Rep. Seymour Halpern, whose barring from Saudi Arabia resulted in a strong anti-bias clause in the House foreign aid bill, as contrasted with the weaker Senate version, today said on the House floor in a debate on the pending aid bill that if Congress weakens its anti-bias stand, the Arabs will interpret this as weakness and increase their bigotry, boycott and blockade tactics.
Rep. Halpern said that the State Department requested aid funds from Congress and should heed the sense of Congress by with holding assistance from nations that discriminate. He detailed Arab discrimination affecting himself and Arab tactics generally that led to the stronger wording for which he commended the House Foreign Affairs Committee.
He said that without regard to Administration or party, Congress should insist on the State Department’s implementation of foreign aid programs in consonance with the expressed sense of Congress.
Rep. William F. Ryan, New York Democrat, told the House that the State Department should act on the anti-bias and freedom of the seas provisions. Rep. Ryan said that the House should insist upon the strong language in the present House bill in preference to “the watered-down provision in the Senate version”.
Rep. Ryan called on the State Department to respect and support the rights of U. S. citizens abroad, regardless of religion. He cited German, Dutch and British resistance to the Arab League boycott and said the United States could not afford to do less in resisting Arab threats. He said “We must be resolute on this issue or fail to live up to our ideals.”
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