[Congressional Record Volume 140, Number 101 (Thursday, July 28, 1994)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]


[Congressional Record: July 28, 1994]
From the Congressional Record Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]

 
                      PLIGHT OF CITIZENS OF ANGOLA

                                 ______


                         HON. JAMES H. BILBRAY

                               of nevada

                    in the house of representatives

                        Thursday, July 28, 1994

  Mr. BILBRAY. Mr. Speaker, I rise to call the attention of the House 
to the plight of the citizens of Angola. We have all seen the horrible 
pictures of human death and disease coming out of Rwanda. In order to 
avoid a repeat of this situation in Angola, the United States and the 
international community must unite behind the country democratically 
elected Government to help bring an end to 19 years of civil war in 
Angola.
  Angola's President Jose Eduardo dos Santos, was elected in September 
1992 in an election declared free and fair by the United Nations. The 
opposition National Union for the Total Independence of Angola [UNITA] 
led by Jonas Savimbi, not satisfied with the election results, 
renounced the election and, therefore, democracy by resorting to armed 
attacks.
  The U.N. Security Council has strongly condemned the attacks by 
UNITA, stating that they were a clear violation of Security Council 
resolutions and international laws. The Security Council has further 
called upon UNITA to immediately cease its armed attacks and abide by 
the rules of international humanitarian law.
  We in the Congress have recently witnessed the triumph of democracy 
of South Africa and the sordid tragedy of Rwanda. Angola now faces a 
choice: to travel down the road to democracy and peace to take the 
dark, forbidding road of conflict and bloodshed. We must help Angola 
choose the path to peace and avoid a repeat of the disaster in Rwanda.
  The negotiations in Lusaka have reached an unfortunate stalemate 
despite the commitment and many concessions put forward by President 
dos Santos. Mr. Speaker, the President of Angola has proven to be a 
visionary and effective leader for his country. He is the best hope for 
a lasting peace in a country that has endured 19 years of fighting. It 
is time for the United States to do whatever it can to ensure that both 
sides the Lusaka Agreement and that the agreement is properly 
implemented and enforced.
  At this point in the Record, I would like to recommend to my 
colleagues an article written by President dos Santos that appeared in 
the Christian Science Monitor on June 29, 1994.

          [From the Christian Science Monitor, June 29, 1994]

                  Angola Seeks Peace With UNITA Rebels

                      (By Jose Eduardo dos Santos)

       Reconciliation, reform, and renewal are the guiding 
     principles behind Angola's efforts to bring peace and a 
     better life to all our people. We know there is a wide gap 
     between making peace and making peace work, and we are trying 
     to bridge that chasm by building a solid structure for 
     Angola's future.
       We are negotiating peace with full dedication, but we are 
     not waiting until the talks in Lusaka, Zambia, are completed 
     before embarking on the future. We realize there is only so 
     much we can do in the absence of a peace agreement, no matter 
     what we and our friends would prefer. But even if the 
     unthinkable happens and the negotiations fail, we intend to 
     carry out our program to the greatest extent possible.
       The seeds we are planting need the sunshine of peace to 
     flourish and make our young democracy bloom. But even if we 
     must begin in the shade, we are ready.
       Our nation has been deeply divided for too long. It cries 
     out for reconciliation. As the democratic revolution of the 
     1990s swept much of the world, we moved quickly to end our 
     civil war and hold elections. The September 1992 voting was 
     internationally recognized as free and fair. Tragically, the 
     National Union for the Total Independence of Angola (UNITA) 
     rejected the outcome and has been trying ever since to 
     overrule the voters by waging a civil war far bloodier than 
     in Yugoslavia, Armenia, South Africa, Rwanda, and Burundi.
       We have tried to be generous at the peace table in the 
     spirit of national healing. Conscious of our responsibility, 
     the Angolan government is striving to achieve understanding 
     in a peaceful manner while protecting people and their homes 
     from rebel violence.
       We have been generous in offering UNITA a significant place 
     in government at the national, provincial, and local levels. 
     Our May 27th proposal has been lauded by the United States 
     and most United Nations Security Council members, as well as 
     impartial observers at the Lusaka talks, and they have urged 
     UNITA to ``follow suit.''
       We are prepared to welcome UNITA into the government and 
     provide housing and jobs for war veterans, refugees, and 
     displaced persons from all sides. We are committed to the 
     reintegration of rebel forces into Angolan society because we 
     believe that helping former soldiers is essential to removing 
     the seeds of war.
       To make reconciliation succeed, we have embarked on a 
     reform program to improve the quality of life--economically, 
     socially, and politically--for all Angolans. We are 
     accelerating the transition to a free-market economy, 
     privatizing most state businesses, bringing down 
     inflation, tightening monetary supplies, correcting 
     pricing mechanisms, cutting deficits through vigorous 
     budget control, and slashing state bureaucracy. We are 
     creating a legal, economic, and political climate 
     attractive to foreign investment.
       Special attention is being paid to renewal, repair, and 
     reconstruction of our agricultural, housing, transportation, 
     energy, and water systems, as well as to professional 
     training. This will be done in all corners of our country, 
     particularly those under rebel control, so that shortages of 
     these vital elements do not become pretexts to sabotage the 
     peace agreement.
       It is a source of great national pride that President 
     Clinton acknowledged the historic achievement of our 
     elections and recognized our government by establishing full 
     diplomatic relations on May 19, 1993.
       Our commitment to democracy is genuine and permanent, not a 
     propaganda declaration rendered transparent by a refusal to 
     accept the decision of the voters.
       We have embarked on a new relationship with the U.S. Angola 
     is America's second-largest foreign trade partner in sub-
     Saharan Africa. The Angolan government has approved a 
     Memorandum of Agreement with the Overseas Private Investment 
     Corporation that will open the doors for direct American 
     investment. The U.S. has been generoU.S. in providing 
     humanitarian relief, but that has been only a fraction of 
     what it spent in the last decade to arm our enemies. Now that 
     we are friends, we look forward to expanding our alliance as 
     partners in building peace.
       We are prepared to take risks for peace, and we look to our 
     stronger friends to help us minimize those risks.
       Many Angolans, weary of holding out the olive branch only 
     to have it shot off, question whether we should be so 
     forthcoming because it may be perceived by our enemies as a 
     sign of weakness, encouraging them to take future grievances 
     and demands to the battlefield. But we are steadfastly 
     committed to a negotiated settlement and are prepared to make 
     significant compromises because we want more than a piece of 
     paper; we want a real working peace.
       We cannot afford to make mistakes because they could prove 
     fatal for our country and our burgeoning democracy. With the 
     friendship and support of the U.S., I am confident we can 
     build the national consensus to permit us to go the extra 
     mile along the perilous path we have charted.

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