[Congressional Record Volume 143, Number 118 (Tuesday, September 9, 1997)]
[Senate]
[Page S9027]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                    TRIBUTE TO GUYANESE INDEPENDENCE

  Mr. LAUTENBERG. Mr. President, I rise to commemorate the May 27, 1997 
31st anniversary of the independence of the Republic of Guyana. The 
word ``Guyana'' is an indigenous word that means land of many waters. 
But Guyana is also a land of many peoples, with East Indians, Africans, 
Chinese, Amer-Indians, and Europeans counted among its ancestors. 
Guyana is also a country that embraces freedom of religion, which 
allows Christians, Muslims, and Hindus to worship side by side.
  My colleagues may be aware that Guyana achieved independence and 
observed its first free and fair election in 1992, after more than 
three centuries of British, French, and Dutch colonialism. Guyana's 
first constitution bore the influence of British legal traditions, and 
former President Jimmy Carter supervised the team of international 
observers to guarantee the fairness of the 1992 elections.
  Guyana's three decades of unpopular and repressive rule slowed 
economic progress, but Guyanese are working to overcome these hurdles. 
I hope that they will succeed.
  Guyanese-Americans have much to be proud of. Their history is rich, 
and I hope the future of Guyana will be bright. 

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