Text: Senator Smith Says No to Trade Waiver for Vietnam
(S.J. Resolution 47 opposes waiver of 1974 Trade Act)Senator Robert Smith (Republican of New Hampshire) is seeking to overturn President Clinton's waiver of the Trade Act of 1974 for Vietnam.
On June 6, Smith introduced Senate Joint Resolution 47, which opposes President Clinton's recommendation that Congress vote to approve for Vietnam a waiver from the Trade Act of 1974.
"This Presidential waiver should be overturned by the Congress, as is our right under the law," he said, citing Vietnam's poor human rights record.
President Clinton submitted his recommendation June 2.
Smith added that "Rewarding Communist Vietnam by allowing U.S. tax dollars to subsidize business operations in Hanoi, while at the same time their leaders hold back key POW/MIA records from the war, is a disgrace to the men and women who valiantly served our country and were honored just last week on Memorial Day."
Following is the text of Senator Smith's remarks from the Congressional Record:
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STATEMENTS ON INTRODUCED BILLS AND JOINT RESOLUTIONS
(Senate - June 06, 2000)
LEGISLATION REGARDING THE TRADE ACT OF 1974
WITH RESPECT TO VIETNAMMr. SMITH of New Hampshire. Mr. President, I rise to introduce a resolution concerning our trade relationship with the Socialist Republic of Vietnam. On June 2, 2000, the President of the United States formally recommended a waiver of the application of the Trade Act of 1974 with respect to Vietnam. I am deeply troubled by the President's decision to grant this waiver in light of Vietnam's continuing poor record on human rights. One need only look at the 1999 U.S. State Department report on human rights practices in Vietnam to recognize that the Vietnamese Government once again has failed to meet recognized standards with respect to such fundamental rights as freedom of emigration, freedom of speech and freedom of religion, to name only a few, which are so often taken for granted in our great country.
I would like to quote from this revealing report to emphasize my point. The State Department declared the following regarding Vietnam: `The Government's human rights record remained poor; . . . and serious problems remain . . . The Government continued to repress basic political and some religious freedoms and to commit numerous abuses . . . the Government arbitrarily arrested and detained citizens, including detention for peaceful expression of political and religious views . . . The Government significantly restricts freedom of speech, the press, assembly, and association . . . The Government restricts freedom of religion and significantly restricts the operation of religious organizations other than those entities approved by the State . . . Citizens' access to passports frequently was constrained by factors outside the law, such as bribery and corruption. Refugee and immigrant visa applicants sometimes encountered local officials who arbitrarily delayed or denied passports based on personal animosities or on the officials' perception that an applicant did not meet program criteria or in order to extort a bribe.' The list of violations outlined by our State Department goes on, but I will stop here.
Mr. President, the resolution I have introduced keeps faith with the original Congressional intent of the Trade Act of 1974. Our dedication to fundamental human rights must be resolute, even when it means one powerful interest group or another does not get its way. Unfortunately, the President's decision to grant this waiver once again undermines the United States' long-standing dedication to human rights and sends a message to the rest of the world that the United States is more interested in profits over principles. Finally, rewarding Communist Vietnam by allowing U.S. tax dollars to subsidize business operations in Hanoi, while at the same time their leaders hold back key POW/MIA records from the war, is a disgrace to the men and women who valiantly served our country and were honored just last week on Memorial Day. This Presidential waiver should be overturned by the Congress, as is our right under the law.
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(Distributed by the Office of International Information Programs, U.S. Department of State. Web site: http://usinfo.state.gov)
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