Tom Tancredo: “Mr. Speaker, today Burma is ruled by one of the world's most brutal military dictatorships. The State Peace and…”

“Mr. Speaker, today Burma is ruled by one of the world's most brutal military dictatorships. The State Peace and Development Council, the SPDC, rules through an insidious system of extrajudicial killings, rape, torture, conscription of child soldiers, and the use of modern day slavery. To date, approximately 2 million Burmese have been forcibly displaced because of the horrific policy of this regime. Further, Mr. Speaker, the SPDC has arrested approximately 1,300 individuals for merely expressing critical opinions of the existing regime, including the leader of the National League For Democracy, Aung San Suu Kyi. Suu Kyi was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize and the U.S. Presidential Medal of Freedom. My colleagues will also recall that her party, the National League for Democracy, continues to be rebuffed from claiming the right to govern, despite having won 392 of the 485 contested parliamentary seats in 1990. Mr. Speaker, H. Res. 768 will put Congress on record that the United Nations Security Council must take immediate action with regard to the ruling regime in Burma. This regime poses a serious threat to the regional stability of Southeast Asia. They have allowed the continuous cross-border flow of illegal narcotics, trafficked persons, and the unchecked spread of HIV/AIDS. In addition, the SPDC has attempted to acquire military hardware from the People's Republic of China, the Russian Federation, and North Korea.”