February 27, 2002 CONGRESSIONAL RECORD — SENATE S1245 The sadness, however, is that, by leav- lations Committee hearing this morn- throughout Egypt, preaching hatred of the ing some behind, we impoverish not ing on the subject of ‘‘How do We Pro- United States. As you authorize $2 billion a only those individuals, we also impov- mote Democratization, Poverty Allevi- year for Egypt, please remember that these same clerics are employees of the Egyptian erish ourselves. None of us will enjoy ation, and Human Rights To Build A government. It is not a stretch to say that sustained economic growth unless we More Secure Future?’’ Mr. Perle’s tes- U.S. taxpayer dollars are helping to pay for expand the information revolution to timony was superb, and I commend it the most inflammatory anti-American rant- all parts of our society. to all. ing. With that in mind, we cannot afford Mr. President, I ask unanimous con- So when you hear about poverty as the to make technology decisions based on sent that this statement by Richard root cause of terrorism, I urge you to exam- ine the manipulation of young Muslim men dated and ill-conceived perceptions Perle be placed in the RECORD. about the interest or ability of minori- sent on suicidal missions by wealthy fanat- There being no objection, the mate- ics, like Osama bin Laden, whose motives are ties and poor people to purchase cer- rial was ordered to be printed in the religious and ideological in nature and have tain ‘‘high-end’’ technology. Nor can RECORD, as follows: nothing to do with poverty or privation. we simply bypass low-income and mi- Mr. Chairman, this hearing is about build- STATEMENT OF RICHARD PERLE, FELLOW, ing a more secure future; and I know it will nority communities, where the tele- AMERICAN ENTERPRISE INSTITUTE, BEFORE come as no surprise if I argue that doing communications and electronic net- THE COMMITTEE ON FOREIGN RELATIONS, that in the near term will require an effec- work infrastructure may be older and, UNITED STATES SENATE tive military establishment to take the war therefore, less able to provide more so- Mr. Chairman, I appreciate your invitation on terrorism to the terrorists, to fight them phisticated services. To the extent that to participate in the Committee’s hearing over there because they are well on the way technology, including the Internet and which poses the question ‘‘How do we pro- to achieving their murderous objectives telecommunications services, is de- mote democratization, poverty alleviation when we are forced to fight them over here. ployed in a way that avoids poor and and human rights to build a more secure For once those who wish to destroy Ameri- minority communities, we must do all world?’’ These three ideas, poverty, democ- cans gain entry to the United States and ex- racy and human rights that are often linked that we can to deter this form of red- ploit the institutions of our open society, the as we try to think our way through the vex- likelihood that we will stop them is greatly lining. ing problems of national and international diminished. Toward this end, the administration security. This is why President Bush was right to should keep its promise to invest $400 The phrase ‘‘a more secure world’’ is al- declare on September 11 that ‘‘We will make million to create and maintain more most certainly prompted by the discovery, no distinction between the terrorists who than 2,000 community technology cen- on September 11, of how insecure we turned committed these acts and those who harbor ters in low-income neighborhoods by out to be on that day. In any case, hardly them.’’ This was not the policy of the last 2002. The role that community tech- any discussion takes place these days that is Democratic administration or the Repub- nology centers plays in helping to not somehow related to terrorism and the lican one before it. It is not a policy univer- war against it. For my part, this morning sally applauded by our allies. But it is a bridge the digital divide cannot be will be no exception. right and bold and courageous policy and the overstated. Community technology Let me say, at the outset, that the idea only policy that has a reasonable prospect of centers are instrumental in closing the that poverty is a cause of terrorism, al- protecting the American people from further information technology divide, and, by though widely believed and frequently ar- terrorist acts. tapping demand for these services, sup- gued, remains essentially unproven. That Dealing effectively with the states that porters of community technology ini- poverty is not merely a cause, but a ‘‘root support or condone terrorism against us (or cause,’’ which implies that it is an essential even remain indifferent to it) is the only way tiatives can open up new markets for to deprive terrorists of the sanctuary from companies that serve the Internet source of terrorist violence, is an almost cer- tainly false, and even a dangerous idea, often which they operate, whether that sanctuary economy. invoked to absolve terrorists of responsi- is in Afghanistan or North Korea or Iran or The development of information bility or mitigate their culpability. It is a Iraq or elsewhere. The regimes in control of technology holds great potential to liberal conceit which, if heeded, may channel these ‘‘rogue’’ states—a term used widely be- strengthen and invigorate American the war against terror into the cul de sac of fore the last administration substituted the society. That potential cannot be fully grand development schemes in the third flaccid term ‘‘states of concern’’—pose an realized, however, unless we pay atten- world and the elevation of do-good/feel-good immediate threat to the United States. The tion to the hundreds of thousands of in- NGO’s to a role they cannot and should not first priority of American policy must be to transform or destroy rogue regimes. dividuals, many of whom reside in play. What we know of the September 11 terror- And while some states will observe the de- largely minority and/or low-income ists suggests they were neither impoverished struction of the Taliban regime in Afghani- communities, who have no, or limited, themselves nor motivated by concerns about stan and decide to end their support for ter- access to our burgeoning national in- the poverty of others. After all, their avowed rorism rather than risk a similar fate, others formation infrastructure. We can, and aim, the destruction of the United States, will not. It is with respect to those regimes that would, if successful, deal a terrible blow to must, inform decisionmakers about the persist in supporting and harboring terror- the growth potential of the world economy. true value of minority markets recep- ists that the question of the role of democra- Their devotion to Afghanistan’s Taliban re- tive to advanced services. We must pro- tization and human rights is particularly sa- gime, which excluded half the Afghan work vide private industry with incentives lient. And foremost among these regimes is force from the economy and aimed to keep to deploy in these markets. And, per- Saddam Hussein’s Iraq. them illiterate as well as poor, casts conclu- The transformation of Iraq from a brutal haps most important, we must con- sive doubt on their interest in alleviating tinue to make public investments in dictatorship, in which human rights are un- poverty. known, to a democratic state protecting the underserved communities. Our failure Poverty—or poverty and despair—is the rights of individuals would not only make will only dampen private sector and most commonly adumbrated explanation for the world more secure, it would bring imme- philanthropic efforts, and, more trag- terrorism abroad—and crime at home. Iden- diate benefits to all the people of Iraq (ex- ically, handicap a generation of Ameri- tifying poverty as a source of conduct invari- cept the small number of corrupt officials cans for years to come. ably confuses the matter. We will never who surround Saddam Hussein). know what went through the mind of Mo- I believe that this is well understood in the f hammed Atta as he plotted the death of Congress, which has repeatedly called on the TESTIMONY OF RICHARD PERLE thousands of innocent men, women and chil- administration to support the Iraqi National BEFORE THE SENATE FOREIGN dren, including a number of Moslems. We do Congress, an umbrella group made up of or- know that he lived in relative comfort as did RELATIONS COMMITTEE ganizations opposed to Saddam’s dictator- most, perhaps all, of the 19 terrorists—15 of ship. The INC is pledged to institute demo- Mr. HELMS. Mr. President, Mr. Rich- them from affluent Saudi Arabia. cratic political institutions, protect human ard Perle is currently Resident Fellow If we accept poverty as an explanation we rights and renounce weapons of mass de- at American Enterprise Institute and will stop searching for a true, and useful, ex- struction. As we think through the best way chairman of the Defense Policy Board planation. We may not notice the poisonous to change the regime in Iraq, it is precisely of the Department of Defense, and extremist doctrine propagated, often with the proponents of democracy who deserve Saudi oil money, in mosques and religious served as Assistant Secretary of De- our support, not the disaffected officer who institutions around the world. simply wishes to substitute his dictatorship fense for International Security Policy If we attribute terrorism to poverty, we for that of Saddam Hussein. in the Reagan administration. He gave may fail to demand that President Mubarak I hope, Mr. Chairman, that the Congress, this testimony at a Senate Foreign Re- of Egypt silence the sermons, from mosques which has been well ahead of the executive

VerDate Mar 15 2010 21:05 Jan 09, 2014 Jkt 081600 PO 00000 Frm 00023 Fmt 4624 Sfmt 0634 E:\2002SENATE\S27FE2.REC S27FE2 mmaher on DSKCGSP4G1 with SOCIALSECURITY S1246 CONGRESSIONAL RECORD — SENATE February 27, 2002 branch in recognizing this, will succeed in dowment, and even more the organizations As Secretary of Foreign Relations, persuading this administration, although it that benefit from the Endowment’s support, Secretary Castan˜ eda has worked to failed to persuade the last one, that our ob- need and deserve all the help we can give build the image of a safe, honest, and jective in removing Saddam’s murderous re- them. gime must be its replacement by democratic peaceful Mexico that respects human forces in Iraq and the way to do that is work f rights and engages in political and so- with the Iraqi National Congress. REMARKS OF JORGE CASTAN˜ EDA, cial reform. He has also sought very Mr. Chairman, it goes without saying that MEXICAN SECRETARY OF FOR- successfully to strengthen his govern- democracies that respect human rights, and EIGN AFFAIRS ment’s involvement on the global especially the right to speak and publish and stage, both in this Hemisphere and in Mr. DODD. Mr. President, I rise organize freely, are far less likely to make Europe. war or countenance terrorism than dictator- today to publicly thank my good friend In light of the fact that my col- ships in which power is concentrated in the ˜ Jorge Castaneda, Mexican Secretary of leagues were not able to be present to hands of a few men whose control of the in- Foreign Relations, for taking the time struments of war and violence is unopposed. hear Secretary Castan˜ eda speak, I ask out of his busy schedule to address the unanimous consent that his remarks be As a general rule, democracies do not ini- U.S.-Spain Council last weekend. printed in the RECORD. I urge my col- tiate wars or undertake campaigns of terror. I have had the pleasure of chairing Indeed, democracies are generally loath to leagues to take the time to read them. the U.S.-Spain Council for two years build the instruments of war, to finance I know that they will enjoy and be bet- large military budgets or keep large num- now, and each year our annual meet- ings have been informative and ter informed having done so. bers of their citizens in military establish- There being no objection, the mate- thought-provoking. At these meetings ments. Nations that embrace fundamental rial was ordered to be printed in the human rights will not be found planning the American and Spanish members of the RECORD, as follows: destruction of innocent civilians. I can’t Council discuss U.S.-Spain bilateral re- think of a single example of a democracy lations, but we also focus on the unique Ladies and gentlemen: I want to thank the U.S.-Spanish Council and my good friend planning acts of terror like those of Sep- triangular relationship between the tember 11. Senator Chris Dodd for inviting me to join We could discuss at length why democratic U.S., Spain, and Latin America, par- you here this evening. I am grateful for this political institutions and a belief in the ticularly Mexico. Our meetings are al- opportunity to share with you some rights of individuals militate against war ways candid, constructive, and inform- thoughts on Mexico’s foreign policy. and terror and violence. But the more dif- ative, and I believe that they are par- As a result of Mexico’s far-reaching process ficult questions have to do with how effec- ticularly valuable for our membership. of reform and renewal, the government of tively we oppose those regimes that are not Part of what makes our annual meet- President Vicente Fox has acquired a legit- democratic and deny their citizens those fun- ings so successful is the high quality of imacy that is almost without precedent in damental human rights, the exercise of our country. This has had a profound impact the speakers that attend our con- on President Fox’s domestic agenda. It has which constitutes a major restraint on the ferences. This was truly evident when use of force and violence. also forced us to rethink and retool our for- Here the issue is frequently one of whether Secretary Castan˜ eda delivered the ad- eign policy so that it responds to the needs we ‘‘engage’’ them in the hope that our en- dress at our closing dinner last Friday and priorities of a new democratic Mexico. gagement will lead to reform and liberaliza- in the Senate Caucus Room. Times have changed. Things have changed. tion, or whether we oppose and isolate them. Having been an elected public serv- And, Lampedusa not withstanding, let me I know of no general prescription. Each case, ant for over 25 years, I have attended assure you that not everything will remain it seems to me, must be treated individually numerous dinners and receptions, and the same. because no two cases are alike. Take the have heard countless dinner speeches. I This process of reform and renewal is un- three cases of the ‘‘axis of evil.’’ charted territory for us in Mexico, but it can honestly say that Secretary should not be unfamiliar to those who have In the case of Iraq, I believe engagement is ˜ pointless. Saddam Hussein is a murderous Castaneda’s speech ranks among the lived through or have studied democratic thug and it makes no more sense to think of best I have ever heard. In his insightful transitions in other countries. In the past engaging his regime than it would a mafia remarks, Secretary Castan˜ eda detailed few decades, many authoritarian regimes family. his analysis of Mexican political his- have come to an end not as result of vio- In the case of Iran, I doubt that the goals tory, and outlined his vision for the fu- lence, but through a peaceful and orderly of democratization and human rights would ture of democracy in Mexico while process of democratization. Several factors be advanced by engaging the current regime drawing several parallels between came into play to make these transitions in Teheran. There is sufficient disaffection Mexican political liberalization and possible. One of the most significant among with the mullahs, impressive in its breadth them was the growing role of civil society as and depth, to commend continued isolation— the democratization of Spain after the a source of moral and political pressure, both and patience. The spontaneous demonstra- fall of Franco. Secretary Castan˜ eda’s at home and abroad. Also prominent was the tions of sympathy with the United States remarks were astute, thought-pro- influence of the media, both national and are brave and moving. We owe those who voking, and engaging. Indeed, they are international, constantly challenging and have marched in sympathy with us the sup- among the most comprehensive anal- undermining authoritarian regimes through port that comes from refusing to collaborate yses of modern Mexico to date. I think public exposure. And obviously, the most sig- with the regime in power. The people of Iran that my colleagues, especially those nificant factor was the balance of political may well throw off the tyrannical and inef- with an interest in the Western Hemi- forces within each nation and their willing- fective dictatorship that oppresses them. We sphere, would have enjoyed and greatly ness to enter into agreements that would fa- should encourage them and give them time. cilitate the transition to a democratic re- In the case of North Korea end the policy benefited from the substance of these gime. of bribing them. Such a policy invites black- remarks had they been present at the All these factors have also been at play in mail, by them or others who observe their dinner. Mexico, and they deserve a detailed exam- manipulation of us—and it certainly moves Dr. Jorge Castan˜ eda is uniquely ination in order to fully understand the them no closer to democracy or respect for qualified to speak about Mexico’s polit- country’s recent democratic transition and human rights. We must watch them closely ical situation. He is a man of enormous its prospects for consolidation. However, I and remain ready to move against any in- talent and experience, a leading intel- wish to focus my remarks here today on an- stallation that may place weapons of mass lectual, and now an important dip- other crucial issue that does not often re- destruction or long-range delivery within lomat. He has thought and written ex- ceive the attention it merits, in spite of the their reach. potentially decisive role that it can play in Mr. Chairman, I have only one rec- tensively about international rela- the consolidation of a democratic regime: ommendation for the Committee and it is tions, and particularly Mexico’s role in the influence of international affairs and for- this: to support enthusiastically, and specifi- the global community. He was a world eign policy in strengthening democracy. cally with substantially larger budgets, the renowned academic before joining the There is often a positive correlation be- National Endowment for Democracy. On a Fox Administration, and has taught at tween democracy and international engage- shoestring it has been a source of innovative, the National Autonomous University ment or conversely between creative programs for the building of demo- of Mexico and at New York University. authoritarianism and isolation. That is why cratic institutions, often working in places He is the author of twelve books, pub- undemocratic governments tend to be defen- where democracy and respect for human sive in their engagement with others. The rights is only a distant dream. It may well lished in English and Spanish, and he less democratic a country is, the more likely be the most cost-effective program in the en- has been a frequent contributor to that it will view the outside world with sus- tire arsenal of weapons in the war against noted publications such as Newsweek picion and will interpret any criticism as an terror and for a more secure world. The En- magazine, El Paı´s, and Reforma. affront to its sovereignty and to the rule of

VerDate Mar 15 2010 21:05 Jan 09, 2014 Jkt 081600 PO 00000 Frm 00024 Fmt 4624 Sfmt 0634 E:\2002SENATE\S27FE2.REC S27FE2 mmaher on DSKCGSP4G1 with SOCIALSECURITY