[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 149 (2003), Part 16]
[House]
[Pages 22113-22114]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




              THE MIDDLE EAST AND THE FAILED PEACE PROCESS

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the order of the House of 
January 7, 2003, the gentleman from Florida (Mr. Weldon) is recognized 
during morning hour debates for 5 minutes.
  Mr. WELDON of Florida. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in this House to 
address the tragic situation in the Middle East and the failed peace 
process. It is obvious to all that the continued dispatching of these 
so-called suicide or homicide bombers into civilian Israeli targets 
like buses and restaurants is intended to prevent any peaceful 
resolution of the Palestinian problem.
  For any peace process to work, both parties involved must want peace. 
The Palestinian Authority and Mr. Arafat have demonstrated that they do 
not want to end and they are unwilling and incapable of preventing this 
ongoing violence against Israeli civilians.
  The repeated call by Mr. Arafat for martyrs by the millions, 
reiterated by him again last week, should be a stark reminder to us all 
that we cannot work with him or the beliefs he represents. There can be 
no real peace when these are the sentiments of this man's heart. Let us 
not delude ourselves.
  Ariel Sharon's primary responsibility, and the primary responsibility 
of the Israeli government, above and beyond everything else is to 
maintain the safety and security of its people. While the opinions of 
European ministers, the U.S. Government and our State Department are 
important, they are not more important than the lives of women and 
children.
  Now is the time to acknowledge that Oslo has been a terrible failure 
and the road map is not working. Hundreds of Israelis are dead and 
buried as a testimony to this fact. Many more are left to face a 
lifetime of painful disability.
  I feel strongly that the Israeli government should be supported in 
doing whatever it takes to protect its people. If this includes 
expelling Arafat so be it. If it includes completing the fence, so be 
it. Whatever is necessary to defend itself and protect its people.
  Our State Department was recently quoted as saying that expelling 
Arafat will not be helpful. I strongly disagree. It may prove to be 
very helpful. It might end these attacks on Israeli civilians, and what 
is more, it could be very helpful to the Palestinians themselves.
  Since Arafat's return in 1993, the Palestinian economy has shrunk by 
70 percent, while at the same time the Israeli economy has doubled. 
There is widespread corruption and no freedom of speech in the 
Palestinian-controlled territories. Any Palestinian who openly 
criticizes Arafat or the Authority's policy is killed. Removing this 
man and the evil and corrupt regime around him could be the best thing 
for the peace process.
  I know I do not stand alone in these sentiments and that a majority 
of this House, the Senate and the American people will support Israel 
in this. Certainly, the American people expect our leaders to do 
whatever it takes to protect our people.
  Witness what is happening today. In response to the attacks of 9/11, 
we have waged all-out war, first attacking Afghanistan, then Iraq. Did 
America rise up and say we need to negotiate with bin Laden and develop 
a peace process? No.
  The American people understand that there is no negotiating with 
blood-thirsty murderers. The only road to peace and safety is the 
obliteration of al Qaeda and the regimes that aid it. President Bush 
said: ``Every Nation has a choice to make. In this conflict there is no 
neutral ground. If any government sponsors the outlaws and killers of 
innocents, they have become outlaws and murderers themselves. And they 
will take that lonely path at their own peril.''

[[Page 22114]]

  I could not agree with the President more. If this is the standard 
for America, why should it not be the same for another country? To deny 
Israel the right to do what it takes to defend itself is to deny Israel 
the right to exist and to turn our back on an ally and over 50 years of 
U.S. policy.
  We must allow Israel to pursue the same goals for its people that we 
want for ourselves, the right to live in freedom peace and prosperity. 
We must stop defending and supporting this brutal, dysfunctional 
Palestinian Authority and its leader Arafat.

                              {time}  1300

  I agree with all those who say we may never end this war on terror 
until a solution to the Palestinian problem is found. However, 
negotiating with vicious murderers who seek the destruction of Israel 
is no solution. It only worsens the problem.
  Let us give Ariel Sharon and the Israeli government the freedom to do 
what is right, to defend and protect their people.

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