Donald Payne

Mr. PAYNE

Mr. PAYNE. Let me conclude by once again thanking the sponsor of this very important resolution. I think it's been said very clearly that when people stand up, we can defeat tyranny. I compliment the dock workers who refused to unload the ship. As has been mentioned, the solidarity movement in Poland led to democracy there. And actually, back in the sixties, there was an incident during the height of the Cold War where the dock workers of Newark refused to unload a ship of furs from the Soviet Union. At that time, Krushchev said they were going to bury the U.S., and the ILA and the dock workers refused to unload that ship, once again showing solidarity. As a person who worked on the docks of Newark for 4 years during my early career, I certainly appreciate the strength of the dock workers and the labor unions and ILA from around the world. I think we have to work on proliferation of conventional weapons that we see throughout the world. I think we have to really monitor and rein in the People's Republic of China that continues to support the brutal regime in Sudan with the atrocities in Darfur. We have to say that if we are going to be a country living in the community of world nations, then there is a responsibility to act responsibly in this new millennium. And so with that, I urge the passage of House Resolution 1270.

Mr. PAYNE. I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. PAYNE

Mr. PAYNE. Madam Speaker, June 26, 2008, will mark the tenth anniversary of the passing of Alioune Blondin Beye in the crash of a light plane near Abidjan. Maitre Beye, as he was known, was undertaking one of his frequent missions to build support for an agreement to end the civil war in Angola, a war that had lasted for two decades, cost more than a half million lives, and left more than three million people homeless. A former Foreign Minister of Mali and Secretary General of the African Development Bank, Maitre Beye had been serving for five years as Special Representative of the United Nations Secretary General for the Angolan peace process and President of the Joint Peace Commission for Angola. One of the world's most dedicated peacemakers, Maitre Beye touched the lives of all those who knew him and worked with him, and was beloved by millions of Malians, Angolans, and other peoples of Africa and beyond for his selfless dedication to the cause of peace, justice, human rights, and national reconciliation. A French speaker among Lusophones, a Moslem in a country of Christians and animists, Maitre Beye's life was the ultimate symbol of selflessness and dedication to the common humanity of all people. Along with Maitre Beye, seven other people were killed in the tragic plane crash, all committed men of peace. These included Koffi Adjoyi, Alvaro Costa, Baendegar Dessande, Amadou Moctar Gueye, Jason Hunter, Andrew McCurrah, and Ibikunle Williams. Maitre Beye's relatives, friends and colleagues will commemorate the life and times of this great man and to honor the others who died that day by hosting a memorial service at the New York Headquarters of the United Nations--the institution he loved and in whose service he ultimately gave his life--on June 26, 2008. The program for Maitre Beye will not be a sad memorial, but a joyous celebration of the life of this great man of wisdom and humor, and a tribute to the peace he and his colleagues sought to bring to the world. We wish them our best in this honorable endeavor.

Mr. PAYNE

Mr. PAYNE. Mr. Speaker, I do believe that the Universal Declaration of Human Rights is extremely important. We have to work to have the United Nations. And we certainly celebrate this 60th anniversary. I urge support for this resolution. I'd like to thank Mr. Berman, Ms. Ros-Lehtinen and, of course, Mr. Fortenberry for this very timely resolution. Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. PAYNE. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous material on the resolution under consideration.

Mr. PAYNE. Mr. Speaker, I rise in strong support of this resolution and yield myself as much time as I may consume. I want to congratulate our colleague Mr. Fortenberry for putting forth this very important resolution. He's a very valued member of our subcommittee, and he has been a strong supporter of issues of goodwill. This resolution celebrates the 60th anniversary of the United Nations Universal Declaration of Human Rights, the first international agreement on the rights of humankind. The universal declaration proclaims the inherent dignity and equal and inalienable rights of all members of the human family. It is this universal quality of the declaration that is its strength. The core freedoms and guarantees are entitlement of all people, not just those from certain groups or cultures. As such, no government or Nation has the power to confer these rights. They are inalienable freedoms with which all people are endowed by their very nature. The notion of inalienable rights was not invented in 1948. Socrates wrote about ethic laws that were higher than laws of kings over 2,500 years ago. Even a proclamation of such rights is not new. The Magna Carta, the U.S. Declaration of Independence, the United States Constitution, the Bill of Rights and the French Declaration of the Rights of Men all articulated specific inalienable rights. The power of the declaration is that it represents the first comprehensive agreement among Nations as to the specific rights and freedoms belonging to all human beings. It has become a cornerstone of customary international law, binding all governments to its principles. In the 60 years that I have followed the adoption of the universal Declaration, expansion of the circle of human dignity has come in fits and starts. Authoritarian governments still attempt to limit freedoms proclaimed by the declaration, including political and economic pluralism, a free press, freedom of association, freedom of religion, free and fair elections, and the rule of law. Nevertheless, the declaration allows humble citizens, be they monks in Burma, political dissenters in Cuba, journalists in Russia, lawyers in Pakistan or dispossessed in Zimbabwe, a standard by which to measure and challenge any government. As such, we see roots of freedom and democracy growing in even the most repressed societies. Our duty is to support the efforts of human rights defenders to expand the circle of human freedoms so that the declaration will, in Eleanor Roosevelt's vision, become the Magna Carta for all men everywhere. As she says, it's better to light a candle than to curse the darkness. I urge my colleagues to support this important resolution. Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. PAYNE. Mr. Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the gentlelady from Texas, chairwoman of the Homeland Security Subcommittee on Transportation, Ms. Sheila Jackson-Lee.

Mr. PAYNE. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and agree to the concurrent resolution (H. Con. Res. 332) recognizing the 60th anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, as amended.

Mr. PAYNE. I yield the gentlelady an additional 2 minutes.

Mr. PAYNE

Mr. PAYNE. I yield 4 minutes to the gentleman from Oregon, the member of the Budget Committee and one of the leading environmentalists in the House, Mr. Blumenauer.

Mr. PAYNE. I yield an additional minute to the gentleman from Oregon.

Mr. PAYNE. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and agree to the concurrent resolution (H. Con. Res. 318) supporting the goals and ideals of the International Year of Sanitation, as amended.

Mr. PAYNE. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous material on the resolution under consideration.

Mr. PAYNE. Mr. Speaker, I rise in strong support of this resolution and yield myself as much time as I may consume. First of all, I'd like to thank my colleagues on the Foreign Affairs Committee, Ranking Member Chris Smith and Congresswoman Sheila Jackson- Lee as well as Representative Chris Shays for being lead sponsors on H.Con.Res 318, which supports the United Nations Declaration of 2008 as the International Year of Sanitation. Their bipartisan support has helped to bring this resolution to the floor for a vote. I also would like to thank Senator Richard Durbin, who introduced the Senate companion to this concurrent resolution. In September 2000, the United Nations adopted the eight Millennium Development Goals to challenge the global community to reduce poverty and increase the health and well-being of all peoples. Two years later, in September of 2002, at the World Summit on Sustainable Development in Johannesburg, the United States and the rest of the international community reaffirmed these goals and added access to basic sanitation as a centerpiece of the poverty eradication commitments. The target to halve the proportion of people without access to the basic sanitation by 2015 was defined in the Johannesburg Plan of Action. In September of 2005, President Bush addressed the United Nations General Assembly, at which time, as I was the U.S. delegate from the House to the United Nations, I was very pleased that President Bush recommitted the United States to achieving the Millennium Development Goals. Last year, the United Nations declared 2008 as the International Year of Sanitation in order to recognize the great strides that have been made towards increasing access to sanitation for people around the world. However, it is also a time to galvanize member nations, U.N. agencies, regional and international organizations, and other relevant stakeholders to renew their commitment. Access to basic sanitation is something so simple, yet so fundamental to everyday life. Well, simple, at least, for the majority of people who live in the developed world. An estimated 2.6 billion people live in an environment where they do not have access to proper toilet facilities and human waste cannot be properly disposed. And approximately 1.1 billion people have no access to any type of improved drinking sources of water. As a direct consequence, over 1.6 million people die every year from easily preventable diseases attributable to lack of access to safe drinking water and basic sanitation. Ninety percent of those are children under five, mostly in developing countries. This lack of access to basic sanitation affects everything from how food is grown and prepared to the ability of girls and young women to attend school. Sanitation is an obvious issue of health, but also one of dignity, physical safety and development. Halving the proportion of people without access to basic sanitation is a target of the seventh Millennium Development Goal, which is to ensure environmental sustainability. In fact, it is vital to the success of other Millennium Development Goal targets in order for them to reach their goal. Access to proper sanitation is essential to reducing childhood and maternal mortality. It can help reduce the symptoms associated with HIV and AIDS. It can also improve the living conditions of 100 million-plus people living in slums. The dividends that increased access to basic sanitation pay are multifold. Depending on the region of the world, economic benefits have been estimated to range from $3 to $34 for each dollar invested in access to basic sanitation and safe water. According to the United Nations, meeting this MDG target will yield nearly $200 billion in annual benefits. If we meet this goal, people and governments will save more than $500 million in direct health treatment costs and get back more than 3 billion working days that are now lost to sanitation- related illnesses. Reducing the incidences to sanitation-related diseases will add nearly 200 million days of school attendance. As we in Congress work to increase access to lifesaving medication and strengthening health care infrastructures, we must remember that the success of such initiatives is, in part, dependent upon individuals having access to basic sanitation. Let us use this time to also refocus our efforts on strengthening one of the basic pillars upon which global health must stand, proper sanitation. I strongly support this resolution and ask that my colleagues back H. Con. Res. 318, which supports the ideals and goals of the International Year of Sanitation. I reserve the balance of my time, Mr. Speaker.

Mr. PAYNE. I yield 3 minutes to the gentlelady from Texas, Representative Sheila Jackson-Lee. (Ms. JACKSON-LEE of Texas asked and was given permission to revise and extend her remarks.)

Mr. PAYNE. Mr. Speaker, I would just like to say that I urge support of this resolution. As the previous speaker indicated, we passed legislation called Water For the Poor, and in our oversight hearing I was looking for places like Burkina Faso in Niger that had no water, but found that the money was allocated to Iraq and Afghanistan. ``Water for the Poor'' was what it was called, not ``Water for the War.'' So we need to be sure that when we pass legislation, that it goes to the intended recipients and not for other purposes. If other purposes must be done, put them in another budget. There is plenty of money in other budgets and no one ever opposes them. So put it over there, and leave our Water for the Poor for the countries that are actually and really poor. Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.

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

Mr. PAYNE

Mr. PAYNE. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that Members may have 5 legislative days to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous material on the resolution under consideration.

Mr. PAYNE. Mr. Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the gentlewoman from Texas (Ms. Eddie Bernice Johnson), chairperson of the Transportation and Infrastructure Subcommittee on Water Resources and Environment.

Mr. PAYNE

Mr. PAYNE. Mr. Speaker, I ask that all Members have 5 legislative days to revise and extend their remarks and to include extraneous material on the resolution under consideration.

Mr. PAYNE. Mr. Speaker, I rise in strong support of this resolution and yield myself as much time as I may consume. I am pleased to support this resolution that marks 225 years since the Treaty of Paris concluded the Revolutionary War with Great Britain and that acknowledges the close friendship enjoyed by our two countries ever since. I commend our distinguished colleague, Representative Wu of Oregon, and Vice-Chair of the British-American Parliamentary Group, who introduced this measure. It is important that the House marks this anniversary and celebrates such a vital bipartisan partnership, bilateral partnership also. The Treaty of Paris was signed on September 3, 1783, formally ending the Revolutionary War between the 13 original colonies and the Kingdom of Great Britain. The settlement of the war and the recognition of our young Nation by Great Britain was a moment of great significance in the infancy of our Nation. Two hundred twenty-five years later, the United Kingdom remains one of our closest allies by virtue of our shared history and values. Both the United States and the UK have proud histories of representative democracy and respect for the rule of law. They have also encouraged and helped many people around the world secure the freedoms and rights their own citizens enjoy. During World War I, the United States and the United Kingdom fought together as a part of the allied forces against autocratic imperialism. During World War II, again, against the Axis, our countries stood together against the scourge of Nazism and fascism. Our brave troops helped to liberate European countries from Nazi occupation, and innocent civilians from the horrors of concentration camps. We talked about the greatest generation, our World War II veterans, that we today still admire and respect. Throughout the 20th century, the United Kingdom has stood side-by- side with the United States on critical issues concerning liberty and human rights. Most recently the United Kingdom has strongly supported the United States' effort in South Asia and the Middle East. British soldiers are the second largest contributors to NATO's International Security Assistance Force in Afghanistan and the multinational force in Iraq. The United States and the United Kingdom share long histories of industrialization, being among the first nations to develop technologically. Both nations have a culture of intervention and curiosity, as evidenced by the innumerable number of scientific discoveries and inventions. This work has enhanced the frequent collaboration between American and British researchers. We have a tremendous bilateral system going. Indeed, such links are often developed at an early stage as young people take advantage of educational opportunities in each others' countries. There are currently 8,400 British students attending American universities and 32,000 American youth staying in the UK. These young people know all too well the extensive cultural links between our countries as British and American arts, music, literature, cinema, are enjoyed on both sides of the Atlantic. In recognition of the close bilateral relations shared by the United States and the United Kingdom, I strongly support this resolution and urge my colleagues to join me in supporting it. Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. PAYNE. Mr. Speaker, I yield as much time as he may consume to the author of this resolution, Mr. David Wu of Oregon, chairman of the Subcommittee on Science and Technology.

Mr. PAYNE. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and agree to the resolution (H. Res. 1063) marking the 225th anniversary of the Treaty of Paris of 1783, which ended the Revolutionary War with the Kingdom of Great Britain and recognized the independence of the United States of America, and acknowledging the shared values and close friendship between the peoples and governments of the United States and the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland.

Mr. PAYNE. Mr. Speaker, let me, once again, say what a great occasion it is marking the 225th anniversary of the Treaty of Paris of 1783. As has been indicated, we are close allies. Many of our organizations, as a matter of fact, the YMCA, which was founded in Great Britain in the late 1840s to take people who were coming into London because of the Industrial Revolution in London and England found a place where they could have a wholesome relationship. Twenty-five years later, that organization was brought to the United States of America. Still we have relations between them, just another example of close ties between the United States and the United Kingdom. Mr. Speaker, I have no further requests for time, and I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. PAYNE

Mr. PAYNE. Madam Speaker, with so many Americans fearing the loss of their jobs and their homes and worrying about the rising cost of basic needs like food and gas, it is clear that Washington must act. The House had led the way in working to jump-start the economic recovery by putting hundreds of dollars in the hands of more than 130 million American families with the economic stimulus package. That is only the first step. It is going to take time to reverse the 7 years of the Bush failed economic policies that have favored the wealthiest few to the detriment of the middle class. Congressional Democrats are working to address the record high cost of gasoline with the passage of a renewable energy tax incentive that will lower prices at the pump and create thousands of green jobs. With 325,000 jobs lost over the last 5 months, this Congress extended unemployment benefits last month, so that those having a hard time finding a new job have access to 13 additional weeks. The Bush economy is hurting middle-class families in my home State of New Jersey, across the Nation, and we must give them relief.