[Congressional Record Volume 144, Number 118 (Wednesday, September 9, 1998)]
[House]
[Pages H7459-H7462]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                              {time}  1415
   CALLING FOR AN END TO RECENT CONFLICT BETWEEN ERITREA AND ETHIOPIA

  Mr. GILMAN. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and agree to the 
concurrent resolution (H. Con. Res. 292) calling for an end to the 
recent conflict between Eritrea and Ethiopia, and for other purposes, 
as amended.
  The Clerk read as follows:

                            H. Con. Res. 292

       Whereas the 1991 ouster of the Mengistu dictatorship led to 
     relative peace and stability in Eritrea and Ethiopia;
       Whereas in 1993 Eritrea became independent after an 
     internationally supervised referendum and the Government of 
     Ethiopia accepted the result of the referendum;
       Whereas the Governments of Eritrea and Ethiopia have worked 
     closely on a wide range of issues over the past several 
     years;
       Whereas the Government of Eritrea and Ethiopia enjoy warm 
     relations with the United States;
       Whereas on May 6, 1998, a military confrontation erupted 
     between Eritrea and Ethiopia, resulting in the deaths of 
     hundreds of innocent civilians and the displacement of tens 
     of thousands of people;
       Whereas the peoples of Eritrea and Ethiopia have suffered 
     for decades due to war and manmade famines and do not deserve 
     once again to suffer due to armed conflict;
       Whereas the conflict between Eritrea and Ethiopia could 
     destabilize the entire subregion and lead to a massive 
     humanitarian crisis;
       Whereas the Governments of Eritrea and Ethiopia have both 
     stated that they are committed to a peaceful resolution of 
     the conflict; and
       Whereas the Governments of the United States and Rawanda, 
     as well as countries in the region, have put forth proposals 
     for resolving the conflict: Now, therefore, be it
       Resolved by the House of Representatives (the Senate 
     concurring), That the Congress--
       (1) calls on both Eritrea and Ethiopia immediately to bring 
     an end to the violence between the two countries;
       (2) commends the executive branch of the United States 
     Government for brokering a

[[Page H7460]]

     moratorium on air raids between Eritrea and Ethiopia;
       (3) commends the recent efforts of the United States 
     facilitation team to resolve the crisis, and encourages 
     continued United States engagement toward a peaceful 
     resolution of the conflict; and
       (4) calls on President Isaias Afewerki and Prime Minister 
     Meles Zenawi to end the conflict peacefully before it 
     escalates into a full-scale war.

  The SPEAKER pro tempore (Mr. Gillmor). Pursuant to the rule, the 
gentleman from New York (Mr. Gilman) and the gentleman from American 
Samoa (Mr. Faleomavaega) each will control 20 minutes.
  The Chair recognizes the gentleman from New York (Mr. Gilman).


                             general leave

  Mr. GILMAN. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may 
have 5 legislative days within which to revise and extend their remarks 
on H. Con. Res. 292.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the 
gentleman from New York?
  There was no objection.
  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, I thank the gentleman from California (Mr. 
Campbell), a member of our Committee on International Relations, for 
introducing this important resolution.
  The conflict between Ethiopia and Eritrea is a tragic one. Although 
there is no fighting at this time, hundreds of lives have already been 
lost and there is expectation that the fighting will resume soon.
  These two nations, which are closely linked by language, by culture, 
and by history, are two of Africa's most promising nations, which makes 
the current conflict all the more terrible.
  Mr. Speaker, with this resolution, we stand with the innocent victims 
of this senseless conflict and with those who are working for peace 
between these two nations.
  Again, I thank the gentleman from California (Mr. Campbell) for 
introducing this resolution, along with the gentleman from New Jersey 
(Mr. Payne), another member of our committee. They traveled to both of 
these nations recently and have provided valuable expertise, 
leadership, and insight to our committee on this issue. Accordingly, I 
urge my colleagues to support this resolution.
  Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. FALEOMAVAEGA. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may 
consume.
  (Mr. FALEOMAVAEGA asked and was given permission to revise and extend 
his remarks.)
  Mr. FALEOMAVAEGA. Mr. Speaker, I wish to thank the gentleman from 
California (Mr. Campbell) and the gentleman from New Jersey (Mr. Payne) 
for their joint sponsorship of this legislation. It is a fact that it 
does have the bipartisan support of the committee as well.
  Mr. Speaker, the resolution before us calls on both Eritrea and 
Ethiopia immediately to bring an end to the violence between the two 
countries. The legislation also commends the United States executive 
branch for brokering a moratorium on air raids between Eritrea and 
Ethiopia. The resolution commends the recent efforts of the U.S. 
facilitation team to resolve the crisis and encourages continued U.S. 
engagement towards a peaceful resolution of the conflict.
  The legislation also calls for President Afewerki and Prime Minister 
Meles Zenawi to end the conflict peacefully before it escalates into a 
full-scale war.
  Mr. Speaker, the sides are deeply committed to their positions. This 
is in significant part a personality duel between the two leaders. The 
resolution will have little impact on that, Mr. Speaker. Nevertheless, 
the Congress should urge both sides to renounce the further use of 
force and the United States should continue to actively promote a 
political settlement.
  The resolution puts the Congress on record in support of these goals. 
This resolution deserves our support, Mr. Speaker, and I urge my 
colleagues to vote in support of this legislation.
  Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. GILMAN. Mr. Speaker, I yield 5 minutes to the gentleman from 
California (Mr. Campbell), a member of our Committee on International 
Relations.
  Mr. CAMPBELL. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman from New York (Mr. 
Gilman) for his kindness and courtesy to me, and for yielding me this 
time.
  Mr. Speaker, I rise to offer support for this resolution, House 
Concurrent Resolution 292. I recognize my good friend and colleague, 
the gentleman from New Jersey (Mr. Payne) who has been in many ways my 
tutor in matters of great importance to my heart, and particularly in 
this difficult area of the Horn of Africa.
  What can we do in this resolution, Mr. Speaker? We can do very 
little. I recognize that. But at the most basic level we can say that 
we notice and we care that things that happen in what would be 
considered by most Americans a remote part of the world, the Horn of 
Africa, does touch all of us in the United States as lovers of freedom.
  We have nothing but praise for the way the people of Eritrea and 
Ethiopia fought for their freedom from a tyranny of many years, from 
artifacts of the Cold War, and, eventually, in the case of Eritrea 
itself, in receiving independence from Ethiopia. And at the time there 
was such optimism because this was a peaceful transition, which is 
regrettably rare in the world and regrettably rare in Africa.
  The first thing we can do is say we observe, we know what is 
happening, and we do care.
  Second, this resolution which I drafted with the help of my 
colleague, the gentleman from New Jersey (Mr. Payne), and I wish to say 
the help as well of the administration, does not choose sides. This 
resolution does not say that we have decided which side is right. And 
it is important that we do not enter into that judgment.
  Nevertheless, I do wish to call attention to the fact that the 
Assistant Secretary of State, Susan Rice, has been a substantial player 
in bringing about what cease-fire exists right now; that she deserves a 
great degree of credit; that I here give her that credit on the floor. 
I know I will be joined by my colleagues in so doing. And that in the 
achievement of a cease-fire, we have at least some progress.
  Mr. Speaker, the next step is for the people of Eritrea and Ethiopia, 
of course. But it seems to me, and I believe many members of our 
committee, that the delineation of the border between Eritrea and 
Ethiopia should be given to an international organization, whether it 
is the Organization of African Unity or the United Nations Secretariat 
or the World Court. That even while there is no actual settlement of 
the conflict, the beginning of the delineation between the two 
countries can proceed--from which, both countries say, all of the 
conflict follows.
  So the second main point I would say is whereas we are observing and 
we do care about this, we are not choosing sides, but the delineation 
of the border ought to proceed while the bullets are not flying. And 
then whoever is determined to own what property at the end of that 
delineation will be the result of a neutral, a third-party process.
  Lastly, Mr. Speaker, a personal note. I have traveled to Africa with 
the gentleman from New Jersey (Mr. Payne), my good friend and 
colleague, my tutor, as I call him, and have made Africa my focus. And 
it is of great personal sadness to me that this war broke out. I 
address these words more to my friends in Eritrea and Ethiopia than to 
our colleagues here today, Mr. Speaker, when I say it is difficult to 
draw the attention of the United States to the tremendous amount of 
good that we can do with a small investment of caring, a small 
investment of our resources in this part of the world, and whatever 
success the gentleman from New Jersey has had for the years that he has 
been here doing this before I came back to Congress and began to work 
with him, whatever success we have had, is cast into jeopardy. Cast 
into jeopardy by the illustration of war between these two countries--
because the easiest thing is to say no. The easiest thing is to find a 
reason not to be concerned, to turn one's back, to vote for foreign aid 
to countries that will help one politically instead of for a little bit 
of assistance that can save some lives or make a

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child see who would otherwise go blind, and vindicate the trust that 
the people of Eritrea and Ethiopia have given to their democratic 
leadership.
  So, I conclude by making that observation. Mr. Speaker, to those 
watching in the governments of Eritrea and Ethiopia, know the harm that 
this war has done to those of us in this country who would seek to help 
the progress of people who have done so much on their own to the 
commendation of all of those who have observed it.
  Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman from New York (Chairman Gilman) 
for allowing me to present the argument in favor of H. Con. Res. 292 
and for his courtesy to me on the committee on this and everything 
else.
  Mr. GILMAN. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume, 
just to say to the gentleman from California (Mr. Campbell) that I 
thank him for his eloquent words in support of this resolution, and for 
introducing the resolution to the House.
  Mr. FALEOMAVAEGA. Mr. Speaker, I yield such time as he may consume to 
the gentleman from New Jersey (Mr. Payne) to speak on behalf of this 
piece of legislation.
  (Mr. PAYNE asked and was given permission to revise and extend his 
remarks.)
  Mr. PAYNE. Mr. Speaker, to the gentleman from American Samoa (Mr. 
Faleomavaega), I say thank you for that gracious commitment for all the 
time that I may consume. Unfortunately, I am not in the Senate, so 
therefore I will keep my comments brief. Although we are not supposed 
to address the other House, I apologize.
  Mr. Speaker, let me first of all say that I rise in strong support of 
the resolution, H. Con. Res. 292, to end the conflict between Eritrea 
and Ethiopia. I would like to commend both the gentleman from New York 
(Chairman Gilman) and the gentleman from Indiana (Mr. Hamilton), 
ranking member on the Committee on International Relations, for 
bringing this resolution swiftly to the floor.
  Let me take a moment to express my real admiration and appreciation 
to the gentleman from California (Mr. Campbell), who became active on 
the Subcommittee on Africa at the beginning of the last term and who 
has added so much to the committee from the other side of the aisle.
  Mr. Speaker, I think that there has not been a time in the history of 
the committee that a new member has taken the initiative and has really 
made such a difference, and I really express my appreciation to the 
gentleman from the leadership position who has enabled many of these 
projects to move forward. I really feel that the committee is very, 
very privileged to have him as a member.
  Mr. Speaker, I would also like to thank the gentleman from California 
(Chairman Royce) and the gentleman from Florida (Mr. Hastings) for 
their input on this resolution.
  Mr. Speaker, it is very timely. As we have heard from my colleagues, 
although a cessation of hostilities is presently the mood on the 
ground, the situation is still at best tenuous. I am very concerned 
about the situation for the entire East Africa region.
  Eritrea became an independent State in 1993 following an 
internationally monitored referendum, which incidentally was supposed 
to take place in 1962, but because of political maneuvers, the vote was 
never taken. But we were glad that the international monitors in 1993 
allowed the Eritreans to vote and overwhelmingly they voted for 
independence from Ethiopia.
  Since that time, though, the President has been forced to deal with 
the Eritrean Islamic Jihad, the EIJ, a small Sudan-based insurgent 
group that has mounted terrorist attacks in northern and west Eritrea. 
Increased EIJ activities, coupled with the buildup of Sudanese forces 
on the western border, has led the government to increase security and 
deploy the Army to the west.
  The Lords Resistance Army, LRA problem in northern Uganda; the 2.6 
million people in southern Sudan who are in imminent danger of 
starvation, many who have been suffering from slavery that is still 
practiced in that country of Sudan; the bombing and the terrorist 
threats in Nairobi and Dar es Salaam, has shown that very much is at 
stake and allies have to stay together at this time.
  With that said, I think it is imperative that we resolve the 
situation in Ethiopia and Eritrea. I am anxious to see a resolve to the 
present impasse. I believe that the facts surrounding May 6 are at best 
sketchy and we still do not know exactly what happened. But as the 
gentleman from California (Mr. Campbell) said, we are not here to say 
who is at fault, who is to blame. That is behind us. We need to move 
forward.
  Mr. Speaker, I know that respect for one's sovereignty and 
maintaining territorial integrity are very serious foreign objectives; 
however, this is not a simple border dispute and it represents a bigger 
issue for more serious underlying problems, I believe.
  In a world where border disputes are not that common but rarely 
result in full escalation of hostilities resulting in war, I could not 
understand why a full escalation of war occurred, especially between 
these two friends and neighbors, persons who fought together.
  I cannot condone the killing of innocent men, women, and children, 
whether it is in Asmara Addis, Mekele or Badme. I am friends, as is the 
gentleman from California (Mr. Campbell), with both Prime Minister 
Meles and President Isaias, who we have spoken to, as well as their 
ambassadors here in this country on numerous occasions. And we have 
both urged them to halt all air strikes, pull back their ground forces, 
and create a lasting solution for peace and stability in the region.
  I cannot condone the minor Ethiopian migration in other parts of the 
border, nor can I condone the takeover of Badme by the Eritreans and 
the supposedly binding nature of the Italian colonial boundaries.

                              {time}  1430

  Let me say that I am becoming increasingly concerned about the 
expulsion of both countries. A simultaneous full demarcation in the 
Yigra triangle in northwestern Ethiopia is in order.
  I am pleased by the swift, quick, and decisive action in the region 
taken by the Assistant Secretary of State, Dr. Susan Rice, who during, 
her short tenure as assistant secretary, has made tremendous inroads in 
Africa.
  I would like to conclude by saying that both countries fought against 
the Ethiopian Marxist regime of Mengistu dictatorship and have common 
interests of containing regional actors. All of this ended in 1991, and 
since that time an exemplary relationship of friendship and cooperation 
had been forged between their peoples and governments of these two 
countries. It would be a shame if this stalemate continued.
  The Eritreans and the Ethiopians are brothers and sisters, and it is 
sad and most embarrassing for this to have happened. Lives have been 
lost and damage has been done, but we must move forward. The U.S. 
should continue to work on and actively promote a political settlement.
  Mr. Speaker, I support this resolution and urge my colleagues to do 
the same.
  Mr. FALEOMAVAEGA. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may 
consume.
  Mr. Speaker, I do want to commend and respond to the statements made 
earlier by the gentleman from New Jersey (Mr. Payne), to commend the 
gentleman from California (Mr. Campbell), not only for his eloquence, 
but certainly for his keen interest on the very, very important 
international relationships that our country has with the various 
nations of Africa.
  In the years that I have spent as a member of the Committee on 
International Relations, my good friend and colleague, the gentleman 
from New Jersey (Mr. Payne) has always been my stalwart and senior 
member who understands more than most members on the committee of the 
important issues affecting not only the nations of Africa but certainly 
our relations with them.
  Again, I want to thank the gentleman from California (Mr. Campbell) 
for taking an active interest in this important piece of legislation. I 
urge my colleagues to support this bill.
  Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
  Mr. CAMPBELL. Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore (Mr. Gillmor). The question is on the motion 
offered by the gentleman from New York (Mr. Gilman) that the House

[[Page H7462]]

suspend the rules and agree to the concurrent resolution, House 
Concurrent Resolution 292, as amended.
  The question was taken; and (two-thirds having voted in favor 
thereof) the rules were suspended and the concurrent resolution, as 
amended, was agreed to.
  A motion to reconsider was laid on the table.

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