[Congressional Record Volume 140, Number 25 (Wednesday, March 9, 1994)]
[House]
[Page H]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]


[Congressional Record: March 9, 1994]
From the Congressional Record Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]

 
                     EL SALVADOR NATIONAL ELECTIONS

  (Mr. MEEHAN asked and was given permission to address the House for 1 
minute and to revise and extend his remarks.)
  Mr. MEEHAN. Mr. Speaker, El Salvador is preparing to hold its first 
national elections since the end of its 10-year civil war.
  More than 75,000 people died in that conflict, and the U.S. 
Government spent more than $5 billion on economic and military aid in 
support of the government.
  I was disturbed by a story on El Salvador in Sunday's New York Times. 
The article suggested that violence and intimidation are still viewed 
as acceptable tactics in Salvadoran politics, and it raised doubts 
about the fairness of the registration process for the upcoming 
elections.
  Many Members of Congress care little about El Salvador now that the 
cold war is over, but we owe it to the Salvadoran people and to 
ourselves to watch what happens in these elections closely. Too much 
money was spent and too many lives were lost to think of El Salvador as 
yesterday's news.

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