Floor Statements

Mr. Speaker, India is undergoing a cycle of elections. Unlike this country, India does not hold the elections on a single day but over a period of time. I guess it's difficult to hold elections on one day when you have a billion people.

Elections in Punjab have been scheduled for May 10. Recently, the Council of Khalistan put out an open letter to the people of Punjab urging them to use these elections to bring about independence for the Sikh homeland, Punjab, Khalistan.

It looks like the elections will result in a hung Parliament. The militantly Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), which has

been leading the government, seems to have lost some ground. A coalition government will need to be formed.

That brings substantial power to the regional parties in the various states and regions of the country. These parties could well control who runs the Indian government. The Council of Khalistan called on these regional parties to band together in a ``freedom bloc'' to unite for freedom and self-determination for all of the minorities of South Asia.

The open letter notes that both the BJP and the rival Congress Party are dangerous to the freedom of the Sikhs and other minorities, and the regional Akali Dal is in coalition with the BJP. The Akali leaders invited the Congress Party government of Indira Gandhi to invade the Golden Temple, the seat of the Sikh religion, and they surrendered quickly when the attack came.

This letter points out these and other reasons why it is important to use these elections as a springboard to achieve freedom for Khalistan and the other nations seeking to free themselves of Indian rule.

Mr. Speaker, we all know the brutality of India's suppression of these freedom movements. They have murdered over 250,000 Sikhs since 1984, over 85,000 Kashmiri Muslims, over 300,000 Christians in Nagaland, and tens of thousands of other minorities. Now, according to the Tribune of Chandigarh, the Indian government is demanding that the government of Punjab pay them back for the costs accrued in suppressing the Sikhs.

This is outrageous, Mr. Speaker. As the beacon of freedom, the United States must be strong against this kind of repression. We should stop all American aid to India until it stops the repression and allows all people within its borders to enjoy their most basic human rights fully. And we should put this Congress on record as supporting self- determination for the Sikhs of Khalistan, the Muslims of Kashmir, the Christians of Nagaland, and all the other people seeking freedom from India's brutal rule.

The right to self-determination is the essence of democracy, Mr. Speaker. The lack of self-determination and the repression show that India's claim to be a democracy is fake. It is time for us to take a stand on behalf of freedom for all.

Mr. Speaker, I would like to insert the Council of Khalistan's open letter into the Record at this time.

Open Letter to the Sikh Nation,

April 27, 2004.

Elections in Punjab have been set for May 10. Elections

under the Indian Constitution will not free the Sikh Nation.

Use this opportunity, however, to elect committed, hottest

Sikhs who are committed to freeing Khalistan to Parliament.

These elections will certainly result in a hung Parliament.

No party is capable of putting together the national majority

needed to control Parliament on its own. A coalition

government will be formed. The regional parties will be very

important in deciding who will control the government. This

gives the regional parties and the regions they represent

enormous power. We must use this power to our benefit. It is

time for the regional parties to form a ``freedom bloc'' to

work together for freedom for Khalistan, Kashmir, Nagaland,

and all the minority nations seeking their freedom from

India's brutal rule. We agree with L.K. Advani when he said,

``When Kashmir goes, India goes.'' By securing freedom for

any of the captive nations of South Asia, we bring about

freedom for all of us. Working together in a common, unified

effort will hasten that day for everyone.

Congress and the BJP are both the enemies of the Sikh

Nation. They both watch out for the interests of the Hindu

majority at the expense of the Sikh Nation and other

minorities. The BJP has murdered Muslims in Gujarat, in

Kashmir, and elsewhere and Christians in Nagaland and

throughout India. They have forcibly reconverted Christians

back to Hinduism. They preach Hindutva (total Hindu control

of the culture and society) and openly preach that if you

live in India, you must either be Hindu or be subservient to

Hinduism.

The Congress Party attacked the Golden Temple, the most

sacred shrine of the Sikh Nation, 125 other Gurdwaras

throughout Punjab. Over 20,000 Sikhs were murdered in those

attacks, known as Operation Bluestar, including Sant Jamail

Singh Bhindranwale, General Shabeg Singh, Bhai Amrik Singh,

and over 100 Sikh religious students ages 8-13 who were taken

out into the courtyard and shot. The BJP congratulated Indira

Gandhi on the attack and said it should have been done

earlier.

These attacks accelerated the Sikh independence movement

and deepened the desire for independence in the hearts of

Sikhs, a fire that burns brightly in the hearts of the Sikh

Nation to this day. Sant Bhindranwale said that the attack on

the Golden Temple would ``lay the foundation stone of

Khalistan'' and he was right. Late in 2003, former Member of

Parliament Atinder Pal Singh organized a seminar on Khalistan

at Baba Makhan Shah Labana Hall, Sector 30, Chandigarh. This

shows that the flame of freedom is still burning in the

hearts of Sikhs. Sikhs can never forgive or forget the Indian

government's military attack on the Golden Temple. It is time

to take action to free our homeland.

The Badal Akalis are totally controlled by their coalition

partners, the BJP. Chief Minister Captain Anarinder Singh is

in bed with the Congress Party. He honored the former Chief

Minister, Beant Singh, who is responsible for the mass murder

of hundreds of thousands of Sildis and gave over 41,000 cash

bounties to police officials for Killing Sikhs. Neither will

protect the interests of the Sikh Nation. They have

undermined Sikh character and Sikh values. Simply by joining

the Congress Party, Captain Amarinder Singh is undermining

Sikh values. Badal, Tobra, and Longowal said that India would

have to get to the Golden Temple by rolling tanks over their

dead bodies, then quickly surrendered. The Alkalis invited

the Indian Army to the Golden Temple to murder Sant

Bhindranwale, General Shabeg Singh, Bhai Amrik Singh, and so

many other committed Sikhs.

Do not support Badal or the Alkalis. The Badal government

was the most corrupt government in the history of Punjab.

They sold jobs for a fixed fee. They came up with a new,

dignified term for bribery: ``fee for service.'' If you

didn't pay the fee, you didn't get the service. Badal's wife

was so experienced that she could pick up a bag of money and

tell how much money was in it. Parkash Singh Badal was a

disaster for Puniab and a disgrace to the Sikh Nation. Yet

the Akali Dal continues to support Badal, even though he was

prosecuted and jailed for his corruption. What has happened

to the character of the present-day Alkalis? They are

defaming the name of the pre-partition pious Akalis who

suffered and sacrificed for the cause of the Khalsa Panth.

Not even a singe Akali protested the unprecedented

corruption of Badal. According to India-West, the Punjab

Vigilance Bureau carried out raids on Badal's properties for

several months and filed a charge-sheet in a local court

charging Mr. Badal with siphoning off Rs. 784 million, the

equivalent of $17 million in U.S. money, during his five

years as chief minister. The article says that Mr. Badal and

his family hold assets of Rs. 4326 crores (nearly $1

billion), most of which are located outside India. Half the

population of India lives below the international poverty

line. About 40 percent live on less than $2 per day.

Lalit Mansingh, the outgoing Indian Ambassador to the

United States, has said, ``There is no India without Sikhs

and no Sikhs without India.'' He is wrong. The Sikh Nation

has survived perfectly fine without India. Before there was

an India, Sikhs flourished. The Sikhs ruled Punjab as an

independent country from 1710 to 1716 and again from 1765 to

1849. Sikhs stopped the invasion from the West, annexed

Kashmir from the Afghans, and occupied Kabul for a short

period.

Remember the words of Professor Darshan Singh, former

Jathedar of the Akal Takht, during the celebration of Guru

Nanak's birthday: ``If a Sikh is not a Khalistani, he is not

a Sikh.'' He was only reiterating the Guru's blessing, ``In

Grieb Sikhin Ko Deon Patshahi.'' The time to achieve our

independence is now.

The opportunity these elections provide must be used to

liberate our homeland, Khalistan, from Indian oppression. We

must choose leaders who will work for freedom for the Sikh

Nation. Remember, you get what you vote for. Always remember

our heritage: Raj Kare Ga Khalsa; Khalsa Bagi Yan Badshah.

Freedom for Khalistan is very close. Let us take this

opportunity to make it happen.

Panth Da Sewadar,

Dr. Gurmit Singh Aulakh,

President, Council of Khalistan.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to address a long-standing and unfortunately ever growing problem affecting our society, prescription drug abuse and addiction. Specifically, I would like to discuss the scourge that has been caused by the prescription drug OxyContin. OxyContin has caused countless deaths from overdose and toxicity. Equally important, however, OxyContin has caused thousands of individuals lawfully prescribed the drug to become addicted, causing a wide variety of destructiveness and in many instances ruining the lives of innocent people.

OxyContin is a schedule II narcotic pain medication as defined by the Controlled Substances Act. This is the most dangerous designation of legal, as opposed to illegal, prescription drugs under the Controlled Substances Act of 1970. It is in the same class as morphine. Unfortunately for the American public, the manufacturers and distributors of OxyContin have made concerted, intentional efforts to make this dangerous drug anything but ``controlled''.

Purdue Pharma is the manufacturer of OxyContin. This drug was promoted with the assistance of Abbott Laboratories. Over the last 6 years OxyContin has amassed sales of more than ten billion dollars as a result of an overly aggressive, inappropriate and, unfortunately for our citizens, highly effective marketing plan.

This drug was marketed to a broad range of physicians who, according to Purdue Pharma's own internal documents, were uneducated or at least undereducated on the use of opioids like oxycodone and morphine. Family practitioners in rural areas, gynecologists, sports medicine practitioners and even dentists were instructed by Purdue and Abbott representatives that they could prescribe this morphine-like drug for even moderate pain without the slightest concern of addiction. They were told to prescribe the drug in very high doses so long as the pain persisted. The most widely prescribed dose of OxyContin contains 20 milligrams of oxycodone. Taking one pill of 20 mg OxyContin would be the equivalent of taking 4 Percocets, a very strong narcotic pain medication, as well. The marketing plan and the assertions about the safety of the drug were based on false information. OxyContin can be addictive to prescription patients.

In fact, countless numbers of innocent pain patients have become addicted to OxyContin. They were told both by the company and unwitting physicians that this drug was not addictive. That was not true. There is no support for the theory that the OxyContin is not addictive. Moreover, the manufacturers and promoters of this dangerous drug have conspicuously failed to study the addictiveness of this drug over the last 6, very prosperous years. It is only logical that the results of those studies would only undermine their very persuasive sales claims that this drug was not addictive.

Purdue will most certainly tout their concern for the pain patient, claiming that their drug provides pain relief to the masses of unfortunate sufferers of chronic pain. I am not persuaded nor will I be deceived by this argument. I am truly concerned for the pain patient. It is not my purpose to take good medications away from pain patients, but it is also not my intent to permit American companies to mislead the pain patients as to the safety and effectiveness of pain medication. Misinformation about the addictiveness of this drug did not help the pain patient. Instead, it took advantage of the very condition that this drug was supposed to help.

I call upon Congress to convene hearings on the question of how this public health menace came to be, who is responsible, what was told to the American public and to healthcare professionals by the manufacturer, and what we, the Congress, can do to prevent tragedies like this from repeating themselves in the future.

Mr. Speaker, I want to thank the Allergy and Asthma Network for holding today's 7th annual Asthma Awareness Day and the Breath Freely Briefing to increase asthma awareness. I also want to thank my colleagues, Representative Stearns, Chairman Barton, Representative Tubbs-Jones, Representative Engel and Representative Kennedy for their leadership on this issue.

I am proud to be an original cosponsor of H.R. 2023. I signed onto this bill because I understand the life-altering effects of asthma. As you know, asthma is the 6th ranking chronic condition in the United States and the leading serious chronic illness of children in the United States.

The African American community is disproportionately impacted by the effects of asthma. More than 3 million African Americans currently have asthma. We are three times more likely than the general population to be hospitalized for asthma. Sadly, African Americans constitute 26 percent of all asthma deaths. The fact that asthma can be managed with proper health care and appropriate medications, makes these deaths all the more tragic.

I hope that our efforts through this bill and as well as the attention that we can bring to this disease through Asthma Awareness Day education and outreach activities today and throughout the weekend at the Omni Shoreham Hotel will help us reduce the incidence of asthma and the fatality rate associated with it. With this kind of bi-partisan effort and supported at the state and local level, we can make sure that every asthma patient has a chance to breath freely.

Mr. Speaker, I rise in strong support of 2771. This bill is very important to the people of New York. The entire New York delegation supports this bill.

This legislation would reauthorize funding for the New York City Watershed Agreement, helping to ensure safe and healthy drawing for the residents of New York.

New York City's vast water supply provides 1.4 billion gallons of high quality drinking water to more than 9 million New Yorkers every day. Nearly 90 percent of those consumers reside in New York City. To supply millions of people with safe, clean water takes an extensive water supply. In fact, the supply consists of 19 reservoirs in a watershed that spans almost 2,000 square miles. It covers 8 counties, 60 towns, and 11 villages in the Catskill Mountain region and the Hudson River Valley.

The effective protection of this essential national resource is an enormous challenge. Let me point out that environmental groups worked with New York City, State officials, Upstate communities, and the Federal Government to create the New York City Watershed Agreement. While this landmark agreement laid the groundwork for protecting the city's water supply, it could only work if an effective quality water monitoring program was implemented.

So in 1996 Congress responded by authorizing annual funding for 7 years. During this period, Congress has provided a total of $31 million to implement a comprehensive surveillance program, matched equally by grant recipients. Additionally, New York City and State have leveraged those Federal funds by investing $1.6 billion to protect the New York City drinking water supply. By reauthorizing Federal funding for the watershed agreement which expired last September, this bill would demonstrate the Federal Government's continued commitment and help maintain the safety of New York City's water supply.

Finally, Mr. Speaker, let me conclude by thanking the staff, the gentleman from Texas (Mr. Barton); the ranking member, the gentleman from Michigan (Mr. Dingell), the gentleman from Ohio (Mr. Gillmor), and of course the ranking member, the gentlewoman from Illinois (Ms. Schakowsky) for their hard work on this as well.

Let me say that this is very important to New York City. And I know there has been some concern about the fact that other bills have not been moved or other areas have not included, but let me say that I think a journey of a thousand miles starts with a single step. And starting with New York, I think that is a good place to start. I cannot think of a better place to start than New York.

Mr. Speaker, I rise in honor of Anthony Forman in recognition of his important work as a community activist in East New York.

Tony, as he is known to his family and friends, grew up in the community of East New York in Brooklyn. A graduate of Thomas Jefferson High School, he went on to receive a B.A. Degree in theater and an M.S. Degree and Advanced Certificate in guidance and counseling from the School of Education at Brooklyn College. As part of his academic training in the theater, Tony appeared in several Off Broadway stage productions and worked as a professional model. While pursuing his degrees from the School of Education, he designed a community-based training program for ex-offenders who lack education or job skills. Tony is also a dedicated husband and family man with three sons.

Through his work as the office manager for my Pennsylvania Avenue district office, Tony has continued his focus on at-risk young adults. He is a Community Action Board member with the Department of Youth and Community Development. He has also established the East New York Scholarship Fund to assist at-risk youth from low income, resource- deprived communities like East New York. Moreover, because Tony is bilingual in Spanish and English, his work with constituents in need of immigration assistance has been invaluable to the community.

In addition to his community work, Tony is an accomplished entrepreneur. He is currently President and Chief Executive Officer for his company, NUBN Prince Enterprises, a partner in Trucomm Construction Company, and a consultant for KRL Group, LLC and the Crescent Consulting firm. These businesses are all based on the principle of empowering one's community through ``TCI,'' total community involvement.

Mr. Speaker, Anthony Forman has been truly committed to improving the quality of life for his fellow residents in the East New York community. As such, he is more than worthy of receiving our recognition today, and I urge my colleagues to join me in honoring this truly remarkable community activist.

Mr. Speaker, April 13 is Vaisakhi Day, the anniversary of the founding of the Sikh Nation in 1699. The Sikhs love freedom as we do, Mr. Speaker. They have a long tradition of fighting oppression wherever it rears its ugly head and they have a history of self-rule.

I would like to take this opportunity to wish the Sikhs in America and the Sikhs around the world a happy Vaisakhi Day.

The Council of Khalistan, the organization that is leading the Sikh movement to liberate

their homeland, Khalistan, recently published an open letter to the Sikhs, a Vaisakhi Day message. It urged the Sikhs to use the opportunity to liberate their homeland. The letter called upon them to remember the Sikh Nation's heritage of freedom.

The letter pointed out the suffering of the Sikhs at the hands of the Indian government. That repression has taken the lives of over 250,000 Sikhs in the last 20 years, in addition to over 50,000 Sikhs who were picked up, tortured, killed, and secretly cremated, declaring their bodies ``unidentified.'' Another 52,000-plus are being held as political prisoners, according to the Movement Against State Repression, a Punjabi human-rights organization. In addition, India has killed more than 300,000 Christians in Nagaland, over 85,000 Kashmiri Muslims, and tens of thousands of Assamese, Bodos, Dalits, Manipuris, Tamils, and other minorities. Yet the U.S. taxpayer continues to be taxed to send foreign aid to this brutal country.

The letter calls on the Sikhs to take the opportunity of Vaisakhi to demand a free and independent Khalistan by means of slogans, by peaceful resistance, and by bringing forth new leadership. It takes note of the death of Gurcharan Singh Tohra, the President of the Shiromani Gurdwara Prabandhak Committee, and the political collapse of former Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal to call for new leadership that supports freedom for Khalistan. It notes the seminar held on Khalistan last year, which shows that the desire for freedom remains strong in Punjab.

This letter makes a very strong case for a sovereign, independent Khalistan and it does a good job of exposing the brutal tyranny that India has inflicted on the Sikh Nation.

Mr. Speaker, how can we, as the bastion of freedom, sit idly by and close our eyes to this terror? The time has come to stop U.S. aid to India. This may be the most effective way that we can influence them to stop the repression of Sikhs, Christians, Muslims, and other minorities. And if India is the democratic state that it says it is, it should conduct a free and fair vote on the question of independence. This Congress should put itself on record urging India to do this as soon as possible. That is the democratic way to settle issues, and we should use our influence to help this occur.

Mr. Speaker, the letter from the Council of Khalistan is very informative. For the information of my colleagues and the public, I would like to insert it into the Record.

Council of Khalistan,

Washington, DC, April 6, 2004.

Vaisakhi Day Message to the Sikh Nation: Sikhs Will Celebrate Vaisakhi

Day April 13

Dear Khalsa Ji: On April 13, the Sikh Nation will celebrate

Vaisakhi Day, observing the 305th anniversary of the day Guru

Gobind Singh established the Khalsa Panth. The Guru granted

sovereignty to the Sikh Nation, saying ``In Grieb Silrhin Ko

Deon Patshahi.'' We must remind ourselves of our heritage by

raising slogans of ``Khalistan Zindabad'' and beginning a

Shantmai Morcha to liberate our homeland, Khalistan. Every

morning and evening we recite, ``Raj Kare Ga Khalsa.'' Now is

the time to act on it. Do we mean what we say every morning

and evening?

The Sikhs in Punjab have suffered enormous repression at

the hands of the Indian regime in the last 20 years. The

Indian government has murdered over 250,000 Sikhs since 1984.

In addition, over 50,000 Sikh youth were picked up from their

houses, tortured, murdered in police custody, then secretly

cremated as ``unidentified bodies.'' Their remains were never

even given to their families! Over 52,000 Sikhs sit in Indian

jails as political prisoners without charge or trial,

according to the Movement Against State Repression (MASR.)

Some of them have been in illegal custody for 20 years!

The Indian government forgot the Sikh tradition. Sikhs can

never forgive or forget the Indian government's military

attack on the Golden Temple and 125 other Gurdwaras

throughout Punjab. Over 20,000 Sikhs were murdered in those

attacks, known as Operation Bluestar, including Sant Janail

Singh Bhindranwale, General Shabeg Singh, Bhai Amrik Singh,

and over 100 Sikh religious students ages 8-13 who were taken

out into the courtyard and shot. These attacks accelerated

the Sikh independence movement and deepened the desire for

independence in the hearts of Sikhs, a fire that burns

brightly in the hearts of the Sikh Nation to this day. Sant

Bhindranwale said that the attack on the Golden Temple would

``lay the foundation stone of Khalistan'' and he was right.

Late in 2003, former Member of Parliament Atinder Pal Singh

organized a seminar on Khalistan at Baba Makhan Shah Labana

Hall, Sector 30, Chandigarh. This shows that the flame of

freedom is still burning in the hearts of Sikhs. It is time

to take action to free our homeland. Repression and genocide

of this magnitude at the hands of the Indian government is

unparalleled in the late part of the 20th century. India

should be ashamed of the genocide it has committed against

Sikhs, Christians, Muslims, and other minorities.

With the passing of Gurcharan Singh Tohra, new leadership

must emerge at the Shiromani Gurdwara Prabandhak Committee

(SGPC.) In addition, new political leadership must emerge

with Prakash Singh Badal under indictment. Mr. Badal's time

is not long either. He has had cancer already and he is an

old man. This new leadership must be committed to the cause

of freeing our Sikh homeland from the repression and

brutality of the Indian government by reclaiming our lost

sovereignty in a free and independent Khalistan.

Khalsa Ji, at this time of Vaisakhi, the whole Khalsa Panth

must be energized to reestablish a sovereign, independent

Khalsa Raj by freeing our homeland, Khalistan. It is time for

Sikhs to look back at our history of persecution and

suffering over the past 20 years. The Hindu government of

India, whether run by the Congress Party or by the BJP, wants

minorities either subservient to Hinduism or completely wiped

out. The Indian government and its allies have tried to

weaken the Sikh religion by saying that Sikhism is part of

Hinduism. If that is true, why have they murdered so many

Sikhs? Hindus practice idol worship; Sikhism is monotheistic,

worshipping only one God. Hindus believe in the caste system;

Sikhs believe in the equality of the whole human race.

Remember the words of Guru Gobind Singh: ``Recognize ye all

the human race as one.'' In spite of the fact that the

religions believe completely opposite things, Hindus desire

to engulf Sikhism just as they did with Jainism and Buddhism

in India. They think that Buddhism is part of Hinduism

because Siddhartha Gautama, the Buddha, was born in India.

Similarly, Guru Nanak was born Hindu, so they proclaim

Sikhism to be part of Hinduism. Yet Guru Nanak said that he

was ``neither Hindu nor Muslim.'' Jesus was born Jewish. Does

that mean that Christianity is merely part of Judaism?

On this auspicious occasion celebrating the birth of the

Khalsa Panth, we must bring back our Khalsa spirit. We must

remember our heritage and tradition of ``Khalsa Bagi Yan

Badshah'' by committing ourselves to freeing our homeland,

Punjab, Khalistan, from Indian occupation. We need a new Sikh

political party which has a dedication to the interests of

the Sikh Nation as its sole objective, to establish Khalsa

Raj by liberating Khalistan, severing all political ties with

India. If the BJP wants Hindu Raj, it cannot object to Khalsa

Raj.

The Indian government wants to break the will of the Sikh

Nation and enslave them forever, making Sikhism a part of

Hinduism. This can only be stopped if we free Punjab from

Delhi's control and reestablish a sovereign, independent

country, as declared on October 7, 1987. We must recommit

ourselves to freeing our homeland, Punjab, Khalistan. Raise

slogans of ``Khalsa Bagi Yan Badshah,'' ``Raj Kare Ga

Khalsa,'' ``Khalistan Zindabad,'' and ``India out of

Khalistan.'' Use this Vaisakhi to launch a Shantmai Morcha to

liberate Khalistan.

Last year's seminar on Khalistan shows that the flame of

freedom still burns brightly in Punjab in spite of the Indian

government's brutal repression. Perhaps this is why India is

afraid to hold a free and fair vote on the subject of

independence. The essence of democracy is the right to self-

determination.

Remember the words of Professor Darshan Singh, former

Jathedar of the Akal Takht, during the celebration of Guru

Nanak's birthday: ``If a Sikh is not a Khalistani, he is not

a Sikh.'' He was only reiterating the Guru's blessing, ``In

Grieb Sikhin Ko Deon Patshahi.'' The time to achieve our

independence is now.

Always remember our heritage: Raj Kare Ga Khalsa; Khalsa

Bagi Yan Badshah. Freedom for Khalistan is very close.

Panth Da Sewadar,

Gurmit Singh Aulakh,

President.

Mr. Speaker, I noticed in the April 3 issue of the Washington Post that Gurcharan Singh Tohra, a Sikh who led the Shiromani Gurdwara Prabandhak Committee (SGPC), the Sikhs' highest administrative body, which administers all the Sikh places of worship, called Gurdwaras, in Punjab, died April 1 in a hospital in New Delhi. He was 79 years old.

On behalf of my colleagues in the U.S. Congress, I would like to extend my sympathies to Mr. Tohra's family. In this time of loss for them, we all pray for them and for the departed. However, it is important to have the record reflect the actions that Mr. Tohra took against his own people.

The Council of Khalistan published a press release on April 6 which details the betrayal of the Sikhs by Mr. Tohra. It is excellent reading and I recommend it to my colleagues.

In that press release, the Council of Khalistan took note of Mr. Tohra's invitation to the Indian government to launch its military attack on the Golden Temple, the most sacred of Sikh shrines, in June 1984, in order to eliminate his political rival, Sant Jarnail Singh Bhindranwale, who was a strong advocate of an independent Sikh state, Khalistan. Sikhs will be commemorating this brutal attack on June 5 here in Washington. The Indian forces simultaneously attacked 125 Sikh Gurdwaras throughout Punjab and murdered over 20,000 Sikhs in these attacks alone. They shot bullet holes in the Sikh holy scriptures, the Guru Granth Sahib. They took young Sikh boys ages 8 through 13 out in the courtyard and shot them at point blank range. Meanwhile, Mr. Tohra, who had said that the tanks would have to roll over his body to get to the Temple, came out with his hands up. The Golden Temple complex is also the headquarters of the SGPC.

Mr. Tohra was also in a longstanding political alliance with the corrupt Parkash Singh Badal, who was thrown out of office after running the most corrupt government in Punjab's history--a regime so corrupt that the voters chose the Congress Party, which organized and carried out the Golden Temple attack, rather than re-elect Mr. Badal. Mr. Tohra also was an ally of the Indian government, first under the Congress Party and then under the current regime of the BJP. This is the same Indian government that has murdered over 250,000 Sikhs, Mr. Speaker. It is also holding over 52,000 Sikhs as political prisoners, some since the 1984 attacks!

With Mr. Tohra gone, new leaders must emerge. I call on my Sikh friends to make sure that these new leaders are strong supporters of freedom for the Sikhs of Punjab, Khalistan. And as the beacon of freedom, I urge the United States to take action to help liberate the Sikh Nation and all the nations seeking their freedom from India, including Kashmir, predominantly Christian Nagalim, and others.

The time has come to stop our aid to India until it respects the basic human rights of all people within its borders and to demand that India act like the democracy it says it is by holding a free and fair vote on the matter of independence for Khalistan, for Kashmir, for Nagalim, and for all the other nations seeking their freedom. This is the democratic way and self-determination is the essence of democracy. It is also the only way to prevent leaders in the mode of Gurcharan Singh Tohra from emerging again to connive with the Indian government to keep the Sikhs in slavery.

Mr. Speaker, I would like to place the Council of Khalistan's press release on Mr. Tohra into the Record at this time.

G.S. Tohra Passes Away at 79

Washington, DC, April 6, 2004.--Gurcharan Singh Tohra, the

longtime President of the Shiromani Gurdwara Prabandhak

Committee (SGPC), which runs all the Gurdwaras (Sikh places

of worship) in Punjab, died of a heart attack April 1 in New

Delhi. He was 79 years old.

``We offer our sympathies and prayers to Mr. Tohra's

family,'' said Dr. Gurmit Singh Aulakh, President of the

Council of Khalistan, which leads the struggle for

independence for the Sikh homeland, Khalistan, as declared on

October 7, 1987. ``We pray for them in their time of loss and

may Guru bless this departed soul,'' he said. ``However, it

is better to leave a legacy of service and sacrifice rather

than a legacy of betrayal as Tohra did,'' he said. ``What

Tohra did in life will remain a part of the history of the

Sikh Nation. He will not be remembered as a friend of the

Sikh Nation,'' Dr. Aulakh said.

Tohra connived with the Indian government prior to its

invasion of the Golden Temple, the center and seat of the

Sikh religion. The Golden Temple is the headquarters of the

SGPC. He joined with Harchand Singh Longowal and others in

inviting the Indian government to attack the Golden Temple to

murder pro-Khalistani leaders Jarnail Singh Bhindranwale,

General Shabeg Singh, and others, even while they were

telling the Sikh Nation that Indian tanks would ``have to

roll over our dead bodies'' to get to the Temple. From June 3

through June 6, 1984, the Indian government carried out

Operation Bluestar, a military attack on the Golden Temple

and over 125 other Sikh temples throughout Punjab. More than

20,000 Sikhs were killed in Operation Bluestar. Longowal was

assassinated by a patriotic Sikh for his betrayal of the Sikh

Nation. ``Sikhs can never forgive or forget the attack on the

Golden Temple,'' said Dr. Aulakh. On Saturday, June 5, Sikhs

will gather in Washington, D.C. to commemorate the twentieth

anniversary of this brutal massacre and desecration.

The Indian government has murdered over 250,000 Sikhs since

1984, more than 300,000 Christians since 1948, over 85,000

Muslims in Kashmir since 1988, and tens of thousands of

Tamils, Assamese, Manipuris, Dalits, and others. The Indian

Supreme Court called the Indian government's murders of Sikhs

``worse than a genocide.'' According to a study by the

Movement Against State Repression (MASR), 52,268 Sikhs are

being held in illegal detention as political prisoners

without charge or trial. In September 1995, human-rights

activist Jaswant Singh Khalra was kidnapped by police for

publishing a study documenting that the Indian government

secretly cremated thousands of Sikh youth by declaring them

``unidentified bodies'' after torturing and murdering them.

He was murdered about six weeks later while in police

custody. His body was never returned to his family. Police

SSP Swaran Singh Ghotna murdered former Jathedar of the Akal

Takht Gurdev Singh Kaunke.

Although Tohra was not corrupt like former Punjab Chief

Minister Parkash Singh Badal, he maintained an alliance with

Badal, even though he once said publicly that he would not

even go near Badal's grave. The Badal regime was the most

corrupt in Punjab's history. In 1993, Tohra urged Sikhs to

``prepare for the long struggle'' to liberate Khalistan, yet

he maintained a political alliance with the Indian

government, first with the Congress Party (which carried out

the Golden Temple attack) and then with the militant Hindu

nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP.) ``It seems as if

there were two Gurcharan Singh Tohras,'' Dr. Aulakh said.

India is not one country; it is a polyglot thrown together

by the British for their administrative convenience. Sikhs

ruled Punjab until 1849 when the British conquered the

subcontinent. Sikhs were equal partners during the transfer

of power from the British. The Muslim leader Jinnah got

Pakistan, the Hindu leaders got India, but the Sikh

leadership was fooled by the Hindu leadership into taking

their share with India on the promise that Sikhs would have

``the glow of freedom'' in northwest India. For that mistake,

Sikhs are suffering now. ``As Professor Darshan Singh, a

former Jathedar of the Akal Takht, said, `If a Sikh is not

for Khalistan, he is not

a Sikh','' Dr. Aulakh noted. ``Tohra worked with the Indian

government in its most brutal efforts to suppress the Sikh

Nation's effort to realize the Guru's blessing by reclaiming

its sovereignty,'' he said.

``Democracies don't commit genocide,'' Dr. Aulakh said.

``Only in a free and sovereign Khalistan will the Sikh Nation

prosper. In a democracy, the right to self-determination is

the sine qua non and if India is truly a democracy, it should

accept the sovereignty of the Sikh Nation,'' he said.

Mr. Speaker, next month the Sikhs will celebrate one of their most important holidays, Vaisakhi Day. On this day in 1699, Guru Gobind Singh constituted the Sikh Nation. He issued a blessing of sovereignty to the Sikhs, a blessing they are looking to reclaim.

Vaisakhi Day is one of the most important Sikh holidays and there are over 500,000 Sikhs in this country, so I would like to take this opportunity to wish them all a happy Vaisakhi Day. Hopefully, they will use the occasion to work for freedom for their people.

It is an interesting coincidence that Vaisakhi Day happens to fall on the birthday of Thomas Jefferson, author of our Declaration of Independence, who wrote: ``We hold these truths to be self-evident: that all men are created equal; that they are endowed by their Creator with certain inalienable rights; that among these are life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness; that to secure these rights, governments are instituted among men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed; that whenever any form of government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the right of the people to alter or abolish it and to institute new government, laying its foundations on such principles and organizing its powers in such form as to them shall seem most likely to effect their safety and happiness.''

Mr. Speaker, the Indian government has done everything it can to destroy the safety and happiness of Sikhs, Christians, Muslims, and other minorities living within the country. Is it any wonder that all these groups are seeking their freedom from India's brutal rule?

India has murdered over a quarter of a million Sikhs in the past 20 years. It holds over 52,000 of them as political prisoners. More than 300,000 Christians in Nagaland have been murdered by the Indian government, and Christians seem to be targets everywhere else in India too. India has killed over 85,000 Kashmiri Muslims since 1988, and that doesn't count the thousands who have been killed in places like Gujarat.

Yet India continues to proclaim loudly that it is a democracy. As Jefferson noted, the central principle of a democratic state is ``the consent of the governed.'' How can India claim to have the consent of the minorities it governs so brutally while killing tens of thousands of them? It doesn't make sense to me. The essence of democracy is the right to self-determination.

We must do what we can, Mr. Speaker, as a country dedicated to the principle of liberty. We should stop U.S. aid to India until it respects human rights and we should use whatever influence we can to get India to hold a free and fair plebiscite on the question of independence, under international observation.

The Council of Khalistan has issued a very informative letter in honor of Vaisakhi Day, which contains a lot of useful information about the occasion and the atrocities that have been committed by India against the Sikhs and others. Therefore, I would like to put it in the Record now, Mr. Speaker. Thank you.

Vaisakhi Day Message to the Sikh Nation:

(By Dr. Gurmit Sigh Aulakh)

In 1699 on Vaisakhi Day, 305 years ago, Guru Gobind Singh

established the Khalsa Panth. The Guru granted sovereignty to

the Sikh Nation, saying ``In Grieb Sikhin Ko Deon Patshahi.''

It is this spirit instilled in the Sikh Nation by Guru Gobind

Singh that led them to fight tyrants like lions until they

defeated them. We always remember it by reciting every

morning and evening, ``Raj Kare Ga Khalsa.'' Now is the time

to act on it. Do we mean what we say every morning and

evening?

Punjab is the gateway to India. Many invaders have come

from the West--the Moguls, the Afghans, and others--to

conquer and established their rule in Delhi. Sikhs saw this

unprecedented persecution at the hands of invaders and

rulers. Banda Singh Bahadur established the first Khalsa Raj

in Punjab in 1710, lasting until 1716. Then the Sikh missals

again established their rule in the various regions of Punjab

in 1765. Maharajah Ranjit Singh established Sikh Raj with

Lahore as its capital in 1799, 100 years after the initiation

of the Khalsa Panth. Sikhs ruled Punjab under Maharajah

Ranjit Singh in the true Sikh tradition, the well being of

everybody (Sarbat Da Bhalah). Hindus, Muslims, and Christians

were all part of the Sikh government. The Sikh army included

Hindus, Muslims, and Christians. A Christian, General

Ventura, was in charge of the infantry. The period from 1799

to 1839, when Maharajah Ranjit Singh died, was the Golden Age

of Punjab. The sovereign Sikh state of Punjab was recognized

by China, Russia, and the European countries. It was the

dominant power in South Asia at that time. Sikhs conquered

Kashmir from Afghanistan in 1819, making it part of Punjab.

The British conquered us in 1849 with the help of their

planted agents the Hindu Dogra brothers, Pahara Singh, etc.,

who connived with the British and betrayed the Sikh Nation.

As a reward to the Dogra brothers for their betrayal, the

British sold them Kashmir for Rs400,000. At the time of

independence in 1947, the Sikh leadership was fooled into

taking their share with India by the dishonest Hindu leaders

Nehru and Gandhi, while the Muslims got their own sovereign

country, Pakistan. Nehru and Gandhi promised that Sikhs would

have the glow of freedom in Punjab, but instead we got

unprecedented persecution at the hands of the Indian

government. In June 1984 they attacked the Golden Temple and

127 other Gurdwaras throughout Punjab. Over 20,000 Sikhs were

murdered in those attacks, known as Operation Bluestar,

including Sant Jarnail Singh Bhindranwale, General Shabeg

Singh, Bhai Amrik Singh, and over 100 Sikh religious students

ages 8-13 who were taken out into the courtyard and shot. If

Sikhs cannot protect the sanctity of the Golden Temple, then

the Sikh Nation cannot survive as a nation.

The Golden Temple attacks set off a wave of repression and

genocide that resulted in the murder of over 250,000 Sikhs at

the hands of the Indian government. Over 50,000 Sikh youth

were picked up from their houses, tortured, murdered in

police custody, then cremated by being declared

``unidentified bodies.'' Their remains were never even given

to their families! Over 52,000 Sikhs sit in Indian jails as

political prisoners without charge or trial, many since 1984.

Repression and genocide of this magnitude at the hands of

the Indian government is unparalleled in the late part of the

20th century. India should be ashamed of the genocide it has

committed against Sikhs, Christians, Muslims, and other

minorities. Khalsa Ji, at this time of Vaisakhi, the whole

Khalsa Panth must be energized to reestablish a sovereign,

independent Khalsa Raj by freeing our homeland, Khalistan.

India is not one nation. It is a polyglot empire thrown

together under one roof for the administrative convenience of

the British colonialists. It has 18 official languages.

History shows that such countries are doomed to fall apart.

India will collapse just like the Austro-Hungarian Empire,

the Soviet Union, and other multinational states such as

Yugoslavia and Czechoslovakia. The cracks are appearing and

India is crumbling. The clock is ticking. The Kashmir issue

has been internationalized. The United States is now involved

in the issue. On December 5, President Bush told me ``I am

aware of the Sikh and Kashmiri problem.'' There will be a

referendum in Kashmir under international supervision.

Kashmir will either be independent or become part of

Pakistan. It will not remain within India. As L.K. Advani

predicted, ``When Kashmir goes, India goes.'' This time we

agree with Mr. Advani. Kashmir will go and India will

disintegrate.

Khalsa Ji, bring back your Khalsa spirit. Look at Advani

having a yatra of India and coming to Amritsar. Punjab

belongs to the Khalsa Panth, not to India. He has no right to

show Hindu dominance in Punjab. Shame on the Akali leaders

like Badal, Tohra, and others who have joined hands with the

BJP, which is the political arm of the RSS. We need a new

Sikh political party which has a dedication to the interests

of the Sikh Nation as its sole objective, to establish Khalsa

Raj by liberating Khalistan, severing all political ties with

India. If the BJP wants Hindu Raj, it cannot object to Khalsa

Raj.

The Sikhs in Punjab have suffered enormous repression at

the hands of the Indian regime in the last 20 years. The

Indian government wants to break the will of the Sikh Nation

and enslave them forever, making Sikhism a part of Hinduism.

This can only be stopped if we free Punjab from Delhi's

control and reestablish a sovereign, independent country, as

declared on October 7, 1957. Then Punjab will be a member of

the United Nations and we will have Ambassadors in almost 200

countries.

Khalsa Ji, remember that a free Khalistan will bring

economic prosperity to Punjab farmers. They will be able to

sell their produce internationally which will fetch them much

higher prices than they are getting now from the Indian

government. The Indian government fixes prices of produce so

low that farmers get deeper and deeper in debt while they

sell fertilizer, seeds, and insecticides to the farmers at

artificially high prices. The Indian government has diverted

Punjab river water to neighboring states without any

compensation to Punjab. Punjab farmers are forced to pump

subsoil water for irrigation. This is expensive and brings

salinity to soil, which lowers the crop production.

Remember, 3 million (30 lakh) Sikhs live outside India. The

outside Sikhs are free, prosperous, well educated,

professional, and committed to establishing an independent,

sovereign Khalistan. The Indian government does not have any

control over the Sikh diaspora. Outside Sikhs have exposed

the atrocities committed on the Sikhs by the Indian

government. Outside Sikhs have also preserved the true

history of the Sikhs since 1984 by documenting every incident

in the U.S. Congressional Record while the Indian government

tries to alter Sikh history. Outside Sikhs are committed to a

continuing effort to free Khalistan. Remember the words of

Professor Darshan Singh, former Jathedar of the Akal Takht,

during the celebration of Guru Nanak's birthday: ``If a Sikh

is not a Khalistani, he is not a Sikh.'' He was only

reiterating the Guru's blessing, ``In Grieb Sikhin Ko Deon

Patshahi.'' The time to achieve our independence is now.

Khalsa Ji, remain in Charhdi Kala. Always remember our

heritage: Raj Kare Ga Khalsa; Khalsa Bagi Yan Badshah.

Freedom for Khalistan is very close.

Mr. Speaker, on August 14, there will be a parade in Washington, DC to celebrate the 400th anniversary of the compilation of the Guru Granth Sahib, the holy scripture of the Sikh religion. It was the revelation of the Sikh Gurus and it is the basis for the Sikh religion and way of life.

In June 1984, during India's military assault on the Sikhs at their most sacred shrine, the Golden Temple in Amritsar, and 125 other Gurdwaras throughout Punjab, an original of the Guru Granth Sahib was riddled with bullet holes by Indian forces. This was a gratuitous insult to the Sikh people and a coordinated denigration of their religion. It made it clear to them that there is no place for them in supposedly democratic, supposedly secular India.

This will be a major celebration for the Sikh people, over half a million of whom live here in America. They are productive, committed citizens who contribute to every walk of American life and who share a commitment to bring the freedom they enjoy to their brothers and sisters back home in Punjab, Khalistan.

There was even a Sikh who served in Congress, Dalip Singh Saund.

In addition to the August 14 parade, there will also be a seminar here in Washington on June 5 to commemorate this momentous occasion.

Mr. Speaker, we are a diverse country. Our strength has always been the ability to preserve our individuality and diversity while creating a unified society. In that spirit, I would like to take this opportunity to honor the Sikhs of America and worldwide on the 400th anniversary of the Guru Granth Sahib.

Mr. Speaker, the Council of Khalistan published an excellent press release about the events that are coming up to celebrate this event, which I would like to place in the Record at this time.

400th Anniversary of Guru Granth Sahib--Remember Bullets Pierced

Through Guru Granth Sahib in 1984

Reserve Saturday, August 14, 2004 for a Memorable Celebration, Parade

in Washington, D.C.

Washington, D.C., March 24, 2004.--On August 14, Sikh from

around the East Coast will observe the 400th anniversary of

the compilation of the Guru Granth Sahib, the Sikh holy

scriptures. There will be a parade in Washington, D.C. to

mark the occasion. The Guru Granth Sahib was dictated by the

Sikh Gurus as revealed to them by God. It was written at the

time in which they lived. It also includes the writing of

other saints of that time which fit the philosophy of the

Sikh Gurus.

In addition, there will be a seminar on Saturday, June 5 to

celebrate the 400th anniversary of the Guru Granth Sahib

sponsored by the International Conference on Sikh Studies

along with Sikh Gurdwara and institutions of North America.

Sikhs remember that bullets pierced through the Guru Granth

Sahib during Operation Bluestar, the Indian government's

military attack on the Golden Temple in Amritsar, in 1984.

``This parade and this anniversary will be a joyous

occasion for the Sikh Nation as we celebrate the Sikh way of

life as given to us by the Gurus,'' said Dr. Gurmit Singh

Aulakh, President of the Council of Khalistan. Sikhism is an

independent, monotheistic religion that believes in the

equality of the whole human race. The tenth and last Sikh

Guru, Guru Gobind Singh, declared the blessing ``In Grieb

Sikhin Ko Deon Patshahi,'' conferring sovereignty on the Sikh

Nation, which is culturally, linguistically, and religiously

distinct from any other people in the world, including Hindu

India. ``We must honor the Guru by reclaiming our lost

sovereignty,'' Dr. Aulakh said

The Indian government has murdered over 250,000 Sikhs since

1984, more than 300,000 Christians since 1948, over 85,000

Muslims in Kashmir since 1988, and tens of thousands of

Tamils, Assamese, Manipuris, Dalits, and others. The Indian

Supreme Court called the Indian government's murders of Sikhs

``worse than a genocide.'' According to a study by the

Movement Against State Repression, 52,268 Sikhs are being

held in illegal detention as political prisoners without

charge or trial. Some of them have been held since 1984!

Christian missionary Joseph Cooper was expelled from India

after a mob of militant Hindu nationalists allied with the

Rashtriya Swayamsewak Sangh (RSS), a pro-Fascist organization

that is the parent organization of the ruling BJP, beat him

so severely he had to spend a week in the hospital. In 2002,

2,000 to 5,000 Muslims were murdered in Gujarat while police

were ordered to stand aside, reminiscent of the 1984 Delhi

massacres of Sikhs. Indian newspapers reported that the

government planned the Gujarat massacre in advance.

India is not one country; it is a polyglot thrown together

by the British for their administrative convenience. Sikhs

ruled Punjab until 1849 when the British conquered the

subcontinent. Sikhs were equal partners during the transfer

of power from the British. The Muslim leader Jinnah got

Pakistan, the Hindu leaders got India, but the Sikh

leadership was fooled by the Hindu leadership promising that

Sikhs would have ``the glow of freedom'' in Northwest India.

The Sikhs took their share with India on that promise. For

that mistake, Sikhs are suffering now. ``As Professor Darshan

Singh, a former Jathedar of the Akal Takht, said, ``If a Sikh

is not for Khalistan, he is not a Sikh','' Dr. Aulakh noted.

``Democracies don't commit genocide,'' Dr. Aulakh said.

``Only in a free and sovereign Khalistan will the Sikh Nation

prosper. In a democracy, the right to self-determination is

the sine qua non and India should allow a plebiscite for the

freedom of the Sikh Nation,'' he said. ``The Guru Granth

Sahtb is the reigning Guru of the Sikh Nation and reminds us

of our heritage and we must offer a fitting celebration,'' he

said.

Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today in strong support of H.R. 3926, the Organ Donation and Recovery Improvement Act. I would like to commend the work of my colleagues on both sides of the aisle for working in a bipartisan manner to craft this important legislation and for working to encourage more efficient and widespread organ donation activities.

Each day in America, nearly 70 people receive an organ transplant, and while this number is amazing, there are other numbers that are far more troubling. At day's end, 18 people on an organ transplant waiting list will have died because not enough organs are available. Nearly 85,000 men, women and children are currently awaiting life-saving transplants, and every 13 minutes another name is added to the national transplant waiting list.

According to the Institute of Medicine, which is part of the National Academy of Sciences, report Organ Procurement and Transplantation, many factors have been found to affect the organ donation rates, including the attitudes of the donor's family, the policies and practices of hospital staff and organ procurement organizations, and the manner in which individuals are approached about a donation.

Sadly, while most Americans indicate that they support an organ donation, only about 50 percent of the families who are asked to donate a loved one's organs agree to do so. Equally perplexing is the interplay between cultural attitudes and race/ethnicity and how this affects rates of organ donation among racial/ethnic minority groups.

The IOM reports that the perception of fairness and effectiveness in distribution of donated organs is as important as other factors in affecting donation rates beneficially. Members of racial/ethnic minorities comprise approximately 25 percent of the population, yet represent close to 50 percent of patients on organ transplant waiting lists. More than half of those who die while patiently waiting for their gift of life are people of color.

The Organ Donation and Recovery Improvement Act establishes grants to States that will be used to assist in carrying out organ donation awareness, public education and outreach activities, and programs designed to increase the number of organ donors within a State.

Finally, Mr. Speaker, the bill directs the Agency for Health Care Research and Quality to conduct studies to ensure that efforts to increase organ donation and improve the recovery, preservation and transportation of donated organs are not done in vain.

I urge my colleagues to support H.R. 3926, and I am proud to stand here and to say that this is something that we should do and we should do it right away.

Mr. Speaker, I yield such time as he may consume to the gentleman from Washington (Mr. Inslee).

(Mr. INSLEE asked and was given permission to revise and extend his remarks.)

Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

I thank the gentleman from Washington (Mr. Inslee) for his moving statement about how important this is. I think he really summed it up. I also thank the gentleman from Florida (Mr. Bilirakis), the gentleman from Ohio (Mr. Brown), the gentleman from California (Mr. Waxman), the gentleman from North Carolina (Mr. Burr), the gentleman from New Jersey (Mr. Pallone), and of course the gentleman from Michigan (Mr. Dingell), and many, many other Members who made this a reality. And I would like to thank the staff that also worked on this bill, because this is life- saving legislation. I think when it comes to saving lives, I think we should try to move as quickly as possible. I hope we can move this bill through the House and it becomes law, and we can make certain that we save lives of people.

Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of House Resolution 522 and in solidarity with all those who are troubled by the fact that heart disease, stroke, and other cardiovascular disease claim the lives of more than half a million women each year.

A report released by the Centers For Disease Control and Prevention indicates that, despite major progress in reducing death rates from heart disease and stroke, these conditions contribute substantially to the Nation's health care crisis. According to the CDC, the epidemic of heart disease and stroke can be expected to continue with an increasing burden and widening disparities unless unprecedented public efforts are mounted to arrest and reverse it. With statistics showing that heart disease currently takes the lives of more women than men, and one in three women die of heart disease, a challenge has been placed at the feet of our public health and health care systems.

It is imperative that all that can be done is indeed done to ensure that our mothers, wives, sisters, and daughters are made aware of the risk of heart disease and they receive the quality of care needed to live long, healthy lives.

I commend my colleagues on both sides of the aisle for bringing this problem to our attention because this is a worthwhile cause.

Mr. Speaker, I yield 5 minutes to the gentleman from Arkansas (Mr. Snyder), the primary sponsor of this resolution.

Mr. Speaker, I yield 4 minutes to the gentlewoman from Guam (Mr. Bordallo), who has been active on these issues for a number of years and has been a strong voice in the House of Representatives.

Mr. Speaker, I yield myself 2 minutes.

First of all, I would like to congratulate the gentleman from Arkansas for moving this resolution forward. Some people say, well, it's not going to do anything, but I think it does several things.

Number one, I think it makes us focus on the fact that there is a very serious problem that needs to be addressed, and I think that this resolution does that. I think it calls our attention to the fact that there are some serious problems and that we need to address them, and that in order to address them, that we are probably going to need some additional resources in order to do so.

This resolution indicates the fact that it is something that we cannot ignore. We must address the issue and we must address it now.

I would just like to commend him again for the outstanding job that he has done in bringing this matter to our attention.

Mr. Speaker, I have no further requests for time, and I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, elections have been scheduled in Punjab for May 10. They are part of India's national elections. The Sikhs in Punjab must seize this opportunity. Just changing the faces accomplishes nothing. Replacing one set of oppressors with another is not an exercise in democracy; it is merely proof of the need for independence from the tyranny that is the reality of daily life in Punjab.

The Council of Khalistan recently put out an open letter to the Sikhs in Punjab, Khalistan. They called for Sikhs to use these elections to elect officeholders who are committed to freeing the Sikh homeland, Khalistan.

Mr. Speaker, this is the only way to end the repression that has killed over 250,000 Sikhs since 1984, with more than 52,000 being held as political prisoners. Some of the prisoners are army officers who refused to participate in the brutal military attack on the seat of the Sikh religion, the Golden Temple, in 1984. Others are simply those who participated peacefully in the movement to liberate Khalistan.

India claims to be a democratic country. It also claims that there is no support for Khalistan. Why not simply hold a vote on the issue, the democratic way? Instead, this country that loudly proclaims that it is secular and democratic imposes the most brutal repression on the Sikhs and other minorities such as Christians in Nagaland and elsewhere, Muslims in Kas-hmir and throughout the country, Tamils, Dalit ``Untouchables,'' Bodos, Assamese, Manipuris, and others.

I join with the Council of Khalistan in urging the Sikhs and all the minorities suffering under Indian oppression to vote for honest candidates committed to freedom for their people. This is the best thing that they can do to free themselves from this brutal tyranny.

We can help by stopping American aid to India until all people's basic human rights are respected and by declaring our support for a free and fair plebiscite on the question of independence. These measures will press India to begin living up to the democratic values that they so loudly proclaim.

I would like to place the Council of Khalistan's message to the Sikh Nation regarding the elections into the Record at this time.

Council of Khalistan,

Washington, DC, March 2, 2004.

Open Letter to the Sikh Nation

Punjab Elections Set for May 10 Opportunity for Sikh Nation to Claim

Freedom

Choose honest leadership committed to Sikh Freedom--Don't miss this

peaceful, democratic opportunity to liberate Khalistan

Dear Khalsa Ji: WAHEGURU JI KA KHALSA, WAHEGURU JI KI

Mr. Speaker, the Sikhs will celebrate the 400th anniversary of the compilation of their holy scripture, the Guru Granth Sahib, this year. As you may know, there are over 500,000 Sikhs in the United States and about 25 million worldwide.

Observances will include a seminar on June 5 at George Washington University and a parade on August 14 here in Washington.

In June 1984, the Indian government launched a military attack on the Golden Temple in Amritsar, the center and seat of the Sikh religion, and 125 other Sikh Gurdwaras throughout Punjab in which over 20,000 Sikhs were murdered. Indian forces shot bullets through the Guru Granth Sahib, which was a major desecration and an insult to the Sikh people and the Sikh religion. They took over 100 young Sikh boys outside and shot them at point blank range.

Mr. Speaker, the Golden Temple attack made it clear to the Sikhs that there is no place for them in India's Hindu nationalist theocracy. It is against this background that they declared their independence on October 7, 1987, calling their country Khalistan.

The Golden Temple attack is unacceptable to all civilized people. We must work to ensure that human rights are respected in India and that nothing like the Golden Temple attack, the Gujarat massacre, or the campaign of violence against Christians occurs there again. We can help bring that about by stopping our aid to India until it learns to observe basic human rights.

We can also help by putting this Congress on record in support of a free and fair plebiscite in Punjab, Khalistan, in Kashmir, as India promised the United Nations in 1948, in primarily Christian Nagaland, and wherever the people are seeking independence. This is the democratic way to settle the issue and India claims to be a democracy, so why are they afraid of holding a free and fair vote?

Mr. Speaker, the Council of Khalistan has published a press release on the 400th anniversary of the Guni Granth Sahib and the 20th anniversary of the Golden Temple attack. It is very informative, so I would like to insert it into the Record at this time.

400th Anniversary of Guru Granth Sahib; 20th Anniversary of Golden

Temple Attack

Washington, D.C., March 10, 2004.--On June 5, Sikhs from

around the East Coast will observe the 400th anniversary of

the compilation of the Guru Granth Sahib, the Sikh holy

scriptures. During India's June 1984 attack on the Golden

Temple in Amritsar, the center and seat of the Sikh religion,

the Guru Granth Sahib was pierced by Indian Army bullets. The

Sikh Nation will never forget the desecration of the Guru

Granth Sahib. Political power is essential for the survival

of the Sikh Nation.

The Council of Khalistan, the organization leading the Sikh

struggle for independence, will hold a demonstration

Saturday, June 5, from 12:00 noon to 3:00 p.m. in front of

the Indian Embassy at 21st and Massachusetts Ave. NW in

Washington, D.C. It will commemorate the twentieth

anniversary of the attack on the Golden Temple and 125 other

Sikh Gurdwaras in Punjab, in which over 20,000 Sikhs were

killed, including such major Sikh leaders as Sant Jarnail

Singh Bhindranwale, General Shabeg Singh, Bhai Amrik Singh,

and others who had taken refuge in the Darbar Sahib complex.

The Indian army killed over 100 young religious students,

ages 8 to 13. They were taken out into the courtyard and

asked whether they supported Khalistan. When they answered

``Bole So Nihal,'' they were shot.

``This attack, along with simultaneous attacks on 125 other

Gurdwaras throughout Punjab, was the clearest sign that there

is no place for Sikhs in India,'' said Dr. Gurmit Singh

Aulakh, President of the Council of Khalistan. ``It is a

brutal, tyrannical, fundamentalist Hindu nationalist

theocracy,'' he said. ``Sant Bhindranwale said that if the

Indian government invaded the Golden Temple, they would lay

the foundation of Khalistan,'' Dr. Aulakh said. ``He was

right. The movement for Khalistan is strong in Punjab. Just

last year, seminars were held on the subject. The fire of

freedom burns bright in the hearts of Sikhs.''

``The brutal attack on the Golden Temple and the 20-year

wave of repression it set off must never be forgotten,'' Dr.

Aulakh said. ``Both the Congress Party and the Akalis are

complicit in this criminal act against the Sikh Nation,'' he

noted. . . . ``India needs to be reminded that 20 years

later, Sikhs have not forgiven nor forgotten this brutal

atrocity. The younger generation must be reminded of this

terrible atrocity.''

In addition to the protest, there will be a seminar on

Saturday, June 5 at George Washington University to celebrate

the 400th anniversary of the compilation of the Guru Granth

Sahib. It will be sponsored by the International Conference

on Sikh Studies along with Sikh Gurdwaras and institutions of

North America.

The Indian government has murdered over 250,000 Sikhs since

1984, more than 300,000 Christians since 1948, over 85,000

Muslims in Kashmir since 1988, and tens of thousands of

Tamils, Assamese, Manipuris, Dalits, and others. The Indian

Supreme Court called the Indian government's murders of Sikhs

``worse than a genocide.'' According to a study by the

Movement Against State Repression, 52,268 Sikhs are being

held in illegal detention as political prisoners without

charge or trial. Some of them have been held since 1984!

Christian missionary Joseph Cooper was expelled from India

after a mob of militant Hindu nationalists allied with the

Rashtriya Swayamsewarak Sangh (RSS), a pro-Fascist

organization that is the parent organization of the ruling

BJP, beat him so severely he had to spend a week in the

hospital. In 2002, 2,000 to 5,000 Muslims were murdered in

Gujarat while police were ordered to stand aside, reminiscent

of the 1984 Delhi massacres of Sikhs. Indian newspapers

reported that the government planned the Gujarat massacre in

advance.

History shows that multinational states such as India are

doomed to failure. Countries like Austria-Hungary, India's

longtime friend the Soviet Union, Yugoslavia, Czechoslovakia,

and others prove this point. India is not one country; it is

a polyglot like those countries, thrown together by the

British for their administrative convenience. Sikhs ruled

Punjab until 1849 when the British conquered the

subcontinent. Sikhs were equal partners during the transfer

of power from the British. The Muslim leader Jinnah got

Pakistan, the Hindu leaders got India, but the Sikh

leadership was fooled by the Hindu leadership promising that

Sikhs would have ``the glow of freedom'' in Northwest India.

The Sikhs took their share with India on that promise. For

that mistake, Sikhs are suffering now. ``As Professor Darshan

Singh, a former Jathedar of the Akal Takht, said, `If a Sikh

is not for Khalistan, he is not a Sikh','' Dr. Aulakh noted.

``Democracies don't commit genocide,'' Dr. Aulakh said.

``Only in a free and sovereign Khalistan will the Sikh Nation

prosper. In a democracy, the right to self-determination is

the sine qua non and India should allow a plebiscite for the

freedom of the Sikh Nation,'' he said. ``India should also

allow self-determination in Christian Nagaland, Kashmir,

Assam, and the other nations fighting for freedom. This is

the only way to bring lasting peace to South Asia.''

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to pay tribute to one of the unsung American heroes. Every day in this great Nation, there are people who work hard, raise their families and contribute to the fabric of the community. They are largely unrecognized in these ivy-covered halls and their names are unknown. Today, I would like to raise my voice to honor one of the unsung heroes of Brooklyn, NY.

Mrs. Bertha A. Woodard Johnson is the daughter of the late Sadie Woodard and Richard Wallace. She was born in Chester, SC, and reared by her mother and grandmother.

Bertha spent a life providing services for the needy, with a particular vocation of serving children and the elderly. She has worked tirelessly to improve their quality of life through active participation and personal generous donations of her time and talent. This passion to help people led her to become a caregiver and nurse for over 45 years. Before retiring in 1990, she received numerous awards and accolades for her dedicated service, including ``Nurse of the Year.''

Bertha has served the community through her leadership activities in her church and mentoring activities with young people. In addition to her active involvement in the community, Bertha, the wife of Charlie C. Johnson, mother of five children, seven grandchildren, and three great grandchildren, has been a strong pillar of her family.

Mr. Speaker, Bertha Woodard Johnson has demonstrated great dedication in her life to her family, devotion to her patients and commitment to the people of Brooklyn. As such, she is more than worthy of receiving our recognition today and I urge my colleagues to join me in honoring this truly remarkable person.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to recognize and pay tribute to Stephen and Terri Kevelson, who are being honored by the esteemed Young Israel of Avenue J on the occasion of the synagogue's 25th Annual Dinner.

The Young Israel of Avenue J has provided great leadership for both the 10th Congressional District and for all New Yorkers. I stand today to acknowledge two people on whose backs the foundation and ideology of this great institution has persevered. Our city and our nation need demonstrations of kindness, strength, and commitment to the success of our local communities, and the Kevelsons have provided us with just that.

The Kevelsons have a unique understanding of both the spiritual and communal needs of the residents of the 10th Congressional District, and have used that knowledge in ways that provide us not only the functional benefits of their work, but also a shining example of what community dedication truly means. From their work in forwarding the Flatbush Mikva, to their involvement with Chaim Berlin and the Young Israel movement the Kevelson's has constantly and consistently served our community above and beyond the call of duty.

Mr. Speaker, it gives me great pleasure to bring to the halls of Congress examples of individuals and organizations who have selflessly devoted their existence to the betterment of those around them. I congratulate both the Young Israel of Avenue J and Stephen and Terri Kevelson on this joyous occasion, and wish them continued success in all their endeavors.