Speech #930168692

President. today I received a letter from Frank L. Kellogg. Special Assistant to the Secretary for Refugees and Migration Affairs. Department of State. reading: DEAR SENATOR FONG: I am addressing you in your capacity as ranking minority member of the Subcommittee on Refugees and Escapees. to call your attention to a damaging reduction in funds for the operations of my office. and to request your assistance in having the money restored to us. The amount is not large in terms of the total under the Foreign Assistance and Related Programs Appropriation Bill. 1974 . but its unavailability will reduce the effectiveness of refugee assistance programs worldwide. It is of particular concern that this reduction will set an example for other nations in their contributions and thus. at a time when refugees problems are proliferating. inhibit the operations of the international organizations which have been doing extremely effective work in this field. Our original budget estimate and also the authorization for Migration and Refugee Assistance conducted by my office on a regular basis was $9.504 million. roughly the amount of our 1973 expenditure with an allowance for the effects of devaluation. The House of Representatives allowed $9.1 million. And this has been followed by a recommendation from the Senate Committee on Appropriations for a further reductionsubject of this letterof $534.000. bringing our total down to $8.566 million. The Appropriations Committee report contains the assertion that my Office of Refugee and Migration Affairs directs Its primary assistance efforts toward European problems with some attention to Africa. In actuality. although we continue to support European operations. extensive refugee problems have been developing elsewhere. As an example. one of the major international organizations supported under this appropriationthe Office of the U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) --devotes over half of its material assistance budget to Africa. and the Intergovernmental Committee for European Migratlon-(ICEM)-has important current programs in South Asia. the Far East and Latin America. The Appropriation Committee reports that the committees intention. in making the reduction. is that no new programs or activities be undertaken in fiscal year 1974 that were not carried on in fiscal year 1973. I find this incomprehensible. It is the very nature of refugee problems In todays world that they occur unexpectedly and in unanticipated places. A prohibition of this kind. had It existed previously. presuambly would have enjoined. for example. U.S. support of international programs to assist Asians recently expelled from Uganda. Bengalis and nonBengalis being repatriated between Bangladesh and Pakistan. and alien refugees in Chile requiring protection and assistance. If it should be approved by the Congress. it would prevent us from assisting any new refugees who might be generated this year. The United States for many years has played a role of leadership and example in humanitarian programs. Our nonresponse to assistance programs for refugees could drastically inhibit the participation of other nations. Our budget request. even before the reductions. permitted U.S. contributions of lesser magnitude. on the basis of comparable wealth. than those of several other humanitarian nations. I have prided myself. in operations of this office. on efficiency and maximum benefit from funds provided to us. Current refugee problems and programs supported or conducted by my office will have to be curtailed. if the reduction stands. in Europe. the Far East. Africa. South Asia and Latin Americaand for that matter in the United States. so far as transport of refugee immigrants to this country is concerned. I most urgently ask you to do what you can to bring this appropriation up to strength. Sincerely.