[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 146 (2000), Part 16]
[House]
[Pages 24035-24037]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]



RELATING TO REESTABLISHMENT OF REPRESENTATIVE GOVERNMENT IN AFGHANISTAN

  Mr. GILMAN. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and agree to the 
concurrent resolution (H. Con. Res. 414) relating to the 
reestablishment of representative government in Afghanistan, as 
amended.
  The Clerk read as follows:

                            H. Con. Res. 414

       Whereas Afghanistan has existed as a sovereign nation since 
     1747, maintaining its independence, neutrality, and dignity;
       Whereas Afghanistan had maintained its own decisionmaking 
     through a traditional process called a ``Loya Jirgah'', or 
     Grand Assembly, by selecting, respecting, and following the 
     decisions of their leaders;
       Whereas recently warlords, factional leaders, and foreign 
     regimes have laid siege to Afghanistan, leaving the landscape 
     littered with landmines, making the most fundamental 
     activities dangerous;
       Whereas in recent years, and especially since the Taliban 
     came to power in 1996, Afghanistan has become a haven for 
     terrorist activity, has produced most of the world's opium 
     supply, and has become infamous for its human rights abuses, 
     particularly abuses against women and children;
       Whereas the former King of Afghanistan, Mohammed Zahir 
     Shah, ruled the country peacefully for 40 years, and after 
     years in exile retains his popularity and support; and
       Whereas former King Mohammed Zahir Shah plans to convene an 
     emergency ``Loya Jirgah'' to reestablish a stable government, 
     with no desire to regain power or reestablish a monarchy, and 
     the Department of State supports such ongoing efforts: Now, 
     therefore, be it
       Resolved by the House of Representatives (the Senate 
     concurring), That the United States--
       (1) supports democratic efforts that respect the human and 
     political rights of all ethnic and religious groups in 
     Afghanistan, including the effort to establish a ``Loya 
     Jirgah'' process that would lead to the people of Afghanistan 
     determining their own destiny through a democratic process 
     and free and fair elections; and
       (2) supports the continuing efforts of former King Mohammed 
     Zahir Shah and other responsible parties searching for peace 
     to convene a Loya Jirgah--
       (A) to reestablish a representative government in 
     Afghanistan that respects the rights of all ethnic groups, 
     including the right to govern their own affairs through 
     inclusive institution building and a democratic process;
       (B) to bring freedom, peace, and stability to Afghanistan; 
     and
       (C) to end terrorist activities, illicit drug production, 
     and human rights abuses in Afghanistan.

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from New 
York (Mr. Gilman) and the gentleman from California (Mr. Lantos) each 
will control 20 minutes.
  The Chair recognizes the gentleman from New York (Mr. Gilman).


                             General Leave

  Mr. GILMAN. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may 
have 5 legislative days within which to revise and extend their remarks 
on H. Con. Res. 414.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the 
gentleman from New York?
  There was no objection.
  Mr. GILMAN. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
  Mr. Speaker, I want to commend the gentleman from California (Mr. 
Campbell) for crafting this important initiative. I wish to commend the 
gentleman from California (Mr. Rohrabacher) for his expertise regarding 
Afghanistan and the Loya Jirgah process.
  I strongly endorse H. Con. Res. 414, legislation that expresses the 
sense of Congress that the United States supports the former Afghan 
king, Mohammed Zahir Shah's, initiative to convene an emergency Loya 
Jirgah, a Grand Assembly, to establish a democratic government in 
Afghanistan.
  During the times of Afghan national crises, it is traditional to hold 
a Grand Assembly to democratically consider means and methods to tackle 
significant problems. The power behind the Loya Jirgah is its assurance 
that all groups within Afghanistan will be equally represented in a 
historic effort to resolve the crisis at hand.
  As the Taliban has extended its sway over Afghanistan, it has grown 
increasingly extremist and anti-Western, with its leaders proclaiming 
that virtually every aspect of Western culture violates their version 
of Islam.
  In addition to restrictions against women, such as barring them from 
holding jobs or traveling unaccompanied by a male relative, ancient and 
cruel forms of punishment, such as stoning, have been revived.
  The Taliban also continues to give refuge to Osama bin Laden, the 
Saudi terrorist who plots against American citizens and who may have 
been responsible for the bombing of the destroyer U.S.S. Cole.
  Disturbingly, Taliban leaders, who have made narcotics the economic 
base of their regime, view the drug trade itself as a potential weapon. 
Viewing the West and the many pro-Western countries in the Muslim world 
as corrupt, the Taliban have no compunction against trafficking in 
narcotics.
  The United States should firmly support this Grand Assembly process 
so that Afghanistan can begin again to play a constructive role in the 
world and so that the Afghan people can live in peace.
  Accordingly, I fully urge our colleagues to support H. Con. Res. 414.
  Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. LANTOS. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
  Mr. Speaker, I first want to commend my colleagues, the gentleman 
from California (Mr. Campbell) and the gentleman from California (Mr. 
Rohrabacher), for taking the lead on this most important issue.

[[Page 24036]]

  Afghanistan has existed as an independent and sovereign nation from 
the middle of the 18th century. But in recent times, under the rule of 
the Taliban, it has sunk to unprecedented levels of depth in all 
aspects of everyday living.

                              {time}  1600

  Afghanistan today is the country on the face of this planet where the 
rights of women are least observed and most abused. Afghanistan has 
given haven to some of the worst terrorist groups on the face of this 
planet. The former king of Afghanistan, who ruled his country 
peacefully for 40 years, is now asking for a grand assembly, which is 
the traditional method in Afghanistan for settling policy issues. I 
strongly support this call, although the chances of its success are 
certainly not assured, but clearly the goal of this grand assembly 
would be to restore to the Afghan people their fundamental human 
rights; to reestablish representative government in that country; to 
rebuild civil institutions; to bring stability; and most importantly, 
to end the terrorist activities and the appalling human rights abuses 
which prevail in Afghanistan today.
  I call on all of my colleagues to join us in approving this 
resolution.
  Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. GILMAN. Mr. Speaker, I want to thank the gentleman from 
California (Mr. Lantos) for his strong support of this measure. I yield 
such time as he may consume to the gentleman from Nebraska (Mr. 
Bereuter), the vice chairman of our Committee on International 
Relations and chairman of the Subcommittee on Asia and the Pacific.
  Mr. BEREUTER. Mr. Speaker, I begin by thanking the gentleman from New 
York (Mr. Gilman) for yielding me this time.
  Mr. Speaker, as a cosponsor of H. Con. Res. 414, this Member is 
pleased to rise in strong support of this measure and to commend the 
distinguished gentleman from California (Mr. Campbell) for introducing 
the resolution.
  The Committee on International Relations considered this resolution 
on October 3, 2000, and this Member wishes to express appreciation to 
the distinguished gentleman from New York (Mr. Gilman), the chairman of 
the Committee on International Relations, for expeditiously moving this 
measure to the floor and thank the minority for their cooperation.
  Unfortunately, the situation in Afghanistan largely has disappeared 
from the U.S. Government's collective radar screen in recent years. 
This is despite the fact that Afghanistan has become a haven for 
terrorist activity, including Osama bin Laden; that it seems to have 
become a major drug producing country; and that the Taliban are 
extraordinarily intolerant toward women, minorities, and non-Muslims.
  It is also important to understand that Afghanistan has been the 
scene of a lengthy and devastating civil war, one which has resulted in 
millions of casualties. In the past few days, a renewed Taliban 
offensive resulted in an estimated 135,000 Afghans fleeing north into 
Tajikistan in the aftermath of a battle where the Taliban was 
victorious. Moreover, the violence in Afghanistan is spilling over into 
its neighboring countries. Uzbekistan, Tajikistan, Kyrgyzstan, and 
others are fighting armed Islamic militants who have become trained 
over the years in Afghanistan. To the south, individuals seeking to 
turn Pakistan into a militant Islamic state, a nuclear-armed one at 
that, are on the rise. In addition, there are stories of Afghan 
fighters traveling as far as Chechnya to battle anyone who disagrees 
with their extreme social and religious views.
  There are courageous individuals who are trying to help Afghanistan 
find a way out of this circle of violence. A number of Afghans from 
around the world have looked to Afghanistan's history and are seeking 
to convene a grand council, or Loya Jirgah. This is a forum where 
leaders from around Afghanistan would be allowed to air their views and 
to resolve their differences. It is not clear whether this effort would 
succeed. Clearly, the Taliban opposes the convening of a grand council; 
but it certainly is a long-shot effort worth trying in order to end 
this violence that has plagued Afghanistan for decades.
  Mr. Speaker, this Member urges this body to approve H. Con. Res. 414.
  Mr. LANTOS. Mr. Speaker, I have no further requests for time, and I 
yield back the balance of my time.
  Mr. GILMAN. Mr. Speaker, I yield such time as he may consume to the 
gentleman from California (Mr. Rohrabacher), the sponsor of this 
resolution, who has a very special expertise in matters of Afghanistan.
  Mr. ROHRABACHER. Mr. Speaker, the Taliban represent one of the great 
threats to stability and peace and civility on this planet. They, in 
fact, represent an aspect of Islam that if accepted and if influencing 
other areas of the world will have a tremendously, tremendously 
negative impact on the peace of the world but also the well-being of 
women who are in these Muslim countries who would then become chattel 
and treated like slaves, which is what happens under the Taliban's 
rule.
  The Taliban is anti-Western beyond belief. They treat their own 
people like tyrants, and vicious tyrants at that. They are engaged in 
terrorism against the West. They are involved up to their eyeballs in 
the drug trade. One-third of all of the world's heroin is grown in 
Taliban-controlled territory in Afghanistan. These people are evil, and 
they pose a threat to the Western world; but also they pose a threat to 
those positive elements among the Muslim world that would seek to be 
part of the world community and are responsible in their behavior and 
believe in the Western-style democracy or at least Western-style 
freedom for their people.
  Unfortunately, over the years, as I have worked with the pro-Western 
elements within Afghanistan, I have been undermined over and again by 
our own State Department. This administration, and I really am sorry 
that I have to say this on the floor, this administration I honestly 
believe has had a policy, a covert policy, of supporting the Taliban, 
believing that the Taliban will at least create stability in 
Afghanistan. This is like the stability that Adolf Hitler brought to 
Europe, or the stability that prison guards bring to a prison. Yet we 
know that the Taliban's repression, their involvement with drugs and 
terrorism, is almost unconscionable.
  Now, why do I say this administration has failed on this point? 
Because the administration has time and again undermined efforts on 
this Congressman's part to support those people who are opposing the 
Taliban in Afghanistan. My efforts and the efforts of other moderate 
Muslims have been undermined over and over again. In fact, this 
administration disarmed the opposition, was part and parcel of 
disarming the opposition to the Taliban, who then moved forward and 
wiped out their opposition in northern Afghanistan. It is a horrendous, 
horrendous legacy that we have to deal with now that this 
administration's policies have led to bolstering this horrible regime.
  I would ask that this resolution be supported because it does offer 
another alternative. There is a king of Afghanistan who is pro-Western 
and a very reasonable person and tried to lead his country, where women 
had their rights respected under the former king. He was overthrown at 
a time just before the Soviet Union invaded Afghanistan. We need to 
work with that former king to bring about a democratic government. The 
people are not fanatics in Afghanistan. They are devoted Muslims, but 
they are not fanatics like the Taliban. They are dedicated people who 
love their families; yet they have been abandoned after their fight 
with the Soviet Union; they have been abandoned to forces like the 
Taliban.
  Let me just say that the Taliban, by and large, and I know this very 
well because I, probably the only Member of this body now, was in 
Afghanistan during the war, fighting the Russians with the Mujadin, and 
I was there in 1988 with the Mujadin and I know the commanders. The 
Taliban are not the Mujadin who fought the Russians. Unfortunately, 
once the Mujadin had defeated the Russians, the United States walked 
away and we did not support the type of elements that would have

[[Page 24037]]

created a more positive country in Afghanistan, and other anti-Western 
Muslim countries moved in to get control of the drug trade and to 
create this monstrous regime.
  We need to reassert ourselves and to become a positive force for the 
people of Afghanistan so they can determine their own destiny through 
elections, and this Loya Jirgah would be the first step in doing that. 
That is part of their culture.
  I would like to commend the gentleman from New York (Chairman 
Gilman), who over the years of me trying to find peace and getting rid 
of this horrible Taliban regime, he has been so active and supportive 
of my efforts, and over and over again he joined with me in calling for 
the State Department to provide me the documents to find out if indeed 
our State Department had this horrible policy of supporting the 
Taliban, and the State Department has not provided us the documents 
that we need to determine whether or not these charges are false or 
not.
  What does that say if the State Department is unwilling to provide 
those documents? So I would like to commend the gentleman from New York 
(Chairman Gilman). He has done so much for the cause of peace and 
justice in this part of the world and to create a more stable world, 
especially concerning the Taliban.
  I would ask for my colleagues to support H. Con. Res. 414.
  Mr. GILMAN. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
  Mr. Speaker, I want to thank the gentleman from California (Mr. 
Rohrabacher) for his strong support of this measure and for his kind 
words. I thank the gentleman from Indiana (Mr. Bereuter) and the 
gentleman from California (Mr. Rohrabacher) for coming to the floor in 
support of this measure.
  Mr. Speaker, I have no further requests for time, and I yield back 
the balance of my time.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore (Mr. Thornberry). The question is on the 
motion offered by the gentleman from New York (Mr. Gilman) that the 
House suspend the rules and agree to the concurrent resolution, H. Con. 
Res. 414, as amended.
  The question was taken; and the Speaker pro tempore announced that 
the ayes appeared to have it.
  Mr. LANTOS. Mr. Speaker, on that I demand the yeas and nays.
  The yeas and nays were ordered.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to clause 8 of rule XX and the 
Chair's prior announcement, further proceedings on this motion will be 
postponed.

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