[Congressional Record Volume 141, Number 154 (Friday, September 29, 1995)]
[House]
[Page H9718]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                       PLO COMPLIANCE WITH MEPFA

  Mr. DeLAY. Mr. Speaker, I appreciate my colleagues for allowing me to 
reclaim my time.
  Mr. Speaker, in light of yesterday's signing ceremony at the White 
House I felt compelled to come to the floor today to comment on an 
aspect of the Middle East peace process that has troubled me for some 
time. That subject is the failure of the Palestine Liberation 
Organization to live up to the solemn commitments to which it agreed 
when it signed the Declaration of Principles, the DOP with Israel on 
the White House lawn on January 13, 1993.
  It has now been over 2 years since that historic day, a day on which 
the PLO and its leader, Yasser Arafat, agreed to be held accountable 
for its actions by the international community in exchange for 
territorial and administrative concessions by the Government of Israel.

                              {time}  1600

  As witness to the accord, the United States pledged its political, 
financial, and moral support to the peace effort, making clear that it 
expected the PLO to transform itself from a terrorist organization to a 
lawful administrative entity to be known as the Palestinian Authority 
[PA]. The United States pledged the sum of $500 million over 5 years to 
the PLO to assist the Palestinians living in areas controlled by the PA 
with their development efforts.
  What we have seen over the last 2 years has been a grave 
disappointment, as the PLO has blatantly violated its commitments under 
the DOP.
  The PLO has failed to prevent terrorism emanating from the territory 
it controls and has shown little inclination to prosecute known 
terrorists or to extradite those individuals allegedly responsible for 
criminal acts inside Israel.
  As recent video tapes of Yasser Arafat demonstrate, he continues to 
exhort his people to violence against Israel and advocates a Jihad--or 
holy war--to regain Jerusalem. Even as we speak, Arafat is building up 
a paramilitary force in Gaza nearly three times what was permitted 
under the DOP, replete with automatic weapons and a modern security 
apparatus.
  Just last week, the Palestinian Ministry of Information issued a 
statement condemning the Senate's attempt on the fiscal year 1996 
Foreign Operations Appropriations Act to institute a small degree of 
oversight over funds going to the PLO, calling Congress ``racist'' and 
its action a demonstration of ``hatred towards the Palestinian people, 
its leadership and its national rights.
  As a representative of the American people and a strong supporter of 
Israel, I am outraged that the PLO would essentially say ``Forget you 
and your money'' when we ask them simply to live up to their word. I'm 
afraid I cannot sit by and hope that the PLO will suddenly decide to 
abide by the commitments it made 2 years ago. I feel it is my duty to 
cry foul when I believe the American people are being had and our 
national interest is at stake.
  The administration has mounted a full court press to persuade 
Congress and the world community that the PLO remains committed to the 
peace agreement even when their violations are numerous. As a result, 
the PLO has learned that there are no sanctions for violating their 
agreements.
  That is why I have agreed to cosponsor H.R. 1960, the Middle East 
Peace Compliance Act of 1995, introduced by my distinguished colleague, 
Michael Forbes.
  In essence, the bill says that should the PLO demonstrate 
``substantial, material and timely'' compliance with its commitments 
under the DOP as well as with certain requirements under U.S. law, then 
the President is authorized to transfer funds to Palestinian 
institutions and activities directly, and not through the PLO or the 
PA. Only in this way can we ensure that the funds reach the people for 
whom it is intended.
  Further, the PLO would be required to assist U.S. law enforcement 
agencies in the apprehension and prosecution of any member of that 
organization responsible for the killing of an American citizen. The 
bill also requires that U.S. assistance only be used for humanitarian 
purposes and economic development--no military activities.
  Unfortunately, much of the language attached to the Senate foreign 
operations bill is unenforceable and weak. Yesterday I agreed to an 
extension of current law for 30 days, with the understanding that the 
chairman of the House Foreign Operations Subcommittee, other interested 
colleagues, and I will work together to craft language that will bring 
real oversight and accountability into the process.
  Let there be no mistake about my position. I support peace as 
fervently as any man or woman in this Chamber. What I object to is the 
process for obtaining peace which requires that we turn our backs on 
our core national values and our responsibility as guardians of the 
public purse.
  Only the people of Israel have the right to determine the course of 
their own future. It is our job to see to it that when the history of 
this extraordinary period is written, we, the people of the United 
States, have not set aside our values, or standards, or our 
requirements under law to support a myth, not a fact.

                          ____________________