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“SAYING NO TO MOBUTU” mentioning the U.S. Dept of State was published in the Extensions of Remarks section on pages E1351-E1352 on June 28, 1995.
The publication is reproduced in full below:
SAYING NO TO MOBUTU
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HON. LEE H. HAMILTON
of indiana
in the house of representatives
Wednesday, June 28, 1995
Mr. HAMILTON. Mr. Speaker, President Mobutu of Zaire has ruled his country for over 30 years, during which period he has become one of the world's richest individuals by impoverishing his fellow countrymen. I wish to place into the Record the following exchange of letters between International Relations Committee Chairman Benjamin A. Gilman and I and the Department of State concerning the issue of granting a visa to President Mobutu to visit the United States.
U.S. Department of State,
Washington, DC, June 21, 1995.Hon. Lee H. Hamilton,House of Representatives.
Dear Mr. Hamilton: Thank you for the letter which you and Chairman Gilman sent to the Secretary on May 19 expressing concern about a possible visit to the United States by President Mobutu of Zaire. We assure you that President Mobutu will not be coming to Washington and that the U.S. visa sanction directed against him and his entourage remains in effect. We agree that President Mobutu needs to demonstrate by his deeds rather than statements that he is committed to a genuine transition to democracy in Zaire. We appreciate your bipartisan support for our Zaire policy.
As you know, the President issued a proclamation in June 1993 suspending the entry into the United States of immigrants and nonimmigrants who formulate or implement policies impeding a transition to democracy in Zaire or who benefit from such policies, and the immediate families of such persons. The intention of the proclamation was to send a strong message to President Mobutu that his obstruction of Zaire's transition to democracy was not without penalty. The visa sanction has been--and remains--one of our most effective measures to influence Mobutu and his entourage, and we have seen no change on the part of the Zairian president which would warrant a reversal of this policy.
President Mobutu has not applied for a visa to the United States, but if he or persons acting for him do so, we will remind him that he remains subject to the visa proclamation. On the basis of rumors of an impending visit, our Charge d'Affaires in Kinshasa made a formal demarche to the office of the Presidency, outlining our continuing concerns about the slow pace of the transition, and reiterating that President Mobutu remains subject to the visa sanction.
Rumors of a Mobutu visit to Washington appear to have been generated entirely by the Zairian president and a number of lobbyists in his employ. His agents attempted--unsuccessfully--to obtain an invitation for Mobutu to address a variety of private organizations. When it became clear that neither invitation nor visa would be forthcoming, President Mobutu's spokesman in parliament announced that the Zairian leader had decided to postpone travel in view of the outbreak of the Ebola virus in Kikwit.
You should know that there is a strong possibility that President Mobutu may attend the 50th U.N. General Assembly in New York this fall. While the Presidential proclamation on visas would permit us to refuse a visa to Mobutu for a bilateral visit, our international obligations under the U.N. Headquarters Agreement would likely require us to permit his entry to attend the General Assembly.
We hope this information is useful to you. If we can be of further assistance to you on this or any other matter, do not hesitate to contact us.
Sincerely,
Wendy R. Sherman,Assistant Secretary, Legislative Affairs.
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Committee on International Relations, U.S. House of
Representatives,
Washington, DC, May 19, 1995.Hon. Warren Christopher,Secretary of State,Department of State,Washington, DC.
Dear Mr. Secretary: It has come to our attention that President Mobutu of Zaire may be seeking to visit the United States in the near future. We urge you to continue your policy of not granting an entry visa to the United States to President Mobutu of Zaire.
We strongly believe that such a visit should not take place. The visa restriction policy is one of the few instruments of leverage the U.S. has on President Mobutu and his regime. While we hope that President Mobutu is serious in his recent statements concerning a return to democracy in Zaire and improved human rights, there is ample reason for skepticism. Allowing Mobutu to visit the United States before any substantial steps have been taken toward resolving the on-going political crisis in Zaire would be an unwarranted retreat from the policy of both the Clinton and Bush Administrations.
Zaire under Mobutu represents perhaps the most egregious example of the misuse of U.S. assistance resources. The U.S. has given Zaire nearly $1.5 billion in various forms of aid since Mobutu came to power thirty years ago. Partially because of this assistance, Mobutu has been able to maintain control of Zaire and bleed the country into its current dismal state. In recent years, Mobutu has resisted both domestic and international pressure for democratization and continues to cling to power.
In both the 102d and 103d Congress, the House passed bipartisan resolutions calling on Mobutu to step down from power and urging that the United States continue active efforts to this end. Allowing Mobutu to visit the United States at this time would be directly counter to the letter and spirit of these resolutions.
We look forward to your early reply and to working with you on this issue.
With best regards,
Sincerely yours,Lee H. Hamilton,
Ranking Democratic Member.Benjamin A. Gilman,
Chairman.
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