Speech #960103470

Mr. Speaker. tomorrow the nine of us you appointed to form a bipartisan congressional mission to survey the refugee situation in Southeast Asia will leave for Vietnam and other Far Eastern nations. Although the plight of Vietnamese refugees tugs at nearly everyones humanitarian instincts. the citizens of the city of Fort Smith. Ark.. have personal experience with the refugee situation dating back to the use of nearby Fort Chaffee as a refugee processing center in 1975. In the August 6 issue of U.S. News & World Report. Paul Recer of their Houston bureau filed a report reflecting on the changing relationship between the refugees and the townspeople. from a perspective of 5 years later. Tonight. on the eve of our departure to investigate the handling of the more recent exodus from Vietnam. the article entitled "An Arkansas Town That Took In 2.000 Refugees." is included in the RECORD and recommended to the attention of my colleagues. [From the U.S. News & World Report. Aug 6. 19791