Date: 2016-05-18
Speaker: JACKSON LEE (democrat)
Chamber: H

Mr. Chairman. I am asking that we collaborate with the forces in Nigeria and the forces that have been part of the multinational task force to be able to have a strategy that deals with Boko Haram. This report can be critical in our efforts to empower and complement the efforts of the Multinational Joint Task Force as well as the commitment espoused at the recent Lake Chad Basin Regional Security Summit. So I would say that we have to recognize that we now have an individual. This young woman can give us the intelligence. I am concerned that these girls cannot be rescued now. This is partly asking President Buhari of Nigeria to join in with this informationthis new information. the collaboration that. hopefully. as we move through this legislation. ongoing. right nowto rescue those girls and also support the idea of a special envoy to focus on the dangers in the Lake Chad Basin region. Let me compliment the African command. I met many of them when I was in Nigeria. I think it is an excellent command among all the other commands. They can be dynamic in their work. My resolution. my amendment. my sense of Congress. is to give us focus to bring back the girls and save these girls. We have the information. Bring back these girls. Mr. Chair. I thank Chairman THORNBERRY. Ranking Member ADAM SMITH and the Rules Committee for making in order and including Jackson Lee Amendment Number 99 and including it in En Bloc Amendment Number 8 to the "National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2017." This is the third of 3 Jackson Lee amendments made in order by the House Rules Committee. Jackson Lee Amendment Number 99. calls for a report on efforts to combat Boko Haram in Nigeria and the Lake Chad Basin. In the wake of the Rules Committee making this Amendment in order. I hold in my hand an article entitled "#BringBackOurGirls: Chibok Victim Found in Nigeria After 2 Years. Activist Says." Two years after her captivity. we learn that a 19 year Chibok school girl named Ameina Nkeki was found Tuesday by the Civilian JTF vigilante group. which fights alongside the Nigerian military. in a village near the Sambisa Forest. Nkeki had a baby with her and told the militia members she had escaped from Boko Haram captivity. Indeed. just last night right before presenting before the Rules Committee on this Amendment. I met with a remarkable couple whose name I do not want to mention in order not to place their lives in danger. This couple. through their NGO. helped in the rescue. recovery and reintegration of over 10 Chibok girls. Because of their remarkable work. the girls are now able to continue to pursue their education. Unfortunately. the lives of these good Samaritans are now in jeopardy. I plan to do everything in my power to make sure that they and the persons they seek to empower are not harmed. This is why I have introduced the bipartisan measure H. Res. 528Expressing the sense of the House of Representatives regarding the Victims of the Terror Protection Fund. And this is why I am working on a measure related to a Special Envoy on Boko Haram to the Lake Chad Basin. Support for this Amendment is timely as it is: 1. Strongly condemns the ongoing violence and the systematic gross human rights violations against the people of Nigeria and the Lake Chad Basin carried out by Boko Haram. 2. Expresses support for the people of Nigeria and the Lake Chad Basin who wish to live in a peaceful. economically prosperous. and democratic region. 3. Calls on the President to support Nigerian. Lake Chad Basin. and International Community efforts to ensure accountability for crimes against humanity committed by Boko Haram against the people of Nigeria and the Lake Chad Basin. particularly young girls kidnapped from Chibok and other internally displaced persons affected by the actions of Boko Haram. Additionally. the Report calls that no later than 90 days after the date of the enactment of this Act. the Secretary of Defense. the Secretary of State. and the Attorney General shall jointly submit to Congress a report on efforts to combat Boko Haram in Nigeria and the Lake Chad Basin. Among others. the report shall also include the following elements: 1. A description of initiatives undertaken by the Department of Defense to assist the Government of Nigeria and countries in the Lake Chad Basin to develop capacities to deploy special forces to combat Boko Haram. 2. A description of United States activities to enhance the capacity of Nigeria and the countries in the Lake Chad Basin to investigate and prosecute human rights violations perpetrated against the people of Nigeria and the Lake Chad Basin by Boko Haram. alQaeda affiliates. and other terrorist organizations to promote respect for rule of law in Nigeria and the Lake Chad Basin. 3. This report can be critical in our efforts to empower and complement the efforts of the Multinational Joint Task Force (MNJTF) as well as the commitments espoused at the recent Lake Chad Basin Regional Security Summit. Mr. Chair. the U.S. war on terror has been waged for over a decade and the lesson is clear that our adversaries adapt very quickly because they are not constrained by geographic limitations. In the beginning it was only Al Qaedanow the list includes Al Shabaab. Boko Haram which last year affiliated itself with ISIS/ISIL. Indeed. the data on persons affected by violent extremism is staggering. There are now more than 2.2 million Nigerians. and over 450.000 internallydisplaced persons (IDPs) and refugees in neighboring Cameroon. Chad and Niger. An estimated 4.2 million people in the Lake Chad Basin region face water and food security crises. including 800.000 in Nigerias northern Borno and Yobe states. Nigeria. where an estimated 184 children a day risk starvation without the immediate provision of emergency food assistance. Boko Haram continues to claim responsibility for atrocious and targeted violence ranging from burnings. kidnappings and killings of civilians and school children. such as the Chibok girls and a suicide bombing of the United Nations building in Abuja on August 26. 2011. that killed 21 people and injured dozens more. many of them aid workers supporting development projects across Nigeria. Half of persons displaced are children. I continue to commend the tireless efforts of the United Nations. United States officials. Regional Leaders. Civil Society Organizations. Community Groups and good Samaritans who have helped to support efforts of combatting Boko Haram and securing peace and security in Nigeria and the Lake Chad Basin. Through this Amendment. we will establish our strong support and commitment for the protection and empowerment of the peoples of Nigeria and the Lake Chad Basin who continue to face the threat of terrorism and violent extremism from Syria to Nigeria and the Lake Chad Basin which covers Cameroon. Niger. Nigeria. Chad and everywhere in between. As terrorist craft new strategies to threaten our homeland and harm our allies. it is in the U.S. security interest to double our counterterrorism efforts that identify. engage and empower people who are victimized by terrorist groups like Boko Haram. Al Shabaab. Al Qaeda and ISIS in Africa and Pakistan. For this reason. our military must adapt as quickly and as seamlessly as our adversaries in empowering our allies. Our message must be clear: the United States must expand its capacity to meet the terrorist threat where it emerges whether here in the homeland or abroad. The Nuremberg trials were essential in bringing to justice war criminals who committed acts of barbarism against civilians and military personnel during World War II. but a critical component of bringing war criminals to justice is the gathering and preservation of evidence. No person whether they travel to a battle field and later return to their native country or live in the region where they commit acts of terrors should rest well because they believe that no one will come to seek justice on behalf of the millions of lives destroyed. Our message must be clear: terrorism will not thrive on our watch. I ask for your support of this Amendment.