Speech #970031616

These people. mostly the elderly. women. and children. are now located in camps concentrated near the city of Peshawar and in the Province of Baluchistan. Perhaps another 500.000 Afghans have fled westward to Iran. These refugees are irrefutable proof of the immense human suffering and anguish which the Soviet army has inflicted upon the Afghan people. In midApril Congressman RITTER and I accompanied a team of State Department experts on a tour of these camps. Our group was composed of a refugee specialist. a nutrition expert. and a woman doctor who was able to enter the family living quarters to check on the health of the women and children. Our purpose was to assess the effectiveness of the international relief effortto which the United States is the major contributorand to report back to the administration and the Congress. Our overall impression was one of profound respect for the courage and fortitude of the Afghan people and of appreciation of the humanitarian efforts of the Government of Pakistan. the United Nations High Commissioner for RefuMay 20. 1.981 gees. and the world food program who are carrying out the relief programs. The April trip was my second visit in little over a year to the PakAfghan border and my second inspection tour of the refugee camps. I found the refugees housed in tent encampments which have grown into small citiessome with a population of over 30.000 people. The camps are governed by the Afghans themselves along traditional clan and family lines and are reasonably clean and orderly. Life is barely above a subsistence level. but nutrition levels are adequate and there have been no incidences of epidemics or other major health problems. Missing is the squalor of refugee camps in other parts of the world. further testimony to the pride. dignity. and determination of the Afghan people. One of the prinicpal reasons for the success of the relief effort has been the contribution of the Pakistan Government. Utilizing a cadre of retired military officers.