[Congressional Record Volume 143, Number 70 (Friday, May 23, 1997)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E1063-E1066]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




          UNITED STATES-CHINA RELATIONS IN THE PACIFIC CENTURY

                                 ______
                                 

                       HON. ENI F.H. FALEOMAVAEGA

                           of american samoa

                    in the house of representatives

                         Thursday, May 22, 1997

  Mr. FALEOMAVAEGA. Mr. Speaker, it is indeed an honor to speak before 
you during this month celebrating the rich and diverse heritage of 
Asian-Pacific Americans.
  I am very proud of the deep and enduring contributions of my fellow 
Americans--those whose roots extend from the soil of nations in Asia 
and the Pacific islands.
  I have served on the House Committee dealing with Foreign Affairs for 
8 years, and as a member of its Asia-Pacific Affairs Subcommittee have 
long argued that U.S. foreign policy has been overly preoccupied with 
Europe and the Middle East--to the neglect of the Asia-Pacific region. 
With two-thirds of the world's population and gross domestic product 
originating from the Asia-Pacific, America cannot afford to neglect its 
interests in this important part of the globe.
  Looking at the Asia-Pacific region today, perhaps no country figures 
to have a greater impact on the United States than the People's 
Republic of China. The emergence of China as a major world power is one 
of the historic events of the late 20th century. As we enter the 21st 
century, the Pacific century, China is projected to become a true great 
power. Thus, it is fitting that we take this occasion to examine the 
very complex subject of Sino-American relations. I would like to share 
with you my thoughts on the major issues affecting our relationship.
  While not so long ago Asia-Pacific issues were being given 
shortshrift, now, the region is buffeted by a whirlwind of attention 
from Washington. At the center of the vortex is China, where suddenly 
all roads seem to lead. Vice President Gore recently traveled to China, 
the first visit of an American President or Vice President since 1989. 
Last month, the highest ranking official in the House of 
Representatives, Speaker Newt Gingrich, lead a congressional delegation 
to China. Preceding their visits was that of Secretary of State 
Albright. And President Clinton will also visit China, shortly after 
his summit meeting with Chinese President Jiang Zemin in Washington 
later this year.
  All of this attention on China is well-founded. With 1.3 billion 
people, China is the most populous nation and the most promising market 
on the planet. With the world's third largest economy and dynamic 
growth over 10 percent for several years running, China's possesses 
foreign exchange reserves exceeding $100 billion--second only to Japan. 
With the world's largest military, over 3.2 million strong, which is 
undergoing modernization and has nuclear arms, China is a force not to 
be taken lightly. All of these factors underscore why America's 
relationship with China is one of the most crucial in the world, and 
why it is growing in importance.


                            China Engagement

  I have long been a supporter of maintaining broad and comprehensive 
ties with the People's Republic of China. This policy of China 
engagement has been upheld in a bipartisan fashion by five previous 
administrations and I support President Clinton in his efforts now for 
comprehensive engagement with China. We cannot allow America's board-
ranging, multifaceted relationship with China to be held hostage to my 
particular issue or interest.
  As for those that advocate a policy of China containment, I believe 
that this is dangerous and shortsighted. China is not what the former 
Soviet Union was--an ideological and military expansionist threat to 
democracies around the world, that was also closed to external trade. 
United States attempts to isolate China will not be supported by our 
allies and will only result in friction with our trading partners. 
Moreover, a containment policy would result in China responding with 
hostility and noncooperation directly targeted toward the United 
States. Our World War II ally, China, is not our enemy and we should 
not force China into responding like one to protect itself. The 
quickest way to transform China from friend to foe would be adoption of 
a containment policy.
  It is in America's national interest to have a productive 
relationship with a China that is strong, stable, open, and 
prosperous--a China that is increasingly integrated into the 
international community and global marketplace as a responsible and 
accountable partner.
  Since China opened her doors to the West in the 1970's with President 
Nixon's initiative, we have seen tremendous strides forward on several 
fronts. Business, social, and political ties with the west have 
blossomed, allowing a torrent of information, technology, and Western 
values to stream into China. This has resulted in a profound 
improvement of life for the Chinese people, giving them new-found 
freedoms in employment, travel, and housing, with expanded access to 
information and democratic participation in village elections. Over the 
past two decades, political and individual freedoms, along with an 
increased standard of living, have significantly changed for the better 
for the average Chinese.
  While in our eyes much remains to be done for human rights, we should 
not forget that it was not so long ago--during Mao's rule and the 
cultural revolution--that hundreds of thousands of Chinese were 
murdered or imprisoned from political persecution; while untold numbers 
fought starvation, sometimes through desperate acts of cannabilism.
  The progress from the China of Mao Tse-tung, yesterday, to the China 
of President Jiang Zemin, today, is, indeed remarkable. China may be 
the first example of a Communist system that will succeed in meeting 
the long-term economic needs of her people. Feeding China's 1.3 billion 
hungry people--five times more than all the people in America--has by 
itself been a monumental accomplishment. In a nation of such huge size, 
which adds 12 million new mouths each year, I can understand why some 
say that providing food and shelter and stability may be preservation 
of the most basic yet important of human rights, particularly at this 
stage of China's development.
  Clearly, America's engagement with China has played an invaluable 
role in this transition. It has been a long road from the 1950's and 
1960's, when China opposed virtually all United States foreign policy 
goals. Then, China supported North Korea's attack on the south and 
ultimately entered the conflict to fight against us. It fired artillery 
at Taiwan on its islands of Quemoy and Matsu. China fought border wars 
with India and the Soviet Union. And it attempted to subvert nations 
friendly to us by sponsoring revolutionary movements in Africa, 
Thailand, Indonesia, Malaysia, and the Philippines.
  Today, the picture is very different. In Korea, China has played a 
crucial role in providing stability on the Peninsula, including 
assistance to stop North Korea's nuclear weapons program and diplomatic 
efforts to prevent the outbreak of a war between the Koreas. Far from 
subverting its neighbors, China now seeks investment from their 
business leaders. Rather than oppose our foreign policy goals, it has 
acceded to the nuclear nonproliferation treaty, signed onto the 
comprehensive test ban treaty, taken part in the security dialogue at 
the ASEAN regional forum, worked toward international environmental 
protection accords and cooperated with us at the U.N. Security Council. 
With strong ties to the West, China is evolving into a more open 
society with a government that is increasingly sensitive to 
international opinion and willing to work with fellow nations and the 
United States.


                               Hong Kong

  One of the most important issues to soon test United States-Sino 
relations is the transfer of Hong Kong from Britain to China this July 
1.
  America has substantial interests in Hong Kong, including $14 billion 
in United States investment and two-way trade exceeding $24 billion. 
Some 37,000 Americans reside in Hong Kong, with United States Navy 
ships making 60-80 port calls a year. The Government of Hong Kong works 
closely with the United States to combat narcotics trafficking, alien 
smuggling, and organized crime.
  Under the joint declaration signed in 1984, Britain and China agreed 
for Hong Kong's reversion to China and the orderly transfer of power. 
The agreement holds that for 50 years China will extend Hong Kong a 
high degree of autonomy to control its own affairs, except in the areas 
of national defense and foreign relations. China's policy has been 
dubbed the ``one country, two systems'' approach. It is designed to 
preserve the unique economic environment that has made Hong Kong a 
capitalistic success story, and permits activities and

[[Page E1064]]

freedoms in Hong Kong that are not allowed in the rest of China.
  While some in Washington bemoan the reversion of Hong Kong to Chinese 
control and predict Hong Kong's demise, I am not one of those. I view 
the return of Hong Kong to China as just, proper, and long overdue. It 
is the end to a long period of national humiliation for China.
  For 157 years, the British have ruled over the Chinese People of Hong 
Kong as a colony of imperialism. It began in the 1840's, when China 
resisted Britian's efforts to sell China opium. Rebuffed, England 
started a war, called the opium war, which China lost and for which 
Britain took Hong Kong Island as a Prize. Twenty years later, England 
initiated another conflict, the arrow war, and defeated China again. 
Its prize this time was Kowloon, the mainland part of Hong Kong. In 
1898, Britain gained another large amount of land by 99-year lease, the 
new territories, which is vital to Hong Kong's operations. With the 
expiration of that lease this July, the British had no choice legally 
but to return Hong Kong to its rightful owners, China.
  While China is undergoing accusations of undermining democracy in 
Hong Kong, I find it ironic that no one said anything during the 150 
years of British Imperial rule when democracy never existed in Hong 
Kong. The Governor of Hong Kong, always British, was appointed by 
London, without an election nor the input of the citizens of Hong Kong. 
There was no democratically elected legislative council. All of the top 
civil servants were British. And the major companies in Hong Kong were 
kept in English hands. The British were the elite, and the native 
Chinese were second-class citizens in their own homeland.
  It was not until recently in 1990, at the 11th hour before Hong 
Kong's return to China, that Britain took steps to turn Hong Kong into 
a democracy. After a century-and-a-half of colonial rule and 
imperialism, I find it hypocritical that Britain is preaching to China 
about preserving democracy. While some have argued that these late 
democratic reforms were in response to the Tiananmen Square tragedy, 
others in Hong Kong feel that they were undertaken solely to dress up 
Britain's legacy in Hong Kong; to make Britain look good in history 
after being forced to leave its colony--a practice repeated with its 
other former colonies.
  The Western media have focused on the disbanding of the existing 
elected legislative council for a provisional legislature and the 
effort to retract the 1992 civil rights ordinances as signaling Hong 
Kong's looming problems. What is often not mentioned, however, is that 
Britain unilaterally undertook election reforms and legislative changes 
in violation of the 1984 joint declaration with China, which held Hong 
Kong's legal system in existence then was not to be changed. Britain's 
unilateral action was perceived as an arrogant insult to China, 
reopening wounds on an already sensitive matter. In rolling back these 
legal changes, China is merely holding Britain to its commitment to 
retain British laws followed for decades in Hong Kong.
  While the media portrays dark storm clouds gathering over Hong Kong, 
I see rays of light. The appointment of C.H. Tung as chief executive of 
the new Hong Kong Government has been widely applauded, as he is a man 
of integrity that commands great respect not only in Hong Kong and 
Beijing but in Washington and throughout the international community. 
Another very positive sign is that Mr. Tung has retained the senior 
leadership of the civil service and the Hong Kong Administration. He 
has also made clear that the provisional legislature's term shall be 
brief, as he will secure the election of a new legislative council soon 
after his government is in place.
  Public confidence in Hong Kong about the transition is high, with 
recent polls showing that almost two-thirds of Hong Kong residents 
would voluntarily choose to join China if the decision were up to them. 
This confidence is reflected in the real estate market, where within 
the past year residential property prices have increased 20 to 40 
percent and luxury homes have doubled in price. Hong Kong's stock 
exchange has also reflected this confidence, achieving several record 
highs in recent months and increasing in value by 34 percent over the 
year prior.
  I believe that there is reason for optimism that the transition will 
go well. China, more than any other country, has the greatest stakes to 
lose if Hong Kong's autonomy is threatened and its economy strangled. 
First, Hong Kong is the central engine that drives 60 percent of 
foreign trade and investment in China, fueling China's economic reform 
process which is vital to its stability. Half of China's exports, over 
$140 billion, go through Hong Kong, with Chinese investments there 
exceeding $50 billion. Quite simply, undermining international 
confidence in Hong Kong will deal a fatal blow to China's own economic 
development. Second, China knows the world is watching and it needs 
Hong Kong to succeed to gain legitimacy as a responsible and mature 
nation in the eyes of the international community. A smooth transition 
will immeasurably enhance China's credibility and that of its Communist 
Government's ability to govern. Last, as Beijing is well aware, Hong 
Kong is a test case for Taiwan. The failure of the ``one country, two 
systems'' approach with Hong Kong would spell doom for peaceful 
reunification with Taiwan. Moreover, a crackdown on Hong Kong could 
result in international support for Taiwan's independence. China's 
highest priority has always been to reunite with Taiwan and I do not 
believe it will jeopardize reunification by a failure to handle Hong 
Kong properly. In short, I don't think we'll be seeing anytime soon 
Chinese PLA troops on the streets of Hong Kong beating demonstrators.
  Congress passed the Hong Kong Policy Act in 1992 and the Hong Kong 
Reversion Act just months ago. They send the message to China that the 
United States is concerned about Hong Kong's freedoms, that we are 
monitoring the transition, and will take steps to terminate our 
relationship with Hong Kong if it is no longer autonomous. While I 
supported these bills, we must be careful not to intervene too much in 
Hong Kong, a matter that is totally within China's sovereign right. 
Micromanagement of the transition process may prove to be 
counterproductive.
  At this point, I think we need to step back and give China and the 
new Hong Kong Government of Chief Executive Tung room to breathe. 
Certainly, Mr. Tung deserves the opportunity to show that he can 
effectively lead Hong Kong and China must be given the chance to 
demonstrate that it will keep its promises.


                  in honor of asian-pacific americans

  While China may be the magnet in the Asia-Pacific region attracting 
much of United States foreign policy attention today, China along with 
the other nations of the Asia-Pacific have played another role by 
contributing offspring to the rich ethnic diversity of the United 
States.
  Americans of Asian-Pacific descent, almost 10 million strong, are the 
fastest growing demographic group in the United States today. Over the 
last decade, the Asian-Pacific American community has more than doubled 
and this rapid growth is expected to continue well into the next 
century.
  As many of you are aware, immigrants from the Asia-Pacific region are 
amongst the newest wave to arrive in the United States in recent years. 
However, they are merely the latest chapter in the long history of 
Asian-Pacific Americans in our Nation.
  During this month for celebration, it is only fitting that we honor 
our fellow citizens of Asian-Pacific descent--both from the past and 
the present--that have blessed and enriched our Nation. I submit that 
Asian-Pacific Americans have certainly been an asset to our country's 
development, and it is most appropriate that our President and Congress 
have proclaimed May as Asian-Pacific heritage month.

  The people of the Asia-Pacific have contributed much to America's 
development in the sciences and medicine. Nothing exemplifies this more 
than Time magazine's selection of a Chinese-American, Dr. David Ho, 
head of the prestigious Aaron Diamond Aids Research Center, as its 
``1996 Man of the Year.'' Dr. Ho's journey from being a 12-year-old 
immigrant to being honored as ``Man of the Year'' for giving hope to 
millions of people affected with the HIV virus is a testament to the 
significant contributions that Asian-Pacific American immigrants have 
made in America.
  Dr. David Ho, scientific director and chief executive officer of the 
Aaron Diamond Aids Research Center at New York University Medical 
School, is one of the foremost aids scientists in the world. While 
unraveling how the aids virus causes death after infection, Dr. Ho 
pioneered a treatment for HIV infection that has shown promise in 
beating back the deadly disease. In focusing treatment research on the 
early stages of infection, using cocktails of antiviral drugs to combat 
the aids-causing virus, HIV, Dr. Ho has fundamentally changed the 
approach to combating aids, stated Time magazine. Dr. Ho's 
accomplishments are a credit to the Asian-Pacific American community 
and more importantly give renewed hope to millions of patients around 
the world suffering from the HIV virus.
  Dr. Ho's scientific advances continue a long record of service by 
Asian-Pacific Americans. In 1899, a Japanese immigrant arrived on the 
shores of this Nation. After years of study and work, this man, Dr. 
Hideyo Noguchi, isolated the syphilis germ, leading to a cure for the 
deadly, wide-spread disease. For decades, Dr. Makio Murayama conducted 
vital research in the United States that laid the groundwork for 
combatting sickle-cell anemia. In 1973, Dr. Leo Easki, an Asian 
immigrant to our country, was awarded the Nobel Prize in physics for 
his electron tunneling theories. and, in engineering, few have matched 
the architectural masterpieces created by the genius of Chinese-
American, I.M. Pei.
  Major contributions to U.S. business and industry have also been made 
by Asian-Pacific

[[Page E1065]]

Americans. Wang laboratories, the innovative business enterprise in 
computer research and development, was founded in 1955 by Chinese-
American, An Wang. This Nation's largest tungsten refinery was built in 
1953 by industrialist K.C. Li and his company, the Wah Chang Corp. And, 
in 1964, an immigrant from Shanghai, China, Gerald Tsai, started from 
scratch an investment firm, the Manhattan Fund, which today has well 
over $270 million in assets.
  In the entertainment and sports fields, American Martial Arts Expert 
Bruce Lee entertained the movie audiences of this Nation, while 
destroying the stereotype of the passive, quiet Asian male. World-class 
Conductor Seiji Ozawa has lead the San Francisco Symphony through 
brilliant performances over the years.
  A native-Hawaiian named Duke Kahanamoku shocked the world by winning 
the Olympic Gold Medal in swimming seven decades ago; followed by Dr. 
Sammy Lee, a Korean-American who won the Olympic Gold Medal in high 
diving. Then there was Tommy Kono of Hawaii, also an Olympic Gold 
medalist in weightlifting. And, yes, perhaps the greatest Olympic diver 
ever known to the world, a Samoan-American by the name of Greg 
Louganis--whose record in gold medals and national championships will 
be in the books for a long time. Japanese-American Kristi Yamaguichi's 
enthralling gold medal ice-skating performance at the Winter Olympics 
continues the legacy of milestone achievements by Asian-Pacific 
Americans.
  In professional sports, of course, we have Michael Chang blazing new 
paths in tennis, Pacific-Islanders Brian Williams and Michael Jones of 
world rugby, and the tens of dozens of Polynesian-Americans--like All-
Pro Samoan Linebacker, Junior Seau, and Jesse Sapolu of the San 
Francisco Forty-Niners--who have made their mark as players in the 
National Football league.
  We also have Asian-Pacific Americans who are making their mark on 
history, not in our country, but in the Far East. Samoan-American 
Salevaa Atisanoe is a 578-pound Sumo wrestler in Japan who goes by the 
name of Konishiki. Salevaa, or Konishiki, incidentally, also happens to 
be a relative of mine. Konishiki was the first foreigner in Japan's 
centuries-old sport to break through to the rarified air of Sumo's 
second-highest rank. Another Somoan/Tongan-American, Leitani Peitani--
known in Japan as Musashimaru--has also gained prominence as a Sumo 
wrestler.

  Native-Hawaiian Chad Rowen, or Akebono as he is known in Japan, has 
scaled even greater heights by attaining the exalted status of Yokozuna 
or grand champion. Until this Polynisian-American arrived on the scene, 
no foreigner had ever been permitted to fill this sacred position, as 
the Japanese associate the Yokozuna with the essence of Shinto's 
guardian spirits. The ascendancy to grand champion status goes to the 
heart of the Japanese religion and culture.
  In honoring Asian-Pacific Americans that have served to enrich our 
country, I would be remiss, as a Vietnam veteran, if I did not honor 
the contributions of the Japanese-Americans who served in the United 
States Army's 100th Battalion and 442d Infantry Combat Group. History 
speaks for itself in documenting that none have shed their blood more 
valiantly for America than the Japanese-American that served in these 
units while fighting enemy forces in Europe during World War II.
  The records of the 100th Battalion and 442d Infantry are without 
equal. These Japanese-American units suffered an unprecedented casualty 
rate of 314 percent, and received over 18,000 individual decorations, 
many posthumously awarded, for valor in battle.
  With the tremendous sacrifice of lives, a high number of medals were 
given the unit. I find it unusual, however, that only one medal of 
honor was awarded, while 52 Distinguished Service Crosses, 560 Silver 
Stars, and 9,480 Purple Hearts were given. The great number of 
Japanese-American lives lost should have resulted in more of these 
ultimate symbols of sacrifice being awarded. Nonetheless, the 442d 
Combat Group emerged as the most decorated combat unit of its size in 
the history of the U.S. Army. President Truman was so moved by their 
bravery in the field of battle, as well as that of black American 
soldiers During World War II, that he issued an executive order to 
desegregate the armed services.
  I am proud to say that we can count the honorable Daniel K. Inouye 
and the late, highly-respected Senator, Spark Matsunaga, both from 
Hawaii, as Members from Congress that distinguished themselves in 
battle as soldiers with the 100th Battalion and 442d Infantry. It was 
while fighting in Europe that Senator Inouye lost his arm and was 
awarded the Distinguished Service Cross, the second highest medal for 
bravery.
  These Japanese-Americans paid their dues in blood to protect our 
Nation from its enemies. It is a shameful black mark on the history of 
our country that when the patriotic survivors of the 100th Battalion 
and 442d Infantry returned to the United States, many were reunited 
with families that were locked up behind barbed-wire fences, living in 
concentration camps. You might be interested to know, my colleagues on 
the Hill, Congressman Robert Matsui and former Representative Norman 
Mineta, were children of the concentration camps.
  The wholesale and arbitrary abolishment of the constitutional rights 
of these loyal Japanese-Americans will forever serve as a reminder and 
testament that this must never be allowed to occur again. When the 
miscarriage of justice unfolded during World War II, Americans of 
German and Italian ancestry were not similarly jailed en masse. Some 
declare the incident as an example of outright racism and bigotry in 
its ugliest form. After viewing the Holocaust Museum in Washington, I 
understand better why the genocide of 6 million Jews has prompted the 
cry, ```never again.'' Likewise, I sincerely hope that mass internments 
on the basis of race will never again darken the history of our great 
Nation.
  To those that say, well that occurred decades ago, I say we must 
continue to be vigilant in guarding against such evil today.
  Not long ago we had the case of Bruce Yamashita, a Japanese-American 
from Hawaii who was discharged from the Marine Crops in an ugly display 
of racial discrimination. Marine Corps superiors taunted Yamashita with 
ethnic slurs and told him, ``We don't want your kind around here. Go 
back to your own country.'' After years of perseverance and appeals, 
Mr. Yamashita was vindicated after proving he was the target of vicious 
racial harassment during his officer training program. The Secretary of 
the Navy's investigation into whether minorities were deliberately 
being discouraged from becoming officers resulted in Bruce Yamashita 
receiving his commission as a captain in the Marine Corps.
  I am also greatly disturbed by recent events involving campaign 
funding, where the integrity of the Asian-Pacific American community 
has been unfairly tarnished by the transgressions of a few. With the 
intensity of a witchhunt, the national media have obsessively fixated 
on political contributions from Americans of Asian-Pacific descent. 
This singling out of one ethnic group has led to the unfair 
characterization that all Asian-Pacific American political contributors 
are ``Asian foreigners buying up America.''
  I find this racial scapegoating to be repugnant and morally 
objectionable. Playing up fears of the ``Asian connection'' serves to 
alienate Asian-Pacific Americans from participating in our political 
process. Moreover, this negative reporting acts to marginalize Asian-
Pacific Americans political empowerment at a time when we are coming of 
age in American politics. Lost in the barrage of hysteria has been the 
fact that our community has 75,000 newly registered voters, greater 
numbers of immigrants becoming citizens, and more Asian-Pacific 
Americans candidates running for political office than ever before--
culminating with the first Asian-American Governor elected in the 
continental United States, Gary Locke of Washington State.
  Perhaps these attacks are a convenient way to ostracize a growing 
American political force. When Caucasians raise money from Caucasians, 
it is called gaining political power, but when Asian-Pacific Americans 
begin to participate, we are accused of being foreigners trying to 
infiltrate U.S. policymaking. Now that Asian-Pacific Americans are 
finally at the table and our opinions heard, we are once again being 
cast as outsiders and not as true Americans.
  This is nothing new. One need only look at the history of this 
country to see that the scapegoating of Asian-Pacific Americans as 
foreigners has been used as an excuse to burn down our communities in 
the 1880's, deny us the right to own land, marry our own kind and 
practice many professions in the early 1900's, and put us in 
concentration camps in 1942. To protect America's greatness, we should 
all be sensitive to the fact that democratic participation by people of 
all races and backgrounds, including Asian-Pacific Americans, is 
crucial to our Nation's health and vitality.

[[Page E1066]]

  In concluding, I think Bruce Yamashita's case and the hysteria 
surrounding Asian-Pacific Americans political contributions bear 
implications not just for the military and the media but for our 
society as a whole. It asks the question, how long do we have to endure 
the attitude of those who consider Asian-Pacific Americans and other 
minorities as lesser Americans?
  I applaud Captain Yamashita and others like him who have spoken out 
to ensure that racial discrimination is not tolerated. During this 
month as we recognize the diverse experiences and contributions of the 
Asian-Pacific Americans community to our great Nation, I would hope 
that we all take inspiration from his example.
  With that in mind, I would like to close my remarks by asking what is 
America all about? I think it could not have been said better than on 
the steps of the Lincoln Memorial when Martin Luther King said, ``I 
have a dream. My dream is that one day my children will be judged not 
by the color of their skin but by the content of their character.''
  That is what America is all about, and Asian-Pacific Americans wish 
to find a just and equitable place in our society that will allow 
them--like all Americans--to grow, succeed achieve, and contribute to 
the advancement of this great Nation as we enter the ``Pacific 
century.''