[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 163 (2017), Part 14]
[House]
[Page 19658]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                  CONDEMNING THE SLAVE TRADE IN LIBYA

  (Mr. PAYNE asked and was given permission to address the House for 1 
minute and to revise and extend his remarks.)
  Mr. PAYNE. Mr. Speaker, by now, we have all seen the horrifying video 
of a slave auction in Libya. It is outrageous. Migrants and refugees, 
most of them Black Africans, are being preyed upon, held in detention 
camps, and bought and sold like property.
  Mr. Speaker, the United States cannot stand by as an idle spectator 
to the plague of slavery in Libya. People are not property.
  Last week, members of the Congressional Black Caucus and I met with 
Libya's Ambassador. She agreed that the Libyan Government will conduct 
a transparent investigation, but they do not have the capacity to do 
so. That does not absolve the United States of its responsibilities.
  We must immediately investigate allegations of slavery and forced 
labor in Libya. We need to impose sanctions if Libya fails to end slave 
auctions and forced labor. We must ensure the U.S. Department of State 
and the U.S. Agency for International Development are adequately 
staffed to respond to the situation in Libya.
  Mr. Speaker, Congress should adopt the bipartisan H. Res. 644, which 
will do all these things and more.

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