[Congressional Record Volume 161, Number 54 (Wednesday, April 15, 2015)]
[House]
[Page H2222]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
BOKO HARAM
(Ms. CLARKE of New York asked and was given permission to address the
House for 1 minute and to revise and extend her remarks.)
Ms. CLARKE of New York. Mr. Speaker, I stand today with my colleagues
to focus the attention of the world on the 276 young women who were
kidnapped by Boko Haram--219 whose whereabouts remain unknown--in
Chibok, Nigeria, just a year ago in April.
This kidnapping, this act of terrorism, was an attack on the basic
human rights of women and girls to participate in the civil society, in
this instance by attending school to develop their individual talents
and God-given potential.
These young women were violently abducted for the explicit purpose of
preventing their full participation in the civil society of Nigeria.
Now, a year after their kidnapping, these young women are still
missing, and Boko Haram continues to terrorize the people of west
Africa, forcing millions of people to flee their home and undermining
the foundations of democracy.
We must continue in our efforts to find these girls and bring their
abductors to justice. The destabilization of Nigeria, Cameroon, and
Chad has implications for the entire continent of Africa and, indeed,
the world.
We have called on the community of nations to bring back our girls.
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