Speech #1020141456

Kurds. Shiites. and Christian Chaldeans. and Assyrians. This humanitarian problem has been deemed the "fastest growing refugee situation in modern history." (U.N. Chronicle. September 1991.) Since the end of the gulf war. it is estimated that over 5 million persons have been displaced. The mass exodus of the Kurds from Iraq. which received much media attention. and the expelling of nonnationals from Kuwait are only part of the current gulf refugee crisis. Despite the Kuwaiti Governments assurances that there have been no general expulsions. hundreds of thousands of Egyptians. Yemenis. Palestinians. and other nationals are being evicted from Kuwait without any opportunity for deportation hearings and without any legal recourse to resist their expulsion. In fact. the alSabahs. the restored Kuwaiti royal family. seem to have forgotten that in their absence. many of those being deported stayed behind and resisted the cruel Iraqi regime while they fled the country. Moreover. despite firsthand knowledge of Saddam Husseins atrocities. the Kuwaiti Government has mandated the return of nonnational workers carrying foreign passports to their country of origin. In many cases. those expelled are people who were born in Kuwait or had lived there for several decades. Moreover. they are being sent to countries without the capacity to absorb them. such as Jordan. or nations with poor human rights records. such as Iraq. Having fought for the liberation of Kuwait. many Americans are deeply disturbed by the Kuwaiti Emirs lack of respect for ethnic minorities living in his country. Palestinian refugees. in particular. face a unique economic and political crisis. Prior to the gulf war over 400.000 Palestinians lived and worked in Kuwait. The majority of those were part of a highly educated work force that had lived in the emirate for decades. Until the gulf crisis. the Palestinians were considered valuable members of the Kuwaiti community. Following Saddams invasion of Kuwait. more than 230.000 Palestinians either fled or have subsequently been forced out of the country. Those who escaped during the invasion have been denied visas to allow them to return. Those who remained in Kuwait are now being forced to leave. For the Palestintan people. this mass expulsion has created a new trauma.