[Congressional Record Volume 140, Number 51 (Tuesday, May 3, 1994)]
[House]
[Page H]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]


[Congressional Record: May 3, 1994]
From the Congressional Record Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]

 
                    ADMINISTRATION'S POLICY ON HAITI

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Under the Speaker's announced policy of 
February 11, 1994, the gentleman from Florida [Mr. Goss] is recognized 
during morning business for 5 minutes.
  Mr. GOSS. Mr. Speaker, Haiti is back on the front pages again. Sadly, 
each day brings reports of another protest in Washington, another 
random act of violence in cite soleil or elsewhere in Haiti, another 
zig--or is it a zag--in the administration's policy. Often 
contradictory, generally ineffective, the President's policy in Haiti 
lacks simply this: A clearly defined objective and a realistic 
assessment of the means with which to achieve it.
  Perhaps most disturbing is the word this week that some officials, 
including the White House, are partial to the idea of using United 
States military force to control the situation in Haiti. Frankly, this 
is one of the worst ideas I have heard in a long time among a lot of 
other bad ideas I have heard about Haiti.
  Let us be clear on this point: We do have a tremendous interest in 
helping democracy succeed in Haiti. We are friends who should help a 
friend in need. But, you cannot accomplish that objective at the barrel 
of a gun. Haiti is in the grips of a brutal civil war. It is Haitians 
killing, raping, and maiming each other. It is a conflict generally 
impervious to externally imposed solutions. It has been going on for 
generations. It is a Haitian problem--that ultimately requires 
a Haitian solution. American soldiers do not belong there on any 
missions until the Haitians have achieved some level of accord and 
stability among themselves. In this morning's paper, we read that the 
White House is considering sending in lightly armed military trainers--
correct me if I'm wrong, but didn't we already make that embarrassing 
and potentially dangerous mistake when we sent the Harlan County a 
short while ago? The best hope for a democratic Haiti is to encourage 
and assist the immediate return of their duly elected President, Jean-
Bertrande Aristide, to Haitian soil. I have a plan to facilitate this 
process and have repeatedly offered it to the administration over the 
last 15 months.

  By utilizing the Ile de la Gonave, or any other properly suitable 
site, as a safe haven, Aristide could return and administer his 
government in relative safety and begin the process of rebuilding 
stability in Haiti--peacefully. Operating under the auspices of the 
OAS, perhaps supported by one or two of the United States Coast Guard 
cutters now doing picket duty there, a safe haven offers a relatively 
nonthreatening way for Aristide to govern without triggering an armed 
conflict between the Haitian Army and foreign troops, or without 
intensifying civil warfare now ongoing in Haiti.
  In addition, Aristide's return would provide a rallying point for his 
followers. I was there when Aristide was elected and saw the loyalty 
that the Haitian people have for him. His return could provide the 
morale and leadership the Haitian people need to restore stability and 
democracy.
  In addition, the safe haven proposal offers some hope to those 
concerned about our current repatriation policy. Rather than return 
refugees to Port-au-Prince, where they are theoretically endangered--
although the State Department insists there is little evidence that 
those returned are persecuted--they could be returned to the safe haven 
where they could apply for asylum free from harm.
  Let me emphasize that the scale of the refugee problem should not be 
underestimated. Since President Aristide was ousted in 1991, 43,000 
Haitians have been repatriated. In fiscal year 1993 alone, 11,377 
Haitians sought political asylum in this country. Last week, the 
President once again sent out the wrong signal to Haitians with his 
decision to allow a humanitarian exception for a boatload of more than 
400 refugees. I remain concerned that this kind of inconsistency will 
raise false economic expectations among the Haitian people and 
encourage them to once again board leaky boats and head for the United 
States in search of a better life. This is a dangerous roll of the 
dice--not just for Haitians in shark-infested waters but also for 
Americans--who cannot afford an unlimited out-of-control immigration 
policy.

  Two centuries of political and economic strife have left Haiti 
divided and impoverished. Americans are not without sympathy for their 
plight but Americans cannot solve Haiti's problems. In the end, only 
the Haitians can make a democracy a reality in their country. They have 
a democratically elected President. We should assist him to return and 
get on with the job of governing his country from his country.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Under the Speaker's announced policy of 
February 11, 1994, the gentleman from Michigan [Mr. Smith] is 
recognized during morning business for 5 minutes.

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