[Congressional Record Volume 145, Number 80 (Tuesday, June 8, 1999)]
[House]
[Pages H3769-H3770]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                                 EGYPT

  (Mr. PITTS asked and was given permission to address the House for 1 
minute and to revise and extend his remarks.)
  Mr. PITTS. Mr. Speaker, I rise today out of concern for what is 
happening in the country of Egypt. Our State Department's Country 
Reports this year detail security and police abuses against citizens 
from minority backgrounds.
  The Reports detailed one horrifying situation in which police 
brutalized over 1,200 Egyptian Coptik Christians in the village of El-
Kosheh. The official Egyptian report of the incident, in response, 
states that there was no torture or abuse.
  Mr. Speaker, look at these photos. We can see the wounds made on this 
man's flesh. We can see in the faces of the little children who were 
dashed to the ground and beaten while in their mothers' arms.
  The apparent unwillingness of the Egyptian Government to punish 
police officers involved in these human rights violations, or even 
admit that these violations occurred is very unfortunate.
  Recent news reports suggest that the police officers involved in 
these human rights violations were not only not punished but rewarded 
by the government.
  I urge the Egyptian Government to take serious measures to correct 
police brutality and correct the injustices perpetrated against the 
minorities in El-Kosheh.

[[Page H3770]]



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