[Congressional Record Volume 142, Number 113 (Monday, July 29, 1996)]
[House]
[Pages H8629-H8633]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]
{time} 1530
SUPPORTING A RESOLUTION OF THE CRISIS IN KOSOVA
Mr. BEREUTER. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and agree to
the concurrent resolution (H. Con. Res. 155) concerning human and
political rights and in support of a resolution of the crisis in
Kosova, as amended.
The Clerk read as follows:
H. Con. Res. 155
Whereas the Constitution of the Socialist Federal Republic
of Yugoslavia, adopted in 1946 and the amended Yugoslav
Constitution adopted in 1974, described the status of Kosova
as one of the 8 constituent territorial units of the Yugoslav
Federation;
Whereas the political rights of the Albanian majority in
Kosova were curtailed when
[[Page H8630]]
the Government of Yugoslavia illegally amended the Yugoslav
federal constitution without the consent of the people of
Kosova on March 23, 1989, revoking Kosova's autonomous
status;
Whereas in 1990, the Parliament and Government of Kosova
were abolished by further unlawful amendments to the
Constitution of Yugoslavia;
Whereas in September 1990, a referendum on the question of
independence for Kosova was held in which 87 percent of those
eligible to participate voted and 99 percent of those voting
supported independence for Kosova;
Whereas in May 1992, a Kosovar national parliament and
President, Dr. Ibrahim Rugova, were freely and fairly
elected, but were not permitted to assemble in Kosova;
Whereas according to the State Department Country Reports
on Human Rights for 1995, ``police repression continued at a
high level against the ethnic Albanians of Kosova . . . and
reflected a general campaign to keep [those] who are not
ethnic Serbs intimidated and unable to exercise basic human
and civil rights'';
Whereas over 100,000 ethnic Albanians employed in the
public sector have been removed from their jobs and replaced
by Serbs since 1989;
Whereas the government in Belgrade has severely restricted
the access of ethnic Albanians in Kosova to all levels of
education, especially in the Albanian language;
Whereas the Organization on Security and Cooperation in
Europe observers dispatched to Kosova in 1991 were expelled
by the government in Belgrade in July 1993, and have not been
reinstated as called for in United Nations Security
Council Resolution 855 of August 1993;
Whereas following the departure of such observers,
international human rights organizations have documented an
increase in abuses;
Whereas the United Nations announced on February 27, 1995,
that Serbia had granted it permission to open a Belgrade
office to monitor human rights in Serbia and Kosova;
Whereas Congress directed the State Department to establish
a United States Information Agency (U.S.I.A.) cultural center
in Prishtina, Kosova, in section 223 of the Foreign Relations
Authorization Act, Fiscal Years 1992 and 1993;
Whereas Secretary of State Warren Christopher announced on
February 27, 1996, that Serbian leader Slobodan Milosevic has
agreed to the establishment of such center and that
preparations for the establishment of the center are
proceeding;
Whereas, with the signing of the Dayton agreement on
Bosnia, future peace in the Balkans hinges largely on a
settlement of the status of Kosova; and
Whereas the President has explicitly warned the Government
of Serbia that the United States is prepared to respond in
the event of escalated conflict in Kosova caused by Serbia:
Now, therefore, be it
Resolved by the House of Representatives (the Senate
concurring), That it is the sense of the Congress that--
(1) the situation in Kosova must be resolved before the
outer wall of sanctions against Serbia is lifted and Serbia
is able to return to the international community;
(2) the human rights of the people of Kosova must be
restored to levels guaranteed by international law;
(3) the United States should support the legitimate claims
of the people of Kosova to determine their own political
future;
(4) international observers should be returned to Kosova as
soon as possible;
(5) the elected government of Kosova should be permitted to
meet and exercise its legitimate mandate as elected
representatives of the people of Kosova;
(6) all individuals whose employment was terminated on the
basis of their ethnicity should be reinstated to their
previous positions;
(7) the education system in Kosova should be reopened to
all residents of Kosova regardless of ethnicity and the
majority ethnic Albanian population should be allowed to
educate its youth in its native tongue;
(8) the establishment of a United States Information Agency
cultural center in Prishtina, Kosova, is to be commended; and
(9) the President should appoint a special envoy to aid in
negotiating a resolution to the crisis in Kosova.
The SPEAKER pro tempore (Mr. Calvert). Pursuant to the rule, the
gentleman from Nebraska [Mr. Bereuter] and the gentleman from New York
[Mr. Engel] each will control 20 minutes.
The Chair recognizes the gentleman from Nebraska [Mr. Bereuter].
Mr. BEREUTER. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
(Mr. BEREUTER asked and was given permission to revise and extend his
remarks.)
Mr. BEREUTER. Mr. Speaker, House Concurrent Resolution 155 notes our
continuing concern about the situation in Kosova and its Albanian
majority. As we have focused most of our attention on Bosnia, the
people of Kosova have suffered under unlawful amendments to their
Yugoslav constitution, police repression, employment discrimination,
restricted education, expulsion of international observers and more.
Indeed, many believe the seeds of the conflict that erupted in the
former Yugoslavia were sown in Kosova.
I hope all Members will join in sending a message to the Kosovan
people that we have not forgotten them and that the United States
Congress will continue to press for restoration of their civil and
political rights. Let us adopt this resolution today.
Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
Mr. ENGEL. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
It is my honor and pleasure to speak in favor of House Concurrent
Resolution 155, which is a resolution which I have authored. I have
spent many, many years in this Congress bringing forth the case of the
Albanian people in Kosova before this Congress, and I am delighted to
see this resolution on the floor.
I want to thank my good friend, the gentleman from Nebraska, Mr.
Bereuter, as well as the gentleman from New York, Chairman Gilman, and
also the gentleman from New Jersey, Chairman Chris Smith, who has
played a major role, a very, very helpful role, in bringing forward the
terrible human rights violations so that this Congress understands
that.
I also want to thank the cosponsors of the bill, the people who have
agreed to sponsor the bill with me, the gentlewoman from New York [Ms.
Molinari], the gentleman from California [Mr. Lantos], the gentleman
from Illinois [Mr. Porter], the gentleman from Michigan [Mr. Levin],
the gentleman from New York [Mr. King], the gentleman from New Jersey
[Mr. Torricelli], the gentleman from Virginia [Mr. Moran], the
gentlewoman from New York [Mrs. Kelly], the gentleman from Michigan
[Mr. Bonior], the gentleman from California [Mr. Miller], and the
gentleman from California [Mr. Rohrabacher]. I want to thank them all
for their support as well.
Mr. Speaker, I have recently, just last week, come back from a trip
to Kosova where I had the honor of cutting the ribbon and hoisting the
American flag at the opening of the new USIA office in Prishtina, which
is the capital of Kosova. I can tell my colleagues that, as we hoisted
the American flag in our new office, there were throngs of people
across the street chanting USA, USA, and free Kosova, free Kosova.
Indeed, the human rights violations in that region of the world are
nonexistent. Let me say a little about Kosova. Kosova is an area
contained in what is now Serbia, former Yugoslavia, which contains at
least 90 percent ethnic Albanians. These ethnic Albanians have no
political or civil rights whatsoever. The situation there is very bleak
and grim and seems to be getting worse, not better.
I have often said that, if we allow the incidents in Kosova to remain
unchecked, Bosnia would be a tea party compared with what might happen
to the people in Kosova, because the nationalism there is just as
terrible as it was in Bosnia. With the repression of the Albanian
majority, I shudder to think what might happen if the United States
might turn the other way.
House Concurrent Resolution 155 simply says that the outer wall of
sanctions shall remain in place against Serbia until there are
improvements in the human rights situation in Kosova. The outer wall of
sanctions prevents Serbia from joining certain international
organizations, including monetary organizations, which they are eager
to join.
I must say that in visiting Kosova I also visited Belgrade, the
capital of Serbia, and met with Serbian President Milosevic and made it
clear to him as well that the United States was not prepared to lift
the outer wall of sanctions until we saw substantial improvement in the
human rights situations in Kosova. I relayed this to the Serbian
authorities in Kosova as well.
The resolution also demands the restoration of all human and
political rights in Kosova. I must say that the Albanian Parliament
there was elected more than 4 years ago and was never allowed to meet,
under threat of jail and repression. None of its leaders were allowed
to meet. The 4 years have come and gone, and, as a result, they have
never met and have no political rights.
It also commends the opening of the United States Information Agency
office. This is a small step but a step in
[[Page H8631]]
the right direction. I have often said that we need to have an American
presence on the ground in Kosova with the American flag flying. It
sends very important messages to two parties, one to the ethnic
Albanians there, again comprising over 90 percent of the population. It
tells them this United States has not abandoned them, that the United
States stands by them, that the United States will continue to monitor
the situation and that we will not tolerate lack of human rights for
all peoples in Kosova.
It also sends a very important message to the Serb Government,
particularly Serb President Milosevic. It says to him again that the
United States is engaged; the United States is watching; that the
United States will not tolerate the abuses, human rights abuses of the
majority in Kosova.
So I believe it sends a very, very important message. It is also
significant, the fact that, since we are closing consulates and closing
offices around the world due to budgetary constraints, here is the one
place where we are opening an office. So it further emphasizes the
United States concern with the lack of human rights in Kosova.
As my friend from Nebraska said, there was an expulsion of
international observers again by the Serbs, so we do not have
international observers observing the human rights situation in Kosova.
So the United States Information Agency office is all the more
important, and we must have international observers back as soon as
possible.
The resolution also and very importantly says that the President
ought to send a presidential envoy to help mediate the situation there
between the Albanians and the Serbs. We have seen in other parts of the
world, notably Northern Ireland, where a United states envoy was
appointed. We have seen in Bosnia, for instance, where, with United
States envoys, the United States is involved, and the United States
grabbed the bull by the horns so to speak to prevent further atrocities
from happening.
I believe very strongly, and this resolution says very strongly, that
the United States envoy there would be very, very important. On the
appointment of a presidential envoy, I raised this with Mr. Milosevic
the other week in Belgrade. While he rejected it and said it would be
meddling in Serbian internal affairs, I believe that it is something
that we should continue to pursue and something that we should do.
Now, let us talk about the lack of freedoms that the Albanians have
in Kosova. They are constantly harassed by Serbian police and the
Serbian presence. There is 80 percent and higher unemployment amongst
the Albanian population because there has been wholesale firings and
expulsion of Albanian workers in hospitals, in universities, in
schools.
So the Albanian population has no hope of getting jobs or being
employed. I have said to the Serbian authorities when they talked about
wanton actions of terror, I said I was absolutely opposed to terror;
but I thought despair breeds terror, and right now the Albanian
population is in despair. They are in despair because there is no hope
for the future with the situation just the way it is.
With our European allies recognizing Serbia, many of the Kosovars
feel even more abandoned. So the United States is the one country in
the world that holds the promise of opportunity to them so that they
know that the United States has not abandoned them. That is why when
they were yelling USA, USA, those American flags were being flown. They
were waving American flags and handing me and other members of our
delegation flowers. It was really something to behold.
The Albanian language is repressed. Albanian schools are repressed.
Albanian health facilities are repressed, so basic health care cannot
be gotten by the average Albanian. And again this Congress has
provided, other Congresses have provided $6 million of humanitarian
assistance to Kosova. I saw firsthand on the ground what our American
dollars are doing so that mothers who have never had any kind of health
care whatsoever can go to these clinics, helped in large part by
American funds and governmental funds and private donations so that
these women can have their babies in clean surroundings for the first
time attended to by medical doctors.
Again, these Albanian doctors who have been fired from their jobs are
all volunteering and have a tremendous spirit of all for one and one
for all.
So this resolution, I believe, goes a long way in sending a very,
very important message in that area of the world, both to the
Albanians, who are repressed by the Serbian authorities, and to the
Serbs and Mr. Milosevic that the United States again is engaged and the
United States says the sanctions will not end until there are human
rights improvements and we demand the restoration of all human and
political rights.
Mr. Speaker, I think that this Congress ought to be commended. In
some of our other legislation we passed similar legislation involving
the points of House Concurrent Resolution 155, but this is the first
time that we are actually having a freestanding resolution. For that, I
think that the Committee on International Relations, the gentleman from
New York, Chairman Gilman, the gentleman from Indiana [Mr. Hamilton],
and others are to be commended.
I think that this Congress is about to be commended because the
United States again is looked upon as a champion of freedom by so many
people in the world, but certainly by the ethnic Albanians in Kosova.
They know that the United States is the champion of freedom. This
little small effort says to them we have not abandoned you, we will not
forget you, we will be there until all human and political rights are
restored in Kosova.
Mr. Speaker, I include for the Record documents relating to this
topic.
U.S. Department of State,
Washington, DC, July 19, 1996.
Hon. Eliot Engel,
House of Representatives,
Washington, DC.
Dear Mr. Engel: Thank you for your June 11 letter to
President Clinton regarding the situation in Kosovo. The
State Department has been asked to respond on his behalf.
We appreciate and are gratified by your comments concerning
the Administration's deep engagement in the search for a
peaceful, equitable solution in Kosovo. Like you, the
Administration is fully committed to ensuring that all the
people of Kosovo have the ability to participate fully in the
life of the region.
Early in his term, President Clinton reaffirmed President
Bush's ``Christmas Warning'' of a military response to Serb-
instigated violence in Kosovo. Likewise, a key requirement
for lifting the ``Outer Wall'' of sanctions is progress
towards resolving the situation in Kosovo. These sanctions
apply to membership in the United Nations and other
international organizations; normalization of our bilateral
relations; and membership in the World Bank, International
Monetary Fund and other International Financial Institutions.
Milosevic is very eager to overcome these sanctions and we
have left him with no doubts how to do so.
While we share your concern regarding the situation in
Kosovo, we do not believe that there is a need for a special
envoy to deal solely with this issue. Assistant Secretary
John Kornblum, who leads our efforts in the former
Yugoslavia, has made Kosovo a priority. He meets frequently
with President Milosevic and always makes clear that there
must be progress on Kosovo if the ``FRY'' is to emerge from
the shadow of the Outer Wall. In fact, every high
Administration official who has met with Milosevic has
insisted on the need to act on Kosovo.
In addition to continuing pressure on the Belgrade
authorities, Secretary Christopher and Ambassador Kornblum
have met with Dr. Rugova and other LDK leaders on several
occasions. It is our hope that these contacts will lead to
serious talks between the parties on the future of Kosovo. We
are hopeful that both sides will soon be prepared to sit down
and discuss a peaceful solution to the situation in Kosovo.
Sincerely,
Barbara Larkin,
Acting Assistant Secretary,
Legislative Affairs.
____
House of Representatives
Washington, DC, June 11, 1996.
The President,
The White House,
Washington, DC.
Dear Mr. President: We would like to express our
appreciation for the steps your administration has taken to
encourage an equitable resolution to the crisis in Kosova,
including high level diplomatic meetings with President
Ibrahim Rugova and progress toward the establishment of a
USIA office in Prishtina.
Unfortunately, in recent weeks the situation in Kosova has
deteriorated, with tensions rising significantly following
the deaths of two young Albanians. Moreover, Kosovars feel
increasingly slighted because the United States and the
international community did not place their very legitimate
claims on the agenda during the talks in
[[Page H8632]]
Dayton and have not yet appeared to make Kosova a priority.
We believe that the time has come to afford the situation
in Kosova the attention it deserves. This means that the
United States must give the highest level of attention to
Kosova right now to prevent the situation there from
worsening even more.
We, therefore, strongly urge you to appoint a special envoy
to help negotiate a settlement of the Kosova crisis.
Thank you for your immediate attention to this matter.
Sincerely,
Members of Congress Eliot L. Engel, Tom Lantos, Susan
Molinari, John E. Porter, Sander M. Levin, Eva M.
Clayton, Sue Kelly, James P. Moran, David E. Bonior,
Peter T. King, Martin R. Hoke, Nita M. Lowey, Donald M.
Payne, George Miller, Edolphus Towns, Jose E. Serrano,
Robert G. Torricelli, Dana Rohrabacher, John W. Olver,
Charles E. Schumer.
____
[From the Washington Post, July 21, 1996]
Kosova's Albanians Look to U.S. for Help
American Office Opened in Serb-Ruled Region
(By Michael Dobbs)
Prishtina, Yugoslavia.--Ibrahim Rugova, an ethnic Albanian,
says he is the duly elected president of Kosova--even though
it is a Serbian province whose official leaders are appointed
by authorities in Belgrade. Nonsense, insists Aleksa Jokic, a
Serb, who recently was appointed governor of Kosova--even
though its population is overwhelmingly Albanian.
Today, the two men stood on either side of a U.S.
congressman from the Bronx, as the Stars and Stripes rose
over the new U.S. information center here in Kosova's
capital. Rugova was smiling. Jokic grimaced as a crowd of a
hundred or so Albanians changed ``Free Kosova,'' ``Rugova''
and ``USA, USA.'' The two rivals shook hands gingerly but did
not exchange a word.
``This is diplomacy at its best,'' murmured Larry Butler,
charge d'affairs of the U.S. Embassy in Belgrade, after
declaring the first representative office of a foreign power
in Prishtina open for business. ``You can't imagine how
awkward this occasion is for some people here.''
The scene outside the U.S. information center in this
sprawling, dirt-poor town illustrated the complexities of
politics in this part of the world and the influence the
United States is capable of wielding, when it chooses to do
so. Along with Bosnia and Macedonia, Kosovo is one of those
proverbial Balkan tinderboxes that only attract the world's
attention when there is an almighty explosion. Ninety percent
of Kosovo's 2 million people are Albanian. Historically and
culturally, however, the region is the cradle of Serbdom.
It was here, in the year 1389, that Serbia's most potent
historical image was born, when the Serb Prince Lazar was
slain by his Turkish enemies on the Field of Blackbirds, just
outside Pristina. For the next 600 years, including more than
four centuries of Ottoman rule, Serb children were brought up
to avenge Lazar's defeat.
Accordingly, it was here too that Serbian President
Slobodan Milosevic began his ascent to power in 1986, when he
unleashed the demons of nationalism by promising to defend
the rights of the beleaguered Serb minority in Kosovo. In
fact, human rights monitors say it is the minority that is
oppressing the majority. Over the past five years, more than
125,000 ethnic Albanians have been dismissed from their jobs
and deprived of access to state-run health services. Many
factories have closed, and there is virtually no investment.
Western aid workers in Pristina say Albanians are frightened
to open businesses of any significant size, because they fear
expropriation by the Serbian authorities.
Kosovo's predominantly Muslim Albanians dream of the day
when they will shake off Serbian rule and unite with Albania.
In the meantime, their leaders have embarked on a policy of
total noncooperation with Belgrade. They boycott Serb-run
elections, organize their own schools, universities and
medical services, and publish their own newspapers. Rugova
heads a shadow government that boasts its own parliament and
taxation service.
Key to Rugova's strategy of nonviolent civil disobedience
is the support of the outside world. When West European
governments extended full diplomatic recognition earlier this
year to Yugoslavia--of which Serbia is the dominant
republic--many Kosovo Albanians felt abandoned. The United
States is the only major country that still refuses to send
an ambassador to Belgrade, as long as human rights abuses
continue in Kosovo.
The Kosovo cause has been kept alive in Washington by a
small group of congressmen led by Rep. Eliot L. Engel (D-
N.Y.), whose constituents include 20,000 ethnic Albanians
living in the Bronx. Engel, who was on hand for today's
ceremonies in Pristina, will sponsor a resolution in the
House of Representatives next week urging the Clinton
administration to appoint a special envoy to Kosovo to
negotiate a settlement between the rival sides.
``Human rights violations here are getting worse, not
better,'' said Engel, citing a series of recent arbitrary
police beatings and continuing dismissals of Albanian
workers. He said that the opening of the U.S. information
office, for which he lobbied hard, would send a message both
to Milosevic and to the Albanians that the United States had
``not forgotten Kosovo.'' The two-story center contains
reference materials and computer terminals that visitors can
use to view CD-ROMs.
Despite a generally tense atmosphere in Pristina and other
Albanian towns, the Serb police presence on the streets is
significantly less onerous than it was several years ago.
The Clinton administration, like the Bush administration
before it, has privately warned Milosevic that it will
react forcefully to any attempt by Yugoslavia to resolve
the Kosovo problem through ``ethnic cleansing,'' the
forced expulsion of non-Serbs. The result is a political
standoff, in which Serbs and Albanians are having little
to do with each other.
At a meeting with Engel, Jokic brushed aside allegations of
human rights abuses and complained of a series of ``terrorist
acts'' by Albanians against the Serb police. He said that
over the last few months five Serb policemen have been killed
and two injured in Albanian attacks. He also criticized the
Albanians for refusing to take part in Serbian elections,
saying that they were depriving themselves of the ability to
influence the result.
The United States, along with several European countries,
has linked relaxation of sanctions still being imposed
against Yugoslavia to a ``significant improvement'' in the
human rights situation in Kosovo. This ``outer wall'' of
sanctions includes membership of international financial
institutions and access to international credits. But there
is disagreement over precisely what is required of
Yugoslavia. Engel argues that the Serbs would have to offer
the Kosovo Albanians the right of self-determination. The
State Department has suggested that it would be satisfied
with some kind of autonomy for Kosovo.
In their isolation, many Albanians have come to look upon
the United States as a mythic great power that will come to
their aid. Rugovo described the U.S. information center as
``a direct link with the United States''--U.S. diplomats
point out that it is actually only an adjunct of the embassy
in Belgrade--and said that today was ``a historic day for
Kosovo.'' Albanian-language newspapers rarely mention that
Washington does not recognize Rugovo as president of Kosovo
and is opposed to the region's secession from Yugoslavia.
``The Albanians think that America is their only hope for
getting a republic, for getting independence,'' said Lisa
Adams, an American physician who has spent the past two years
in Kosovo running a medical assistance program. ``People want
to see this information center as a mini-embassy.''
Jokic, the Serb provincial governor, sees things very
differently. He blames the West for Kosovo's economic plight,
arguing that sanctions have deprived the region of
investment. As for the chants of ``Free Kosovo,'' he shrugged
his shoulders. ``Kosovo is already free,'' he said. ``They
are saying what already exists.''
Mr. ENGEL. Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
Mr. BEREUTER. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
Mr. Speaker, I want to thank and congratulate my colleague, the
gentleman from New York [Mr. Engel], for the leadership that he has
shown on this issue. It has been extraordinarily important. He
approaches these issues related to Albania, the former Yugoslavia
Republic of Macedonia, and Kosova in a very responsible and enlightened
fashion.
I regret the fact he has left the Committee on International
Relations for other responsibilities in the Congress, but we will
continue to seek and receive, with gratitude, his outstanding efforts
in advising us on this troubled part of the world.
I think that the relationships between the country of Albania, the
former Yugoslavia Republic of Macedonia and Kosova are very much
related in the southern Balkan region. The relationships between
Albania and the United States are improving rather dramatically. I
think we now have that opportunity with the former Yugoslavia Republic
of Macedonia.
Now we have to focus once more and indeed with additional emphasis, I
think, on the abuses that exist toward the Albanian majority in Kosova.
Former Members of Congress and Members of Congress have to approach
this issue in a very responsible fashion. We have unfortunately, the
opportunity also not to do just good and to do what is important in our
national interest, but to do things which are provocative and
unfortunate.
The gentleman from New York leads the way in an enlightened
responsible approach toward our relationship to Serbia with respect to
Kosova and the Albanian majority that exists there. What we do in this
Congress and what we do outside of this Congress is very important in
restoring stability in that part of the world, and that is very
crucial, or we may find that we have a
[[Page H8633]]
deep problem within the NATO alliance.
So I commend once more my colleague for his leadership and look
forward to additional examples of it in this and other areas.
Mr. GILMAN. This concurrent resolution of the House concerns the
deplorable human rights situation in Kosova, a formerly autonomous
republic of the former Yugoslavia. Its autonomous status under the
consideration of the former Yugoslavia was revoked by Serbian President
Milosevic in 1989, and many cite this action by Serbia as the beginning
of the conflict which was to consume most of the former Yugoslavia in
the years 1991-95. I commend the gentleman from New York [Mr. Engel]
for introducing this resolution, and I am proud to be listed as a
cosponsor.
Many in the Congress, myself included, feel that it was a mistake to
lift the sanctions against Serbia without linking this action with the
situation in Kosova. The prospect for peace in Bosnia has raised hopes
all over the region.
However, the people in Kosova do not feel that hope. For them the
lesson of Bosnia is that violence is a way to win concessions from the
international community. They see the Serbs in Bosnia rewarded for
their aggression by the creation of the so-called Republic of Srbska.
What is the international community to say to the long-suffering people
of Kosova who have seen their autonomy trampled upon by the Serbian
authorities, the loss of their civic institutions and the denial of
their most basic rights?
Earlier this month the United States Information Agency opened an
office in Pristina, Kosova. This will allow for a permanent American
presence in the Republic to monitor human rights and the overall
situation. As with USIA offices in other parts of the world that have
been deprived of fundamental freedoms, this office will also provide a
window to a better and fairer system.
The Congress included authorization to open this office in the State
Department's fiscal year 1994 and 1996-97 authorization bills adopted
by this House. While I commend the administration for finally acting on
this expression of congressional intent, it should note the Congress'
strong opposition to a further easing of sanctions on Serbia until the
situation in Kosova is addressed and resolved.
This resolution will send a message of hope to the people of Kosova,
and a message to Serbia that the Congress is keeping the issue of
Kosova under review. I also hope that it will serve to strengthen the
administration's commitment to improving the human rights situation in
Kosova. I urge all of my colleagues to join in adopting House
Concurrent Resolution 155.
Mr. LEVIN. Mr. Speaker, I rise today as one of the original sponsors
of this resolution to voice my strong support for House Concurrent
Resolution 155 which expresses the sense of Congress on the situation
in Kosova.
In 1989, Belgrade unilaterally revoked the autonomous status of
Kosova. Albanians in Kosova, who make up over 90 percent of the
population, subsequently voted for Kosavar independence in 1991. Since
that time, Serb security officials have waged a campaign of repression
that has included widespread torture, beatings, killings, and
harassment of Albanians throughout Kosova. Over half of the more than
250,000 Albanians in the work force have been fired from their jobs and
even more have fled the region rather than face certain persecution.
While the administration has taken an active role, including opening
of USIA office in Prishtina, more needs to be done. The administration
needs to appoint a special envoy to Kosova to help resolve the crisis.
Furthermore, the United States along with our European allies must
condition the lifting of sanctions against Serbia with clear and
concrete progress on the matter of Kosova.
By appointing a full time envoy and linking the lifting of sanctions
on Serbia with the restoration of the full spectrum of human and
political rights to the people of Kosova, the United States can help to
broker a peaceful and lasting resolution to the matter. To not to do
so, would be to invite the situation to escalate into a new, even wider
conflict in the Balkans. Thereby ending our best chance for peace in
the Balkan region.
The resolution presents an effective policy for accomplishing these
goals. I urge my colleagues to vote ``yes'' on the resolution and send
a clear statement in support of the rights of the people of Kosova.
Mr. BEREUTER. Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is on the motion offered by the
gentleman from Nebraska [Mr. Bereuter] that the House suspend the rules
and agree to the concurrent resolution, House Concurrent Resolution
155, as amended.
The question was taken; and (two-thirds having voted in favor
thereof) the rules were suspended and the concurrent resolution, as
amended, was agreed to.
A motion to reconsider was laid on the table.
____________________