Political Quotes

“the President might have delinked human rights from trade, but that should not be taken as a signal by other countries that the U.S. Congress no longer cares about human rights. Indeed, concern for human rights in our own country and around the world remains a prominent concern on both sides of the aisle. Congresswoman Pelosi, Congressman Lantos, Congressman Smith of New Jersey and Congressman Wolf are just four of the many Members who have made human rights a burning concern. I want to add my voice today to the concern about human rights in a part of the world about which we hear very little: Kashmir. Indeed, Kashmir is one of the main trouble spots in the world today. India and Pakistan have fought two wars over Kashmir, and it remains a sore spot in Indo-Pakistani relations. Pakistan has taken every opportunity to destabilize the situation in Kashmir. Soon after I took office in 1993, I received a group of activists from the Kashmiri Pandit community. The Pandits are not well known in this country. They are Hindus who have been made refugees in their own country. They are also a proud people with a special place in the history of India and the subcontinent. I might note that as India struggles to form a new government in the wake of the historic defeat suffered by the Congress Party, the Pandit community has made enormous contributions to Indian culture, including Jawaharlal Nehru. Listening to the Pandits, I was touched by their story.…”