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The House in Committee of the Whole House on the State of the Union had under consideration the bill. (H.R. 4811) making appropriations for foreign operations, export financing, and related programs for the fiscal year ending September 30, 2001, and for other purposes.

• Ms. KILPATRICK. Mr. Chairman, I rise in opposition to H.R. 4811, the FY 2001 Foreign Operations Appropriations bill. I am deeply dismayed at the lack of funding for such critical, life-saving programs as debt relief, HIV/AIDS prevention and treatment, and international family planning.

• At a time when many developing countries are consuming 30 to 40% of their annual budgets on debt repayment, they are simultaneously depleting monies that would be better spent on health care, education, and economic development. The Foreign Operations Appropriations bill for FY 2000 established clear and specific crtieria which developing nations must meet in order to qualify for debt relief. These conditions include performing satisfactorily under an economic reform program, promoting civil society participation, implementing anti-corruption measures and transparent policy making, adopting strategies for poverty reduction, and strengthening private sector growth, trade, and investment. New governments in nations such as Bolivia and Mozambique are succeeding in their concentrated efforts to democratize and stablize their respective countries, and have met the qualifying standards for debt relief. It is unjust to continue to punish the poorest civilians for debts incurred and for promises unfulfilled by former dictators.

• Nearly four decades of economic development, particularly on the continent of Africa, are currently unraveling before our eyes. The proposed funding level in H.R. 4811 of $202 million--$42 million less than the President's request--is simply not sufficient to effectively combat the HIV/AIDS pandemic at its current growth rate. The global AIDS crisis is a threat of unprecedented magnitude, and it has been unsparing in its attack on the world's children. UNAID reports that more than 3.8 million children under 15 have already perished as a result of AIDS. An additional 1700 children per day are newly infected with HIV and join the 1.3 million who are currently living with the disease. The U.S. Census estimates that the life expectancy in many Sub-Saharan African countries will fall to age 30 within the next 10 years.

• This indiscriminate plague gravely affects even children fortunate enough not to have contracted the disease themselves, by rendering them orphans--13.2 million to date. The United States Agency for International Development (USAID) has estimated that by the year 2010, there will be 42 million AIDS-related orphans, many of whom will be susceptible to abuse or recruitment into gangs or militia.

• In addition to the horrific and exponential increase in suffering and loss of human life, HIV/AIDS inevitably will have an enormous and devastating impact on future economic development, political stability, trade and commerce, and international security. Since effective medical research and counseling intervention have been proven to drastically reduce the mother-to-child transmission rate of HIV around the globe, from the United States to Thailand, there is absolutely no excuse not to help fund these vital programs.

• As world experts meet this week in Durban, South Africa for the 13th International HIV/AIDS Conference, we must do our part in this country and in this bill to alleviate the unimaginable suffering that HIV/AIDS is causing in the developing world.

• A crucial element of reducing the prevalence of HIV/AIDS is adequate access to family planning resources and information. Pregnancy, childbirth, and unsafe abortions claim the lives of 600,000 women annually, primarily due to early and frequent childbearing and poor access to health care and contraception. Family planning helps prevent high-risk and unwanted pregnancies and reduces the spread of sexually transmitted diseases and life-threatening infections such as HIV/AIDS. The Administration's request for a $169 million increase to USAID population assistance would likely result in 1.5 million fewer unintended births; 2.2 million fewer abortions;

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  15,000 fewer maternal deaths; and 92,000 fewer infant deaths.

• I oppose this bill because it does not provide assistance to the women and families that most need our help. H.R. 4811 hinders the dissemination of accurate and complete reproductive information for women in developing countries by limiting which family planning options foreign NGOs may discuss with their clients. Under this bill, even organizations that use their own funds to engage in pro-choice lobbying efforts to provide abortions, or to even discuss this reproductive option will not be eligible for U.S. funding. I cannot morally support a measure such as this, that would not withstand constitutional scrutiny within our own country.

• With the understanding that ``an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure'', I would encourage my colleagues to seriously consider the moral, social, and economic ramifications of not providing aid when we, as a nation, are clearly in a position to do so.

• For these reasons, I urge my colleagues to oppose the Foreign Operations bill. We can and must do better.

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