[Congressional Record Volume 140, Number 103 (Monday, August 1, 1994)]
[House]
[Page H]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]


[Congressional Record: August 1, 1994]


 
 PROVIDING FOR INVESTIGATION OF WHEREABOUTS OF UNITED STATES CITIZENS 
                     MISSING FROM CYPRUS SINCE 1974

  Mr. HAMILTON. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the 
bill (H.R. 2826) to provide for an investigation of the whereabouts of 
the United States citizens and others who have been missing from Cyprus 
since 1974, as amended.
  The Clerk read as follows:

                               H.R. 2826

       Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of 
     the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

     SECTION 1. UNITED STATES CITIZENS AND OTHERS MISSING FROM 
                   CYPRUS.

       (a) Investigation.--As soon as is practicable, the 
     President shall undertake, in cooperation with an appropriate 
     international organization or nongovernmental organization, a 
     thorough investigation of the whereabouts of the United 
     States citizens and others who have been missing from Cyprus 
     since 1974. The investigation shall focus on the countries 
     and communities which were combatants in Cyprus in 1974, all 
     of which currently receive United States foreign assistance.
       (b) Results of the Investigation.--The President shall 
     report the findings of this investigation to the family of 
     each of the United States citizens and others who have been 
     missing from Cyprus since 1974 and to the Congress. Such 
     reports shall include the whereabouts of the missing.
       (c) Returning the Missing.--The President, in cooperation 
     with an appropriate international organization or 
     nongovernmental organization, shall do everything possible to 
     return to their families, as soon as is practicable, the 
     United States citizens and others who have been missing from 
     Cyprus since 1974, including returning the remains of those 
     who are no longer alive.

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from 
Indiana [Mr. Hamilton] will be recognized for 20 minutes, and the 
gentleman from New York [Mr. Gilman] will be recognized for 20 minutes.
  The Chair recognizes the gentleman from Indiana [Mr. Hamilton]
  Mr. HAMILTON. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
  (Mr. HAMILTON asked and was given permission to revise and extend his 
remarks.)
  Mr. HAMILTON. Mr. Speaker, this bill requires the President to 
undertake, as soon as is practicable a thorough investigation of the 
whereabouts of United States citizens and others who have been missing 
from Cyprus since 1974.
  H.R. 2826 was introduced by the distinguished gentleman from New York 
[Mr. Engel] in August of last year.
  Originally,the administration had requested that the Committee on 
Foreign Affairs refrain from considering this legislation because of 
concerns that if would negatively impact on talks with Cyprus on this 
issue.
  However, since that concern was raised, those talks have once again 
stalemated.
  I would note for Members that this year marks 20 years since the 
tragic events that led to the invasion and division of Cyprus.
  Nearly 20 years of bicommunal talks and U.N.-sponsored negotiations 
to bring a settlement to the Cyprus problem have failed. None of us 
would have believed in 1974 that those events would take so long to 
reverse.
  It is my hope that this resolution will send a signal that the U.S. 
Congress has not forgotten about the Cyprus problem.
  H.R. 2826 underscores our desire to see progress toward resolving all 
aspects of this long and divisive conflict and beginning a new, more 
hopeful, chapter in the history of Cyprus.
  I would like to commend the gentleman from New York [Mr. Engle] for 
his work in moving this legislation through committee and to the floor.
  I urge my colleagues to support this legislation.
  Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. GILMAN. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
  (Mr. GILMAN asked and was given permission to revise and extend his 
remarks.)
  Mr. GILMAN. Mr. Speaker, our consideration of H.R. 2826, which calls 
for a presidential investigation of the cases of missing persons from 
Cyprus, comes at a time point following our observance last week of the 
20th anniversary of Turkey's brutal invasion and occupation of northern 
Cyprus, and I commend the gentlemen from New York and Illinois, Mr. 
Engel and Mr. Porter, for introducing this measure.
  The Turkish invasion of Cyprus has had lasting repercussions through 
Turkey's continued illegal occupation of a portion of Cyprus. None of 
these repercussions has been so tragic as the complete lack of a 
resolution of the cases of some 1,619 missing persons, including 5 U.S. 
citizens, whose fates remain unknown to this day.
  Along with other Members of the House, I have repeatedly called on 
the government of Turkey and others who may have some information to 
come forward and help us resolve the question of what has happened to 
more than 1,600 MIA's. So far these calls have gone unheeded.
  This resolution calls upon the President, as soon as practicable, to 
undertake an investigation in cooperation with international and other 
organizations of the whereabouts of those who have been missing since 
the Turkish invasion some 20 years ago. It directs the President to 
share the results of this investigation with the families of the 
missing as well as with the Congress. Finally, it would have the 
President do everything possible to return to their families the 
missing or their remains.
  Mr. Speaker, along with the other cosponsors of H.R. 2826, I strongly 
believe that the families and friends of those persons missing since 
the Turkish invasion of Cyprus have a right to know the fate of their 
loved ones. Some 20 years of diplomatic efforts by the United Nations 
and by other organizations have proven fruitless.
  It is long overdue for a serious effort by the U.S. Government to get 
to the bottom of this matter. Much information is almost certainly in 
the hands of the government of Turkey--a close friend and ally of the 
United States. We should make it clear to Turkey and anyone else that 
may have information that this is an issue of the highest importance. 
Accordingly, I urge my colleagues to join in support of this measure.

                              {time}  1250

  Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. HAMILTON. Mr. Speaker, I yield such time as he may consume to the 
gentleman from New York [Mr. Engel].
  Mr. ENGEL. Mr. Speaker, at the outset I want to thank the gentleman 
from Indiana [Mr. Hamilton], the distinguished chairman of our 
Committee on Foreign Affairs, for his leadership in bringing this to 
the floor, and thank his staff for their leadership. Without them, this 
would not have happened.
  I also want to thank the gentleman from New York [Mr. Gilman], our 
distinguished ranking minority member, and also my friend, the 
gentleman from Illinois [Mr. Porter], who has worked so long and hard 
with me on behalf of the resolution of the Cyprus conflict.
  Mr. Speaker, I rise to express my strong support for H.R. 2826, 
legislation directing the President to investigate the fate of five 
missing Americans and other missing on Cyprus since 1974.
  Both of my colleagues, Mr. Speaker, have made reference to the fact 
that it has been 20 years since the invasion, and 20 years is certainly 
enough.
  Less than 2 weeks ago, Mr. Speaker, we recalled the 20th anniversary 
of the Turkish invasion of the Island of Cyprus. One of the most 
horrific aspects of that act of aggression was the large dispersement 
of the Cypriot population and the arrest and disappearance of more than 
2,000 people. What is particularly galling, Mr. Speaker, is that 
Turkey, a close ally and NATO member, used American weaponry for that 
invasion, and we have not in the 20 years gotten an accounting of five 
missing American citizens.

  Mr. Speaker, in the wake of that invasion, five Americans, 1,600 
Greek Cypriots, and several hundred Turkish Cypriots disappeared, never 
to be heard from again.
  For nearly two decades, their families have relentlessly but 
unsuccessfully tried to find traces of their loved ones. In the years 
since his disappearance, the parents of Andrew Kassapis, whom I have 
met many times, from Detroit, have yet to understand how the invaders 
could take their son away, all the while he was holding an American 
passport and declared that he was an American citizen. That did not 
seem to matter. He was brutally taken away by the Turkish invaders.
  Mr. Speaker, I firmly believe that the time has come to shed light 
upon this tragic aspect of the Cyprus conflict. By introducing this 
legislation, I hope to obtain for the suffering families the answers 
for which they have longed. H.R. 2826 directs the President to conduct 
``a thorough investigation of the whereabouts of the United States 
citizens and others who have been missing from Cyprus since 1974.'' I 
might add, Mr. Speaker, that the 1974 date is a key date, because that, 
of course, was the date of the invasion of Cyprus.
  Mr. Speaker, the bill also requires the President to report to family 
members on the whereabouts of the missing and to return them or their 
remains to loved ones.
  As of today, almost 190 Members of Congress have cosponsored H.R. 
2826. Included in that list are more than half of the members of the 
Foreign Affairs Committee. By passing this legislation today, we will 
take an important step toward ending the pain still endured by families 
of the missing. Their questions cannot remain unanswered and they 
deserve a full and honest accounting of what happened to their loved 
ones.
  I, therefore, urge my colleagues to support H.R. 2826 and encourage 
the House to pass this legislation. After 20 years, we must finally 
expose this dark chapter in the history of Cyprus and bring to light 
the fate of the missing Americans.
  Mr. Speaker, I again thank the gentleman from Indiana [Mr. Hamilton], 
the distinguished chairman of the Committee on Foreign Affairs.
  Mr. GILMAN. Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to yield such time as he may 
consume to the gentleman from Illinois [Mr. Porter].
  (Mr. PORTER asked and was given permission to revise and extend his 
remarks.)
  Mr. PORTER. Mr. Speaker, I thank the distinguished gentleman from New 
York [Mr. Gilman] for yielding time to me, and for his abiding and 
strong leadership on this and on all humanitarian and human rights 
issues.
  Mr. Chairman, I thank the gentleman from Indiana [Mr. Hamilton] for 
his willingness to address this important issue, and I thank the 
gentleman from New York [Mr. Engel], a member of the Committee on 
Foreign Affairs, for his able advocacy and excellent work in getting 
this bill to the floor.
  Mr. Speaker, as an original cosponsor of this measure, I also thank 
the 186 Members of the House who have cosponsored.
  Mr. Speaker, this bill was introduced last year, the week of the 19th 
anniversary of the Turkish invasion of Cyprus. That week, a delegation 
of religious leaders and others from Cyprus, all of whom were members 
of the Committee on the Missing, came to Washington to participate in a 
candlelight vigil in Lafayette Park across from the White House. Some 
of them had missing relatives, and we heard their stories and the story 
of Mr. Kostas Kassapis, an American citizen whose 17-year-old son, 
Andrew, was abducted at gunpoint by the Turkish military in 1974. We 
learned how fresh these memories are for many Cypriots and the families 
of the five missing Americans.
  Two weeks ago we commemorated the 20th anniversary of the separation 
of Cyprus. During the intervening year, 186 Members of the House 
cosponsored this bill. A similar bill in the Senate attracted 46 
cosponsors.
  The reason, I believe, so many Members have cosponsored so quickly, 
is because, while the problems of finding a fair and democratic 
solution to the situation on Cyprus have been elusive, the issue of the 
missing is simple and clear cut. Returning the five Americans and the 
other Greek-Cypriots and Turkish-Cypriots missing as a result of the 
Turkish invasion to their families--living or not--is a humanitarian 
issue. It must not be confused with the larger political and diplomatic 
issues that involve Greece, Turkey, the United States, the Government 
of Cyprus, and the Turkish-Cypriot-dominated north.
  Our Nation has struggled long and hard with the issue of missing from 
the Vietnam War and we understand as a nation the pain it causes. To 
make it even worse in the case of the missing Americans from the 
Turkish invasion, are all noncombatants, and their ages range from the 
17-year-old Andrew Kassapis to men past retirement age.
  Another reason this bill has found such acceptance with House Members 
is that it is very limited in scope. It simply directs the President to 
investigate and report to Congress on the whereabouts of Americans and 
others--both Greek Cypriots and Turkish Cypriots--who have been missing 
from Cyprus since 1974 and to do everything to return them or their 
remains to their families.
  The State Department routinely investigates leads on the missing 
Americans in Cyprus and has worked with the United Nations Committee on 
Missing Persons, which was created in 1981 and is charged with pursuing 
missing cases and ultimately setting this issue to rest.

  While the Committee on Missing Persons is a useful and necessary 
office, it has made little progress in achieving its mission. This is 
largely because of a lack of information being supplied to it. This 
effort needs to be revitalized.
  This bill is designed to jump start the process and resolve this 
issue once and for all. I was told at a Congressional Human Rights 
Caucus forum on this issue in May 1992 that many of the outstanding 
cases could be resolved very quickly with a small amount of information 
and some cooperation by the Government of Turkey, the Government of 
Cyprus, and the leadership in the north of Cyprus.
  Mr. Speaker, Turkey has, with unusual inhumanity, even for it, 
refused cooperation with international bodies to trace those missing as 
a result of their invasion of 20 years ago. They outrage all civilized 
peoples everywhere in this cynical refusal.
  Hopefully, Mr. Speaker, they will see the light of day, if not in 
regard to the humanitarian nature of the finding of the fate of the 
missing, then at least in regard to their future relations with our 
country and with the European Community, with which they have expressed 
strong interest in economic union.
  Mr. Speaker, I encourage Members to support this bill, which 
addresses a humanitarian issue involving Americans, and I again thank 
the gentleman from New York [Mr. Engel] for his tireless efforts in 
this important cause, and for his leadership in bringing this bill to 
the floor, together with the chairman and ranking member of the 
Committee on Foreign Affairs.

                              {time}  1300

  Mr. GILMAN. I thank the gentleman for his kind, supportive remarks, 
and I commend him for his continuing efforts on behalf of human rights 
throughout the world.
  Mr. Speaker, I yield as much time as he may consume to the gentleman 
from Nebraska [Mr. Bereuter], another member of the Committee on 
Foreign Affairs.
  Mr. BEREUTER. Mr. Speaker, this Member rises in conditional support 
for an investigation of the missing from the conflict between the Greek 
Cypriots and the Turkish Cypriots. Certainly, the families of the five 
missing Americans should be afforded whatever solace they may gain from 
learning the final status of their loved ones who disappeared 20 years 
ago. This Member commends the gentleman from New York [Mr. Englel] for 
raising again, this important issue.
  As members of the Foreign Affairs Committee may recall, when H.R. 
2826 was considered in the Foreign Affairs Committee, this member 
expresses concern that emphasis on the missing Americans and the 
missing Greek Cypriots, with no reference to the more than 800 missing 
Turkish Cypriots, might have the unintended effect of appearing to take 
sides between Turkish and Greek Cypriots. The United States should and 
must be evenhanded not only because of the impact on Cyprus, but also 
because we must not exacerbate relations between our two NATO allies--
Greece and Turkey.
  This Member raises this issue because the United States is attempting 
to act as an honest broker in the talks on the confidence building 
measures [CBM] in Cyprus. Were the Congress to appear to be taking 
sides, our credibility as an arbitrator in the CBM talks could be 
undermined.
  Regrettably, there are elements on both sides of the Cyprus dispute 
who would like to see the CBM talks fail. These groups are prepared to 
use even the most insignificant and unintended nuance as a sign of a 
change in U.S. policy. The actions of this body are followed very 
closely in the capitals of the world, and the diplomats and the media 
in Nicosea, in Athens, and in Ankara will follow our actions very 
closely.
  The State Department seems to acknowledge this potential difficulty 
in its official assessment of H.R. 2826, which was delivered to the 
Foreign Affairs Committee on March 9, 1994. In it, Assistant Secretary 
of State Wendy Sherman noted that:

       Greek Cypriots list approximately 1,600 names missing since 
     1974, of which 5 are U.S. citizens. In addition, the Turkish 
     Cypriots estimate 800 missing, many dating from the 1963-74 
     period.

  After the committee markup, this Member has subsequently received 
verbal assurances that it is indeed the State Department's intention to 
investigate all the missing in Cyprus--Greek-Americans, Greek Cypriots, 
and Turkish Cypriots. If H.R. 2826 results in an evenhanded and 
balanced investigation of the missing in Cyprus, then this Member can 
enthusiastically support the resolution of the gentleman from New York. 
Given the assurances provided by the State Department, this Member 
would urge approval of H.R. 2826.
  Ms. SNOWE. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to express my strong support for 
H.R. 2826, a bill which would provide for an investigation into the 
whereabouts of five American citizens missing in Cyprus since the 
brutal invasion of that island republic by Turkey 20 years ago.
  As a result of that invasion, five American citizens were taken 
captive by a NATO ally. The families of these missing Americans have 
tried relentlessly to discover the whereabouts of their loved ones. 
Last week, I met the father and sisters of one of those American 
citizens still missing in occupied Cyprus. Twenty years ago, 17-year-
old Andy Kassapis, of Livonia, MI, was dragged off by Turkish troops 
with his United States passport in his hand. He has not been heard from 
since. We owe it to him, and the other four missing Americans, to do 
everything we can to determine their whereabouts. But Turkey, a fellow 
member of NATO, has so far declined to cooperate in this effort.
  Turkey's brutal invasion 20 years ago drove more than 200,000 
Cypriots from their homes and reduced them to the status of refugees in 
their own land. More than 2,000 people are still missing, including 5 
American citizens. The Turkish Army seized 40 percent of the land of 
Cyprus, representing 70 percent of the island's economic wealth. Barbed 
wire stretches across the country like an ugly scar, and armed check 
points dot the green line.
  I was first elected to Congress in 1978, 4 years after the Turkish 
invasion. That was also the year that President Carter succeeded in 
getting the United States arms embargo on Turkey lifted on the promise 
of an imminent breakthrough on ending the tragic division of the 
island. But the Turks never had any intention of fulfilling that 
promise.
  Every year that I have been in Congress I have noted a cynical, 
fraudulent pattern of behavior by the Turkish Government and by the 
leader of the self-proclaimed Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus. Each 
year, there are hints of movement and glimmering hopes of ending the 
Turkish occupation and reuniting Cyprus. The most recent opportunity 
was the United Nations-sponsored talks over confidence building 
measures that predictably collapsed just weeks ago because of continued 
Turkish intransigence.
  Each year, the hopes of the Cypriot people are dashed on two bedrock 
facts. These are, first, the basic preference of Mr. Denktash, the 
leader of the Turkish-Cypriot community, for the status quo. By now, it 
should be clear that he prefers a divided island, even though his 
illegal rump country is not recognized by the international community 
and is, in reality, controlled by Turkey. The second bedrock fact is 
that the 40,000 Turkish occupation troops in northern Cyprus are there 
only to enforce the illegal status quo.
  I realize that after 20 years there are some who might wish to put 
this issue aside, and say that perhaps nothing can be done. But I 
challenge anyone who might be tempted to accept the status quo whether 
out of frustration of weakness. Accepting the status quo would not only 
be morally wrong, but it simply is not an option.
  The status quo on Cyprus has always been unacceptable. But the 
dramatic changes in the world now call for putting words into deeds. 
For so many years, the apologists for Turkey have argued that our hands 
were tied because of the need to support Turkey as a bulwark against 
the expansion of the Soviet Union into the Eastern Mediterranean. But 
that argument and the Soviet threat have both evaporated.

  The United States and the United Nations must unequivocally declare 
that the time is over for endless bad faith negotiations and 
intransigence on the part of the Turkish side. The time has arrived for 
concrete steps to end the illegal division of the island.
  Turkey must also be made to realize that it shares much of the blame 
for the repeated failures at the negotiating table. The government in 
Ankara must be held accountable for its influence over Mr. Denktash and 
the Turkish Cypriots. Their continued intransigence has not just been 
sanctioned but encouraged by Turkey. The United States must pressure 
the Turkish government to make it understand that it is in their best 
interests to negotiate a peaceful end to its illegal occupation of 
Northern Cyprus.
  Three months ago, President Clerides of Cyprus made an astounding 
proposal that would transform the political environment. He proposed 
that both the government of Cyprus and the Turkish occupation forces 
disband their military forces. He called on the creation of a new U.N. 
peacekeeping operations that would take over the military assets of 
each side. He further offered to pay the costs of the U.N. operation 
from the resulting budget savings. This would shatter the stalemate and 
finally establish an environment in which the country can be peacefully 
reunited.
  It would be preferable for this proposal to be implemented by 
agreement between the parties. But he must also keep in mind the facts 
that the Turks like occupying their weaker neighbor and Mr. Denktash 
likes pretending to rule a pretend nation.
  We must continue to press for a negotiated settlement to the illegal 
division of Cyprus and the full accounting of those missing because of 
that division. With the passing of this bill, the House is sending the 
signal that the time for meaningless words is passed, and that only 
concrete actions will be acceptable.
  Mr. BILIRAKIS. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in strong support of H.R. 
2826, which will provide for an investigation into the circumstances 
surrounding United States citizens missing from Cyprus since the 1974 
illegal Turkish occupation.
  I also would like to take this opportunity to commend my colleagues 
Congressman Engel of New York and Congressman Porter of Illinois for 
introducing this legislation.
  Mr. Speaker, in the spring of 1992 I had the opportunity to chair 
hearings held by the congressional human rights caucus on the issue of 
the 1,619 people who are still unaccounted for in Cyprus as a result of 
the 1974 Turkish occupation.
  What I heard during those hearings was agonizing. We had the 
opportunity to have a small, informal briefing then with Costas 
Kassapis, an American citizen from the State of Michigan. He and his 
family, who are American citizens as well, where in Cyprus at the time 
of the occupation. His son, Andrew, who was only 17 years old at the 
time is among the missing. Andrew Kassapis was dragged off in August 
1974 by Turkish soldiers, nearly a month after the actual invasion. 
Andrew was abducted with his American passport in hand and has not been 
seen or heard from since.
  Costas Kassapis made a heart-wrenching plea to us in that briefing. 
He made sure to tell us that he hates no one. All he wants is his boy, 
Andrew. Costas Kassapis' words were these:

       If he is alive, I want him back. If he is not, I need a 
     concrete answer as to what has happened. I need help finding 
     out. My family and I have suffered very much these past years 
     wondering where Andrew is. Our thoughts and prayers are with 
     him every single day wondering if he is hungry or fed or if 
     he is rotting in a Turkish prison.

  Mr. Speaker, 5 American citizens are still missing as a result of the 
illegal Turkish invasion of Cyprus in 1974, and Turkey is considered by 
the United States and this administration as an ally. However, the 
question still remains, what happened to these people?
  For 20 years we've not known what really happened. All we have is the 
word of Mr. Rauf Denktash, the leader of the Turkish Cypriots, that 
these people are dead. Mr. Speaker that is not enough. We must find out 
what has happened to the five Americans in 1974, as well as the rest of 
the missing Greek Cypriots. If we are ever to find peace in that part 
of the world we must have concrete evidence on what has happened.
  In 1974, Turkish television and newsreels produced photographs of 
prisoners of war that were taken during the occupation. They show Greek 
Cypriot soldiers on their knees with their hands above their heads. 
These prisoners of war that have been identified in these photographs 
and newsreels are still listed as missing. If these defenseless 
soldiers are dead, as Mr. Denktash has said, then we have a direct and 
flagrant disregard of the Geneva Convention.
  Mr. Speaker, H.R. 2826 will bring us one step closer to answering a 
20-year-old question. I again would like to express my appreciation to 
the gentleman from New York [Mr. Engel] as well as the gentleman from 
Illinois [Mr. Porter] for bringing attention to this important human 
rights issue.
  Mrs. MALONEY. Mr. Speaker, I want to thank my colleagues Eliot Engel 
and John Porter for all their hard work on H.R. 2826, legislation which 
calls on the President to investigate the whereabouts of the 1,614 
Cypriots and 5 Americans who are still missing from the 1974 invasion 
of Cyprus.
  This resolution has garnered the impressive, bipartisan support of 
186 of our colleagues here in the House and 43 Members of the other 
body. I am proud to be a cosponsor of this bill and to vote for its 
passage today. I would also urge the other body to pass this measure 
during this session of Congress.
  Two weeks ago many of us commemorated the illegal 1974 Turkish 
invasion and occupation of 37 percent of Cyprus. The most tragic 
consequence of that invasion was the disappearance of 1,619 people 
during the hostilities. Included among the missing are the friends and 
relatives of many of my constituents from Astoria, NY.
  George Anastasiou disappeared during that invasion. The last his 
brother Andreas heard from him was a message received 6 months after 
his capture. Andrew Kassapis was dragged off by Turkish Cypriot 
soldiers with his United States passport in his hand. Christaci Loizoi 
was 5 years old when he disappeared from a Turkish doctor's office 
after being hit by a stray bullet. Christaci's mother has been waiting 
20 years for word on her son.
  These victims are real. Equally as real are the shattered lives of 
their families and friends. For 20 years they have been waiting, 
hoping, and praying. Their pain must be relieved. Turkey must account 
for the missing.
  The Turkish Government has been ignoring repeated U.N. resolutions, 
resolutions of this Congress and the pleas of family members separated 
from loved ones for 20 years. They continue to refuse to account for 
the fate of the missing. This is a crime against not only the missing 
but their families and friends as well.
  You don't have to be a native Cypriot to feel kinship with the 
fathers and mothers and sisters and brothers of those missing and 
unaccounted for for 20 years. We must not let the world forget this 
tragedy. We must not turn our backs on the people of Cyprus. We must 
press the Turkish Cypriot leadership, and their supporters in Ankara, 
to release or account for the 1,619 missing persons.
  This House has made a good first step toward making an accounting. 
The Senate and the President should do so as well.
  Mr. MEEHAN. Mr. Speaker, today I am pleased that the House has 
approved H.R. 2826, a bill which will direct the President to 
investigate and report to Congress on the whereabouts of United States 
citizens who have been missing from Cyprus since 1974 and do everything 
possible to return these missing people, or their remains, to their 
families. H.R. 2826 is only the first step toward finding a solution to 
the situation in Cyprus.
  As you may recall, Turkish forces attacked and occupied the island in 
1974. Since then, the violations of Turkish forces have continued. 
Innocent people are still dying for no apparent reason. I'm sure you've 
heard the numbers: 1,619 Greek Cypriots are still missing from those 
fateful days of 1974, over 200,000 have been displaced, and there are 
actually Americans who are still missing.
  These are more than mere numbers, though. These are people who had 
friends, family, children, and hopes for the future. Now there are 
children who will never know their mother or father, there are parents 
who will never see their children again, and there is a world that will 
suffer for never having had the opportunity to gain from these people.
  When Turkey invaded Cyprus, the U.N. Charter, which specifically 
states in its preamble that, ``All members shall refrain in their 
international relations from the threat or use of force against the 
territorial integrity or political independence of any state, or in any 
other manner inconsistent with the purposes of the United Nation,'' was 
violated. In addition, the North Atlantic Treaty Organization's charter 
was violated.
  Today, 37.3 percent of Cyprus is occupied by Turkish forces. There 
are 80,000 illegal Turkish settlers, and 35,000 illegal occupation 
troops. It's important to remember, though, that the Greek Cypriots 
were not the only people affected by the Turkish invasion. American 
citizens living in Cyprus have had their land and homes seized and 
occupied by Turkish forces. American citizens are also still missing 
after almost 20 years.
  Since the need of the cold war, the world has been struggling to 
define a new world order. Under this new world order, we must work 
together to achieve peace, and Cyprus is simply one of many tests of 
this new world order. If we can be successful in our aspirations for 
peace in Cyprus, then we can truly be successful in other areas of the 
world.
  The human rights violations that have been going on in Cyprus for the 
past 20 years cannot be allowed to continue. It is our duty as 
Americans to help find a solution to end these atrocities and aid not 
only the Greek Cypriots but American citizens as well. As a cosponsor 
of H.R. 2826, I strongly feel that now is the time to take action on 
locating these missing Americans, and take our first step in resolving 
the situation in Cyprus.
  Mr. GILMAN. Mr. Speaker, I have no further requests for time, and I 
yield back the balance of my time.
  Mr. HAMILTON. Mr. Speaker, I have no further requests for time, and I 
yield back the balance of my time.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. (Mr. Sangmeister). The question is on the 
motion offered by the gentleman from Indiana [Mr. Hamilton] that the 
House suspend the rules and pass the bill, H.R. 2826, as amended.
  The question was taken; and (two-thirds having voted in favor 
thereof) the rules were suspended and the bill, as amended, was passed.
  A motion to reconsider was laid on the table.

                          ____________________