Speech #1000107004

I rise in support of the amendment offered by the Senator from Oregon. I was an original cosponsor of the bill he introduced on this matter earlier this year. and I am a cosponsor of this amendment. I saw first hand the plight of the refugees in Southeast Asia. In November 1979. I. along with other Congresswomen. went to the killing fields in Southeast Asia and was involved in witnessing the camps throughout Thailand. We worked on a bipartisan and humanitarian effort. We pledged our support then to those refugees and said we would act and never forget. Yes. we did act then. but we must continue our commitment and show we never will forget. The refugees in Southeast Asia are in a truly desperate situation and they deserve the attention and support of the U.S. Senate. The key to protecting these refugees is a strong. sustained resettlement commitment from the United States. This amendment displays that strong commitment. If first psylum countries like Thailand think that the United States is no longer willing to resettle these refugees. Thailand will no longer be willing to provide them a temporary safe haven. Thailand is wondering if we are victims of compassion fatigue. wondering if we have run out of energy and are no longer willing to put resources into the activity of keeping an international commitment we made. I wonder if we are not also engaged in congressional chic. that once an issue leaves the headlines it leaves our attention. These refugees are still in need and still need the help of the United States. Also. I have a fundamental disagreement with those people in the State Department and the Immigration and Naturalization Service who have been involved in this issue. I am not so sure that they understand the difference between an immigrant and a refugee. We must keep in mind that there is an inherent and very important difference between immigrants and refugees. Refugees face an urgent. compelling need for safety and protection. Immigrants do not flee from their country to save their lives and the lives of their children. The refugees from Cambodia and Vietnam have escaped from some of the most brutal and horrifying regimes this world has ever known. The killing fields were real. I saw them with my own eyes. Southeast Asian refugees who continue to seek freedom for themselves and safety for their families deserve our fullest commitment. In 1985. President Reagan said: The drive of our people to assist refugees in need overseas and to resettle those who need it is an integral part of the American ethic. This amendment will ensure that the United States lives up to its responsibility to Southeast Asian refugees and continues its humanitarian ideals of protecting and resettling them. I urge my colleagues to support the amendment.