[Congressional Record Volume 150, Number 1 (Tuesday, January 20, 2004)]
[House]
[Page H5]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                                KASHMIR

  (Mr. PITTS asked and was given permission to address the House for 1 
minute and to revise and extend his remarks.)
  Mr. PITTS. Mr. Speaker, I recently returned from a trip to Pakistan 
and India.
  I would like to commend Prime Minister Vajpayee of India and 
President Musharraf of Pakistan for the cease-fire in Kashmir and for 
their courageous leadership and peaceful dialogue in addressing an 
issue of deep importance to both nations.
  During my visit, I had the privilege of visiting a camp for 
internally displaced people in Azad Kashmir. The suffering that the 
people on both sides of the Line of Control have endured is horrific: 
land mines, bombings, deliberate rape of women and other human rights 
violations, all this in the midst of a land of great beauty.
  It is time for the tragic suffering to end. All sides in the conflict 
need to immediately cease using rape as a weapon of war. All sides need 
to allow children to receive an education. Until the issue of Kashmir 
is resolved peacefully, the stability, security and economic viability 
of South Asia and the international community are at risk.
  I urge the U.S. government to fully support the current positive 
steps between Pakistan and India to bring a peaceful end to this long-
running conflict.

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