[Congressional Record Volume 144, Number 142 (Saturday, October 10, 1998)]
[House]
[Pages H10447-H10450]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
TORTURE VICTIMS RELIEF ACT OF 1998
Mr. GILMAN. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and concur in
the Senate amendment to the bill, (H.R. 4309) to provide a
comprehensive program of support for victims of torture.
[[Page H10448]]
The Clerk read as follows:
Senate amendment:
Page 6, strike out all after line 9, down to and including
line 21 and insert:
(b) Funding.--
(1) Authorization of appropriations.--Of the amounts
authorized to be appropriated for the Department of Health
and Human Services for fiscal years 1999 and 2000, there are
authorized to be appropriated to carry out subsection (a)
(relating to assistance for domestic centers and programs for
the treatment of victims of torture) $5,000,000 for fiscal
year 1999, and $7,500,000 for fiscal year 2000.
(2) Availability of funds.--Amounts appropriated pursuant
to this subsection shall remain available until expended.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from New
York (Mr. Gilman) and the gentleman from Tennessee (Mr. Clement) each
will control 20 minutes.
The Chair recognizes the gentleman from New York (Mr. Gilman).
(Mr. GILMAN asked and was given permission to revise and extend his
remarks.)
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 this measure.
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. Speaker, this important measure addresses a critical area of our
efforts to combat human rights abuses, treatment of those individuals
who have suffered the effects of torture at the hands of governments as
a means of destroying dissent and opposition. I commend the gentleman
from New Jersey (Mr. Smith), our distinguished chairman of the
Subcommittee on International Operations and Human Rights, for
introducing this resolution.
The resolution rightly recognizes the importance of treating victims
of torture in order to combat the long-term devastating effects that
torture has on the physical and psychological well-being of those who
have undergone this pernicious form of abuse.
Torture is an extremely effective method to suppress political
dissidence, and for those governments which lack the legitimacy of
democratic institutions to justify their power, torture can provide a
bulwark against popular opposition.
It has been pointed out that for political leaders of undemocratic
societies, torture is useful because it aims at destruction of the
personality, to rob those individuals who would actively involve
themselves in opposition to oppression of self-confidence and other
characteristics that produce leadership.
Fortunately, there are now able treatment regimes for the types of
disorders that torture may induce. The resolution before the House will
help ensure that these treatments are more readily available to torture
victims in this Nation and throughout the world that are in need of
them.
Accordingly, I urge all of my colleagues to join in approving this
legislation, the Torture Victims Relief Act of 1998.
Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
Mr. CLEMENT. Mr. Speaker, yield myself such time as I may consume.
Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of H.R. 4309, the Torture Victims
Relief Act of 1998. I would also like to commend the gentleman from New
Jersey (Mr. Smith) for his work on the bill, and on behalf of torture
victims.
I understand that the Senate has amended the bill to replace the
original authorization language for the domestic treatment centers.
This change impacts the jurisdiction of the Committee on Commerce. The
provisions pertaining to the jurisdiction of the Committee on
International Relations remain unchanged.
This is an important bill that deserves our support. U.S. assistance
for the rehabilitation and treatment of torture victims is an important
first step in overcoming this terrible abuse of human rights.
I would also like to commend the gentleman from New York (Mr.
Gilman), my chairman. As a relatively new member of the Committee on
International Relations, I have watched him and observed him. He has
always been fair, he is always focused, and he is one of the hardest
working Members I have ever been around. He represents us well
nationally and internationally.
Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
Mr. GILMAN. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman from Tennessee (Mr.
Clement) for his kind remarks.
Mr. Speaker, I yield such time as he may consume to the distinguished
gentleman from New Jersey (Mr. Smith), chairman of our Subcommittee on
International Operations and Human Rights.
Mr. SMITH of New Jersey. Mr. Speaker, I too want to thank the
gentleman from New York (Mr. Gilman) for his work on this important
legislation and all of these human rights initiatives. He has been
steadfast and I for one--and I know I speak for many--appreciate it
deeply. I thank my friend for his kind words, and also thank the
gentleman from California (Mr. Lantos), the principal cosponsor of this
legislation, along with 30 other bipartisan Members who have
cosponsored H.R. 4309.
Mr. Speaker, this is a bipartisan bill. This legislation provides $31
million over 2 years to help heal and to mitigate at least some of the
agony and some of the suffering that is truly unfathomable, for those
who have endured grotesque torture around the world.
We have heard testimony time and time again that torture persists in
many, many despotic countries. We have also heard from those who have
suffered and their advocates on what steps the United States and other
free countries ought to take to try to lessen some of that suffering.
Those who suffer cruelty at the hands of these governments usually
bear the scars, physically, emotionally, and psychologically, for the
rest of their lives. For most, if not all, the ordeal of torture does
not end when they are released from a gulag, a laogai or a prison camp.
These victims, Mr. Speaker--and there are millions of them around the
world and an estimated 400,000 survivors of torture living in the
United States--need our help. To date, we have done far too little to
assist these walking wounded.
The Torture Victims Relief Act contains a number of important
provisions designed to assist torture victims. First, Mr. Speaker, it
authorizes grants for rehabilitation services for victims of torture
and related purposes in both domestic and foreign treatment centers.
Specifically, the bill authorizes $12.5 million, $5 million in fiscal
year 1999, and $7.5 million in fiscal year 2000, from the Department of
Health and Human Services for contributions to centers of treatment for
victims of torture in the United States. There are currently 15 of
those centers.
I want especially to thank the gentleman from Virginia (Chairman
Bliley) for working with us on this, because that money comes from a
different spigot, not a foreign aid spigot, and he came forward and was
very helpful. Also, I thank Senator Rod Grams on the Senate side for
helping us get that money from that particular source.
The legislation also authorizes an additional $5 million in 1999,
$7.5 million in fiscal year 2000 for international torture victim
centers. There are currently about 175 of those centers around the
world.
All of these centers, Mr. Speaker, both domestic and international,
are seriously underfunded. As a matter of fact, the Denmark-based
International Rehabilitation Council for Torture Victims, the IRCT,
estimates the worldwide need for assisting victims of torture to be
about $28 million and only a small portion of that has been met.
H.R. 4309 also authorizes a voluntary contribution from the United
States to the U.N. Voluntary Fund to the Victims of Torture in the
amount of $3 million in 1999 and another $3 million in 2000. I am proud
to say that our bipartisan efforts have already had an effect, because
we have been pushing this bill for a number of years now. In 1995, the
U.S. contribution was $1.5 million, when we originally introduced this
bill in the 104th Congress. The administration had proposed to cut the
fiscal year 1996 contribution by two-thirds to $500,000. Eventually, in
response to the bipartisan support for this initiative,
[[Page H10449]]
they put it up to $1.5 million. Now we will increase that to $3 million
each fiscal year.
Mr. Speaker, the bill also provides specialized training for foreign
service officers in the identification of evidence of torture,
techniques for interviewing torture victims, and related subjects.
{time} 1600
Finally, the bill contains an expression of the Sense of Congress
that the United States shall use its voice and its vote in the United
Nations to support the investigation and elimination of practices
prohibited by the Convention Against Torture.
Mr. Speaker, I truly believe that whatever one's religion is--and I
am a Christian, I am a Catholic, and others' sentiments come out of
their deeply-held faiths--but one of the scriptures that motivates me
is Matthew's gospel, the 25th chapter, when our Lord said, whatsoever
you do to the least of my brethren, you do likewise to me. Whether it
be the unborn or a persecuted believer, Baha'i, a Jewish person,
whatever, at any given time he or she can be the least of our brethren.
We need to stand up for those people.
In keeping with that scripture, I really believe, Mr. Speaker, that
this legislation helps those people after they have been abused to get
through that crisis and come to healing and to reconciliation with the
trouble and ordeal they have experienced.
Mr. Speaker, I want to make one final point. Grover Joseph Rees, the
chief counsel and staff director of the Subcommittee on International
Operations and of Human Rights, is the reason this legislation is on
the floor, and I do want to thank him for his steadfast work on it. He
used to be the general counsel at INS. He knows the inside of that
building, and that is why we hired him on the committee, but, more
importantly, he knows what is going on around the world and has been
absolutely invaluable in these kinds of issues, whether it be religious
freedom or in the case of this assistance to the torture victims. So I
want to thank Joseph for his excellent work on this legislation.
Mr. CLEMENT. Mr. Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the gentleman from
Minnesota (Mr. Bruce Vento), and I would just note that the State of
Minnesota has more water than the State of Tennessee.
(Mr. VENTO asked and was given permission to revise and extend his
remarks.)
Mr. VENTO. Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of this legislation and
would commend the authors of this, the gentleman from New Jersey (Mr.
Smith), the gentleman from California (Mr. Lantos), and the others,
other of my colleagues from Minnesota. I think about a third of the
sponsors are from Minnesota. And the reason for that, of course, is
because of our interest in this and the history of the Center for
Victims of Torture, which is located in the Twin Cities.
I would invite my colleagues, if they are traveling through the Twin
Cities, if they have a deep interest in this, to stop by and visit. I
am certain we would like to talk further with them about it. We have
had it in place for nearly 13 years. It was instituted really at the
request and response of Governor Rudy Perpich in 1985. The Center has
treated almost 600 persons at this particular center to date.
When we look at the problem throughout our country and the world, in
terms of reaching out and extending political and religious amnesty to
individuals in refugee status, and my colleagues well know my role with
the southeast Asians and the resettlement in Minnesota of the Hmong
community, we have 400,000 such persons in the United States, and there
is precious little support available for them. Clearly, the existing
social services that we offer are inadequate to deal with this type of
problem.
When we celebrated June 26 as international day in Minnesota, it was
pointed out that there are 124 nations around the globe, 124 nations,
that still practice various types of torture and intimidation of the
civilian population. And so we are trying to respond to this with a
dozen or so centers across the United States and around the world. And
at the time this particular center was started, the United Nations only
provided $100,000.
So we began to look at this, and this center itself has grown by
itself, on a nonprofit basis, raising nearly $1 million a year,
treating these broken persons and trying to take away the nightmare. We
call it rising from the ashes, in terms of these broken spirits and
broken bodies that are delivered to our shores.
So as we embrace these persons and give them the type of protection
from religious persecution, from political persecution, I think we have
to be cognizant of the fact that they are going to need more than just
refuge in this country. They need a helping hand.
We are doing research in Minnesota on this. Our health care
facilities, Regents Hospital, as an example, in my district, has done
much to treat these through special clinics, but it does cost a great
deal. There is a lot of volunteerism and a lot of contributions that
come in, but, most importantly, I think it is very significant that we
are raising on the floor today and actually participating in helping in
this problem, which is on overload.
Mr. Speaker, I rise today in strong support of this important human
rights bill that protects and provides hope to survivors of torture.
According to the Center for Victims of Torture (CVT), it is estimated
that as many as 400,000 victims of torture now reside in the United
States with an estimated 12,000 to 15,000 residing in my home state of
Minnesota where CVT is located. The Center's clients have come from
around the world--52 percent from Africa, 25 percent from South and
Southeast Asia, 11 percent from Latin America, six percent from the
Middle East and three percent from Eastern Europe. An estimated two-
thirds of CVT clients are seeking asylum from persecution at the time
they first contacted the Center.
Many torture survivors suffer from severe psychological effects such
as fear, guilt, nightmares, flashbacks, anxiety and depression. The
debilitating nature of torture makes it extremely difficult for
survivors to hold steady jobs, study for new professions and careers or
acquire other skills for a successful integration into our nation's
culture and economy. Congress should provide hope for these talented,
educated and productive people who were purposefully disabled by their
countries governments.
The Torture Victims Relief Act provides an important first step in
healing the wounds of government-inflicted torture on individuals,
their families and their communities. Specifically, this bill funds a
total of $12.5 million for grants to centers and programs that treat
victims of torture in foreign countries and centers and programs in the
United States that aid victims of torture. Such funds will cover the
costs of supporting torture victims, including rehabilitation, social
and legal services and research and training for health care providers.
Furthermore, this legislation expresses that the President request that
the U.N. Voluntary Fund find new and innovative ways to support victim
programs and encourage the development of new such programs. Finally,
this bill provides training for foreign service officers to help them
identify torture and its effects upon innocent civilians.
Torture is a crime against humanity. It is the single most effective
weapon against democracy. As Members of Congress, it is our
responsibility to protect and shield the world from this strategic tool
of repression. I urge all members to support this much needed
legislation that will respond to the evils of torture and its physical
social, emotional and spiritual consequences upon our communities.
Mr. CLEMENT. Madam Speaker, I have no further requests for time, and
I yield back the balance of my time.
Ms. JACKSON-LEE of Texas. Madam Speaker, I rise to speak on behalf of
H.R. 4309, which provides assistance to the over 190 centers around the
globe that help people recover from the painful and de-humanizing
effects of torture.
Torture is, under all circumstances, a heinous, cruel, and inhuman
act that we must fight to prevent at each opportunity. It must be
prevented whether it is the result of religious persecution, political
reprogramming, organized intimidation, or simply because an individual
needs to make another feel less than human. But there are times where
we cannot prevent it. Torture happens. It happens in every region of
the world--in Africa, the Far East, Central America, Eastern Europe,
and Central Asia. We have well documented and shocking reports of
torture in Sudan, China, Tibet, Mexico, and Kosovo.
More intolerable is the fact that we must add the United States to
that list where torture takes place. Just a few months ago, we saw the
tortured slaying of James Byrd, Jr. in Texas. I do not believe I need
to remind anyone of the details of that atrocity. And just yesterday,
we had an incident in Wyoming where a young gay man was taken a mile
outside of
[[Page H10450]]
the town and brutally bludgeoned and burnt, and then tied to a fence
like a scarecrow. The young man's name is Matthew Shepard, and my
prayers this afternoon are with him and his family. Shockingly, there
are 15 torture treatment centers in the United States. I bet that few
Americans knew that before today.
This bill authorizes $5 million dollars for the next fiscal year to
be given as grants to centers and programs that treat the victims of
torture in foreign countries, and then authorizes another $5 million to
be spent in this country, to aid similar victims to recover from their
physical and mental injuries. The Centers, both near and far, provide
rehabilitation, social services, and legal expertise to those victims
who seek their assistance. All of these services are instrumental in
the effort to make sure that these victims can move forward and lead
lives that have some semblance of normalcy.
Additionally, H.R. 4309 requires the Secretary of State to provide
torture rehabilitation training to its foreign service officers. This
training will improve our personnel's ability to identify torture
victims and guide them through the necessary process of seeking help.
The training also includes special gender-specific training, which will
ensure that when our officers interact with torture victims who have
been raped or violated, that they will not worsen the victim's delicate
physical or mental state.
Furthermore, this bill expresses the sense of Congress that the
President, through our representative to the United States, should
support humanitarian, anti-torture efforts throughout the world. That
is to be done by advocating that the United Nations Voluntary Fund find
new ways to support torture victim treatment programs; by supporting
the U.N. Special Rapporteur on Torture and the U.N. Committee Against
Torture; and by pushing for the expansion of those programs into
countries where reports indicate that systematic torture is prevalent.
I urge all of you to vote with me today, and reach out to those
victims that have suffered at the hands of others unnecessarily.
Mr. GILMAN. Madam Speaker, I yield myself the balance of my time to
thank the chairman of the Committee on Commerce, the gentleman from
Virginia (Mr. Bliley), for his cooperation in moving this bill forward.
The SPEAKER pro tempore (Mrs. Emerson). The question is on the motion
offered by the gentleman from New York (Mr. Gilman) that the House
suspend the rules and concur in the Senate amendment to H.R. 4309.
The question was taken; and (two-thirds having voted in favor
thereof) the rules were suspended and the Senate amendment was
concurred in.
A motion to reconsider was laid on the table.
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