Mr. Speaker. this resolution offered by the Committee on Foreign Affairs reflects the thinking as well of the Subcommittee on Asian and Pacific Affairs. and underscores the concerns of many of us for the past several years. We have felt and we continue to feel that the humanitarian concerns raised by the plight of the Cambodian refugees along the ThaiKampuchea border far outweigh any political issues which might arise. However. we recognize that a grave military threat exists in the area. not only to the refugees. but particularly to Thailand. because of the large numbers of wellarmed contending forces. Thus. we feel that a United Nations presence could help defuse a very dangerous situation to large numbers of people. as well as to a nation of vital strategic importance to the United States. At the least. this resolution could help many hundred of thousands of refugees now crowded into camps along the border. At best. it might help set in process a method of eventual resolution of the tragedy of Kampuchea. Perhaps best of all for the moment. this amendment will not cost the taxpayers any money. Briefly. the resolution is designed to accomplish the following: As Chairman ZABLOCKI has stated. the resolution calls for an international presence. under United Nations auspices. in Khmer refugee camps along the ThailandKampuchea border. It is our intent that the resolution: Frist. promote security and stability for the refugees in the camps along the border. Second. oversee the distribution of food and water to insure that they are equitably distributed to those refugees for whom they are intended. Third. demonstrate that the assistance which is being provided to refugees in the encampments by the U.N. and other international donors is solely for humanitarian purposes. Fourth. encourage all nations in the regions to respect the use of the border area between Thailand and Kampuchea as a sanctuary for those refugees who are in need of humanitarian assistance.
Keywords matched
refugee refugees