[Congressional Record Volume 154, Number 58 (Monday, April 14, 2008)]
[House]
[Page H2247]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                              {time}  1930
                       IRAQ'S HUMANITARIAN CRISIS

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Under a previous order of the House, the 
gentlewoman from California (Ms. Woolsey) is recognized for 5 minutes.
  Ms. WOOLSEY. Madam Speaker, as we enter the sixth year of the 
seemingly endless occupation of Iraq, the International Committee of 
the Red Cross published a worrying report about the State of the 
humanitarian crisis in Iraq.
  In its entitled ``Iraq: No Let-Up in the Humanitarian Crisis,'' the 
publication shows just how far we need to go to meet the most basic 
needs of the Iraqi people. Despite the rosy picture being painted by 
some in the administration, too many Iraqis are still without health 
care, clean water, and/or education.
  And many families have been torn apart by the civil war wracking the 
country. Family members have gone missing or have been killed. Some 
have been shipped off to detention centers.
  Estimates range on how many people, mostly men, have been locked up. 
According to the Red Cross, ``Tens of thousands of Iraqis, almost all 
of them men, are currently in detention often far from their homes.''
  One camp is situated in the southern part of the country near Basra 
and is managed by the United States-led multinational forces in Iraq. 
At the same time, this is the largest detention facility in the 
country. And there are more than 20,000 inmates in that detention camp.
  The situation means that many families have lost their breadwinner. 
The new heads of household, many women and many children, have to cope 
in a world that seems to be without home or promise for the future. And 
their day-to-day life is just as bleak.
  Instead of improving, the supply of electricity has become even more 
unreliable. Because of this, water sanitation plants are breaking down 
and hospitals find they cannot provide adequate care, even if they had 
the medical supplies to meet the demand, which they very seldom do.
  Parents the world over, Madam Speaker, American, Iraqi, or anywhere 
else, only want the best for their children. They want their kids to be 
happy. They want them to be healthy. They want their kids to go to 
school, to grow up and to have a chance to achieve their dreams. That 
is why ongoing occupation is about more than statistics or numbers.
  The Red Cross reports helps to put a human face on the 
administration's so-called foreign policy. One such story actually 
highlights the struggle faced by too many. Here is Ruba's story. She 
says, ``My children and I left my home in Anbar province almost 2 years 
ago. My husband had been killed right in front of us.'' She continues, 
``I had to protect my children, so we fled the same night with nothing 
but some money. For me, today, there is no past, there is no future, 
only a horrible present. I only wish I had some photos of my husband, 
photos of my family. I can see it all in my mind, but I don't know for 
how long I will remember. There was a time when we always sat down 
together for lunch and laughed. Today, we are living with my cousin's 
family.''
  She goes on to say, ``There are 12 of us in one room. I don't want my 
old life again, because I know it is impossible without my husband. All 
I want is for my children to go to school and lead a normal life.''
  The story of this mother, Madam Speaker, a woman just 38 years old, 
is heartbreaking. We have a solemn obligation to help the Iraqi people 
achieve a future that is both secure and stable.
  In the 5 minutes we stand here to deliver our special order speeches, 
the administration spends over $1 million to prolong the endless 
occupation. I think the people of America could find a better way to 
show our commitment to the Iraqi people.
  The American people's generosity and commitment to humanitarian 
assistance is boundless. But our patience with this administration's 
foreign policy follies is actually not boundless. This Congress must 
stand up to the administration. We must say ``no'' to a blank check. 
Let us redirect our resources to where they are really needed, towards 
aid, not ammunition.

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