Political Quotes

“This year we had a hearing to take testimony from witnesses about the state of affairs in Africa, and we all acknowledged the tragic facts of the illicit diamond trade and how it continues to fund rebel wars and poverty in Africa. As I described at the hearing, we are looking at meaningful legislation that will help the administration tackle this problem, while not hindering the ongoing international negotiations that are supposed to conclude this year. In this delicate time of international diplomacy we must be especially careful not to disrupt the administration's efforts, however well intentioned we may be. The suspension bill H.R. 2722 is an effective and balanced way to get at these conflict diamonds. The gentleman from New York (Mr. Houghton) and the administration have crafted a bill authorizing the President to ban all diamonds from any country that does not have effective measures against the trade in conflict diamonds. I want to commend both for their leadership and flexibility in this matter.”