[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 145 (1999), Part 20]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page 29893]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




            IN TRIBUTE TO THE HONORABLE THOMAS M. FOGLIETTA

                                 ______
                                 

                           HON. FRANK R. WOLF

                              of virginia

                    in the house of representatives

                       Tuesday, November 16, 1999

  Mr. WOLF. Mr. Speaker, I want to bring to our colleagues' attention 
news about our former colleague, the Honorable Thomas M. Foglietta of 
Pennsylvania, who now serves as the U.S. ambassador to Italy. On 
November 9, he was presented a South Korean human rights award for 
supporting democracy and human rights in that country.
  The annual award was presented in Seoul, South Korea, by the Korean 
Institute for Human Rights, founded in 1983 by South Korean President 
Kim Dae-jung. Ambassador Foglietta established a relationship with Kim 
Dae-jung in the mid-1980's when he served in Congress. Kim was in exile 
in the United States at that time. Ambassador Foglietta accompanied him 
back to his beloved South Korea and the two were assaulted at the 
airport.
  This year, the City of Philadelphia presented its prestigious Liberty 
Medal to President Kim. Ambassador Foglietta campaigned for almost a 
decade to have this award made to Kim Dae-jung.
  Mr. Speaker, I submit for the Record a recent article from The 
Philadelphia Inquirer about this award.
  We offer our congratulations to our former colleague.

             [From the Philadelphia Inquirer, Nov. 2, 1999]

Foglietta To Get Rights Award in S. Korea--The Ambassador to Italy Will 
        Be Honored for Supporting Democracy in That Asian Nation

                         (By Jeffrey Fleishman)

       Rome--U.S. Ambassador Thomas M. Foglietta will receive a 
     South Korean human-rights award next week for supporting 
     democracy in a country where he was beaten 15 years ago as he 
     traveled with a leading political dissident.
       The dissident, Kim Dae Jung, is now South Korea's 
     president. The award from the Korean Institute for Human 
     Rights--to be presented Nov. 9 in Seoul--is a testament to a 
     friendship that endured through a long battle against 
     dictatorships and corrupt politics.
       ``Knowing Kim has been one of the high points of my life. 
     He has been one of my great teachers,'' said Foglietta, the 
     former Philadelphia congressman who is now ambassador to 
     Italy. ``Kim has always been so determined to bring democracy 
     to his country. This award is a great honor for me.''
       Kim and Foglietta met in November of 1984 when Kim was a 
     political exile receiving medical treatment in the United 
     States. Before leaving South Korea, Kim had been imprisoned 
     and tortured for years and was reviled by the government of 
     Chun Doo Wan, an army general who had seized power in 1979. 
     During a 3\1/2\-hour meeting, Kim told Foglietta that he 
     wanted to return to his country.
       Fearful of assassination, he asked Foglietta to accompany 
     him.
       ``My first thought was that the military regime would try 
     to kill Kim upon his return,'' said Foglietta. ``It was only 
     months earlier that [opposition leader] Benigno Aquino was 
     assassinated when he returned to the Philippines. I told Kim 
     this and he said, ``They won't try anything if you go with 
     me.' I called the television networks. I told them to be in 
     Seoul at this time and date. I figured the Korean government 
     wouldn't harm Kim in front of TV cameras.``
       On Feb. 8, 1985, Kim, Foglietta and a small American 
     delegation, including television crews, arrived at Seoul's 
     Kimpo Airport. Military police had blocked roads, preventing 
     thousands of Kim's supporters from reaching the airport. 
     Inside the terminal, 50 to 75 security police pulled Kim and 
     his wife, Lee Hee Ho, from the entourage and corralled them 
     toward an elevator
       Foglietta and others in the delegation, including U.S. 
     Ambassador Robert White, were manhandled by police as Kim was 
     carried away.
       Kim endured this arrest as he had the others, and in 1997, 
     after 40 years of protests, failed assassination attempts, 
     six years in jail and 55 house arrests, Kim was sworn in as 
     president in South Korea's first peaceful transition of 
     power. Foglietta stood on the stage as Kim took his oath.
       ``When I stood at Kim's inauguration, I remembered that day 
     when we were punched, kicked and bloodied,'' said Foglietta, 
     who over the years has helped Kim with campaigns and 
     democratic reforms. ``I guess I always knew he'd be president 
     of South Korea.''
       Last July, at Foglietta's urging, Kim was awarded 
     Philadelphia's Liberty Medal during a ceremony at 
     Independence Hall.

     

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