wills. Parca's People First chapter teaches adults with developmental disabilities on how to advocate for themselves. The group has also organized trips to our state capital in Sacramento and to our national capital here in Washington, DC, to provide families and individuals with developmental disabilities an opportunity to advocate their positions on issues directly affecting their community. On February 9, 2002, Mr. Speaker, Parca will be holding its ``Hearts of Gold Anniversary Celebration'' to mark 50 years of golden opportunities to individuals with developmental disabilities and their families. As Parca celebrates this historic milestone, I invite my colleagues to join me in recognizing and commending the entire Parca family for the time, effort, and invaluable contributions that have been made to help individuals with developmental disabilities achieve their highest potential. We celebrate the vision and the success of Parca and wish continued future success.

Mr. LANTOS

Mr. LANTOS. Mr. Speaker, every year the City of Redwood City, California, recognizes three of its citizens for outstanding volunteer work in the community with the Sequoia Award. This prestigious award is given to one student, one non-student citizen and one business each year in recognition of their outstanding service. This year's award winners are Emilia Cerrillo, a student at Menlo-Atherton High School, Vincent Truscelli, a Redwood City resident for over fifty years, and Electronic Arts, the world's largest creator of interactive electronic software. Mr. Speaker, all of this year's award winners are extraordinary citizens and are truly deserving of recognition. I would like to share with my colleagues a brief review of each Sequoia Award winner and highlight their achievements. Ms. Emilia Cerrillo, a senior at Menlo-Atherton High School, has been described as a "dynamo.'' An excellent student and musician, she also serves as Senior Class Vice-President and has been involved in the planning of several school events, including a candlelight vigil to commemorate the victims of the tragic events of September 11th, the freshman orientation and the homecoming dance. Emilia Cerrillo was also responsible for setting critical school policies. As a student representative to the Shared Decision-Making Site Council, Emilia worked with administrators, faculty, staff, parents and other students to ensure that all necessary voices were heard while the group formulated school policies. Emilia has also had a major role in the Compass Success program and served as a mentor and role model to encourage other minority students to stay in honors classes. Emilia's success has not been confined to the halls of Menlo-Atherton High School. As a participant in the Amigos de Las Americas program in Brazil, she met with health workers and participated in important infrastructure building in Brazil. Emilia was also a participant in the Global Visionaries program in Guatemala where she helped to build a house with the Common Hope Project. Emilia's achievements are just the beginning of what we can expect from this extraordinary talented and dedicated student. As the student recipient of the Sequoia Award, she has been awarded a $5,000 scholarship. Mr. Speaker, the second Sequoia Award winner is Mr. Vincent Truscelli. A lifelong resident of California, Vincent has lived in Redwood City for the past 50 years and has been involved with numerous community organizations. He was recently awarded an Honorary Life Membership by the Roosevelt School's Parent Teacher Association for his outstanding volunteer work with the school's annual carnival and for his dedication in introducing young students to baseball, basketball and track. Vincent was also the one of the first volunteer lunch yard supervisors at Roosevelt, allowing the teachers of the school to have a real lunch break, while children played after lunch. Vincent Truscelli has also been involved in numerous organizations including the YMCA, the St. Pius Church Men's Club and the Redwood City Transportation Committee, where he received the Distinguished Service Award for his proposal on how to lay out the bus routes in Redwood City. Vincent is best known for producing large-scale fund raising dinners. He and his wife have cooked for the Native Daughters of the Golden West Plaque Program, the Rotary Club's Irish night, Pets in Need, The American Legion, the Sons of Italy, the Redwood City Parks, Recreation and Community Service Department, and the Red Morton Fund raising project. Mr. Truscelli has been a member of numerous clubs and organizations that aid the community including the AARP, the American Legion, the Kiwanis Club, the Lions Club, the Chamber of Commerce, the Fun After Fifty Club, Sons of Italy, and many more. He was also the Chairman of the Veteran's Memorial Senior Center Advisory Board and still serves on its board. Vincent was also the Bingo Manager for the Senior Center, which funds the Senior Center's nutrition program, computer classes and their exercise program. He also donates his time to assist needy senior citizens with home repairs. Vincent has continuously given selflessly of himself for many years and is a deserving recipient of the Sequoia Award. Mr. Speaker, the final Sequoia Award recipient this year is Electronic Arts, a firm that is recognized for its role as a good corporate citizen. Generous contributions from Electronic Arts have helped strengthen communities in Redwood City and throughout the Bay Area. In just this past year, Electronic Arts provided grants and charitable donations to Redwood City totaling more than $70,000. Among the organizations benefitting from Electronic Arts' generosity were The Day Top Family Association (a residential therapeutic community for drug-addicted teens), Sequoia YMCA, the Redwood City Drug Abuse Resistance Education, the Redwood Family House, Sandpiper Elementary School and the Heron Court Neighborhood Network in Redwood Shores. Electronic Arts is also a proud sponsor of the Sequoia Hospital Foundation donating both money as well as video and computer games to the Hospital. The good works of Electronic Arts are supported by the hardworking employees. Several of Electronic Arts' executives serve on volunteer boards for the Sequoia YMCA, Community Gatepath, Mid Peninsula Boys and Girls Club, Day Top Family Association and the Chamber of Commerce, to name a few. Electronic Arts also assists the Special Olympics by providing coaches, timekeepers, and scorers for the various events, and host an annual fund raiser. Over 100 employees of the company and their families donated their time to help build a new fence and paint the Redwood House group home in Redwood City. The charitable acts of Electronic Arts are greatly appreciated throughout the Bay Area. Mr. Speaker, these two outstanding individuals, and this corporation are recipients of the Sequoia Award because of their continued selfless efforts in our community. I hope that their actions can be a guide for all of us. I urge my colleagues to join me in paying in tribute to Emilia Cerrillo, Vincent Truscelli and Electronic Arts, recipients of Redwood City's 2002 Sequoia Award.

Mr. LANTOS

Mr. LANTOS. Mr. Speaker, Hong Kong is one of the most economically and culturally vibrant cities in the world, and its hard-working residents make an enormous contribution to the economic and political stability of the Asia-Pacific region. As a result, U.S.-Hong Kong relations have never been stronger, and ties between the governments and people of Hong Kong and the U.S. grow each day. While there are many reasons for Hong Kong's ongoing success, due credit must be given to the over 230,000 domestic workers in Hong Kong who watch children, cook and clean while their Hong Kong employers are off at work. Most of the women who fill these domestic positions are from the Philippines, and the remittances of their wages back to the Philippines support entire families. But the sacrifices made by these Filipina maids are enormous. They must leave husbands, children, and other family members behind for years on end to work incredibly long hours, six days a week. Given the small size of Hong Kong apartments, most of these maids sleep on kitchen or bathroom floors, or even in the closet. The minimum wage for Hong Kong maids is set at just $470 per month, and not all employers comply. During an official visit to Hong Kong in January, it was brought to my attention that the trade association representing the employers of Hong Kong maids had proposed cutting the minimum wage for maids by 14%. Given Hong Kong's leadership role in the Asia-Pacific region, I was frankly shocked to hear that such a proposal had even been put on the table. In meetings with Members of the Hong Kong Legislative Council and other senior Hong Kong officials, I raised strong concerns regarding this proposed minimum wage cut, echoing the strong statements against the proposal made by many Hong Kong residents and Filipina maids. I indicated that I was very sympathetic to the fact that many Hong Kong families have had to tighten their belts as a result of the recession in Hong Kong, but that it was not a solution to Hong Kong's economic problems to cut the wages of those who earn the least. Hong Kong's Filipina maids keep Hong Kong running and single-handedly support tens of thousands of families back home in the Philippines. The proposal to cut their wages was unfair and unethical, a fact realized by many solid citizens in Hong Kong. It is therefore my great pleasure to report that the proposal to cut the minimum wage for Hong Kong's maids has been rejected by the Hong Kong government. This decision by the government demonstrates the wisdom of Hong Kong's leadership on economic and other important issues, and shows why U.S.-Hong Kong relations will only grow stronger. I have attached a recent article from the Economist regarding this critically-important issue, and urge my colleague to read it in its entirety. An Anthropology of Happiness--The Filipina Sisterhood [From the Economist, Dec. 22, 2001] Once a week, on Sundays, Hong Kong becomes a different city. Thousands of Filipina women throng into the central business district, around Statue Square, to picnic, dance, sing, gossip and laugh. They snuggle in the shade under the HSBC building, a Hong Kong landmark, and spill out into the parks and streets. They hug. They chatter. They smile. Humanity could stage no greater display of happiness. This stands in stark contrast to the other six days of the week. Then it is the Chinese, famously cranky and often rude, and expatriate businessmen, permanently stressed, who control the city centre. On these days, the Filipinas are mostly holed up in the 154,000 households across the territory where they work as ``domestic helpers'', or amahs in Cantonese. There they suffer not only the loneliness of separation from their own families, but often virtual slavery under their Chinese or expatriate masters. Hence a mystery: those who should be Hong Kong's most miserable are, by all appearances, its happiest. How? The Philippine government estimates that about 10% of the country's 75 million people work overseas in order to support their families. Last year, this diaspora remitted $6 billion, making overseas Filipino workers, or OFWs, one of the biggest sources of foreign exchange. Hong Kong is the epicentre of this diaspora. Although America, Japan and Saudi Arabia are bigger destinations of OFWs by numbers, Hong Kong is the city where they are most concentrated and visible. Filipina amahs make up over 2% of its total and 40% of its non-Chinese population. They play an integral part in almost every middle- class household. And, once a week, they take over the heart of their host society. It was not always thus. Two generations ago, the Philippines was the second-richest country in East Asia, after Japan, while Hong Kong was teeming with destitute refugees from mainland China. Among upper-class families in the Philippines, it was common in those days to employ maids from Hong Kong. But over the past two decades Hong Kong has grown rich as one of Asia's ``tigers'', while the Philippines has stayed poor. Hong Kong is the closest rich economy to the Philippines, and the easiest place to get ``domestic'' visas. It has the most elaborate network of employment agencies for amahs in the world. A Bed in a cupboard Although the Filipinas in Hong Kong come from poor families, over half have college degrees. Most speak fluent English and reasonable Cantonese, besides Tagalog and their local Philippine dialect. About half are in Hong Kong because they are mothers earning money to send their children to school back home. The other half tend to be eldest sisters working to feed younger siblings. All are their families' primary breadwinners. Their treatment varies. By law, employers must give their amahs a ``private space'' to live in, but Hong Kong's flats tend to be tiny, and the Asian Migrant Centre, an NGO, estimates that nearly half of amahs do not have their own room. Some amahs sleep in closets, on the bathroom floor, and under the dining table. One petite amah sleeps in a kitchen cupboard. At night she takes out the plates, places them on the washer, and climbs in; in the morning, she replaces the plates. When amahs are mistreated, as many are, they almost never seek redress. Among those who did so last year, one had her hands burned with a hot iron by her Chinese employer, and one was beaten for not cleaning the oven properly. The amahs' keenest pain, however, is separation from loved ones. Most amahs leave their children and husbands behind for years, or for good, in order to provide for them. Meanwhile, those families often break apart. It is hard, for instance, to find married amahs whose husbands at home have not taken a mistress, or even fathered other children. Some amahs show their dislocation by lying or stealing from their employers, but most seem incapable of bitterness. Instead, they pour out love on the children they look after. Often it is they who dote, who listen, who check homework. And they rarely stop to compare or envy. Under such circumstances, the obstinate cheerfulness of the Filipinas can be baffling. But does it equate to ``happiness'', as most people would understand it? ``That's not a mistake. They really are,'' argues Felipe de Leon, a professor of Filipinology at Manila's University of the Philippines. In every survey ever conducted, whether the comparison is with western or other Asian cultures, Filipinos consider themselves by far the happiest. In Asia, they are usually followed by their Malay cousins in Malaysia, while the Japanese and Hong Kong Chinese are the most miserable. Anecdotal evidence confirms these findings. Happiness is kapwa Explaining the phenomenon is more difficult. The usual hypothesis puts it down to the unique ethnic and historical cocktail that is Philippine culture--Malay roots (warm, sensual, mystical) mixed with the Catholicism and fiesta spirit of the former Spanish colonisers, to which is added a dash of western flavour from the islands' days as an American colony. Mr de Leon, after a decade of researching, has concluded that Filipino culture is the most inclusive and open of all those he has studied. It is the opposite of the individualistic culture of the West, with its emphasis on privacy and personal fulfilment. It is also the opposite of certain collectivistic cultures, as one finds them in Confucian societies, that value hierarchy and ``face''. By contrast, Filipino culture is based on the notion of kapwa, a Tagalog word that roughly translates into ``shared being''. In essence, it means that most Filipinos, deep down, do not believe that their own existence is separable from that of the people around them. Everything, from pain to a snack or a joke, is there to be shared. Guests in Filipino homes, for instance, are usually expected to stay in the hosts' own nuptial bed, while the displaced couple sleeps on the floor. Small-talk tends to get so intimate so quickly that many westerners recoil. ``The strongest social urge of the Filipino is to connect, to become one with people,'' says Mr de Leon. As a result, he believes, there is much less loneliness among them. It is a tall thesis, so The Economist set out to corroborate it in and around Statue Square on Sundays. At that time the square turns, in effect, into a map of the Philippine archipelago. The picnickers nearest to the statue itself, for instance, speak mostly Ilocano, a dialect from northern Luzon. In the shade under the Number 13 bus stop (the road is off-limits to vehicles on Sundays) one hears more Ilonggo, spoken on Panay island. Closer to City Hall, the most common dialect is Cebuano, from Cebu. Hong Kong's Filipinas, in other words, replicate their village communities, and these surrogate families form a first circle of shared being. Indeed, some of the new arrivals in Hong Kong already have aunts, nieces, former students, teachers, or neighbours who are there, and gossip from home spreads like wildfire. What is most striking about Statue Square, however, is that the sharing is in no way confined to any dialect group. Filipinas who are total strangers move from one group to another--always welcomed, never rejected, never awkward. Indeed, even Indonesian maids (after Filipinas, the largest group of amahs), and Chinese or foreign passers-by who linger for even a moment are likely to be invited to share the snacks. The same sense of light-hearted intimacy extends to religion. Father Lim, for instance, is a Filipino priest in Hong Kong. Judging by the way his mobile phone rings almost constantly with amahs who want to talk about their straying husbands at home, he is also every amah's best friend. He is just as informal during his Sunday service in Tagalog at St Joseph's Church on Garden Road. This event is, by turns, stand-up comedy, rock concert and group therapy. And it is packed. For most of the hour, Father Lim squeezes through his flock with a microphone. ``Are you happy?'' he asks the congregation. A hand snatches the mike from him. ``Yes, because I love God.'' Amid wild applause, the mike finds its way to another amah. ``I'm so happy because I got my HK$3,670 this month [$470, the amahs' statutory wage]. But my employer was expecting a million and didn't get it. Now he's miserable.'' The others hoot with laughter. The Filipinas, says Father Lim, have only one day a week of freedom (less, actually, as most employers impose curfews around dusk), so they ``maximise it by liberating the Filipino spirit''. That spirit includes communing with God. Some 97% of Filipinos believe in God, and 65%, according to a survey, feel ``extremely close'' to him. This is more than double the percentage of the two runners-up in the survey, America and Israel. This intimate approach to faith, thinks Father Lim, is one reason why there is virtually no drug abuse, suicide or depression among the amahs--problems that are growing among the Chinese. The lifeline to home There is, however, an even more concrete expression of kapwa. Quite simply, it is the reason why the Filipinas are where they are in the first place: to provide for loved ones at home. Most spend very little of their monthly HK$3,670 on themselves. Instead, they take it to WorldWide House, a shopping mall and office complex near Statue Square. On Sundays the mall becomes a Philippine market, packed with amahs buying T-shirts, toys and other articles for their siblings and children, and remitting their wages. More than their wages, in fact: many amahs borrow to send home more, often with ruinous financial consequences. Father Lim tells a story. An eminent Filipino died while abroad, and it was decided that local compatriots should bid the coffin adieu before its journey home. So amahs showed up to file past it. When the coffin arrived in the Philippines and was re-opened, the corpse was covered from head to toe with padded bras, platform shoes, Nike trainers, and the like, all neatly tagged with the correct addresses. It is their role as a lifeline for the folks at home that has earned the OFWs their Tagalog nickname, bayani. By itself, bayani means heroine, and this is how many amahs see themselves. Another form of the word, bayanihan, used to describe the traditional way of moving house in the Philippines. All the villagers would get together, pick up the hut and carry it to its new site. Bayanihan was a heroic, communal--in other words, shared--effort. It is no coincidence, therefore, that Bayanihan House is the name the amahs have given to a building in Hong Kong that a trust has made available to them for birthday parties, hairstyling classes, beauty pageants and the like. One recent Sunday, during a pageant, one of the contestants for beauty queen was asked how she overcame homesickness, and why she thought the people back home considered her a hero. She looked down into her audience of amahs. ``We're heroes because we sacrifice for the ones we love. And homesickness is just a part of it. But we deal with it because we're together.'' The room erupted with applause and agreement. ``Nowadays, bayanihan really means togetherness,'' says Mr de Leon, and ``togetherness is happiness''. It might sound too obvious, almost banal, to point out--had not so many people across the world forgotten it.