[Congressional Record Volume 149, Number 11 (Wednesday, January 22, 2003)]
[Senate]
[Pages S1359-S1361]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                           CRISIS IN ETHIOPIA

  Mr. KENNEDY. Mr. President, our colleague in the House of 
Representatives, Frank Wolf, recently returned from a visit to Ethiopia 
and Eritrea. His report on the trip describes the dire health and 
humanitarian crisis in these countries.
  Congressman Wolf states that, without urgently needed support, an 
additional 11 million people may perish because of the famine 
exacerbated by drought, because of the HIV/AIDS epidemic, and because 
of the lingering effects of those countries' 2\1/2\ year border war.
  These issues are extremely serious, and the international community 
can and must do more to help alleviate this crisis. I believe that 
Congressman Wolf's report will be of interest to all of us in the 
Senate, and I ask unanimous consent that it be printed in the 
Congressional Record.

[[Page S1360]]

  There being no objection, the material was ordered to be printed in 
the Record, as follows:

  Trip Report: Ethiopia and Eritrea--December 29, 2002-January 4, 2003

       Babies wailing and screeching, desperately trying to get 
     nourishment from their mothers' breasts.
       Two- and three-year-olds so severely malnourished that they 
     cannot stand, much less crawl or walk, their pencil-thin legs 
     so frail that they could be snapped like a twig with little 
     or no effort.
       Young boys and girls with bloated bellies. A teenager whose 
     legs are no thicker than my wrist.
       Drinking water almost non-existent--a four-hour walk each 
     way just to find some. Fields scorched. Crops failed.
       River beds dry as a bone. Hand-dug collecting ponds for 
     rain so sun-baked that the earth has cracked.
       Disease. Despair.
       These are some of the horrific sites I witnessed last week 
     in Ethiopia, which once again is facing a famine of 
     catastrophic proportions.
       I spent a week in Ethiopia in 1984--when nearly one million 
     people died of starvation--including two nights in a feeding 
     camp. The squalid conditions of the camps and the suffering 
     faces of the children, mothers and elderly were haunting and 
     unforgettable. What I saw--and experienced--changed me 
     forever. I never thought I would see something like that 
     again. I have. Last week.
       By Easter, thousands of Ethiopians could be dead from 
     starvation. Children living in villages just 90 miles from 
     the capital city, Addis Ababa, which is easily accessible by 
     truck, are already near death. Conditions in villages in more 
     remote areas of the country are significantly worse.


                             Dire Situation

       While the government of Ethiopia is out in front of trying 
     to draw attention to the crisis--unlike in 1984 when the 
     Mengistu government tried to keep the famine secret until a 
     BBC camera crew broke the story--what makes this year's 
     crisis more horrific is that the population of Ethiopia has 
     increased from 45 million in 1984 to 69 million today. In 
     addition, HIV/AIDS is spreading throughout the country and 
     Ethiopia's 2\1/2\-year border was with neighboring Eritrea 
     has drained precious resources and led to thousands of 
     displaced people and families, particularly in remote areas 
     of the country.
       With each crisis--drought, war, disease--more families 
     become destitute and completely dependent on others for their 
     welfare and survival. The repeated droughts have made more 
     people vulnerable to hunger and hunger-related diseases, 
     sharply increasing the danger of outright starvation among 
     groups that may have been able to survive previous crop 
     failures and livestock losses.
       This also is a tough neighborhood, with Sudan bordering to 
     the west and Somalia to the east. These countries are 
     struggling to overcome internal turmoil of their own and 
     refugees from each have crossed into Ethiopia and are living 
     in refugee camps.
       But perhaps the greatest difficulty is getting the world to 
     respond. The focus in capital cities around the globe is the 
     war on terror, Iraq and North Korea.


                         how could this happen?

       I do not believe this situation should ever have been 
     allowed to develop. Does anyone really believe that the world 
     would turn a blind eye if this crisis were unfolding in 
     France or Australia? If the photographs in this report were 
     of Norwegian children wouldn't the world be rushing to help? 
     Is not the value of an Ethiopian child or Eritrean mother the 
     same in the eyes of God?
       This disaster has been building since last fall, yet there 
     has been little mention of it in the Western media, let alone 
     any in depth reports. Without graphic photographs and video-
     tape, foreign governments will not feel the pressure to act.
       The situation in Ethiopia is dire and many believe if 
     immediate action is not taken to address the looming crisis, 
     the number of people who could die from starvation could 
     surpass those who perished during the 1984-1985 drought. In 
     1984, 8 million were in need of food aid. Today, more than 11 
     million people--just slightly less than the combined 
     population of Maryland and Virginia--are presently at risk 
     and that number is growing every day.
       Last year's crops produced little or nothing, even in parts 
     of the country that normally provide surpluses of food. The 
     demand for international food aid is tremendous. I was told 
     there is enough food in the country to meet January's needs 
     and part of February's, although at reduced levels. 
     Incredibly, there is nothing in the pipeline to deal with 
     March, April, May, or the rest of the year. Even if ships 
     leaded with grain were to leave today, many would not make it 
     in time to avert disaster.
       Villagers are living on about 900 calories a day. The 
     average American lives on 2,200 to 2,400 calories a day.
       An elderly woman at a feeding station in the northern part 
     of the country showed me her monthly allotment of wheat: it 
     would have fit into a bowling ball bag.
       A man working under the hot African sun with fellow 
     villagers to dig a massive rain collecting pond--each 
     carrying 50-pound bags of dirt up from the bottom of the 
     pit--told me he had not had a drink of water all day and 
     didn't know if he would eat that night. It would depend on 
     whether his children had food.


                                no water

       Water--for drinking and bathing--is almost non-existent, 
     and what is available, is putrid. There is no medicine--and 
     even if there was something as simple as an aspirin there is 
     no water with which to wash it down. Disease is rampant.
       During my trip I visited villages in both the north and 
     south of the country. I went to a food distribution center 
     and a health clinic. I talked with farmers who had already 
     begun to sell off their livestock and mothers who did not 
     know where or when their children would get their next meal. 
     I met with U.S. State Department officials and NGOs. I also 
     met with Prime Minister Meles and a number of relief 
     officials in his government.
       The government's decision not to establish feeding camps is 
     a wise one. The camps only exacerbate the crisis because they 
     allow diseases to spread much more quickly and take people 
     away from their homes and albeit limited support systems. In 
     1984, many families traveled great distances to reach the 
     camps and by the time they got there were often near death. 
     Moreover, villagers who left for the camps and somehow 
     managed to survive had nothing to return to because they had 
     lost their homes and sold their livestock.
       Fortunately, relief organizations, including U.S. AID and 
     the United Nations World Food Programme, have developed an 
     early warning system to better predict the effects of the 
     looming crisis and have been sounding the alarm since the 
     fall.
       Nevertheless, they are facing an uphill battle. Donor 
     fatigue is a very real problem.


                         competing world crisis

       Getting the world--and the United States, in particular--to 
     focus on the issue is difficult because of the war on 
     terrorism, the situation in Iraq and the growing crisis in 
     North Korea.
       Since August 2002, the United States has provided 
     approximately 430,000 metric tons of food, valued at $179 
     million. This amount constitutes approximately 25 percent of 
     the total need in the country. The U.S. government will need 
     to do more to avert a disaster of biblical proportions.
       Before leaving on the trip, a number of well read people in 
     the Washington area looked at me quizzically when I told them 
     I was going to Ethiopia. They all asked why? When I told them 
     that the country was facing another famine along the scale of 
     1984, they were dumbfounded.
       Time is of the essence. A village can slip dramatically in 
     just a matter of weeks. Many of the children I saw last week 
     will be dead by early February and those who do somehow 
     miraculously survive will be severely retarded. The world 
     cannot afford to wait any longer.
       I also visited neighboring Eritrea, where the situation is 
     not much better. Widespread crop failures are expected as a 
     result of the drought. Compounding the situation are the 
     lingering effects of its war with Ethiopia, which ended in 
     December 2000. While nearly 200,000 refugees and displaced 
     persons have been reintegrated into society following the 
     truce, almost 60,000 have been unable to return to their 
     homes due to the presence of land mines, unexploded ordnance, 
     insecurity or the simple fact that the infrastructure near 
     their homes has been completely destroyed.


                            recommendations

       Donors, including the United States, must make prompt and 
     significant food-aid pledges to help Ethiopia overcome its 
     current crisis. The food pipeline could break down as early 
     as next month if donors do not act immediately. There are a 
     number of countries, Canada and France, for instance, that 
     can and should do more.
       The Office of Management and Budget (OMB) must work to 
     ensure that the U.S. assistance is released as quickly as 
     possible.
       When President Bush visits Africa, he should consider going 
     to Ethiopia. I believe he would be moved by what he sees.
       The Bush Administration should make an effort to rally 
     public support similar to what was done during the 1984-85 
     famine. Perhaps the new director of faith-based initiatives 
     at USAID should serve as the coordinator for such an effort.
       Donor support also must include water, seeds and medicine 
     as well as veterinary assistance.
       The Ethiopian government should take its case to capitals 
     around the globe, sending representatives to donor nations 
     armed with photographs of dying children to put a face on the 
     growing crisis. Regrettably, if they do not ask, they will 
     not receive.
       The Ethiopian government must contribute additional food 
     aid from its own resources as it did in 2000 and 2002 as a 
     sign of leadership and commitment to the welfare of its 
     people.
       More must be done to develop long-term strategies to tackle 
     the root causes of the food shortages in Ethiopia, like 
     improving irrigation and developing drought-resistant crops. 
     The government must develop a 10- or 15-year plan designed to 
     help end the constant cycle of massive food shortages. A well 
     developed plan would go a long way toward reassuring the 
     international community that the country wants to end its 
     dependence on handouts.
       The Ethiopian government also should do more to help 
     diversity its economy. Its largest export--coffee--is subject 
     to huge price

[[Page S1361]]

     fluctuations in the world market and rather than exporting 
     hides and leather to Italy and China--only to come back as 
     belts, purses and shoes--the government should work to 
     attract business that will make these products on Ethiopian 
     soil.
       The government of Ethiopia also should consider a sweeping 
     land reform policy that would allow farmers to own their 
     property rather than the government owning all the country's 
     land, a vestige of the country's socialist days.
       The media needs to more aggressively pursue this looming 
     crisis. It was responsible for making the world aware of the 
     terrible famine that was occurring in 1984 and has the 
     ability to let the world know about the tragedy unfolding 
     again.
       Many of the same issues that apply to Ethiopia apply to 
     Eritrea. Both countries are in desperate need of assistance.
       In closing, I want to thank all the people--from government 
     officials in both Ethiopia and Eritrea to U.S. officials and 
     NGOs and missionaries in both countries--who are working 
     around the clock to deal with this crisis. I also want to 
     thank U.S. Ambassador to Eritrea Donald McConnell and U.S. 
     Ambassador to Ethiopia Auzerlia Brazeal and their respective 
     staffs for all they do. They are outstanding representatives 
     of the U.S. government. Special thanks go to Jack Doutrich in 
     Eritrea and Karen Freeman, Jo Raisin and Makeda Tsegaye in 
     Ethiopia. Roy ``Reb'' Brownell with USAID in Washington also 
     deserves special recognition.
       Finally, I want to thank Lt. Col. Malcom Shorter, who 
     accompanied me on the trip, and Dan Scandling, my chief of 
     staff, who took all the photographs and videotaped the trip.

                          ____________________