[Congressional Record Volume 150, Number 99 (Friday, July 16, 2004)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1393]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




 DEPLORING MISUSE OF INTERNATIONAL COURT OF JUSTICE BY UNITED NATIONS 
                 GENERAL ASSEMBLY FOR POLITICAL PURPOSE

                                 ______
                                 

                               speech of

                          HON. DAVID E. PRICE

                           of north carolina

                    in the house of representatives

                        Wednesday, July 14, 2004

  Mr. PRICE of North Carolina. Mr. Speaker, I rise to express my 
serious reservations about House Resolution 713.
  Israel's construction of a security barrier has been a source of 
great controversy within Israel and in the international community.
  The debate has less to do with the actual construction of a barrier 
than with the route of the barrier.
  The government of Israel regards the barrier as a form of self-
defense--a legitimate means for preventing further terrorist 
infiltration. Israel has a right to self-defense, and if the Israeli 
government believes that the security barrier is the best means for 
protecting their citizens, then I support their right to construct a 
barrier.
  But as it now stands, the barrier has gone deeply into territory 
beyond the 1967 borders. That is the fact the authors of this 
resolution choose to ignore: There would be no International Court of 
Justice decision to condemn if Israel were building the fence along the 
Green Line.
  The Supreme Court of Israel recently ordered portions of the fence 
rerouted. The Court held that the barrier's current route ``injures the 
local inhabitants in a severe and acute way while violating their 
rights under humanitarian and international law.''
  American diplomats also have worked diligently to modify the 
barrier's route in their dealings with the Israeli government.
  This resolution threatens to damage these efforts, implying an 
unqualified endorsement of the barrier and warning the international 
community against efforts to influence the situation.
  Roughly one-quarter of the 420-mile barrier has been completed--
clearly there is still much at stake for both the Israelis and the 
Palestinians. Our efforts should be directed at negotiating borders 
that will advance peace. Resolutions such as the one before us today do 
nothing to advance the peace process.
  There are legitimate questions as to the propriety and wisdom of the 
action taken by the International Court of Justice in this matter. But 
this resolution goes too far. It condemns the ICJ and ``Palestinian 
Leadership'' indiscriminately, and it undermines worthy efforts 
underway in Israel, the U.S., and internationally to promote Israel's 
security in ways that enhance the prospects for a just and lasting 
peace in the region.
  If we were truly serious about promoting peace in the Middle East, we 
would focus on efforts like the Roadmap rather than pass resolutions 
such as H. Res. 713.

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