[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 149 (2003), Part 5]
[House]
[Pages 6461-6463]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




           NICARAGUA PROPERTY DISPUTE SETTLEMENT ACT OF 2003

  Mr. BALLENGER. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the 
bill (H.R. 868) to amend section 527 of the Foreign Relations 
Authorization Act, Fiscal Years 1994 and 1995 to require that certain 
claims for expropriation by the Government of Nicaragua meet certain 
requirements for purposes of the prohibition on foreign assistance to 
that government.
  The Clerk read as follows:

                                H.R. 868

       Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of 
     the United States of America in Congress assembled,

     SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

       This Act may be cited as the ``Nicaragua Property Dispute 
     Settlement Act of 2003''.

     SEC. 2. CERTAIN CLAIMS FOR EXPROPRIATION BY THE GOVERNMENT OF 
                   NICARAGUA.

       Section 527 of the Foreign Relations Authorization Act, 
     Fiscal Years 1994 and 1995 (22 U.S.C. 2370a) is amended by 
     adding at the end the following new subsection:
       ``(i) Certain Claims for Expropriation by Government of 
     Nicaragua.--(1) Any action of the types set forth in 
     subparagraphs (A), (B), and (C) of subsection (a)(1) that was 
     taken by the Government of Nicaragua during the period 
     beginning on January 1, 1956, and ending on January 9, 2002, 
     shall not be considered in implementing the prohibition under 
     subsection (a) unless the action has been presented in 
     accordance with the procedure set forth in paragraph (2)
       ``(2) An action shall be deemed presented for purposes of 
     paragraph (1) if it is--
       ``(A) in writing; and
       ``(B) received by the Department of State on or before 120 
     days after the date specified in paragraph (3) at--
       ``(i) the headquarters of the Department of State in 
     Washington, D.C.; or
       ``(ii) the Embassy of the United States of America to 
     Nicaragua.
       ``(3) The date to which paragraph (2) refers is a date 
     after the enactment of this subsection that is specified by 
     the Secretary of State, in the Secretary's discretion, in a 
     notice published in the Federal Register.''.

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


                             General Leave

  Mr. BALLENGER. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members 
may have 5 legislative days within which to revise and extend their 
remarks and include extraneous material on the bill under 
consideration.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the 
gentleman from North Carolina?
  There was no objection.
  Mr. BALLENGER. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may 
consume.
  Mr. Speaker, section 527 of the ``Foreign Relations Authorization 
Act, fiscal years 1994 and 1995,'' sanctions or stops certain U.S. 
bilateral assistance and U.S. support for assistance from International 
Financial Institutions for a government of a country that has 
confiscated a U.S. citizen's property. Nicaragua sadly falls amongst 
these rules of section 527, but has received Presidential waivers of 
the sanctions every year since the legislation was enacted.
  American citizens have had nearly 12 years to come forward to file 
property claims with the American embassy. This bill amends section 527 
to afford American citizens a reasonable opportunity to file a claim 
with the American embassy in Managua.
  Any American citizen who has not yet filed a property claim with the 
American embassy will have 120 days after the notice is published in 
the Federal Register to do so. Any claims already on file or that are 
filed within

[[Page 6462]]

the 120-day period can continue to be considered by the State 
Department in making its annual determination as to whether to apply 
the waiver or the sanctions authorized under section 527.
  This bill would not, however, prevent American citizens from filing 
property claims after the 120-day period and seeking help from the 
American embassy in Managua to engage on their behalf with the 
Government of Nicaragua regarding their claim.
  At the same time, the bill sets a date certain that the Nicaraguan 
government can look to as an end date for registering new property 
cases for the purpose of the prohibition on assistance currently in 
law. This will provide important encouragement for the government of 
President Enrique Bolanos, who is an ally of the United States. 
Nicaragua is one of the poorest countries in the Western Hemisphere and 
continued American assistance to Nicaragua is vitally important.
  Mr. Speaker, the Government of Nicaragua has incurred $236 million in 
debt to pay these claims. The Bush administration supports the bill. I 
also want to thank my friend, the gentleman from Massachusetts (Mr. 
Delahunt), for cosponsoring this bill with me. I urge my colleagues to 
support this resolution.
  Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. LANTOS. Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of this resolution, and I 
yield myself such time as I may consume.
  Mr. Speaker, I first would like to applaud the gentleman from 
Illinois (Mr. Hyde), the chairman of the Committee on International 
Relations, for expediting consideration of this very important bill in 
support of President Enrique Bolanos and his administration. I also 
want to acknowledge the two cosponsors of this bill, the gentleman from 
North Carolina (Mr. Ballenger) and the gentleman from Massachusetts 
(Mr. Delahunt), my good friend, who has been one of our leaders on all 
Western Hemisphere affairs.
  Mr. Speaker, the world last year witnessed the constitutional and 
peaceful transfer of power in Nicaragua from one democratically elected 
president to another. The inauguration of President Bolanos thus 
represented the further consolidation of democracy in Nicaragua after 
many decades of authoritarian rule.
  Since his inauguration, President Bolanos and his administration have 
struggled to reinvigorate the Nicaraguan economy, create jobs, reduce 
widespread poverty, and battle institutionalized corruption. Although 
the task is daunting, as Nicaragua remains to this day the second 
poorest country in the Western Hemisphere after despairingly devastated 
Haiti, it is not insurmountable with the help of allies like the United 
States.
  H.R. 868 reflects our commitment to assisting Nicaragua in meeting 
its many challenges in a couple of ways. First, the Nicaragua Property 
Dispute Settlement Act enables us to bolster the efforts of the 
Nicaraguan administration to address the claims of U.S. citizens who 
have had property expropriated by previous Nicaraguan administrations. 
Equally important, our legislation signals our strong support for the 
new administration as it attempts to purge Nicaraguan institutions of 
cronyism and corruption.
  As we consider H.R. 868, I am confident that President Bolanos is as 
resolved as we are to strengthen the ties between our two countries by 
working together on issues of common concern like voting patterns at 
the United Nations.
  I encourage all of my colleagues to support this bill.
  Mr. LANTOS. Mr. Speaker, I am delighted to yield such time as he may 
consume to the gentleman from Massachusetts (Mr. Delahunt), my good 
friend and distinguished colleague.
  Mr. DELAHUNT. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman from California (Mr. 
Lantos) for yielding me this time.
  Mr. Speaker, a constituent once asked if minor pieces of legislation 
that we consider on the suspension calendar actually matter, 
particularly those that concern foreign nations. My response was that 
it is important to remember, especially in this era of the Internet and 
instant communication and CNN, that what might appear to be trivial to 
us is seen quite differently elsewhere and can have significant long-
lasting effects. This bill, for example.
  While to some it may seem to be an obscure piece of legislation 
dealing with a tiny, impoverished nation, one that is not on the 
Security Council, and given the challenges that we face with the war 
against terrorism and imminent invasion of Iraq, a distressed economy, 
a health care crisis, it might even seem to be an afterthought. But it 
is not an afterthought for the people of Nicaragua, and it should not 
be an afterthought for the United States. In fact, this bill has the 
potential to be critically important for Nicaragua's future, for 
Central America's future and, ultimately, for our own future.
  As the gentleman from North Carolina (Mr. Ballenger) indicated, 
Nicaragua, after Haiti, is the second poorest nation in the hemisphere. 
It was battered by years of war. It is a place where the magnitude of 
corruption by the political leadership has been enormous, especially 
recent ones. Now Nicaragua finally has a president in Enrique Bolanos, 
an honest man who genuinely wants to make a difference. This bill can 
help him and that fragile democracy that he presides over.
  As the gentleman from California (Mr. Lantos) and the gentleman from 
North Carolina (Mr. Ballenger) have indicated, current U.S. law 
prevents us from providing certain kinds of foreign aid to countries 
that have seized the property of American citizens. Never mind that 
these seizures occurred under previous governments. Never mind that 
some of these claimants were not U.S. citizens at the time of the 
seizures, which I believe violates international law; but that is a 
debate for another day. This legislation changes that.
  As the chairman of the subcommittee indicated, after a certain period 
of time, new claims will no longer prevent Nicaragua from receiving 
U.S. aid and will not prevent the United States Government from 
assisting our fellow citizens who seek and deserve justice, and it will 
not end the Government of Nicaragua's responsibility to settle these 
claims. But this bill will do much to nurture Nicaragua's efforts to 
develop its democracy; and it will encourage a new spirit of respect 
and cooperation between that impoverished nation and the United States.
  Mr. Speaker, I want to commend my friend, my colleague, my chairman, 
the gentleman from North Carolina (Mr. Ballenger), for introducing this 
bill. It is just more evidence of his attention to this hemisphere and 
his love for its people. He and I do not always agree on how to deal 
with all of our neighbors, but we do agree that they deserve far more 
of our attention, and our respect. So I am grateful to him for inviting 
me to cosponsor this important piece of legislation.

                              {time}  1445

  Mr. Speaker, it is my hope that the passage of this legislation is 
followed quickly by an increased program of U.S. assistance to 
Nicaragua, particularly to develop its judicial system and strengthen 
its legislative body. While I have full confidence in President 
Bolanos, it is the development of strong democratic institutions that 
will allow democracy to prosper and flourish in Nicaragua.
  Reports speak of a reconstruction program for Iraq in excess of $100 
billion. For far too long we have failed to adequately engage in our 
own neighborhood. We cannot continue to ignore our neighbors in Central 
America, the Caribbean, and South America. To do so, we do so at our 
own risk.
  Once upon a time, Nicaragua was front and center in our policy 
debates. That war that many in this Chamber spent enormous time and 
effort on this floor debating and discussing has faded from our 
memories, and Nicaragua has receded from the spotlight. However, this 
modest bill, in a rather nuanced and subtle way, will help Nicaragua 
move closer to the democracy its people so justly deserve and desire. I 
urge my colleagues to support it.
  Mr. LANTOS. Mr. Speaker, I have no further requests for time, and I 
yield back the balance of my time.

[[Page 6463]]


  Mr. BALLENGER. Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore (Mr. Terry). The question is on the motion 
offered by the gentleman from North Carolina (Mr. Ballenger) that the 
House suspend the rules and pass the bill, H.R. 868.
  The question was taken.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. In the opinion of the Chair, two-thirds of 
those present have voted in the affirmative.
  Mr. BALLENGER. 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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