[Congressional Record Volume 149, Number 92 (Friday, June 20, 2003)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E1310-E1311]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                                LIBERIA

                                 ______
                                 

                         HON. CHRIS VAN HOLLEN

                              of maryland

                    in the house of representatives

                        Thursday, June 19, 2003

  Mr. VAN HOLLEN. Mr. Speaker, after six years in power and over a 
decade as a regional warlord there are signs that Liberian President 
Charles Taylor, one of the worst violators of human rights in the world 
may be leaving power. On June 17, the Associated Press reported that 
the Liberian Defense Minister Daniel Chea committed Taylor to step down 
as part of a peace agreement with rebel groups fighting his government. 
Taylor's rule has been marked by human rights violations on a massive 
scale.
  Currently Liberia is enmeshed in a vicious civil war. According to 
the Associated Press, ``The past three years of rebellion have uprooted 
more than 1.3 million Liberians, sending hundreds of thousands of them 
fleeing into neighboring countries.'' His rule has not only brought 
death and destruction to Liberia but undermined stability throughout 
West Africa. He sponsored the Revolutionary United Front (RUF) in 
Sierra Leone, a rebel group which conducted a gruesome campaign of 
murders, rapes and kidnappings. The RUF became known for chopping off 
the arms, lips and hands of their victims. Taylor has supported rebel 
groups in Cote d'Ivoire, Guinea and Burkina Faso as well.
  Last week a U.N.-backed war crimes court in Sierra Leone indicted 
Taylor accusing him of ``bearing the greatest responsibility for war 
crimes, crimes against humanity and serious violations of international 
humanitarian law'' during Sierra Leone's civil war. As the brave men 
and women of our armed forces work to bring peace and stability to the 
peoples of Afghanistan and Iraq it is important to point to other 
victims of human rights abuses in other parts of the world that do not 
receive as much media attention. The Bush administration has spoken 
about the importance of promoting human rights and democracy, but has 
done little to support the aspirations for

[[Page E1311]]

freedom on the part of the Liberians despite Liberia's deep historical 
ties to the United States. We can and should do all that we can to 
support the peaceful removal from power of Charles Taylor and ensure 
that he faces the charges brought against him by the U.N.-backed court.

                          ____________________