[Congressional Record Volume 142, Number 86 (Wednesday, June 12, 1996)]
[Senate]
[Pages S6153-S6155]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                      ENCRYPTION REFORM NEEDED NOW

 Mrs. BOXER. Mr. President, I have just become a cosponsor of 
S. 1726, the Commerce Promotion Act of 1996. This bill would remove 
export controls on encryption technology, a coding system enabling 
individuals and corporations to keep computer communications private.
  Under current law, sophisticated encryption technology is sold 
without restriction in the United States. It is this technology that 
enables banks and other financial institutions to guarantee the 
confidentiality of personal and financial information. Furthermore, 
many analysts argue that concerns about security are restraining the 
Internet's growth as a commercial enterprise.
  American-made software is the best in the world. Many foreign 
companies and individuals want to buy our products. However, because of 
concerns relating to international criminal activity, the U.S. 
Government refuses to allow the export of software that includes 
certain encryption technology.
  The current policy is damaging American software companies. Foreign 
corporations and individuals will not pay top dollar for computer 
technology that cannot guarantee that personal information will stay 
private. As a result, our major trading partners are forced to buy 
software made outside the United States, costing American companies 
billions.
  These export controls place U.S. software companies at a competitive 
disadvantage, giving foreign competitors the opportunity to encroach on 
our dominant position in the global marketplace. The United States 
enjoys a huge trade surplus in software. Our export policies should 
seek to strengthen U.S. companies, not give their competitors an unfair 
advantage.
  I am very sensitive to the concerns raised by the Clinton 
administration about this issue. I strongly believe that U.S. 
intelligence agencies must retain the ability to intercept 
communications about terrorist attacks and other criminal acts. 
However, I am confident that this goal can be achieved without 
restraining the ability of U.S. companies to sell their products abroad 
for legitimate commercial uses.
  Mr. President, we have a problem on our hands, but we can solve it. 
Congress and the administration must act together to pass an encryption 
technology reform bill this year.

[[Page S6154]]

 Mr. SARBANES. Mr. President, on Friday, May 3, I had the honor 
of joining with Secretary of State Christopher and the American Foreign 
Service Association [AFSA] in paying tribute to Commerce Secretary Ron 
Brown and 32 other Americans who were tragically killed in Croatia 
while in service to our country. A plaque was also dedicated to three 
diplomats who died seeking peace in Bosnia less than a year ago. On the 
occasion we were reminded not just of the individuals who lost their 
lives in these terrible tragedies, but of the risks and sacrifices that 
members of our Foreign Service undertake on a daily basis in an effort 
to support peace, democracy and freedom around the globe.
  During the ceremony, held on the 31st annual Foreign Service Day, 
very moving speeches were delivered by Harold Ickes on behalf of 
President Clinton, by Secretary of State Christopher, and by F. Allen 
``Tex'' Harris, president of AFSA. I believe their remarks bear 
repeating to a broader audience and thus ask that they be printed in 
the Record.
  The remarks follow:

 Remarks by Secretary of State Warren Christopher, Harold Ickes, and F. 
                              Allen Harris

       Mr. Harris. Dear Family Members, Distinguished Guests, 
     Ladies and Gentlemen and colleagues:
       The American Foreign Service Association has the sorrow-
     filled responsibility of honoring those members of the 
     Foreign Service and our colleagues serving abroad who lost 
     their lives under heroic or other inspirational 
     circumstances.
       Today, we have the very sad duty of adding six names to the 
     traditional Memorial Plaque:
       Samuel Nelson Drew.
       Robert C. Frasure.
       Joseph J. Kruzel.
       Ronald H. Brown.
       Lee F. Jackson.
       Stephen C. Kaminski.
       We have the deep sorrow of honoring all those who died with 
     Secretary Ronald H. Brown:
       Gerald V. Aldrich.
       Niksa Antonini.
       Dragica Lendic Bedek.
       Duane R. Christian.
       Barry L. Conrad.
       Paul Cushman, III.
       Adam N. Darling.
       Ashley J. Davis.
       Gail E. Dobert.
       Robert E. Donovan.
       Claudio Elia.
       Robert Farrington, Jr.
       David Ford.
       Carol L. Hamilton.
       Kathryn E. Hoffman.
       Lee F. Jackson.
       Stephen C. Kaminski.
       Kathryn E. Kellogg.
       Shelly A. Kelly.
       James M. Lewek.
       Frank Maier.
       Charles F. Meissner.
       William E. Morton.
       Walter J. Murphy.
       Lawrence M. Payne.
       Nathaniel C. Nash.
       Leonard J. Pieroni.
       Timothy W. Shafer.
       John A. Scoville, Jr.
       I. Donald Terner.
       P. Stuart Tholan.
       Cheryl A. Turnage.
       Naomi P. Warbasse.
       Robert A. Whittaker.
       I now have the honor of introducing the personal 
     representative of the President of the United States of 
     America, Mr. Harold Ickes, Assistant to the President and 
     Deputy Chief of Staff.
       Mr. Harold Ickes. Secretary Christopher, Secretary Perry, 
     Secretary Kantor, members of Congress, men and women of the 
     Foreign Service, ladies and gentlemen.
       President Clinton asked me to be with you today as we honor 
     an extraordinary group of Americans who gave their lives in 
     service of their country and in the service of humanity.
       Before reading the President's dedication, let me say to 
     the families and loved ones of Bob Frasure, Joe Kruzel, 
     Nelson Drew, and to those of Ron Brown and his entire 
     delegation, I know that this is a day of very, very mixed 
     emotions.
       You've lost a father, a mother, a husband or a wife, a son 
     or a daughter, a friend. The American people have lost some 
     of their finest.
       On a very personal note, with the death of Secretary Ron 
     Brown, I lost one of my closest friends and wisest advisers. 
     Ron Brown was in his service and in his life a spring day. He 
     let himself and all of us to believe that making a difference 
     was a joy as well as a duty. He was an achiever of potential. 
     His grace, his intelligence, his self-confidence without a 
     trace of arrogance, and his abilities to motivate, to lead 
     and to bridge were a rare combination of qualities.
       I am very proud and very fortunate to have had him as my 
     friend. To Alma, Michael, Tracy, we will all miss him 
     greatly. Let me now read the President's dedication.
       Each year on Foreign Service Day, hundreds of active and 
     retired Foreign Service employees come together to discuss 
     foreign policy initiatives. It is also a day of remembrance 
     when the foreign affairs community honors its many colleagues 
     who have given their lives in service of our country.
       ``As we pay tribute to the memory of those who we have 
     lost, let us rededicate ourselves to the goal for which they 
     lived: maintaining America's leadership in the fight for 
     peace and freedom throughout the world.
       ``In today's increasingly interdependent world, our 
     nation's future is linked more than ever to events that take 
     place beyond our borders, to strengthen our security, promote 
     our prosperity and advance our interests. As we move towards 
     the 21st century, America must stay engaged.
       ``Whether supporting peace, freedom and democracy and other 
     transnations threats, combating environmental degradation, 
     opening markets and expanding of trade, the American Foreign 
     Services has a critical role to play.
       ``Our Foreign Affairs men and women serve on the front 
     lines, often in demanding and sometimes dangerous 
     surroundings. I'm committed to do all I can to insure that 
     Congress provides the funding we need to support your 
     essential work.
       ``This year, our nation has lost some of its best and 
     brightest public servants, and I have lost a very dear 
     friend. The American people will not forget the contributions 
     made by Secretary of Commerce Ron Brown and the 34 members of 
     his delegation who died in a plane crash on a fog-shrouded 
     mountainside in Croatia.
       ``They were on an important mission to bring development 
     and economic stability to a wartorn region far from home. 
     Unfortunately, theirs is not the only recent tragedy in that 
     part of the world. We finally and respectfully remember our 
     colleagues, Robert Frasure, Joseph Kruzel and Samuel Nelson 
     Drew who lost their lives in Bosnia.
       ``These men, who represented the Department of State, the 
     Department of Defense and the National Security Council and 
     the United States Air Force, embodied the spirit of service 
     that sets our nation apart. Their heroic efforts helped bring 
     an end to four years of bloodshed and gave the children of 
     Bosnia a chance to grow up in peace.
       ``To all Foreign Service professionals, active and retired, 
     and their family members in the United States and abroad who 
     support America's values worldwide, I send my deepest thanks 
     and appreciation.'' Bill Clinton.
       Mr. Harris. Thank you very much. We appreciate that. I now 
     have the great honor of introducing a distinguished American 
     with a long, long successful record of service to this nation 
     and to his community. Family members, distinguished guests, 
     ladies, gentlemen, colleagues, the Secretary of State, Warren 
     Christopher.
       Secretary Christopher. Thank you, Tex, Harold, Senator 
     Kassenbaum. Senator Sarbanes, Secretary Perry, Secretary 
     Kanter, and other distinguished guests here today.
       Let me extend a special welcome to the families of the men 
     and women we are honoring today. You will always be a close 
     part of the State Department family.
       As the President has said, we come together every year on 
     this day to celebrate the dedication and the accomplishments 
     of the Foreign Service. But this is often a sad day as well 
     because it is the day we add names to the memorial plaques in 
     remembrance of our colleagues who gave their lives in service 
     to their country.
       Thirty years ago there were 72 names on this wall, covering 
     all of American history since 1780. Now the list has grown to 
     188. And in the last year, two terrible tragedies have 
     reminded us again that in this dangerous world, duty and 
     sacrifice often go hand in hand.
       We often say that we must take risks for peace. Today we 
     see that the risks are all too real. To our sorrow, we learn 
     that peace cannot be made through telephone or fax. It 
     usually can't be made in Washington or in Geneva. It can only 
     be made by people who are willing to fly where the bullets 
     fly, to go where roads are treacherous and where safety and 
     security are often missing in action.
       Sadly, we can't take the danger out of diplomacy. But we 
     can and must honor the peacemakers and their deeds. And we 
     can make sure the American people know of the sacrifices the 
     peacemakers make for our sake.
       Last August in Bosnia three American diplomats were on 
     their way to the besieged city of Sarajevo when they lost 
     their lives on a muddy mountain road. Bob Frasure, Joe 
     Kruzel, and Nelson Drew believed that peace was possible in 
     Bosnia. And they were certainly right. Indeed, they were the 
     path-finders who made peace possible.
       Just a month ago, Ron Brown and a team of government 
     officials and business leaders were on a journey to Croatia. 
     They lost their lives trying to make sure that the peace our 
     diplomats had forged would endure. They were convinced that 
     American capital and American know-how could help rebuild 
     that shattered land, that it could give the people of that 
     country a reason to resist the temptations of war. And they, 
     too, were right.
       As I have travelled the world in the weeks since these two 
     tragic events, I have received a chorus of condolences from 
     leaders all around the world who understand the sacrifices 
     made by the families of the men and women who died in those 
     tragic events.
       A short time ago, when I was in Sarajevo and in the 
     compound of our Embassy, I

[[Page S6155]]

     planted two dogwood trees in honor of Bob Frasure. But by far 
     the most eloquent tribute to his work, and to Joe's and to 
     Nelson's and to Ron's and all those we honor today, has been 
     the return of normal life that I could see all around me in 
     Sarajevo. Every school reopened, every family reunited, every 
     road and factory rebuilt is a monument to the service of 
     these brave Americans.
       That monument, of course, is a work in progress. It is 
     being shaped by countless hands--by our diplomats, our 
     soldiers, by our civil servants, and by the people of the 
     region. The memory of our fallen colleagues impels us not to 
     rest--not to rest at all--until this work is completed.
       The men and women we honor today, as the President said, 
     will always represent what is best about America. They were 
     generous enough to share their talent and spirits with 
     others. They were dedicated enough to make sacrifices in the 
     cause of public service. They were realistic enough to know 
     that America's fate is inseparable from the fate of the 
     world. And they were optimistic enough to believe that the 
     difficult problems can be solved but only solved when America 
     is determined to overcome them.
       Thinking of them, I was reminded of something that one of 
     our visitors this week, Shimon Peres, once said: ``Nobody 
     will ever really understand the United States . . . You have 
     so much power, and [yet] you didn't dominate another people; 
     you have problems of your own, and [yet] you have never 
     turned your back on the problems of others.''
       Anyone who knew these wonderful friends and colleagues 
     understands something very important about America. Anybody 
     who passes through this hall and who pauses to think about 
     the lives behind the names of the people on these plaques 
     will understand something about the American ideal. Here, in 
     the presence of these names, there is not an ounce of 
     cynicism about the country or about the people who represent 
     it.
       So even as we mourn, let us keep alive the spirit that gave 
     these lives such meaning. And let these names be a reminder 
     to us all--a reminder of the risks and hardships that 
     dedicated Americans endure for their country, and let it be a 
     reminder of the constant need to carry on their work, our 
     work, until it is finally finished.
       Thank you very much.

                          ____________________