[Congressional Record Volume 163, Number 164 (Thursday, October 12, 2017)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1369]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                        WORLDWIDE REFUGEE CRISIS

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                               speech of

                          HON. ELIOT L. ENGEL

                              of new york

                    in the house of representatives

                       Tuesday, October 10, 2017

  Mr. ENGEL. Mr. Speaker, I want to thank Representative Castro for 
calling for this special order to discuss the ethnic cleansing of the 
Rohingya people from Burma.
  It's a heartbreaking humanitarian disaster and day-by-day the 
situation continues to deteriorate.
  Just today, Bangladesh Border Guards are reporting that more than 
11,000 Rohingya refugees entered Bangladesh from Burma.
  These refugees are the result of the unprecedented level of violence 
in Burma's Rakhine State.
  Because of this bloody conflict, more than half a million Rohingya--
60 percent of whom are children--have fled as refugees across the 
border into Bangladesh.
  This is the swiftest exodus of any population since the 1994 Rwanda 
genocide and Serbia's 1999 ethnic cleansing in Kosovo.
  The Burmese military has claimed that this brutal crackdown is the 
response to a clash that took place on August 25th, in which border 
security forces faced off against Rohingya insurgents reportedly using 
knives, small arms, and small explosives.
  But this isn't a legitimate counterinsurgency or counterterrorism 
operation. The Burmese military and border security forces have 
specifically targeted Rohingya using medieval tactics: slash and burn, 
rape, indiscriminate killing. Twenty-one square kilometers of villages 
systematically burned to the ground.
  As I see it, the only person in Burma who could put an end to the 
violence, clear the way for humanitarian aid, and allow for a full 
accounting of what has occurred is Min Aung Hlaing, Commander in Chief 
of the Burmese military. Unfortunately, the intentions of the military 
are clear: to remove the Rohingya people from Burma.
  Welcoming these refugees, thankfully, is the Government of 
Bangladesh, which is now hosting nearly a million Rohingya refugees.
  And while Bangladesh opens its doors, I consider it an embarrassment 
that the United States is closing ours. The Trump Administration has 
lowered our yearly cap on refugees from all over the world to 45,000 
per year--the smallest number ever. As this crisis grew worse, 
Bangladesh took in that many people every four days.
  This policy harms American leadership in the world. It undermines our 
ability to speak credibly about refugees, human rights, or living up to 
basic international humanitarian principles. It diminishes our standing 
in a part of the world where China is only too happy to fill the void.
  The United States has allocated $38 million to assist with the 
crisis. That number seems grossly inadequate considering the scale of 
the humanitarian nightmare now facing the Government of Bangladesh and 
the Rohingya who have found refuge there.
  We need to do more, and that starts by shining a light on this 
tragedy. So I'm grateful to Mr. Castro, I'm grateful to all my 
colleagues who are putting this issue front and center. I hope that the 
Administration will give this crisis the focus and resources needed. 
This is a situation that calls for American leadership, and I'll keep 
making the case in Congress that we can and must do more.

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