[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 160 (2014), Part 11]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page 16127]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




 THE DEDICATION OF A BUST OF VACLAV HAVEL IN THE UNITED STATES CAPITOL

                                 ______
                                 

                          HON. STENY H. HOYER

                              of maryland

                    in the house of representatives

                      Wednesday, November 19, 2014

  Mr. HOYER. Mr. Speaker, today, Democrats and Republicans from both 
the House and Senate came together to dedicate a bust of former Czech 
President Vaclav Havel that will be displayed prominently in the U.S. 
Capitol building.
  President Havel was both a playwright and a freedom fighter. His 
literary works artfully undermined the totalitarian Communist system 
under which Czechs languished from 1948-1989, and he co-founded the 
Charter 77 Movement that called out the Communist regime for human 
rights violations as well as the Committee for the Defense of the 
Unjustly Prosecuted, which supported dissidents. He was among the 
leaders of the Velvet Revolution twenty-five years ago this month, 
which ended Communist rule and finally opened the door to democracy and 
freedom of expression.
  To his credit, President Havel navigated the difficult process of 
fostering a democratic political culture in the Czech Republic's new 
institutions of government while instilling hope for the future in a 
people whose yearnings and optimism had been suppressed for a 
generation. In office, he oversaw the first free and fair elections in 
over four decades and worked to build friendly ties with nations that 
had been shunned by the Communist bloc. When he retired in 2003, the 
Czech Republic had developed a vibrant democracy, had joined NATO, and 
was on the cusp of entering the European Union.
  Vaclav Havel died in 2011, but his legacy continues to inspire 
freedom fighters and democratic activists throughout the world. In an 
op-ed in the Washington Post earlier this week, Carl Gershman, 
President of the National Endowment for Democracy, wrote about Havel's 
affection for the United States and the values it embodies: ``When he 
addressed a joint session of Congress just three months after the 
revolution, Havel spoke with deep feeling about his country's 
indebtedness to the United States, including for President Woodrow 
Wilson's great support for the founding of Czechoslovakia in 1918, U.S. 
sacrifice and leadership in three wars--two hot and one cold--to save 
freedom in Europe, and the American founding documents that `inspire us 
to be citizens.''' President Havel's advocacy on behalf of dissidents 
and freedom fighters around the world created a forceful, universalist 
legacy.
  President Havel once wrote: ``The real test of a man is not how well 
he plays the role he has invented for himself, but how well he plays 
the role that destiny has assigned to him.'' Vaclav Havel passed that 
test in sharp contrast to another leader who today is failing it 
miserably.
  Russian President Vladimir Putin came into office in 2000 with an 
opportunity and an obligation to help the people of his nation 
transition from the ills of Soviet Communism and foreign aggression to 
real democracy and peaceful coexistence with other nations. Sadly, over 
the past fourteen years he has sabotaged Russia's democratic transition 
by suppressing dissent, fostering a cult of personality, and pursuing 
violent and aggressive actions against Russia's neighbors.
  This has been on full display over the past year in Ukraine, where 
one year ago courageous protesters gathered in Kiev's Maidan Square to 
reject Putin's attempts to pull their country closer into Russia's 
orbit and away from greater democracy and economic opportunity. The 
Maidan protests and the regime's violent response to them ushered in a 
new beginning for Ukrainian democracy, with free and fair elections 
held earlier this year. Unwilling to accept the decision the Ukrainian 
people have made about the future they want for their own nation, 
Putin's Russia has violated Ukraine's sovereignty by illegally annexing 
Crimea as well as sending troops and equipment across the border into 
southeastern Ukraine, much as it has done in the nation of Georgia.
  Vladimir Putin could have used his leadership of Russia to meet the 
challenge history presented to him and his nation after the fall of 
Communism. Instead, he seeks to reverse the course of history through 
his desire to re-create an autocratic and expansionist Russian empire. 
Putin might have played the role destiny assigned him, but instead he 
crafted a character that will surely be remembered as one of the chief 
antagonists of our age--not only for the democratic world but for the 
Russian people who yearn to be part of it.
  The world needs more leaders, philosophers, activists, and humble 
agents of positive change like Vaclav Havel, and not those like 
Vladimir Putin who subvert democracy and upend regional peace and 
security. I hope my colleagues will join me in paying tribute to 
President Havel and remembering his extraordinary contributions to his 
nation, to Europe, and to the world.

                          ____________________