[Congressional Bills 108th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.J. Res. 102 Received in Senate (RDS)]

  2d Session
H. J. RES. 102


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                           September 29, 2004

                                Received

_______________________________________________________________________

                            JOINT RESOLUTION


 
 Recognizing the 60th anniversary of the Battle of Peleliu and the end 
 of Imperial Japanese control of Palau during World War II and urging 
the Secretary of the Interior to work to protect the historic sites of 
  the Peleliu Battlefield National Historic Landmark and to establish 
    commemorative programs honoring the Americans who fought there.

Whereas on December 7, 1941, Imperial Japan bombed the United States fleet at 
        Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, forcing the United States to declare war on Japan;
Whereas by 1944, United States victories in the Southwest and Central Pacific 
        were bringing the war ever closer to Japan;
Whereas on September 15, 1944, after three days of naval gunfire, United States 
        forces landed on the beaches of Peleliu, in the Palau islands chain, 
        with the objective of capturing a vital air field;
Whereas the battle for Peleliu lasted more than two months, during which the 
        United States suffered over 10,000 casualties, including an estimated 
        1,250 Marines and 540 soldiers killed in action;
Whereas George H.W. Bush, the 41st President of the United States, served as a 
        torpedo-bomber pilot in the Navy and sank an armed Japanese trawler 
        during Operation Snapshot, an operation to weaken Japanese defenses on 
        Peleliu before United States Marines invaded the island in September 
        1944;
Whereas former Secretary of State George P. Shultz served as an officer in the 
        Marine Corps detached to the 81st Infantry Division of the Army during 
        the Battle of Peleliu and participated in the seizure, occupation, and 
        defense of Angaur Island in the Palau islands chain;
Whereas on February 4, 1985, the Secretary of the Interior officially designated 
        the Peleliu battlefield as the ``Peleliu Battlefield National Historic 
        Landmark'';
Whereas the landmark plaque has been mounted and is now displayed in a prominent 
        place in the village of Kloulkubed;
Whereas that designation as a national historic landmark attests not only to the 
        significance of the battlefield site, but also to the integrity of the 
        site;
Whereas the Peleliu battlefield today has considerable physical evidence of the 
        battle, including about 100 identified individual cave sites occupied by 
        the defending Japanese troops, as well as pill boxes, casemates, and 
        large military equipment, both American and Japanese, which played a 
        direct role in the battle for Peleliu; and
Whereas thanks to the sacrifices of members of the United States Armed Forces 
        who participated in the Battle of Peleliu, the Republic of Palau today 
        is an independent, democratic nation and a strong ally of the United 
        States: Now, therefore, be it
    Resolved by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United 
States of America in Congress assembled, That the Congress recognizes 
the bravery and courage of the members of the United States Armed 
Forces who participated in the Battle of Peleliu and of all veterans 
who fought in the Pacific Theater during World War II.
    Sec. 2. The Congress urges the Secretary of the Interior--
            (1) to recognize the year 2004 as the 60th anniversary of 
        the Battle of Peleliu and the end of Imperial Japanese control 
        of Palau during World War II;
            (2) to work to protect the historic sites of the Peleliu 
        Battlefield National Historic Landmark; and
            (3) to establish commemorative programs honoring the 
        Americans who fought at those sites.

            Passed the House of Representatives September 28, 2004.

            Attest:

                                                 JEFF TRANDAHL,

                                                                 Clerk.