Rep. Sam Farr calls on House to support Afghanistan; send Peace Corps back; improve Safety for Peace Corps Volunteers
REP. SAM FARR CALLS ON HOUSE TO SUPPORT AFGHANISTAN; SEND PEACE CORPS BACK; IMPROVE SAFETY FOR PEACE CORPS VOLUNTEERS
“Our commitment to Afghanistan will be a testament to America’s commitment to its allies in the War on Terror”
(Washington, DC) – Rep. Sam Farr (D-Carmel) spoke on the floor of the House of Representatives today, urging his colleagues to vote for the Afghan Freedom Support Act, which passed by a margin of 390-22.
Rep. Farr – a Peace Corps volunteer in Colombia in the mid-60s and a staunch supporter in Congress of increasing the Peace Corps’ presence around the world – made this statement to his House colleagues:
“The Afghan Freedom Support Act makes good on America’s promise not to abandon Afghanistan. Our commitment to Afghanistan will be a testament to America’s commitment to its allies in the War on Terror.
“It will demonstrate that the U.S. is in it for the long haul, that we are not only committed to rooting out terrorist organizations, but that we are committed to assisting those countries in their course of development, to help create an environment in which terrorists will find no harbor, a vibrant economy and society in which terror has no place.
“The most important commitment that the U.S. can make, however, is to support the security of our Afghan allies and friends. Without security, there can be no infrastructure rebuilding, no eradication of narcotics cultivation, no economic revitalization, no improved education and health care. None of our well-intentioned programs, which ultimately will be assumed by the Afghans themselves, will find any success without adequate security measures.
“Security is most certainly not a partisan issue. Here we all agree that security is fundamental to prosperity. I am sure then, that many of my colleagues shared my dismay when the President announced that the U.S. would not support an extension of the International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) to other major cities in Afghanistan besides Kabul. It contradicted the President’s announcement that he would like to see the Peace Corps Crisis Corps, and eventually Peace Corps Volunteers, back in Afghanistan as soon as possible.
“Proponents of the bill say that it’s necessary so that the Bell regional phone companies can compete effectively with cable providers in the high-speed Internet services market,” he added. “But I say this: Tauzin-Dingell will allow telephone carriers to treat consumers just as badly as cable companies do, and we will all have fewer choices and next to no opportunity to fight back.”
“Everyone in this body knows that I am one of the strongest believers and fiercest champions of the Peace Corps. I advocated strongly for expansion of the Peace Corps, and cheered loudly when the President boldly committed himself to double the number of Peace Corps volunteers by the year 2007. I am also supportive of the President’s intentions to call on the Peace Corps to help rebuild and revitalize Afghanistan. As their Peace Corps brothers and sisters who went before them, the new Volunteers will bring the great American gifts of optimism and enthusiasm to their important work in Afghanistan. Nonetheless, we cannot expect Volunteers, even Crisis Corps Volunteers, to operate in the climate of insecurity that now reigns in Afghanistan.
“I would like to bring to your attention an opinion piece from the Washington Post from April 27, 2002. The article was written by Anna Seleny, a political science teacher now at Princeton, but also the last Peace Corps volunteer to be evacuated from Afghanistan in 1979 before the Soviet invasion. Ms. Seleny believes, as I do, that the Peace Corps can play an important role in restoring peace and prosperity to Afghanistan. However, the ability of volunteers to play that role will be seriously compromised by the violence and impunity that still reigns there. Without security, the volunteers’ mission will fail. Ms. Seleny fears they will be withdrawn again. I fear worse.
“What is required of us now is to be realistic. Without security and order, there can be no peace and prosperity. If we want the latter, we must also provide for the former. I think that helping Afghanistan is the right thing to do. But let’s do the job right. Let’s expand the security mission beyond Kabul, to cover other cities, and to the provinces. Let’s help the Afghan democratic process, by protecting the Loya Jirga from threats and intimidations. Let’s help make it safe for women and girls to go outside and walk the streets without fear of attack. Let’s help create an environment where Afghans can afford to stop dwelling on the past, and worrying about the present, and allow them to think about the future, to dream and build better lives for themselves and their families.”
