[Congressional Record Volume 144, Number 151 (Wednesday, October 21, 1998)]
[Senate]
[Page S12946]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




    EXPRESSING THE SENSE OF CONGRESS ON THE 65TH ANNIVERSARY OF THE 
                     UKRAINIAN FAMINE OF 1932-1933

  The resolution (S. Con. Res. 122) expressing the sense of Congress 
that the 65th anniversary of the Ukrainian Famine of 1932-1933 should 
serve as a reminder of the brutality of the government of the former 
Soviet Union's repressive policies toward the Ukrainian people was 
considered and agreed to.
  The preamble was agreed to.
  The resolution (S. Con. Res. 122), with its preamble, reads as 
follows:

                            S. Con. Res. 122

       Whereas this year marks the 65th anniversary of the 
     Ukrainian Famine of 1932-1933 that caused the deaths of at 
     least 7,000,000 Ukrainians and that was covered up and 
     officially denied by the government of the former Soviet 
     Union;
       Whereas millions of Ukrainians died, not by natural causes 
     such as pestilence, drought, floods, or a poor harvest, but 
     by policies designed to punish Ukraine for its aversion and 
     opposition to the government of the former Soviet Union's 
     oppression and imperialism, including the forced 
     collectivization of agriculture;
       Whereas when Ukraine was famine-stricken, the government of 
     the former Soviet Union exported 1,700,000 tons of grain to 
     the West while offers from international relief organizations 
     to assist the starving population were rejected on the 
     grounds that there was no famine in Ukraine and no need for 
     the assistance;
       Whereas the borders of Ukraine were tightly controlled and 
     starving Ukrainians were not allowed to cross into Russian 
     territory in search of bread;
       Whereas in his book ``The Harvest of Sorrow'', British 
     historian Robert Conquest explains, ``A quarter of the rural 
     population, men, women, and children, lay dead or dying, the 
     rest in various stages of debilitation with no strength to 
     bury their families or neighbors.'';
       Whereas the Commission on the Ukraine Famine was 
     established on December 13, 1985, to conduct a study with the 
     goal of expanding the world's knowledge and understanding of 
     the famine and to expose the government of the former Soviet 
     Union for its atrocities in the famine;
       Whereas the Commission's report to Congress confirmed that 
     the government of the former Soviet Union consciously 
     employed the brutal policy of forced famine to repress the 
     Ukrainian population and to oppress the Ukrainians' 
     inviolable religious and political rights; and
       Whereas the Commission on the Ukraine Famine presented 4 
     volumes of findings and conclusions, 10 volumes of archival 
     material, and over 200 cassettes of testimony from famine 
     survivors to the newly independent Government of Ukraine in 
     1993, during the official observances of the 60th anniversary 
     of the Ukrainian famine in Kyiv, Ukraine: Now, therefore, be 
     it
         Resolved by the Senate (the House of Representatives 
     concurring),

     SECTION 1. SENSE OF CONGRESS.

       It is the sense of Congress that--
       (1) the victims of the government of the former Soviet 
     Union-engineered Ukrainian Famine of 1932-1933 be solemnly 
     remembered on its 65th anniversary;
       (2) the Congress condemns the systematic disregard for 
     human life, human rights, human liberty, and self-
     determination that characterized the repressive policies of 
     the government of the former Soviet Union during the 
     Ukrainian Famine of 1932-1933;
       (3) on the 65th anniversary of the Ukrainian Famine of 
     1932-1933, in contrast to the policies of the government of 
     the former Soviet Union, Ukraine is moving toward democracy, 
     a free-market economy, and full respect for human rights, and 
     it is essential that the United States continue to assist 
     Ukraine as it proceeds down this path; and
       (4) any supplemental material that will assist in the 
     dissemination of information about the Ukrainian Famine of 
     1932-1933, and thereby help to prevent similar future 
     tragedies, be compiled and made available worldwide for the 
     study of the devastation of the famine.

     SEC. 2. TRANSMITTAL OF THE RESOLUTION.

       The Secretary of the Senate shall--
       (1) transmit a copy of this resolution to--
       (A) the President;
       (B) the Secretary of State; and
       (C) the co-chairs of the Congressional Ukrainian Caucus; 
     and
       (2) request that the Secretary of State transmit a copy of 
     this resolution to the Government of Ukraine.

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