Speech #1000080243

There is no recognition on the part of the administration that the war in Nicaragua caused these people to flee their homes and not even an acknowledgement that their forced return to Nicaragua will place them in further peril. In fact. since 1980 only 10.6 percent of all Nicaraguan applicants have been granted political asylum. Now this legislation is not a political judgment on United States policies in Nicaragua and El Salvador. Rather. it is a humanitarian gesture intended to protect refugees from being forcibly returned to the pervasive bloodshed and repression in their countries. I would like to focus on the internal situation in Nicaragua for a moment. There is general agreement that there is widespread censorship of the press. a basic disregard of human rights. and persecution of individuals based on their political and religious beliefs.