[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 157 (2011), Part 14]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page 20172]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                      HOUSE DEMOCRACY PARTNERSHIP

                                 ______
                                 

                           HON. DAVID DREIER

                             of california

                    in the house of representatives

                      Wednesday, December 14, 2011

  Mr. DREIER. Mr. Speaker, when I was first elected to this body in 
1980, the preeminent national security threat that gravely concerned us 
all was the Soviet Union. A decade later, as we know very well, the 
Soviet Union collapsed and the Cold War came to an end. As we quickly 
near the twentieth anniversary of that transformative event, we should 
not forget the role that the United States Congress played in 
supporting democratic development in the legislatures of many of the 
former Warsaw Pact and Soviet republics. The Frost-Solomon Task Force 
partnered with the newly democratically elected members of post-Soviet 
legislatures to offer support and guidance in building an independent, 
co-equal legislative branch of government. A key part of that effort 
was the role our Congressional Research Service played in building 
strong, independent, nonpartisan research and analysis capabilities for 
these nascent institutions. Many of these countries are now members of 
NATO, the European Union, and in some cases, the Eurozone. They are 
fully integrated into the Trans-Atlantic partnership.
  However, the work of democratic development in the region is not 
over. I have the privilege of leading, along with my friend and 
colleague Rep. David Price, the House Democracy Partnership (HDP). Our 
commission is committed to helping strengthen legislatures in new and 
re-emerging democracies by engaging with our counterparts throughout 
the world. Two of our partner countries are Ukraine and the Republic of 
Georgia. Both are former Soviet republics working to consolidate their 
democracies. To date, their efforts have been met with varying levels 
of success, but HDP has been honored to work with reformers in both 
countries as they strive to throw off the shackles of their 
authoritarian past.
  The world has watched over the past week as Russia's citizens have 
stood up and demanded greater political freedom and transparency, which 
is indeed a hopeful step. However, there is another country in Eastern 
Europe that has resisted all efforts to transform itself into a modern 
democracy and maintains itself as an authoritarian dictatorship. The 
country of Belarus remains Europe's only dictatorship. Under the 
unyielding grip of dictator Alexsandr Lukashenko, the people of Belarus 
are denied the basic freedoms of assembly, association, and expression. 
The press is heavily restricted and intimidated. The internet is 
censored. Independent nongovernmental organizations are not allowed to 
operate. There is little freedom of religion. And 100,000 Belarusians 
have been barred from leaving the country. For the people of Belarus, 
the oppression of the past did not dissolve with the Soviet Union, but 
remains a bitter reality.
  While their neighbors in Central and Eastern Europe are able to 
freely elect their own leaders, Belarusians have witnessed one stage-
managed election after another under the current regime. Lukashenko has 
held illegal referenda to change the constitution, eliminate term 
limits, and dissolve an elected parliament. In December 2010, the 
Government of Belarus conducted a presidential election that failed to 
meet basic standards of the Organization for Security and Cooperation 
in Europe (OSCE), and followed that election by detaining and beating 
more than 600 peaceful opposition protestors. Seven of nine opposition 
presidential candidates were jailed and what remains of the independent 
media was attacked. Rather than address the OSCE's criticisms, the OSCE 
was kicked out of the country by the government.
  To highlight the continued abuses of the Lukashenko regime and once 
again demonstrate Congressional support for the aspirations of the 
Belarusian people, the House voted to renew the Belarus Democracy Act 
of 2004, with a unanimous vote on July 6 of this year. This bill not 
only imposes additional sanctions on the leaders of the corrupt 
Belarusian regime, but allows the United States to work with groups who 
are promoting freedom and democracy, particularly media groups such as 
Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, the Voice of America, European Radio 
for Belarus, and Belsat.
  The U.S. Congress will continue to stand with the Belarusian people 
as they fight for self determination and the rule of law. I look 
forward to the day that they are able to join their European neighbors 
on the right side of history with a lasting, peaceful and prosperous 
democracy.

                          ____________________