[Congressional Record Volume 149, Number 147 (Monday, October 20, 2003)]
[House]
[Pages H9692-H9694]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




 EXPRESSING SENSE OF HOUSE REGARDING MAN-MADE FAMINE THAT OCCURRED IN 
                          UKRAINE IN 1932-1933

  Mr. HYDE. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and agree to the 
resolution (H. Res. 356) expressing the sense of the House of 
Representatives regarding the man-made famine that occurred in Ukraine 
in 1932-1933.
  The Clerk read as follows:

                              H. Res. 356

       Whereas 2003 marks the 70th anniversary of the height of 
     the famine in Ukraine that was deliberately initiated and 
     enforced by the Soviet regime through the seizure of grain 
     and the blockade of food shipments into the affected areas, 
     as well as by forcibly preventing the starving population 
     from leaving the region, for the purposes of eliminating 
     resistance to the forced collectivization of agriculture and 
     destroying Ukraine's national identity;
       Whereas this man-made famine resulted in the deaths of at 
     least 5,000,000 men, women, and children in Ukraine and an 
     estimated 1-2 million people in other regions;
       Whereas the famine took place in the most productive 
     agricultural area of the former Soviet Union while foodstocks 
     throughout the country remained sufficient to prevent the 
     famine and while the Soviet regime continued to export large 
     quantities of grain;
       Whereas many Western observers with first-hand knowledge of 
     the famine, including The New York Times correspondent Walter 
     Duranty, who was awarded a Pulitzer Prize in 1932 for his 
     reporting from the Soviet Union, knowingly and deliberately 
     falsified their reports to cover up and refute evidence of 
     the famine in order to suppress criticism of the Soviet 
     regime;
       Whereas Western observers and scholars who reported 
     accurately on the existence of the famine were subjected to 
     disparagement and criticism in the West for their reporting 
     of the famine;
       Whereas the Soviet regime and many scholars in the West 
     continued to deny the existence of the famine until the 
     collapse of the Soviet regime in 1991 resulted in many of its 
     archives being made accessible, thereby making possible the 
     documentation of the premeditated nature of the famine and 
     its harsh enforcement;
       Whereas the final report of the United States Government's 
     Commission on the Ukraine Famine, established on December 13, 
     1985, concluded that the victims were ``starved to death in a 
     man-made famine'' and that ``Joseph Stalin and those around 
     him committed genocide against Ukrainians in 1932-1933''; and
       Whereas, although the Ukraine famine was one of the 
     greatest losses of human life in the 20th century, it remains 
     insufficiently known in the United States and in the world: 
     Now, therefore, be it
       Resolved, That it is the sense of the House of 
     Representatives that--
       (1) the millions of victims of the man-made famine that 
     occurred in Ukraine in 1932-1933 should be solemnly 
     remembered and honored in the 70th year marking the height of 
     the famine;
       (2) this man-made famine was designed and implemented by 
     the Soviet regime as a deliberate act of terror and mass 
     murder against the Ukrainian people;
       (3) the decision of the Government of Ukraine and the 
     Verkhovna Rada (the Ukrainian parliament) to give official 
     recognition to the famine and its victims, as well as their 
     efforts to secure greater international awareness and 
     understanding of the famine, should be supported; and
       (4) the official recognition of the famine by the 
     Government of Ukraine and the Verkhovna Rada represents a 
     significant step in the reestablishment of Ukraine's national 
     identity, the elimination of the legacy of the Soviet 
     dictatorship, and the advancement of efforts to establish a 
     democratic and free Ukraine that is fully integrated into the 
     Western community of nations.

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from 
Illinois (Mr. Hyde) and the gentleman from California (Mr. Lantos) each 
will control 20 minutes.
  The Chair recognizes the gentleman from Illinois (Mr. Hyde).
  Mr. HYDE. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
  (Mr. HYDE asked and was given permission to revise and extend his 
remarks.)
  Mr. HYDE. Mr. Speaker, this resolution recognizes and remembers the 
victims of one of the greatest tragedies of the 20th century, namely, 
the more than 5 million men, women and children in Ukraine who were 
deliberately starved to death by the Soviet regime in the terrible 
decade of the 1930s. That regime perpetrated many horrors in its seven 
decades of existence, but surely this must rank among its most 
damnable.
  It is important to stress that this famine was not a natural 
phenomenon, but was instead deliberately engineered. Virtually all 
sustenance in the targeted area was seized, even as the availability of 
food elsewhere in the Soviet Union remained sufficient to prevent the 
famine. The export of grain never ceased even at the height of the 
death tolls.
  Nor was this the result of mere indifference to life, but an uncaring 
regime. Soviet troops and secret police forces were deployed to 
forcibly prevent the starving population from leaving the area in the 
desperate search for food. A sentence of mass death had been pronounced 
and was mercilessly enforced.
  The purpose of the artificial famine was to break resistance to the 
regime's policy of forced collectivization of agriculture, but this was 
coupled with a murderous determination to destroy Ukraine's national 
identity, which the regime considered as a mortal threat to its empire 
and, therefore, brutally suppressed.
  There is a legacy of shame that the West must bear. Many prominent 
Westerners, including journalists and scholars who had firsthand 
knowledge of the famine, deliberately falsified their reporting to 
cover up and refute evidence of the tragedy in order to suppress 
criticism of the Soviet regime. We know their actions were deliberate 
because they confessed their knowledge at the time to confidantes and 
to their diaries. The most notorious of these was Walter Duranty, a 
correspondent for The New York Times who had won a Pulitzer Prize for 
his reporting from the Soviet Union. But he was far from alone.
  Those few who accurately reported on the famine were subject to 
considerable abuse from their colleagues and others in the West, and 
their reports were generally disregarded. That lamentable record 
continued until after the fall of the Soviet regime in 1991, with 
Robert Conquest's book, The Harvest of Sorrow, being a lonely 
exception.
  In remembering and honoring the victims, I must stress that in 
addition to millions of ethnic Ukrainians, the dead included large 
numbers from many other ethnic groups, including Russians, Jews, and a 
host of others large and small.
  It is also important to note that other areas of the Soviet Union 
were also subjected to this man-made famine, especially those 
neighboring regions where an estimated 1\1/2\ million people of many 
ethnic origins were starved to death.
  This tragedy knew no artificial divisions, no insulating borders, no 
refuge. All who perished were equal in their innocence, but the blow 
fell heaviest in Ukraine.
  I would like to take this opportunity to praise the gentleman from 
Michigan (Mr. Levin) for his resolution on the famine in Ukraine, H. 
Res. 254. His has long been one of the most important and influential 
voices in Congress for ensuring that Ukraine and its people remain 
prominent in our thoughts, and we owe him our gratitude for his many 
labors.
  Ukraine's reermergence in 1991 from the Soviet prison house was of 
momentous significance, not merely for Ukraine, but for the entire 
world, because its independence signaled the death of that empire.
  But I regret to say that Ukraine's great and continuing importance to 
the United States and to the West remains largely unmeasured here. For 
an independent Ukraine is an indispensable element in ensuring the 
freedom and security of Europe from the Atlantic to the Urals.
  Our interests and those of the West as a whole require that Ukraine 
complete its transformation into a true democracy; that it establish a 
vibrant economy equal to its national and natural wealth and the 
talents of its people; and that it assume its rightful place in the 
Western community of nations. Although we can provide assistance 
towards these ends, the first two must remain largely the 
responsibility of the Ukrainian people.
  But Urkaine's accession to the institutions of the West can only 
occur with our active support and encouragement. It is my hope we will 
have the wisdom to understand our own interests and

[[Page H9693]]

will act to secure these with permanence.
  Our long-delayed recognition of Ukraine's suffering is also a 
recognition of its emergence from darkness and the reestablishment of 
its independence and is one more step in extending to it our embrace. 
Let us remember that as we now honor the victims of a terrible past 
that it is hopefully gone forever.
  Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. LANTOS. Mr. Speaker. I yield myself such time as I might consume, 
and I rise in strong support of this resolution.
  Mr. Speaker, at the outset I would like to express publicly my 
delight at the decision of the distinguished chairman of the Committee 
on International Relations to continue his service in this Congress and 
for our Nation. This is the best news of the weekend, and I know that 
all of my colleagues on this side of the aisle join me in saying how 
proud and pleased we are that the gentleman from Illinois (Chairman 
Hyde) will continue his wit and wisdom and extraordinary statesmanship 
to the work of this body.

                              {time}  1415

  Mr. Speaker, I would like to commend the gentleman from Illinois (Mr. 
Hyde) for introducing this very timely resolution, which marks the 70th 
anniversary of the atrocity that Joseph Stalin committed against the 
people of Ukraine. We must never forget that Joseph Stalin killed more 
citizens of the Soviet Union through his inhumane and murderous 
policies than any invader of the Soviet Union, or Russia before.
  I also want to commend my good friend and colleague, the gentleman 
from Michigan (Mr. Levin), for introducing a similar resolution; and he 
will speak to this issue in just a moment.
  While the official estimates of the number of Ukrainians killed by 
Stalin's vicious policies during the 2 years of the Ukrainian famine is 
about 5 million, the more considered unofficial estimates suggest that 
about 7 million Ukrainians could have been killed because of a 
deliberately induced policy of starvation on the people of Ukraine. 
This act of terror and mass murder was designed to squash the national 
aspiration of the Ukrainian people. Grain shipments were seized, the 
borders of Ukraine blockaded, and all the while the Soviet regime 
continued to export large quantities of grain and suppress the news of 
Ukraine's suffering.
  The Soviet Government successfully hid this famine from the West, and 
only since the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991 have we been able 
to obtain access to documents confirming the deliberate and 
premeditated murder of vast numbers of the innocent men, women, and 
children of Ukrainian heritage by Stalin's Soviet dictatorship.
  It is a joy, Mr. Speaker, to see Ukraine take its proper place among 
the free and independent nations, no longer a part of the Soviet Union 
but a proud and independent nation, which, after the enormous 
difficulties of the Soviet period, is building a new future for the 
Ukrainian people; and so I urge all of my colleagues to support H. Res. 
356.
  Mr. Speaker, I yield such time as he may consume to the gentleman 
from Michigan (Mr. Levin), my friend and colleague.
  Mr. LEVIN. Mr. Speaker, first, I want to join in the words of the 
gentleman from California (Mr. Lantos) regarding our colleague from 
Illinois. His eloquence and his civility mean a great deal to us, both 
when we agree with him and when we do not. The gentleman from Illinois 
(Mr. Hyde) has, I think, set a standard for everyone to follow in 
discussion of issues on the floor of the United States House and helps 
us be proud that we are Members of this institution.
  I also want to join with the gentleman from Illinois (Mr. Hyde) in 
his comments, as well as the gentleman from California (Mr. Lantos), 
regarding this issue, and also with what the gentleman from Illinois 
had to say about the present and future of Ukraine. As we look back, it 
is important also that we look forward, and the challenge before 
Ukraine today is an important one, both their steps forward and 
sometimes backward. We all join in hoping that the steps forward will 
increase as Ukraine joins fully the ranks of the democratic nations of 
this globe. They have an important role to play.
  But we also have to look back because if we do not look back, we will 
not effectively face the future. So I rise today, Mr. Speaker, to join 
my colleagues in commemorating the 70th anniversary of the tragedy of 
the Ukrainian famine of 1932-33. This resolution recalls the incredible 
suffering and loss sustained by the Ukrainian people, and others, as 
the gentleman from Illinois pointed out, as a result of intentional 
policies implemented by the former Soviet Union which led to the deaths 
of at least 7 million people. Even today, the magnitude and gravity of 
this atrocity remains unknown to too many in the world. And this is why 
every 5 years, at least, we introduce a resolution to mark the 
anniversary.
  As mentioned, more than 7 million women, men, and children died; and 
it was not because of drought or pestilence or crop failure. It was 
because of the deliberate policies of Joseph Stalin and other leaders 
in the Soviet Union. The Soviet Government ruthlessly employed policies 
of forced collectivization and grain seizures to suppress and 
politically neutralize Ukrainian aspirations for independence. Red Army 
soldiers performed systematic house-to-house searches where every scrap 
of food was taken. Grain silos were guarded by military troops, and 
police denied access to even those who had harvested the grain in the 
immediate area, while trains loaded with food left that area.
  The seizures were so harsh that villages were often left with no food 
for their citizens, making the crisis even worse. Soviet authorities 
ordered the borders of Ukraine sealed to prevent anyone from escaping 
the famine and preventing any international food aid from providing 
relief to the starving. Witnesses spoke of Ukrainians eating bark, 
weeds, and even insects to survive.
  Observing the commemoration of this anniversary is significant 
because Stalin and his closest associates concealed the artificially 
created famine for decades. In the aftermath of the collapse of the 
Soviet Union, the world has learned more and more about the harsh 
reality of life under a totalitarian regime, and the truth surrounding 
this atrocity has been revealed.
  We gained greater knowledge after the congressionally mandated U.S. 
Commission on the Ukraine Famine began its work in 1985 to ``provide 
the American public with a better understanding of the Soviet system by 
revealing the Soviet role in the famine.''
  I had a chance recently to go back and read a summary of that report, 
and I urge my colleagues to do likewise. That commission issued its 
final report in 1988, noting 19 findings, including that, and I quote, 
``Joseph Stalin and those around him committed genocide against 
Ukrainians in 1932-33.''
  We also gained knowledge through the recollections of survivors. Dr. 
Walter Lyzohub of Redford Township, Michigan, wrote me a letter 
explaining that he survived the famine, but that the famine took the 
lives of his sister Vera as well as his brother Ivan. His sister and 
brother were aged 10 and 9 respectively. It was heartbreaking, 
heartbreaking, to read that letter. Dr. Lyzohub and all the victims of 
this famine, this atrocity, must never be forgotten or ignored. Only 
through remembrance of the victims and recognition of that famine can 
such acts of senseless cruelty and violence against humankind be 
prevented from happening again.
  I also would like to recognize Michael Sawkiw of the Ukrainian 
Congress Committee of America, who has been in the forefront of helping 
to bring this issue and all important issues regarding Ukraine to the 
attention of Members of Congress. So, Mr. Speaker, House Resolution 356 
provides us once again with an opportunity for remembrance and for 
recognition; and I urge all my colleagues to join the gentleman from 
Illinois (Mr. Hyde), the gentleman from California (Mr. Lantos), and me 
in supporting this resolution.
  Mr. LANTOS. Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.


                             General Leave

  Mr. HYDE. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may

[[Page H9694]]

have 5 legislative days to revise and extend their remarks and to 
include extraneous material on H. Res. 356, the resolution under 
consideration.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore (Mr. Boozman). Is there objection to the 
request of the gentleman from Illinois?
  There was no objection.
  Mr. HYDE. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume, and 
I would like to thank the gentleman from Michigan (Mr. Levin) and the 
gentleman from California (Mr. Lantos) for their extraordinarily 
generous remarks, and I wish to say the sentiment that animated those 
is indeed reciprocated.
  Mr. SMITH of New Jersey. Mr. Speaker, I am proud to be an original 
cosponsor of H. Res. 356. I thank and commend Mr. Hyde for introducing 
this resolution commemorating and honoring the memory of victims of an 
abominable act perpetrated against the people of Ukraine in 1932-33. 
Seventy years ago, millions of men, women and children were murdered by 
starvation so that one man, Soviet dictator Joseph Stalin, could 
consolidate control over Ukraine. The Ukrainian people resisted the 
Soviet policy of forced collectivization. The innocent died a horrific 
death at the hands of a tyrannical dictatorship which had crushed their 
freedom.
  In an attempt to break the spirit of an independent-minded Ukrainian 
peasantry, and ultimately to secure collectivization, Stalin ordered 
the expropriation of all foodstuffs in the hands of the rural 
population. The grain was shipped to other areas of the Soviet Union or 
sold on the international market. Peasants who refused to turn over 
grain to the state were deported or executed. Without food or grain, 
mass starvation ensued. This manmade famine was the consequence of 
deliberate policies which aimed to destroy the political, cultural and 
human rights of the Ukrainian people.
  In short, food was used as a weapon in what can only be described as 
an organized act of terrorism designed to suppress a people's love of 
their land and the basic liberty to live as they choose.
  Mr. Speaker, I recall back in the 1980s seeing the unforgettable 
movie, Harvest of Despair, which depicted the horrors of the Famine, as 
well as the fine work of the congressionally-created Ukraine Famine 
Commission, which issued its seminal report in 1988. Their work helped 
expose the truth about this horrific event. I am pleased that the 
resolution notes that there were those in the West, including The New 
York Times correspondent Walter Duranty, who knowingly and deliberately 
falsified their reports to cover up the Famine because they wanted to 
curry favor with one of the most evil regimes in the history of 
mankind.
  The fact that this denial of the Famine took place then, and even 
much later by many scholars in the West is a shameful chapter in our 
own history.
  Mr. Speaker, this is an important resolution which will help give 
recognition to one of the most horrific events in the last century in 
the hopes that mass-murders of this kind truly become unthinkable.
  Mr. HYDE. Mr. Speaker, I have no further requests for time, and I 
yield back the balance of my time.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is on the motion offered by the 
gentleman from Illinois (Mr. Hyde) that the House suspend the rules and 
agree to the resolution, H. Res. 356.
  The question was taken.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. In the opinion of the Chair, two-thirds of 
those present have voted in the affirmative.
  Mr. LANTOS. Mr. Speaker, on that I demand the yeas and nays.
  The yeas and nays were ordered.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to clause 8 of rule XX and the 
Chair's prior announcement, further proceedings on this motion will be 
postponed.

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