Extensions of Remarks E370 HON. DANA ROHRABACHER
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E370 CONGRESSIONAL RECORD Ð Extensions of Remarks March 21, 2000 were purchased at 1938 Adams Street. It was groups that abandoned the rebellion and were fire line from Pakistan, with the help of the there that St. Paul's began to flourish as both recruited by the Indian army as a Pakistan army. Pakistan denies giving ac- a religious and a social institution. counterinsurgency militia force. The Indian tive aid to the militants. The area of the Sikh village is about 42 During the Great Depression, the people of government has blamed Islamic radicals con- miles from Srinagar, Kashmir's summer cap- St. Paul's saw the needs of those around trolled by Pakistan for this heinous crime. ital, and is controlled by armed Kashmiri them and reached out a helping hand. The However, the Indian government's control of groups that abandoned separatism and were church basement was used as both a medical this specific area has caused many Sikhs in recruited by the Indian army as a facility and a place where those in need could the United States to believe that the gunmen counterinsurgency auxiliary force. go for food. Their generosity was exemplified were agents of the Indian government's Re- [From the Washington Post, Mar. 21, 2000] when the church donated money to those who search and Intelligence Wing [RAW] posing as could not afford the burial expenses for loved Kashmiri militants. There are more than NEAR CLINTON'S INDIA VISIT, VIOLENCE FLARES IN KASHMIR ones that had recently passed away. St. 700,000 Indian security forces stationed in (By Pamela Constable) Paul's shaped the lives of many people during Kashmir, which has been called the most mili- Srinagar, India, March 20ÐWhile their gov- those hard times and still stands as a pillar of tarized area of this planet. ernment and most of their countrymen are our community. A fair and impartial investigation by inter- hoping President Clinton will play down the On May 1, 1943, St. Paul's welcomed Dr. national monitors is necessary to resolve this sensitive topic of Kashmir during his visit to Lester Kendal Jackson as its pastor, who case and other acts of brutality committed in India this week, people in this depressed, made an immediate impact on his congrega- Kashmir. I have repeatedly advocated that fair wintry city at the political heart of the dis- tion. Under his leadership all outstanding elections, free of violence, that would permit puted, violence-torn region are praying for debts were paid, and a significant balance the people of Kashmir to determine their own just the opposite. was put into the treasury. He helped to orga- destiny is the best means to end this conflict. Today, in the worst single attack on civil- ians in a decade of guerrilla war, unidenti- nize many groups which would inspire the In addition, a peaceful resolution of the Kash- fied gunmen massacred 35 Sikh men in the youth of the parish, including a literary society, mir issue would have a significant impact in Kashmiri village of Chati Singhpura Mattan, Girl and Boy Scout teams, and a drama club. easing the conflict between India and Paki- wire services reported. Security officials had Dr. Jackson also fought for the rights of Afri- stan. feared that armed Pakistan-based insur- can Americans throughout the city of Gary, [From the New York Times, Mar. 21, 2000] gents, who have stepped up attacks here in recent months, might stage a dramatic at- and was later inducted into the Steel City Hall 35 MASSACRED IN SIKH TOWN IN KASHMIR of Fame for his contributions to the commu- tack during Clinton's stay in India. Srinagar, India, Tuesday, March 21 (AP)Ð Clinton condemned the attack in Kashmir. nity. Gunmen rounded up and killed 35 Sikh vil- ``On behalf of the president and all Ameri- After a fire in 1963 destroyed the building lagers in the disputed state of Kashmir, the cans let me express our outrage at the at- that they had used for over 45 years, the peo- police said today as President Clinton began tack on a village in Kashmir last night,'' ple of St. Paul's erected a new church at 2300 a visit to India. White House spokesman Joe Lockhart told Grant Street on January 16, 1966. It is here The massacre on Monday night was the reporters in New Delhi. that the church came under the direction of first major attack on the small Sikh commu- Many Kashmiris believe that only a world Reverend Everett Gray, or Pastor Gray, as he nity in Kashmir since separatist Muslims leader of Clinton's stature can put pressure started their insurgency 10 years ago. Sikhs on Indian officials to start meaningful nego- prefers to be addressed. Under Pastor's are considered a neutral minority, but In- tiations with Pakistan over the moun- Gray's guidance, St. Paul's has continued to dian officials had warned earlier of violence tainous, predominantly Muslim border re- thrive, both in terms of spiritual growth as well by Muslim militants hoping to draw atten- gion where separatist sentiment is strong, as practical improvements. tion to kashmir during Mr. Clinton's visit. guerrilla violence is rapidly rising and In- Mr. Speaker, I ask you and my other distin- Both India and Pakistan claim the Hima- dian troops patrol with an iron fist. guished colleagues to join me congratulating layan territory and have fought two wars ``If Mr. Clinton can make a difference in the parish family of St. Paul Missionary Baptist over it. places like Chechnya and Bosnia, why not in The gunmen were not immediately identi- Kashmir?'' said Shah Khan, 22, who sells Church, under the guidance of Pastor Gray, fied and no group claimed responsibility for shirts and pants in the teeming alleys of Lal as they celebrate their 84th anniversary. All the attack, the police said. Chowk bazaar. ``We are happy because at current and former parishioners can be proud Mr. Clinton arrived in New Delhi, 400 miles least his visit will bring some attention to to say that they belong to the second oldest to the south, on Monday evening after a visit our problems, but we wish he would come to Baptist church in Gary, Indiana. They have to Bangladesh. He has said that reducing Kashmir and see for himself. Then we would weathered many storms in order to make tensions between India and Pakistan is one all tell him one thing: we want freedom.'' countless significant contributions to their com- of his objective of the trip. But this message is highly unlikely to Many Kashmiris were hoping that the reach Clinton's ears or the Indian capital munity throughout the past 84 years. president's visit would lead to a break- this week. On Sunday, about 50 Kashmiri f through in the long deadlock on the region's independence activists were arrested and future. NEW MASSACRE OF SIKHS IN jailed as they tried to board buses that Mr. Clinton's spokesman, Joe Lockhart, would take them to New Delhi for a protest INDIA expressed outrage over the killings, saying rally near Parliament, where Clinton is in a statement that ``out most profound scheduled to speak Wednesday. HON. DANA ROHRABACHER sympathies go out to the victims of this bru- In a brief interview in jail today, the tal massacre.'' group's leader Shabir Shah, 44, said they had OF CALIFORNIA The attackers entered the village of Chati been tear-gassed and dragged into police IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES Singhpura Mattan after dark and forced the vans as they prepared to leave. He said the Tuesday, March 21, 2000 residents from their homes, police officials group, which seeks Kashmiri independence said. from India, had planned to stage a peaceful Mr. ROHRABACHER. Mr. Speaker, today, The assailants separated the men from the rally and a symbolic hunger strike. as President Clinton began a visit to India, a women, announcing that they were con- ``President Clinton says he wants to help new act of political violence occurred in Kash- ducting a ``crackdown.'' Indian security ease tensions in the region, and he will be mir, as 35 Sikh villagers were rounded up and forces operate similarly when searching a talking with India and Pakistan, but we killed by gunmen. The New York Times re- neighborhood for militants that they suspect wanted to tell him that it is futile until we ports in the enclosed article that this was the may be hiding there. The gunmen then Kashmiris are taken into account,'' Shah opened fire on the men, killing 35 of them. said. first major attack on the small Sikh community One man was critically wounded. Kashmir, which is divided between India in Kashmir since an insurgency by Kashmiri Sikhs have lived mostly undisturbed in the and Pakistan, has been the major source of Muslims against Indian rule began 10 years Kashmir Valley, the only area in predomi- friction between the two neighbors and nu- ago. Sikhs had previously lived peacefully in nantly Hindu India with a Muslim majority. clear powers for a generation. Since the the only predominantly Muslim area of India. It Many run the trucking companies that sup- early 1990s, the Indian-occupied part has should be noted that in India, government se- ply the valley. been the site of a violent conflict between curity forces have been implicated by inter- In the last six months, attacks by the mili- anti-India insurgent groups and Indian secu- tants have focused on army bases and patrols national human rights organizations in the rity forces, which has cost tens of thousands rather than random terrorism, and have of lives.