[Congressional Record Volume 153, Number 125 (Wednesday, August 1, 2007)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E1677-E1678]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                 IN HONOR OF DR. JOHN GARANG DE MABIOR

                                 ______
                                 

                           HON. FRANK R. WOLF

                              of virginia

                    in the house of representatives

                         Tuesday, July 31, 2007

  Mr. WOLF. Madam Speaker, I rise in honor of the late Dr. John Garang 
de Mabior, known to those close to him as ``Dr. John.'' Dr. John was 
president of the Government of Southern Sudan and chairman of the Sudan 
People's Liberation Movement/Army, SPLM/A. Yesterday was the second 
anniversary of Dr. John's sudden death in a helicopter crash.
  Dr. John led a heroic life, leading the South of Sudan through the 
decades-long war with the tyrannical northern government eventually to 
peace, culminating in the signing of the Comprehensive Peace Agreement 
on January 9, 2005. The southerners saw him as their founding father, 
their leader, their inspiration. Dr. John transformed his guerilla 
movement into an organized rebel force, and then into a political 
party, and eventually into a partner in the coalition government with 
the North. His influence over the South's destiny was clear; his 
leadership set the country on a track toward an agreement to share 
Sudan's vast wealth and power.
  While Dr. John's passing deeply saddened us all, those who desire a 
bright future for Sudan hold in their memories the strength of Dr. 
John's character, and his strong and abiding belief that Sudan will 
indeed one day find peace.

[[Page E1678]]



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