Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentle lady for yielding, and I rise in support of this resolution, of which I am a cosponsor, and to note that for 60 years, Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty has been basically a free press for societies suffering authoritarian rule, and that is the intent.
The RFE/RL has said that this model of surrogate broadcasting irritates authoritarian regimes, inspires democrats and creates greater space for civil society, and that is the goal. Vaclav Havel and others have testified to the role that the radios played in bringing down the Iron Curtain.
As noted in the resolution, Warsaw Pact intelligence went to great lengths to silence these broadcasts. We have heard some of the examples of the correspondents who were murdered and the headquarters that were bombed.
RFE/RL has expanded its work to countries that are critical to today's national security challenges. Shortly after September 11, the House passed legislation establishing Radio Free Afghanistan, RFE's brand in that country. Actually, I authored that legislation. And today, with 50 percent market share, it is the most popular radio station in the country, offering an alternative to the Taliban's dark leaflets and the type of radio that people hear in that part of Central Asia and South Asia from the Taliban.
The Iranian regime has targeted RFE/RL broadcasts. They have spent a lot of money to jam those broadcasts. RFE/RL has still managed to provide valuable coverage of the recent uprising there, allowing Iranian democrats to know that they are not alone in this world.
These broadcasts are all the more important now that the administration has muffled itself when it comes to the Iranian democratic movement. As it trims back on programs supporting democracy-seeking Iranians, one expert notes that the administration views the green revolution as a wrench in the works of nuclear negotiations with the Iranian regime.
These broadcasts could be greatly complimented by the White House bully pulpit. They aren't.
A divide between the broadcasters and the diplomats is not new, frankly. In the 1960s, Washington moved to improve relations with Ceausescu's Romania, despite its abysmal human rights record, but RFE kept a spotlight on Bucharest, irritating some of the diplomats. Today, it keeps a spotlight on Tehran's transgressions--the jailing, the abuse, the murder of those who abuse the regime.
Importantly, this resolution commends the employees and reporters of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty for their services and acknowledges their sacrifices. Just as the communist police took steps to prevent the truth from penetrating their house of lies, so has the Iranian regime.
The Iranian Government harasses the journalists for RFE/RL's Persian service, its headquarters in Prague, and their families back in Iran. Those inside Iran who might provide the station with information have been threatened. This fall, two young journalists with the service were killed and a third went into a coma when their car was struck by a truck outside of Prague.
This is the information war happening today. Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty and its sister surrogates are keeping us in the game. As technology evolves, they can and need to do better, while staying true to their support for freedom and respect for human rights and for the rule of law.
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