[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 151 (2005), Part 18]
[House]
[Pages 25259-25260]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                          GLOBAL WAR ON TERROR

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Under a previous order of the House, the 
gentlewoman from Florida (Ms. Ros-Lehtinen) is recognized for 5 
minutes.
  Ms. ROS-LEHTINEN. Madam Speaker, a number of news sources have 
recently dedicated space and air time to headlines concerning our 
progress in the war on terror, such as ``What the New York Times 
doesn't tell you.''
  Indeed, as we all have had occasion to note in some of our Nation's 
widely read news publications, the editorial rule is often there is no 
news like bad news. But in these Halls of Congress, no such rule 
abounds, so truth-telling must begin here.
  Since the brutal terrorist attacks of September 11, the United States 
has responded with policies that offer a pragmatic approach to the 
challenges that we face in the region today. These have included taking 
the fight to the terrorists and their supporters, denying them the 
resources and safe sanctuaries, keeping them on the run so that they 
cannot target us at home, all while simultaneously assisting the 
developing Middle East democracies so that they can become a bastion of 
stable, free market democratic societies and as a

[[Page 25260]]

means of addressing the root causes of terrorism and Islamic extremism.
  As Chair of the House Subcommittee on Central Asia and the Middle 
East, I am proud of the success that these policies have enjoyed, 
particularly in the frontline states in the war on terror of Iraq and 
Afghanistan.
  However, if we are to fully grasp where both countries are now, and 
where both are heading politically, we must understand what these 
nations have endured under brutal regimes that systemically denied the 
Iraqi and the Afghan people their freedom and shackled their hopes and 
aspirations.
  Saddam Hussein's terrorist regime wreaked havoc on Iraq society and 
stunted the country's growth and development.
  The mass graves are but one sad example of how this brutal ruler 
destroyed Iraqi lives. He indiscriminately slaughtered Iraqis, 
regardless of background, with an estimated 300,000 having disappeared 
from the time that Saddam took power in 1979 until his removal almost 
25 years later.
  Thus, the progress achieved thus far by the Iraqi people toward 
establishing a true democratic government, just a few years after the 
termination of his regime, is nothing short of miraculous.
  Within this past year alone, the people of Iraq have not only held 
free elections and approved a new Iraqi constitution this past October, 
but they are diligently preparing for nationwide elections on December 
15.
  Today, the Iraqi people remain engaged in a political process aimed 
at creating a unified and democratic Iraq, to the envy of the 
neighboring countries such as Iran and Syria, and to the chagrin of 
those tyrannical regimes.
  In particular, the women of Iraq who, under the Hussein regime were 
routinely subject to public execution, under the pretext of fighting 
prostitution and widespread rape and abuse, are now fully participating 
in the nation's political life.
  I was fortunate to have had the opportunity to visit Iraq as part of 
a historic all-female congressional delegation, during which we met 
with women from all sectors and educational backgrounds. They now have 
a voice in charting the path for their country's future and in helping 
to ensure that this course is toward a vibrant and prosperous Iraqi 
nation.
  Likewise, in Afghanistan, U.S. efforts have also contributed to 
significant positive changes in the lives of women in Afghanistan where 
the Taliban's brutality and blatant disregard for the lives and well-
being of the Afghan people impacted all the people of that country.
  The shroud of misery placed upon the people of Afghanistan when the 
Taliban captured Kabul in 1996 was removed in 2002 by the United States 
with the help of our allies and the Afghan people themselves.
  As a nation whose recent history has been marked more by war than by 
peace, more by upheaval than by progress, Afghanistan's transition to 
democracy has also been nothing short of miraculous.
  In a state of effective war for most of the last quarter century, 
Afghanistan was allowed to fester for most of the 1990s, ultimately 
hosting al Qaeda and enduring the extremist Taliban regime.
  In liberating the Afghan people, we brought an end to the deplorable 
human rights violations under the Taliban regime, which included the 
barbaric practices of beatings, tortures, rapes, executions that were 
carried out by Taliban's Department of Promotion of Virtue and the 
Prevention of Vice.

                              {time}  2000

  Today, the Afghan people are determined to take steps to ensure 
Afghanistan's survival as a free and democratic nation. We are on the 
road to victory, and the selfless dedication of our men and women in 
uniform should always be congratulated.

                          ____________________