[Congressional Record Volume 158, Number 49 (Monday, March 26, 2012)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E441-E442]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




   HONORING THE 40TH ANNIVERSARY OF THE MARIANAS VARIEY NEWS & VIEWS

                                 ______
                                 

                  HON. GREGORIO KILILI CAMACHO SABLAN

                    of the northern mariana islands

                    in the house of representatives

                         Monday, March 26, 2012

  Mr. SABLAN. Mr. Speaker, forty years ago, on March 16, 1972, a local 
couple in the Northern Mariana Islands, Abed E. Younis and Maria Paz 
Castro Younis, wrote, edited, printed, and distributed the first issue 
of the Marianas Variety News & Views. So began the life of what is now 
the oldest local newspaper in our islands--on a table-top printer in a 
small commercial space they called Younis Art Studio.
  The Variety, as the paper is now more succinctly known, still 
provides its readers with extensive local news and views. It also 
carries reports of the region, the United States and the world, as well 
as interesting and in-depth feature stories. The Variety includes a 
thought-provoking opinion section, where the public can air its views, 
and where the Variety itself regularly takes an editorial stand on the 
issues of current political, social, and economic import in the 
islands. Always, though, the Variety is a publication independent at 
heart without ties to business or political interests. The mission it 
serves is to deliver the latest news to our community in a fair and 
even-handed manner.
  These days, the ``community'' served by the Variety has expanded 
beyond the shores of the Northern Marianas. The paper is published and 
circulated each Monday through Friday in the Northern Mariana Islands, 
Guam, Palau, and the Federated States of Micronesia. There are print 
subscribers far and wide: in the South Pacific, the Philippines, 
Hawaii, Japan, and the mainland U.S. And the Variety's widely-viewed 
website, www.mvariety.com, reaches an even more extensive audience and 
allows its readers to content with comments about the published stories 
and issues of concern and to interact with one another and share ideas 
in a forum that is constantly expanding.
  The Variety is a member of the Associated Press, Reuters, and the 
Pacific Island News Association and has received a number of notable 
awards including ``Best Newspaper,'' ``Best Editorial Writing ,'' and 
``Best News Photography'' from the Society of Professional 
Journalists--NMI Chapter, an NMI Humanities Award for Outstanding 
Contributions to Journalism, Best Online Edition of a Pacific Island 
Newspaper, and an Environmental Achievement Award from the U.S. 
Environmental Protection Agency.
  Over the years, the Variety has been a strong community partner, 
donating to and assisting numerous non-profit organizations, events, 
and activities, as well as creating community projects such as its own 
School Newspaper Program, through which elementary and high school 
students learn about the news trade by publishing their own school 
newspapers. The Variety also offers great on-the-job training 
opportunities, including annual internships for individuals interested 
in journalism, graphic arts, marketing and sales, web press technique, 
and other aspects of publishing.

[[Page E442]]

  As the newspaper has expanded physically and geographically, so too 
has the Younis family's involvement in day-to-day operations. All six 
of Abed and Paz's children--Banny, Laila, Farah, Amier, Suaad, and 
Salam--grew up around and matured with the Variety. Today, three of 
those children have followed their parents' footsteps into the 
newspaper business. Laila Younis Boyer is now the president of the 
local corporation, while her brother Amier serves as the publisher of 
the newspaper's sister edition on Guam and their brother Salam is the 
operations manager of the Saipan office.
  Please join me in congratulating Abed and Paz Younis, their family, 
and all of their past and current employees and colleagues at the 
Marianas Variety News & Views for the newspaper's forty years as an 
important provider of local, regional, and international news, a strong 
community partner, and a successful member of the business community in 
the Northern Mariana Islands.

                          ____________________