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DATE=4/24/2000
TYPE=CORRESPONDENT REPORT
TITLE=CONGRESSMAN-IRAQ (L-ONLY)
NUMBER=2-261658
BYLINE=DAVID SWAN
DATELINE=CAPITOL HILL
CONTENT=
VOICED AT: 
INTRO: A U-S Congressman who just visited Iraq is 
urging the United Nations to take what he calls a 
smarter approach to sanctions, to ease the suffering 
of ordinary Iraqis.  Those measures have now been in 
place for nine years, ever since the Gulf War. V-O-A's 
David Swan reports.
TEXT: Democrat Tony Hall, who has a longstanding 
interest in hunger and humanitarian issues, spent four 
days in central and southern Iraq.  Mr. Hall says the 
government did try to control what he saw -- for 
instance by telling him a hospital was overcrowded 
when in fact it had empty beds.  But despite these 
attempts at manipulation, the congressman is convinced 
the humanitarian picture is bleak.
            /// HALL ACT ///
      There's lots of malnourished children.  I've 
      seen malnourished children in many lands and I 
      know what I'm looking at.  And forgetting the 
      propaganda, you can't help but notice that many 
      of the children between the ages of one and six 
      are malnourished.
            /// END ACT ///
Mr. Hall says the country is also plagued by diseases 
such as polio, cholera and childhood diarrhea.  He 
does not favor lifting the international sanctions on 
Iraq as long as Baghdad has weapons of mass 
destruction.  However, Mr. Hall says the U-N Sanctions 
Committee and especially its American members should 
use better judgment and let relief get into the 
country faster.
            /// HALL ACT ///
      Medicines and foods that shouldn't be held up 
      are held up.  They're held up for months.  And 
      this is absolutely ridiculous.  It's not only 
      ridiculous, it's hurting the innocent people.  
      That's what sanctions are not supposed to be 
      about but the fact is they're hitting the 
      innocent people very hard.
            /// END ACT ///
Other foreign officials have voiced similar concern 
about the U-N program that lets Iraq sell some oil in 
exchange for food and medicine.  The Security Council 
has agreed to review the way sanctions are 
implemented.
A group of 70 U-S lawmakers recently asked President 
Clinton to end the sanctions.  But neither the 
administration nor the United Nations is ready to go 
that far. (Signed)
NEB/DS/JO 
24-Apr-2000 13:16 PM EDT (24-Apr-2000 1716 UTC)
NNNN
Source: Voice of America
.