[Congressional Record Volume 148, Number 108 (Thursday, August 1, 2002)]
[Senate]
[Pages S7895-S7898]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
PETITIONS AND MEMORIALS
The following petitions and memorials were laid before the Senate and
were referred or ordered to lie on the table as indicated:
POM-274. A House Concurrent Resolution adopted by the
Legislature of the State of Hawaii relative to legislation to
repeal the Rescission Act of 1946 and the Second Supplemental
Surplus Appropriation Rescission Act of 1964, and to restore
Filipino World War II Veterans' to full United States
Veterans' status and benefit; to the Committee on Veterans'
Affairs.
House Concurrent Resolution 34
Whereas, on July 26, 1941, President Franklin Roosevelt
called back to active duty Lieutenant General Douglas
MacArthur, who was then serving as military adviser to the
Commonwealth government in the Philippines. President
Roosevelt appointed General MacArthur to command the newly
formed United States Armed Forces in the Far East (USAFFE);
and
Whereas, General MacArthur mobilized the entire Philippine
Commonwealth Army, consisting of approximately 212,000
soldiers, into the USAFFE and reinforced approximately 10,000
American soldiers, including the 10,000-strong Philippine
Scouts (who were the Filipino regulars in the American army)
and the 6,000-strong Philippine Constabulary, under the
command of American military forces; and
Whereas, with the destruction of the United States fleet at
Pearl Harbor and the United States Air Force at Clark Field,
and with the withdrawal of United States naval forces to
Java, the USAFFE lost its naval and air support in the first
few days of the war in the Pacific; and
Whereas, within days, Japanese troops landed in Aparri and
Vigan, in Legazpi and Davao, in Lingayen, Atimonan, and
Mauban, while their planes bombed military objectives and
government centers. Within a few weeks, the American and
Filipino forces defending Luzon were in full retreat to the
stronghold where General MacArthur proposed to make a last
stand--the peninsula of Bataan and the island fortress of
Corregidor; and
Whereas, in the ensuing months, Japanese Imperial Forces in
the Philippines focused all their military might against the
USAFFE in Bataan and Corregidor; and
Whereas, on February 20, 1942, President Manuel Quezon and
Vice President Sergio Osmena of the Philippine Commonwealth
left Corregidor for the United States to form a government in
exile. On March 11, 1942, General MacArthur left Corregidor
for Australia to take over the defense of the southern
Pacific area. It was upon his arrival in Melbourne that he
issued his famous pledge, ``I shall return''; and
Whereas, Hong Kong, Singapore, and the East Indies
(Indonesia) fell before the fierce Japanese advance in the
week following the attack on Pearl Harbor. The soldiers in
the Philippines, under the command of Lieutenant General
Jonathan Wainright, fought on. Their valiant struggle, the
only Allied resistance in East Asia during the winter and
spring of 1942, slowed down the enemy and gave Australia more
time to strengthen its defenses; and
Whereas, thousands of Japanese infantrymen, supported by
artillery barrages and tank fire power, pounded the Filipino-
American lines. Overhead, Japan's air corps soared and bombed
the foxholes, hospitals, and ammunition dumps of Bataan. From
the sea the enemy warships poured lethal shells on the
defenders' positions. Bataan was doomed. The defenders,
weakened by hunger, disease, and fatigue, fought fiercely and
many died as heroes; and
Whereas, Bataan fell on April 9, 1942. Corregidor's Voice
of Freedom radio station announced, ``Bataan has fallen, but
the spirit that made it stand--a beacon to all the liberty-
loving peoples of the world--cannot fall''. As many as 36,000
Filipino and American soldiers were captured by the
victorious Japanese. Forced to set out on the infamous
``Death March'' to San Fernando, tens of thousands died from
hunger, thirst, disease, and exhaustion. Survivors were
crammed into boxcars and shipped to imprisonment in Capas;
and
Whereas, General Wainwright and the 12,000 Filipino and
American soldiers manning the rocky fortress of Corregidor
continued to fight, but after the fall of Bataan, the end was
in sight for them as well. On May 6, 1942, Major General
William Sharp was ordered to be stop future useless sacrifice
of human life in the Fortified Islands, and to surrender
all troops under his command in the Visayan Islands and
Mindanao. Corregidor fell almost five months to the day
after the attack on Pearl Harbor. Organized military
resistance to the invasion of the Philippines ended that
day; and
Whereas, many Filipino officers and men refused to heed the
order to surrender. They fled to the hills with their arms
and, with the help of the civilian population, waged a
relentless guerrillas war against the invaders. The
guerrillas, almost without arms at the beginning, hungry, and
unclothed, gave battle to the enemy from every nook and
corner of the land. For three seemingly interminable years
and despite unbelievable hardships, they carried the torch of
freedom; and
Whereas, it was against the backdrop of Bataan, Corregidor,
and other theaters of battle, where alien soldiers under the
United States flag fought bravely and fiercely, that the
United States Congress amended the naturalization provisions
of the Nationality Act of 1940; and
Whereas, in 1942, Congress reestablished the policy it had
set forth during the first World War by providing for the
naturalization of aliens honorably serving in the armed
forces of the United States during the war. As part of the
second War Powers Act, Congress waived the requirement of
residence, literacy, and education for alien soldiers. The
law allowed any alien who was inducted or who enlisted into
the United States Army, Navy, or Air Force during World War
II to become a United States citizen; and
Whereas, even while the war was raging, alien soldiers in
England, Iceland, and North Africa, who served in American
military forces, could be naturalized as United States
citizens. This naturalization was made possible because
beginning in January 1943, naturalization officers were
dispatched to foreign countries where they accepted
applications, performed naturalization ceremonies, and swore
into American citizenship thousands of alien soldiers; and
Whereas, while the Philippines was under Japanese
occupation, approximately 7,000 Filipino soldiers were
naturalized outside the Philippines. The great majority of
Filipino soldiers in the country, however, were not even
aware of these liberal naturalization benefits. The United
States withdrew its naturalization officer from the
Philippines for nine months and then allowed the law to lapse
in 1946, so few Filipino veterans were able to exercise their
rights in a timely manner--rights that had been supposedly
earned on the battlefield for a lifetime; and
Whereas, although the Immigration Act of 1990 rectified
this foreclosure of rights by permitting Filipino veterans of
World War II to apply for naturalization and to receive
benefits after May 1, 1991, it did not remedy the betrayal of
Filipino veterans orchestrated forty-five years earlier by a
cost-conscious country through the Rescission Act of 1946 and
the Second Supplemental Surplus Appropriation Rescission Act
(1946), which declared that the service performed by many
Filipino veterans was not ``active service'' and denied them
their veterans benefits after the fact; and
Whereas, while Filipino-American veterans who served
honorably in an active-duty status under the command of the
USAFFE or within the Philippine Army, the Philippine Scouts,
or recognized guerrilla units, between September 1, 1939, and
December 31, 1946, braved the same dangers and were entitled
to apply for naturalization, only those persons who served in
the armed forces of the United States or joined the
Philippine Scouts before October 6, 1945, currently are
entitled to the full-range of veterans benefits; and
Whereas, it should be the right of every Filipino-American
veteran of World War II, who served honorably in an active-
duty status under the Philippine Scouts, or recognized
guerrilla units, to receive the full-range of veterans
benefits, including a non-service disability burial allowance
and pension, treatment for nonservice connected disabilities
at Veterans Hospitals in the United States, home loan
guarantees, burial in a national or state veterans cemetery
and headstones, contract national service life insurance and
educational assistance for spouses and surviving spouses; and
Whereas, those who served in the armed forces of the United
States or Philippine Scouts that enlisted prior to October 6,
1945, are eligible for full veterans' benefits, but others
can only receive partial benefits. Those with limited
benefits include veterans of the Philippine Scouts
enlisted after October 6, 1945, Commonwealth Army of the
Philippines enlisted between July 26, 1941 and June 30,
1946, and recognized guerrillas with service between April
20, 1942 and June 30, 1946. For these groups, monetary
benefits are received in pesos in an amount equivalent to
only half of the dollar value, regardless of whether the
recipient resides in the Philippines or the United States;
and
Whereas, Philippine veterans with military service with the
Special Philippine Scouts who enlisted between October 6,
1945 and June 30, 1947, under Public Law 190, 79th Congress
(``New Scouts'') are not entitled to full
[[Page S7896]]
Department of Veterans Affairs benefits. They are only
entitled to service-connected disability benefits. This is
payable to a veteran if he is presently suffering from a
disability which the Department of Veterans Affairs
determined to be the result of a disease or injury incurred
in or aggravated during military service. The disability must
have been rated by the Department of Veterans Affairs as ten
per cent or more disabling to be compensable. (No
compensation may be paid for a service-connected disability
rated less than ten per cent disabling.) Medical treatment is
provided only for their service-connected disabilities; and
Whereas, Philippine veterans with military service in the
Commonwealth Army of the Philippines and recognized guerrilla
units are entitled to service-connected disability benefits
only if they are presently suffering from a disability which
the Department of Veterans Affairs determines to be the
result of disease or injury incurred in or aggravated during
military service. The disability must have been rated by the
Department of Veterans Affairs as ten per cent or more to be
compensable. No compensation may be paid for a service-
connected disability rated less than ten per cent disabling.
Benefits are payable in Philippine pesos. Medical treatment
is provided only for their service-connected disabilities;
and
Whereas, there is no greater duty for a nation of free men
and women than the care of former soldiers and their
dependents, no greater honor for a former soldier than to be
laid to rest next to the soldier's comrades-in-arms, no
greater act of respect that a grateful country can show a
former soldier than to inter the soldier's remains on
hallowed ground, and no greater tribute that future
generations of freedom-loving Americans can visit upon a
former soldier than to remember those sacrifices may be the
soldier on the battlefield; and
Whereas, in the words of President Abraham Lincoln, upon
the establishment of the Veterans Administration (now the
United States Department of Veterans Affairs), this country
has a sacred duty ``to care for him who shall have borne the
battle, and for his widow and his orphan''; and awarding the
full-range of veterans benefits to former soldiers is the
very least that a grateful nation can do for those persons
who placed themselves in harm's way to protect the United
States from its enemies; now, therefore, be it
Resolved by the House of Representatives of the Twenty-
first Legislature of the State of Hawaii, Regular Session of
2002, the Senate concurring, that Congress and the President
of the United States are requested to support legislation to
repeal the Rescission Act of 1946 and the Second Supplemental
Surplus Appropriation Rescission Act (1946), and to restore
Filipino World War II veterans' to full United States
veterans' status and benefits; and be it further
Resolved that Hawaii's congressional delegation is again
requested to continue its support for legislation and other
action to ensure that Filipino-American veterans who served
honorably in an active-duty status under the command of the
USAFFE or within the Philippine Army, the Philippine Scouts,
or recognized guerrilla units, between September 1, 1939, and
December 31, 1946, are granted the full range of veterans
benefits that they were promised, that they are entitled to
and that is provided to other veterans recognized by the
Department of Veterans Affairs; and be it further
Resolved that certified copies of this Concurrent
Resolution be transmitted to the President of the United
States, the Speaker of the United States House of
Representatives, the President pro tempore of the United
States Senate, the Secretary of Veterans Affairs, the members
of Hawaii's congressional delegation, and the Adjutant
General.
____
POM-275. A House Concurrent Resolution adopted by the
Legislature of the State of Hawaii relative to the
establishment of state-province relations of friendship
between the State of Hawaii of the United States of America
and the Province of Pangasinan of the Republic of the
Philippines; to the Committee on Foreign Relations.
House Concurrent Resolution 28 S.D.1
Whereas, the State of Hawaii is actively seeking to expand
its international ties and has an abiding interest in
developing goodwill, friendship, and economic relations
between the people of Hawaii and the people of Asian and
Pacific countries; and
Whereas, as part of its effort to achieve this goal, Hawaii
has established a number of sister-state agreements with
provinces in the Pacific region; and
Whereas, because of historical relationship between the
United States of America and the Republic of the Philippines,
there continues to exist valid reasons to promote
international friendship and understanding for the mutual
benefit of both countries to achieve lasting peace and
prosperity as it serves the common interests of both
countries; and
Whereas, there are historical precedents exemplifying the
common desire to maintain a close cultural, commercial, and
financial bridge between ethnic Filipinos living in Hawaii
with their relatives, friends, and business counterparts in
the Philippines, such as the previously established sister-
city relationship between the City and County of Honolulu and
the City of Cebu in the Provinces of Cebu and the City of
Laoag in Ilocos Norte; and
Whereas, similar state-province relationships exist between
the State of Hawaii and the Provinces of Cebu and Ilocos Sur,
whereby cooperation and communication have served to
establish exchanges in the areas of business, trade,
agriculture and industry, tourism, sports, health care,
social welfare, and other fields of human endeavor; and
Whereas, a similar sister state relationship would
reinforce and cement this common bridge for understanding and
mutual assistance between the ethnic Filipinos of both the
State of Hawaii and the Province of Pangasinan; and
Whereas, there is an existing relationship between the
Province of Pangasinan and the State of Hawaii because
several notable citizens in Hawaii can trace their roots or
have immigrated from the Province of Pangasinan, and the town
of Urdaneta in Pangasinan now prominently features an ``Arch
of Aloha'' at the gateway to the town; now, therefore, be it
Resolved by the House of Representatives of the Twenty-
First Legislature of the State of Hawaii, Regular Session of
2002, the Senate concurring, that Governor Benjamin Cayetano,
of the State of Hawaii, or his designee, be authorized and is
requested to take all necessary actions to establish a
sister-state affiliation with the Province of Pangasinan; and
be it further
Resolved that the Governor or his designee is requested to
keep the Legislature of the State of Hawaii fully informed of
the process establishing the relationship, and involved in
its formalization to the extent practicable; and be it
further
Resolved that the Province of Pangasinan be afforded the
privileges and honors that Hawaii extends to its sister-
states and provinces; and be it further
Resolved that if by June 30, 2007, the sister-state
affiliation with the Province of Pangasinan has not reached a
sustainable basis by providing mutual economic benefits
through local community support, the sister-state affiliation
shall be withdrawn; and be it further
Resolved that certified copies of this Concurrent
Resolution be transmitted to the President of the United
States, the Governor of the State of Hawaii, the President of
the United States Senate, the Speaker of the United States
House of Representatives, Hawaii's congressional delegation,
the President of the Republic of the Philippines through its
Honolulu Consulate General, and the Governor and Provincial
Board of the Province of Pangasinan, Philippines.
____
POM-276. A Senate Concurrent Resolution adopted by the
Legislature of the State of Hawaii relative to the
establishment of a center for the health, welfare, and
education of children, youth, and families for Asia and the
Pacific; to the Committee on Foreign Relations.
Senate Concurrent Resolution 69 H.D. 1
Whereas, the Millennium Young People's Congress held in
Hawaii in October 1999, demonstrated the value of a
collective global vision by and for the children of the world
and the need for a forum for international discussion of
issues facing all children and youth; and
Whereas, children and youth are the key to world peace,
sustainability, and productivity in the next millennium; and
Whereas, the health, welfare, and education of children and
families are part of the basic foundation and values shared
globally that should be provided for all children and youth;
and
Whereas, the populations of countries in Asia and the
Pacific Rim are the largest and fastest growing segment of
the world's population with young people representing the
largest percentage of that population; and
Whereas, Hawaii's location in the middle of the Pacific Rim
between Asia and the Americas, along with a diverse culture
and many shared languages, provides an excellent and
strategic location for meetings and exchanges as demonstrated
by the Millennium Young People's Congress, to discuss the
health, welfare, and rights of children as a basic foundation
for all children and youth, and to research pertinent issues
and alternatives concerning children and youth, and to
propose viable models for societal application; now,
therefore, be it
Resolved by the Senate of the Twenty-first Legislature of
the State of Hawaii, Regular session of 2002, the House of
Representatives concurring, that the United Nations is
respectfully requested to consider the establishment in
Hawaii of a Center for the Health, Welfare, and Education of
Children, Youth and Families for Asia and the Pacific; and be
it further
Resolved that the President of the United States and the
United States Congress are urged to support the establishment
of the Center; and be it further
Resolved that the House and Senate Committees on Health
convene an exploratory task force to develop such a proposal
for consideration by the United Nations; and be it further
Resolved that certified copies of this Concurrent
Resolution be transmitted to the Secretary General of the
United Nations, President of the United States, President of
the United States Senate, Speaker of the United States House
of Representatives, President of the University of Hawaii,
President of the East West Center, President of the United
Nations Association in Hawaii, and members of Hawaii's
Congressional Delegation.
[[Page S7897]]
____
POM-277. A resolution adopted by the House of the
Legislature of the State of Hawaii relative to supporting the
acquisition of Kahuku Ranch for the expansion of the Hawaii
Volcanoes National Park and of Killae Village for expansion
of Pu Uhonua O Honaunau National Historical Park; to the
Committee on Energy and Natural Resources.
House Resolution 15
Whereas, the Volcanoes National Park on the Big Island
consists of 217,000 acres and is one of only two national
parks in this State; and
Whereas, The Volcanoes National Park attracts about
1,500,000 visitors each year who enjoy the natural beauty of
the lava fields, native forests, and ocean cliffs; and
Whereas, a large parcel of land lying to the south and west
of the Volcanoes National Park known as Kahuku Ranch
consisting of 117,000 acres has come up for sale; and
Whereas, the Kahuku parcel contains outstanding geological,
biological, cultural, scenic, and recreational value, and is
the sole habitat for at least four threatened and endangered
bird species endemic to Hawaii; and
Whereas, the National Park Service since 1945 has
recognized that the property contained nationally significant
resources and in fact, in its 1975 Master Plan, the National
Park Service identified the property as a ``potential
addition to improve the geological, ecological, and scenic
integrity of Hawaii Volcanoes National Park''; and
Whereas, the 181-acre Pu`uhonua O Honaunau National
Historical Park was established in 1961 to save a sacred
place of refuge that for centuries offered sanctuary to any
who reached its walls; and
Whereas, adjacent to Pu`uhonua O Honaunau are the remains
of Ki`ilae, an ancient Hawaiian settlement dating back to the
late 12th or early 13th centuries, and which remained active
until about 1930, making it one of the last traditional
Hawaiian villages to be abandoned; and
Whereas, significant portions of this ancient Hawaiian
village remain outside of national park boundaries; and
Whereas, including these lands within the boundaries of
Pu`uhonua O Honaunau National Historical Park has been a goal
of park management for more than three decades; and
Whereas, the park's 1972 Master Plan identified Ki`ilae
Village as a proposed boundary extension and in 1992, a
Boundary Expansion Study completed for the park called for
adding the ``balance of Ki`ilae Village''; and
Whereas, within the Ki`ilae lands the National Park Service
is seeking to acquire, more than 800 archeological sites,
structures, and features have been identified, including at
least twenty-five caves and ten heaiu, more than twenty
platforms, twenty-six enclosures, over forty burial features,
residential compounds, a holua slide, canoe landing sites, a
water well, numerous walls, and a wide range of agricultural
features; and
Whereas, in June 2001, Senator Inouye and Senator Akaka
introduced a bill to authorize the addition of the Ki`ilae
Village lands to Pu`uhonua O Honaunau National Historical
Park and in October 2001, this bill passed the United States
Senate and it is anticipated that the authorization bill will
pass the House of Representatives as well; and
Whereas, these acquisitions offer an opportunity rarely
imagined because they would give the National Park Service an
excellent chance to expand and protect native plants and
archaeological sites from destruction; and
Whereas, these opportunities can benefit current and future
generations of residents and tourists, because expansion of
Volcanoes National Park and Pu`uhonua O Honaunau National
Historical Park will preserve more open space, add to the
natural environment, protect affected native species, and
preserve cultural and historical sites; and
Whereas, in January 2001, the National Park Service held a
series of public meetings to receive comments from the public
regarding possible purchase of Kahuku Ranch and Ki`ilae
Village, and the nearly 400 people in attendance at the
meetings expressed overwhelming support and endorsement; now
therefore, be it
Resolved by the House of Representatives of the Twenty-
First Legislature of the State of Hawaii, Regular Session of
2002, that this body supports the acquisition by the United
States National Park Service of Kahuku Ranch for expansion of
the Hawaii Volcanoes National Park and of Ki`ilae Village for
expansion of Pu`uhonua O Honaunau National Historical Park;
and be it further
Resolved that certified copies of this Resolution be
transmitted to the Director of the National Park Service, the
President of the United States Senate, the Speaker of the
United States House of Representatives, and to the members of
Hawaii's congressional delegation.
____
POM-278. A resolution adopted by the House of the
Legislature of the State of Hawaii relative to the
establishment of a sister-state relationship between the
State of Hawaii and the Municipality of Tianjin in the
People's Republic of China; to the Committee on Foreign
Relations.
House Resolution 117
Whereas, Tianjin, a city in northeastern China, is one of
four municipalities under the direct control of the central
government of the People's Republic of China, and in 2001 had
a population slightly over 10,000,000; and
Whereas, the city is made up of 13 districts, five
counties, 126 villages, 93 towns, and 133 street communities;
and
Whereas, the history of Tianjin begins with the opening of
the Sui Dynasty's Big Canal (581-617 AD). Beginning in the
mid-Tang Dynasty (618-907 AD), Tianjin became the nexus for
the transport of foodstuffs and silk between south and north
China. During the Ming Dynasty (1404 AD), the city figured
prominently as a military center. In 1860, its importance as
a business and communications center began to grow; and
Whereas, Tianjin is known as the Bright Diamond of Bohai
Gulf and is the gateway to China's capital of Beijing.
Tianjin is one of China's biggest business and industrial
port cities and, in north China, is the biggest port city.
Tianjin now ranks second in importance and size in terms of
industry, business, finance, and trade in the north. Its
industrial production and trade volume is second only to
Shanghai in the south; and
Whereas, the city's traditional industries include mining,
metallurgy, machine-building, chemicals, power production,
textiles, construction materials, paper-making, foodstuffs,
shipbuilding, automobile manufacturing, petroleum
exploitation and processing, tractor production, fertilizer
and pesticide production, and watch, television, and camera
manufacturing; and
Whereas, in 1994, Tianjin's economic goal was to double its
gross national product by the year 2003. With its 1997 gross
national product reaching RMB 124 billion yuan (about RMB
8.26 yuan to US$ 1), Tianjin is poised to reach that goal. By
the end of 1998, 12,065 foreign-owned companies were
established in Tianjin that invested a total of RMB 21.017
billion yuan (about US$ 2.5 billion). About RMB 9.291 billion
yuan (about US$ 1.1 billion) of that amount was used for
development of Tianjin; and
Whereas, in the past, business and other forms of
industrial enterprises were primarily state-owned throughout
China. However, under on-going nationwide reform, the
proportion of businesses that are state-owned is being
reduced. In Tianjin, the percentage of state-owned
enterprises in 1997 was 35.7 percent versus 16.6 percent for
collective ownership, and 47.7 percent for other forms,
including private ownership. In the retail sector, the
respective proportions were 23.7 percent, 17.3 percent, and
59 percent, respectively; and
Whereas, Tianjin has a broad science and technology base
upon which to build, for example, it is home to 161
independent research institutions (117 local and 44
national). Aside from its several universities and colleges,
Tianjin has six national-level laboratories and 27 national
and ministerial-level technological test centers and has
plans to increase its science and technology educational
goals; and
Whereas, in 1984, the State Council issued a directive to
establish the Tianjin Economic-Technological Development Area
(TEDA), situated some 35 miles from Tianjin. Recently, some
3,140 foreign-invested companies have located to TEDA with a
total investment of over US$ 11 billion; and
Whereas, at present, TEDA has developed four pillar
industries: electronics and communications, automobile
manufacturing and mechanization, food and beverages, and
biopharmacy, and is promoting four new industries:
information software, bioengineering, new energies, and
environmental protection; and
Whereas, in 1996, TEDA began offering a technology
incubator to help small and medium-sized enterprises with
funding, tax breaks, personnel, etc. Within the TEDA high-
tech park, Tianjin offers preferential treatment in the form
of funding, land fees, taxes, and facilities (such as water,
gas, and heating). Residential and other services,
shopping, and educational and recreation facilities are
either already in place or are being planned; and
Whereas, for the eleven months ending November 2001, total
exports from TEDA was US$ 3.53 billion, of which foreign-
funded enterprises accounted for US$ 3.49 billion while total
foreign investment in TEDA amounted to US$ 2.3 billion; and
Whereas, Hawaii has been, since its early days, the
destination of many Chinese immigrants who have helped to
develop the State and its economy; and
Whereas, compared to the rest of the country, Hawaii is
advantageously situated in the Pacific to better establish
and maintain cultural, educational, and economic
relationships with countries in the Asia-Pacific region,
especially the People's Republic of China; and
Whereas, the new century we have embarked upon has been
described by some as the ``century of Asia'' or the ``China's
century''; and
Whereas, like Tianjin, Hawaii is also striving to diversify
its economy by expanding into environmentally clean high-
technology industries including medical services and
research; and
Whereas, the State also emphasizes the importance of higher
education in order to create a solid foundation and workforce
to serve as the basis from which to launch initiatives in
high-technology development; and
Whereas, both Hawaii and Tianjin share many common goals
and values as both work towards achieving their economic and
educational objectives in the new century, and the people of
the State of Hawaii desire to form a mutually beneficial
relationship between the State of Hawaii and the municipality
of Tianjin to share our knowledge and
[[Page S7898]]
experiences in order to better assist each other in reaching
our goals; now, therefore, be it
Resolved by the House of Representatives of the Twenty-
First Legislature of the State of Hawaii, Regular Session of
2002, that Governor Benjamin Cayetano, of the State of
Hawaii, or his designee, be authorized and is requested to
take all necessary actions to establish a sister-state
affiliation with the municipality of Tianjin of the People's
Republic of China; and be it further
Resolved that the Governor or his designee is requested to
keep the Legislature of the State of Hawaii fully informed of
the process in establishing the relationship, and involved in
its formalization to the extent practicable; and be it
further
Resolved that the municipality of Tianjin be afforded the
privileges and honors that Hawaii extends to its sister-
states and provinces; and be it further
Resolved that certified copies of this Resolution be
transmitted to President of the United States, the Governor
of the State of Hawaii, the President of the United States
Senate, the Speaker of the United States House of
Representatives, Hawaii's coangressional delegation, and the
President of the People's Republic of China and the Mayor of
the municipality of Tianjin through the Los Angeles Consulate
General of the People's Republic of China.
____________________