1 of 2 --H.J. Res. 102- H.J. Res. 102 One Hundred Fifth Congress of the United States of America AT THE SECOND SESSION Begun and held at the City of Washington on Tuesday, the twenty-seventh day of January, one thousand nine hundred and ninety-eight Joint Resolution Expressing the sense of the Congress on the occasion of the 50th anniversary of the founding of the Whereas on November 29, 1947, the United Nations General Assembly voted to partition the British Whereas on May 14, 1948, the people of Israel proclaimed the establishment of the sovereign and independent State of Israel and the United States Government established full diplomatic relations with Israel; Whereas the desire of the Jewish people to establish an independent modern State of Israel is the Whereas one century ago at the First Zionist Congress on August 29 to 31, 1897, in Basel, Switzerland, Whereas the establishment of the modern State of Israel as a homeland for the Jews followed the Whereas since its establishment 50 years ago, the modern State of Israel has rebuilt a nation, forged a Whereas the people of Israel have established a vibrant and functioning pluralistic democratic political Whereas, at great social and financial costs, Israel has absorbed hundreds of thousands of Jews from Whereas for half a century the United States and Israel have maintained a special relationship based on 7/30/98 11:42 AM 2 of 2 Whereas the American people have shared an affinity with the people of Israel and regard Israel as a Resolved by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress (1) recognizes the historic significance of the 50th anniversary of the reestablishment of the (2) commends the people of Israel for their remarkable achievements in building a new state (3) reaffirms the bonds of friendship and cooperation which have existed between the (4) extends the warmest congratulations and best wishes to the State of Israel and her people for a peaceful and prosperous and successful future. Speaker of the House of Representatives. Vice President of the United States and President of the Senate. END 7/30/98 11:42 AM Statement of Representative Christopher H. Smith Chairman, Subcommittee on International Operations and Human Rights Mr. Chairman, I urge every member of the Committee to vote in favor of S. Con. Res. 37, a resolution that recognizes that Little League Baseball is a bona fide nongovernmental organization and should be treated as such by our government and those of other nations. The resolution makes clear that Little League Baseball, Incorporated, is a nonprofit membership organization that was chartered by Congress in 1964 to promote participation by children around the world in Little League baseball. Unfortunately, the charter did not explicitly use the words "nongovernmental -- organization”--- which were not in vogue in those days so there has been some confusion, particularly in nations where Little League Baseball is relatively new, about the undeniable fact that this organization is indeed a nonprofit, nongovernmental organization. Because the Congress of the U.S. originally chartered the organization, it falls to us to clarify the matter. S. Con. Res. 37 was introduced by Senator Coverdell and has already passed the Senate. It also passed the Subcommittee on International Operations and Human Rights, by a voice vote on February 12 of this year. I want to point out the relentless dedication to this issue of our colleague Joe McDade, who is a principal co-author of the Senate resolution. Congressman McDade brought the resolution to the attention of the Subcommittee and has pushed every step of the way to ensure the success of the resolution. Again, Mr. Chairman, I urge a unanimous YES vote for S. Con. Res. 37. Congressman Donald M. Payne Subcommittee on The Western Hemisphere Guyana Mark-up March 4, 1998 Thank you Mr. Chairman (Cong. Galtegly) for letting me speak on this Resolution. Although I am not a member of the Subcommittee on The Western Hemisphere, I am very concerned about the recent events in Guyana. First, let me congratulate the people of The Co-operative Republic of Guyana for holding multiparty elections on December 15, 1997. I was saddened to learn about the violence that erupted post-elections. Although the Guyanese people showed their strong belief in the democratic process as shown by an 88 per cent voter turnout, factions in the country called for civil disobedience and there was looting and rioting for many days following the elections. In January, between 15,000-20,000 people were rioting in the streets. I know Janet Jagan of the People's Progressive Party/Civic (PPP/C) won by a small majority--nonetheless a win is a win. Opposition political parties and International Observers invited to monitor the elections concluded that while the voting on election day was free and fair, there were some concerns with the counting of the votes. The results have since been challenged and an audit of the votes and processes have been started the Caribbean Community (CARICOM), an organization deemed acceptable to all parties. However suspicious the confusion in the Election Commission; however wronged the opposition feels, mob violence does not address any of these issues. I will be anxious, as I am sure all of your are to hear the results of the audit. At that time, I believe we can move forward with the President on a number of issues. In conclusion, I would hope that all parties along with the newly elected president of the Co-operative Republic of Guyana will respect the rule of law and human rights. I know that Taylor in Liberia has appointed members opposing his faction. I would hope that Janet Jagan would extend her government offices to the peoples of Afro-Guyanese descent. Thank you again Mr. Chairman for marking up this bill. 1 |