Peter King: “I yield myself such time as may consume. At the outset, Mr. Chairman, let me join with my other colleagues in commending…”

“I yield myself such time as may consume. At the outset, Mr. Chairman, let me join with my other colleagues in commending the gentleman from Illinois (Chairman Hyde) for the outstanding leadership he has demonstrated on this bill. It caps a tremendous career in this body and is just one further shining example of how much we owe him and how we are indebted to him for his years of service to the United States Congress. Mr. Chairman, my amendment should be noncontroversial. As both sides have acknowledged, there have been enormous scandals at the United Nations. Its reputation has suffered dramatically. For those who do wish the United Nations to be reformed, and for the United Nations to reform itself, it is essential that it restore or regain some modicum of credibility from the American public and, indeed, from the world community. To do that, my amendment urges or directs the President of the United States to urge our permanent representative to the U.N. to call upon the Secretary General to waive immunity in those instances where U.N. officials have committed serious offenses. We have heard descriptions of various alleged misconduct by officials such as Benon Sevan, who is head of the Oil-for-Food program. Also, other individuals have been relieved of their duties at the U.N., such as the official charged with supervising contractor selection.…”