GUAM COMMONWEALTH HEARING BEFORE THE SUBCOMMITTEE ON OF THE COMMITTEE ON FIRST SESSION Printed for the use of the Committee on Interior and Insular Affairs COMMITTEE ON INTERIOR AND INSULAR AFFAIRS HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES MORRIS K. UDALL, Arizona, Chairman GEORGE MILLER, California DON YOUNG, Alaska, PHILIP R. SHARP, Indiana Ranking Republican Member EDWARD J. MARKEY, Massachusetts ROBERT J. LAGOMARSINO, California AUSTIN J. MURPHY, Pennsylvania RON MARLENEE, Montana NICK JOE RAHALL II, West Virginia LARRY CRAIG, Idaho BRUCE F. VENTO, Minnesota DENNY SMITH, Oregon PAT WILLIAMS, Montana JAMES V. HANSEN, Utah BEVERLY B. BYRON, Maryland BARBARA F. VUCANOVICH, Nevada RON DE LUGO, Virgin Islands BEN BLAZ, Guam SAM GEJDENSON, Connecticut JOHN J. RHODES III, Arizona PETER H. KOSTMAYER, Pennsylvania ELTON GALLEGLY, California RICHARD H. LEHMAN, California STAN PARRIS, Virginia BILL RICHARDSON, New Mexico ROBERT F. SMITH, Oregon GEORGE (BUDDY) DARDEN, Georgia JIM LIGHTFOOT, Iowa PETER J. VISCLOSKY, Indiana CRAIG THOMAS, Wyoming JOHN J. DUNCAN, Tennessee Samoa STANLEY SCOVILLE, Staff Director and Counsel LEE McELVAIN, General Counsel SUBCOMMITTEE ON INSULAR AND INTERNATIONAL AFFAIRS RON DE LUGO, Virgin Islands, Chairman MORRIS K. UDALL, Arizona ROBERT J. LAGOMARSINO, California GEORGE (BUDDY) DARDEN, Georgia BEN BLAZ, Guam ELTON GALLEGLY, California JEFFREY L. FARROW, Staff Director Daisy M. MINTER, Staff Assistant JUNE LUSBY, Staff Assistant (II) CONTENTS Page 271 Statements: al Affairs, Department of the Interior ... Senator Madeleine Bordallo for former Governor Ricardo J. Bordallo. Former Lt. Gov. Kurt Moylan....... Former Speaker Joaquin Arriola. Art San Agustin, Guam Youth Congress. Trisha Ada, Guam Youth Congress ...... Alfredo Antolin, Guam Youth Congress ........... Melissa Taitano, Guam Youth Congress ....... Clifford Guzman.................. Rivera, Ron, Organization of People for Indigenous Rights ............. Additional material submitted for the hearing record from: George Castro Eustaquio: Commentary of the Guam Commonwealth Act .......... Carl J.C. Aguon ................. Raymond C. Cruz: Setting up shop in Guam ....... Charles H. Troutman: Partial Disposal Under the Territorial Clause................. Commission on Self-Determination—"Commission Forum" ..... The Roots of Guam's Experience as an American Colony: Approaches to Understanding the Rationale of a New Political Status ...... Miles Security Agency (MSA), Inc.: Letter to Mr. de Lugo, dated December 13, 1989, from James G. Miles, president/director, MSA .......... ............................................ 427 430 435 GUAM COMMONWEALTH TUESDAY, DECEMBER 12, 1989 HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES, SUBCOMMITTEE ON INSULAR AND INTERNATIONAL AFFAIRS, COMMITTEE ON INTERIOR AND INSULAR AFFAIRS, Honolulu, HI. The subcommittee met, pursuant to call, at 9:40 a.m., in State Capitol Auditorium, Honolulu, HI, Hon. Ron de Lugo (chairman of the subcommittee) presiding. Mr. DE LUGO. Good morning, ladies and gentlemen. The Subcommittee on Insular and International Affairs hearing on H.R. 98, a bill to establish a Commonwealth of Guam, will now continue with our second day of hearings. I want to welcome all of you back that were here yesterday and anyone who is coming for the first time today, welcome. We had a splendid hearing yesterday. I want to thank all of the leaders of Guam, the people of Guam, for their testimony before the subcommittee. You helped the subcommittee tremendously. Again, I have to commend Governor Joe Ada. What a stirring and powerful presentation he made. We will begin our hearing in just one moment, but I wanted to share with you an AP bulletin that just came off the wires: President Bush signs legislation approving self-government plan for Palau. President Bush today signed legislation approving a self-government plan for the Western Pacific island of Palau. Palau, the world's last remaining trust territory, will hold a plebiscite on February 6 on the plan called the Compact of Free Association between the United States and the Islands. “I believe that it is time to change the relationship that is no longer appropriate for either Palau or the United States to one that provides a sound foundation for the future of Palau", Bush said in a statement. He urged Palau citizens to vote in the upcoming plebiscite and exercise their democratic right to set their own course for the future. The legislation Bush signed creates an anti-drug program for Palau and establishes controls for the spending of U.S. aid money. Bush said that he will interpret that provision as advisory in nature. He said the intent of the plan is in keeping with his national anti-drug strategy. Palau is the last of four parts of the trust territory of the Pacific Islands created following World War II to define the political status. The Compact of Free Association provides self-development in all areas, except defense, which is reserved for the United States. The United States also retains a 50-year right to establish a military base on Palau should it need an alternative to its current bases in the Philippines. I want to say that I know the impact that you must feel when you hear of Palau moving forward. It strengthens your case here today. It certainly does. I want to say that this subcommittee worked long and hard to bring about this legislation for Palau. It was a long struggle and we got 98 percent, I would say, of what this committee felt was abso (1) |