Political Quotes

“Mr. Speaker, it is 11 o'clock a.m. in Washington, D.C. It is nighttime in East Timor; and families there and those who have been evacuated from East Timor are living with the suffering of the past week and longer, much of it perpetrated by the Indonesian military cooperating with the militias in Dili and the rest of East Timor. The motion to instruct conferees I have offered today moves that the House insist on its position restricting military training to Indonesia to expanded IMET only. The Senate bill contains no such restriction. Were it within the scope of my motion to instruct to cut off all military training to the Indonesian military, I would do so. But the constraints of the parliamentarian are such on my motion that I cannot. Just as a matter of explanation, Mr. Speaker, the Department of Defense spends about $50 million a year on independent national military education and training. That is called IMET program. The program provides a wide range of training to over 125 countries around the world. The training ranges from sending foreign officers to some of our many military schools for extended periods to training in basic military tactics and techniques. In the past 10 years, with the changes in the world, Congress has insisted that the new programs be developed and carried out which deal with civil military relations and human rights awareness.”