[Congressional Record Volume 146, Number 97 (Monday, July 24, 2000)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1303]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




CONDEMNING 1994 ATTACK ON AMIA JEWISH COMMUNITY CENTER IN BUENOS AIRES, 
                               ARGENTINA

                                 ______
                                 

                               speech of

                        HON. SHEILA JACKSON-LEE

                                of texas

                    in the house of representatives

                         Monday, July 17, 2000

  Ms. JACKSON-LEE. Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of H. Res. 531, 
condemning the 1994 attack of the AMIA Jewish Community Center in 
Buenos Aires, Argentina. Six years have passed since this senseless, 
but very tragic act of violence.
  The Jewish people of Argentina make up the largest Jewish community 
in Latin America. On July 18, 1994, the AMIA Jewish Community Center 
was bombed in Buenos Aires. As a result 86 people lost their lives and 
300 were injured.
  This resolution calls upon President Fernando de la Rua to continue 
the investigation of the bombing, an investigation in which no person 
primarily responsible for this crime has been brought to justice. 
Argentine officials have acknowledged that this investigation was 
filled with negligence, and led to the arrest of just a few people tied 
to the incident, but who were only charged with providing a stolen 
vehicle used in the attack.
  Investigators for the South American government have stated that the 
evidence indicates the bombing was carried out by the Iranian sponsored 
terrorist group Hezbollah. They have also found that the bombing could 
not have been carried out absent the assistance of local Argentine 
security forces, which have been reported to be compassionate to anti-
Semitic rhetoric.
  The democratic leaders of the Western Hemisphere have denounced 
terrorism in all its forms and have pledged to jointly combat terrorist 
acts anywhere in the Americas. The United States is not immune to acts 
of terrorism and this resolution serves to reiterate the long-standing 
policy of our country to stand firm against terrorist attacks wherever 
and whenever they occur and to work with its allies to ensure that 
justice is given to the victims and that the perpetrators of such 
violence are prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law.
  In order to fully live up to this policy we must lend our support to 
the government of Argentina. As I said previously, the evidence 
indicates that insiders played a major role in executing this violence. 
What security is available to the people of Argentina when the officers 
who pledged to uphold the law commit crimes against the people they are 
supposed to protect?
  Terrorism effectively destroys the peaceful and civilized coexistence 
of all people. The United States cannot turn its back on such acts no 
matter where they take place. Failure to punish terrorists would be to 
reward them and to encourage the spread of violence in our homeland and 
abroad. This is not the impression the United States Government wants 
to give to the American people, nor to anyone around the world.
  Terrorists ignore existing rules of law and endanger the stability of 
democratically elected constitutional governments. Terrorism is a 
serious form of organized and systematic violence, intended to generate 
chaos and fear among the people and results in death and destruction. 
Terrorist acts are acts of hate carried out on individuals because of 
the difference of their religion, the color of their skin or their 
political beliefs. When we ignore the acts of people that wreak havoc 
on others because of their differences, it is a negative reflection of 
the values of America as a whole. Terrorist acts are immoral and should 
never be condoned by the United States or any other government.
  I urge my colleagues to take this opportunity to urge the Argentina 
government to fulfill its international obligations and its promise to 
the Argentine people by vigorously pursuing all persons involved in the 
bombing of the AMIA Jewish Community Center.

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