[Congressional Record Volume 149, Number 76 (Wednesday, May 21, 2003)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1037]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




              COERCED STERIZATION INVESTIGATED IN SLOVAKIA

                                 ______
                                 

                       HON. CHRISTOPHER H. SMITH

                             of new jersey

                    in the house of representatives

                        Wednesday, May 21, 2003

  Mr. SMITH of New Jersey. Mr. Speaker, on May 8, the Senate gave its 
consent to protocols providing for the accession of seven new members 
to the North Atlantic Treaty Organization. I have supported Slovakia's 
admission to NATO and am heartened that the post-1998 democratic and 
human rights progress in Slovakia made the Senate vote possible.
  Slovak leaders continue to demonstrate in many concrete ways their 
commitment to the oftcited but not always visible ``shared values'' 
that are central to the trans-Atlantic community. I was moved to read 
that several Slovak leaders, including Speaker of the Parliament, Pavol 
Hrusovsky, with whom I met last year, Laszlo Nagy, Chairman of the 
Parliament's human rights committee, and the Foreign Ministry have 
spoken out so clearly and strongly on behalf of the Cuban dissidents 
victimized by Castro's recent sweeping crackdown on human rights 
activists.
  At the same time, I have continuing concerns about the Slovak 
Government's ongoing investigation into allegations that Romani women 
were sterilized without proper informed consent.
  Mr. Speaker, I know these allegations are of concern to many members 
of the Helsinki Commission, one of whom recently sponsored a Capitol 
Hill briefing concerning the sterilizations. I also discussed the issue 
with Slovak Ambassador Martin Butora and Deputy Minister Ivan Korcok in 
March. Eight Helsinki Commissioners joined me in writing to Prime 
Minister Dzurinda to express our concern, and U.S. Assistant Secretary 
for Human Rights, Democracy, and Labor, Lome Craner, commented on this 
abhorrent practice at his hearing on the State Department's annual 
human rights report.
  I was encouraged by the Prime Minister's substantive and sympathetic 
response, and I commend his commitment to improve respect for the human 
rights of Slovakia's Romani minority.
  At the same time, I am deeply troubled by one particular aspect of 
the government's response to the reports documenting that 
sterilizations occurred without proper informed consent.
  Shortly after the release in January of a lengthy report on 
sterilization of Romani women, a spokesperson for the ministry 
responsible for human rights was quoted in The New York Times as 
saying: ``If we confirm this information, we will expand our charges to 
the report's authors, that they knew about a crime for a year and did 
not report it to a prosecutor. And if we prove it is not true, they 
will be charged with spreading false information and damaging the good 
name of Slovakia.''
  In other words, if the government's investigation does not find 
evidence of coerced sterilization, they intend to make those who dared 
make the allegation pay a price. And if the government's investigation 
does confirm the allegation, they will still make those who made the 
allegation pay a price. I believe this is what is meant by the old 
expression, ``Damned if you do, and damned if you don't.'' This is 
really an outrageous threat, and it's hard to believe that an official 
responsible for human rights would have made it.
  Mr. Speaker, I had hoped that this was an unfortunate misstatement 
and not really reflective of the Slovak Government's policies. I had 
hoped that the fact that almost every newspaper article, from Los 
Angeles to Moscow, about coerced sterilization in Slovakia has 
mentioned this threat would lead the Slovak Government to issue some 
kind of clarification or retraction. Unfortunately, not only has there 
been no such clarification or retraction, but the threat has now been 
repeated--not once, but at least twice.
  First, in mid-March, the Ministry of Health issued a report based on 
its own investigation into the allegations. (A separate government 
investigation continues.) Naming a particular Slovak human rights 
advocate by name, the ministry complained that she had refused to 
cooperate with police investigators and this could be considered 
covering up a crime. Essentially the same point was made by Slovakia's 
Ambassador to the OSCE in early April, ironically during a meeting on 
Romani human rights issues.
  Mr. Speaker, these threats raise serious doubts about the breadth and 
depth of the Slovak Government's commitment to get at the truth in this 
disturbing matter. Can the Slovak Government really expect women who 
may have been sterilized without consent to come forward and cooperate 
with an investigation with a threat like this hanging over them? A few 
brave souls may, but I believe these threats have had a substantial 
chilling effect on the investigative process.
  In fact, it is not unusual for those whose rights have been violated 
to confide their stories only upon condition of anonymity. And while I 
realize there has been a very serious effort in Slovakia to improve the 
professionalism of the police and to address past police abuses against 
Roma, I certainly can't blame Romani women if they are unwilling to 
pour their hearts out to their local constables. Simply put, the police 
have not yet earned that trust.
  I hope the Slovak Government will set the record straight on this and 
remove any doubt that the days when human rights activists could be 
sent to jail for their reports is over. Doing so is critical for the 
credibility of the government's ongoing investigation.

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