E 908 CONGRESSIONAL RECORD — Extensions of Remarks May 2, 1995

the development of cross-cultural awareness

for our schools and community, including

mentoring which has resulted in the employment of over 25 minority educators for the

Fairfax County schools.

The 1994 Human Rights Award winner in

the organization category is: Koinonia, a volunteer organization supported by local churches and civic organizations in the Franconia

area. In addition, Koinonia functions as a liaison between the immediate needs of individuals and the help that may be received from

local, State, or Federal agencies.

Mr. Speaker, I know my colleagues join me

in honoring these awardees for their outstanding achievements in the area of human rights.

TRIBUTE TO VIDAL RIVERA

MALDONADO

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HON. EDOLPHUS TOWNS OF NEW YORK

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

Tuesday, May 2, 1995

Mr. TOWNS. Mr. Speaker, I want to highlight the many accomplishments of Vidal Rivera Maldonado. Vidal was born in Ponce, PR

on September 6, 1946, to the late Natividad

and Isabel Maldonado. He is the fourth of nine

children. Vidal and his family arrived in New

York in 1955.

Vidal is a product of the New York City Public School System, where he attended P.S.

180 and graduated in 1965 from Benjamin

Franklin High School. From 1967 to 1970 he

served in the U.S. Marines, spending 13

months in the Republic of Vietnam. When he

returned, he met and married Adalisa Padilla;

they are the proud parents of three boys and

two girls. Vidal received a liberal arts degree

from New York Technical College in 1978.

In his varied career, Vidal has worked for

various Supreme Court judges. Vidal is affectionately known as the beverage man because

of his work with beverage companies. He is

the district sales manager with the Good-OBeverage Co.

Vidal spends much of his free time devoted

to the game of baseball. Every weekend during the baseball season, Vidal can be found at

the East New York/Transit Tech baseball field

coaching semi-professional teams.

Vidal and his family have lived in the East

New York section of Brooklyn for the past 26

years, and are members of St. Fortunata

Roman Catholic Church.

LOYALTY DAY PARADE

COMMEMORATION

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HON. DAVID E. BONIOR OF MICHIGAN

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

Tuesday, May 2, 1995

Mr. BONIOR. Mr. Speaker, I rise proudly to

salute all the men and women who are serving, or who have served, in the defense of the

United States of America.

Ever since President Eisenhower established May 1 as Loyalty Day, Americans have

gathered around the Nation to affirm their

commitment to our great Nation. I also salute

the many people who commemorated this

Loyalty Day back in my home district.

The Macomb County Council of the Veterans of Foreign Wars, along with its ladies auxiliary, has sponsored loyalty parades throughout the county for many years. Last evening,

many of my friends and constituents participated in a parade in Fraser, MI.

The people who gathered in Fraser and

around the Nation celebrated democracy, freedom, and our faith and pride in America. We

all share the responsbility of defending and

preserving these American values and I salute

all who joined to demonstrate their commitment to these ideals.

Since the national tragedy in Oklahoma

City, this Loyalty Day is especially important.

In times of crises, Americans have always

pulled together. We salute the men and

women who have tirelessly worked through

the rubble in hopes of finding survivors and

we pray for the victims and their families. May

we all find ways to prevent and discourage

further tragedy.

I am both proud and privileged to serve the

people who gathered at the Fraser Loyalty

Day Parade. As members of the oldest

contitutional Republic in the world, I ask all my

colleagues to join with me and share in the

faith of those in Fraser and around the Nation,

as we reflect on Loyalty Day, 1995.

TRIBUTE TO JAMES J. ADAMS

fHON. PAUL E. GILLMOR OF OHIO

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

Tuesday, May 2, 1995

Mr. GILLMOR. Mr. Speaker, I would like to

take this opportunity to recognize an exceptional young man from my District who has recently accepted his appointment as a member

of the class of 1999 at the U.S. Military Academy.

James J. Adams will soon graduate Hicksville High School after 4 years of outstanding

academic achievement as well as extracurricular involvement. While in high school

James has distinguished himself as a leader

among his peers. He is an outstanding student

and patriot.

Mr. Speaker, one of the most important responsibilities of Members of Congress is to

identify outstanding young men and women

and to nominate them for admission to the

United States service academies. While at the

Academy, they will be the beneficiaries of one

of the finest educations available, so that in

the future, they might be entrusted with the

very security of our Nation.

I am confident that James J. Adams has

both the ability and the desire to meet this

challenge. I ask my colleagues to join me in

congratulating him for his accomplishments to

date and to wish him the best of luck as he

begins his career in service to our country.

UNITED STATES POLICY TOWARD

SAUDI ARABIA

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HON. LEE H. HAMILTON OF INDIANA

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

Tuesday, May 2, 1995

Mr. HAMILTON. Mr. Speaker, for many

years Saudi Arabia has been a key partner of

the united States in the strategic gulf region.

Saudi Arabia is a major oil supplier and trading partner of the United States, and it played

an essential role as our coalition ally in the

gulf war. Since that war, however, there have

been a number of credible reports that the

Saudi economy is in difficulty, whether as a

result of low oil prices and the cost of supporting the gulf war or as a result of mismanagement. There are also questions about the

Kingdom’s handling of domestic political discontent, its human rights record and its treatment of some U.S. citizens. I wrote to the

Secretary of State on January 23, 1995, and

on March 28, 1995, I received a reply on

these issues.

Given the tremendous importance of Saudi

Arabia to United States interests, I request

that my exchange of letters on Saudi Arabia

with the Department of State be entered into

the CONGRESSIONAL RECORD:

HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES, COMMITTEE ON INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS,

Washington, DC, January 23, 1995.

Hon. WARREN CHRISTOPHER,

Secretary of State,

U.S. Department of State, Washington, DC.

DEAR MR. SECRETARY: I write to seek clarification of U.S. policy toward Saudi Arabia.

First, it appears to me that Saudi Arabia

is not responding effectively to the economic

and political challenges it now faces, and I

am concerned that U.S. policies may be contributing to Saudi economic difficulties.

Second, I am concerned about whether the

U.S. government has a full appreciation of

the internal political dynamics of Saudi Arabia and about whether we are in a position to

respond effectively to internal events.

Third, I am concerned that important U.S.

values, such as respect for the human rights

of all Saudi citizens and fair treatment of

American citizens abroad, are not advanced

as effectively as they should be in our relations with Saudi Arabia.

I would appreciate your responses to the

following questions.

1. Do you see low oil prices and the costs of

financing the Gulf War as the cause of Saudi

Arabia’s current economic difficulties?

Are these problems compounded by domestic economic mismanagement, including a

failure to institute taxes or cut subsidies?

How do you assess reports of corruption

and kickbacks as a source of economic mismanagement and popular discontent?

How do you assess King Fahd’s efforts of

the past year to cut spending and address

Saudi Arabia’s economic problems?

2. How would you describe the stake of the

United States in the Saudi economy?

Have U.S. efforts to boost sales of advanced weaponry and commercial aircraft to

Saudi Arabia contributed to the economic

dilemmas the Saudis now face?

Does the burden of payments for these purchases contribute to anti-American sentiment in the Saudi military and government?

3. What is current U.S. policy on arms

sales to Saudi Arabia, and the status of U.S.

efforts to restructure Saudi payments for

previous military purchases?

What is the status of the $6 billion Saudi

contract with Boeing and McDonnell-Douglas for the purchase of civilian airliners?

4. What is the policy of the U.S. embassy in

Riyadh with respect to routine political contacts with a broad range of Saudi citizens,

and to reporting on the internal situation in

that country?

What limitations, unwritten or written,

govern the contacts and reporting of U.S.

embassy officers in Saudi Arabia?