Chris Smith GOP.gov Press Releases

Hearing Set for Monday, May 20 @ 3 p.m.Actor Sean Penn to Testify before House Panel on American Trapped in Bolivia

Fri, 17 May 2013 04:00:00 GMT

The long, ongoing struggle of Jacob Ostreicher, an American businessman detained for nearly two years in Bolivia without formal charges, will be the focus of a congressional hearing Monday held by Congressman Chris Smith (NJ-04), chairman of the House panel that oversees international human rights.

    Ostreicher, an American businessman imprisoned without formal charges for over 18 months in Bolivia, was finally let out of prison on bail on December 18, 2012, but cannot leave the country.

    American actor and activist Sean Penn, who has been active in seeking Ostreicher’s release, will be testifying. Penn has met with Ostreicher in Bolivia and attended court proceedings.

    Smith has twice traveled to Bolivia to attempt to help Ostriecher, of Brooklyn, N.Y., and held two congressional hearings that addressed the case. No evidence of any wrongdoing was ever presented in the case. Jacob has been left weak and frail from his ordeal, developing symptoms of Parkinson disease during his imprisonment. He has lost the entirety of the rice farming business he operated. More than a dozen government officials have been arrested on allegations of extortion related to the case, but the government is giving no indication as to when – if ever – they plan to give Ostreicher his freedom.

Who:               Congressman Chris Smith, Chairman of the House’s human rights subcommittee, other members of the subcommittee. Attending the hearing will be the wife, daughter and other family members of Jacob Ostreicher from New York and New Jersey. Testifying will be:

Sean Penn, Founder and Chief Executive Officer, J/P Haitian Relief Organization

What: Press conference on Jacob Ostreicher’s unjust imprisonment in Bolivia.

When: Monday, May 20 @ 3 p.m.

Where: Rayburn House Office Building, Room 2172 (first floor)

House Panel Focuses on Slain Irish Human Rights Attorney’s Case

Wed, 15 May 2013 04:00:00 GMT

The British government’s refusal to conduct an inquiry into its collusion with paramilitaries responsible for murdering human rights lawyer Patrick Finucane was the topic of a hearing held Wednesday by Congressman Chris Smith (NJ-04), Chairman of the House congressional panel that oversees human rights.

     The British government committed to hold the inquiry in 2001, as part of the peace process following on the Good Friday Agreement. It has ever since evaded following through on its commitment, and in 2011 announced that it would not do so, though at that time it admitted collusion and apologized for it. Human rights groups and the Finucane family continue to press for an inquiry so that the individuals responsible for the murder – which an advisor to Prime Minister Cameron admitted was “the big one” in Northern Ireland - can be held accountable.

    “Our purpose today is to assess progress on the unfulfilled British commitment – broken commitment, unless the British government reverses course – in the Finucane collusion case, and how this affects the peace process in Northern Ireland,” said Smith, Co-Chairman of the Ad Hoc Committee on Irish Affairs and Chairman of the House human rights subcommittee. "In connection with the Good Friday peace agreement, the British government promised to conduct public inquiries into the Finucane and three other cases where government collusion in a paramilitary murder was suspected. Subsequently the British government backtracked in regard to the Finucane case – the 1989 murder of human rights lawyer Patrick Finucane.” Click here to read Chairman Smith's opening statement.

    Witnesses Michael Finucane, son of the slain human rights attorney, and U.S. Brig. Gen. James P. Cullen (RET), a human rights attorney, addressed members of the House panel about the known details of the assassination, the need for justice.

    “From the time Pat Finucane was murdered in 1989, suspicions abounded that the State might have had a hand in his murder,” testified Michael Finucane. “These concerns began initially as a result of threats made against Pat by RUC detectives in police holding centres during the 1980s. The threats were relayed by clients of Pat’s law practice who would say, with increasing regularity that the men conducting the interviews were denigrating and threatening him… . In the twenty four years since the murder, my family and I have campaigned relentlessly for a public judicial inquiry into the circumstances. In the earliest years, we were met with denial and refusal by the British Government and were told that accusations of collusion between the State and Loyalist paramilitaries in the murder were without foundation.

    “The undertaking to establish an inquiry in the case of Pat Finucane was one given by the British Government during negotiations between the Northern Ireland political parties and the British / Irish Governments at Weston Park in 2001,” he said.

    Brig. Gen. Cullen, a lawyer practicing in New York, is a retired brigadier general in the U.S. Army Judge Advocate General’s Corps. He said the police Special Branch and the infamous military intelligence unit called the Force Research Unit (“FRU”) point to government collision in the murder.

    “The prior knowledge of the Special Branch and the FRU about the murder, together with coordination of Special Branch and FRU activities at the very top of their command chains, make clear the extent of the governmental collusion in Pat Finucane’s murder,” Cullen said. “The refusal by the British government to convene a credible independent inquiry into Pat Finucane’s murder ensures there will be no accountability for those who orchestrated and sanctioned the murder of Pat Finucane. Faceless securocrats and their political protectors have successfully neutered the rule of law in Northern Ireland and have sadly intimidated the current political leadership of the U.K.”

    The hearing entitled “Recent Developments in the Investigation of the Murder of Human Rights Attorney Patrick Finucane,” was held before the Subcommittee on Africa, Global Health, Global Human Rights, and International Organizations chaired by Smith.

    "The deliberate decision not to proceed with a public inquiry is a glaring, public breach of faith. It is the source of enormous frustration to Patrick Finucane’s family and friends. It resonates throughout Northern Ireland, calling into question the British government’s commitment to peace and reconciliation,” Smith said. "This is particularly sad because the British government has taken so many other positive, truly honorable steps, many of which were painful for large sectors of British public and official opinion – such as the Bloody Sunday inquiry, released in 2010. To call all that into question by reneging on the promised Finucane inquiry is a tragedy.”

    “On behalf of my family, I ask for the support of this Committee, the support of the House and Congress to persuade the British Government to honour its long standing promise to establish a public judicial inquiry into the murder of Pat Finucane,” Michael Finucane said.

    To read the testimony or watch the hearing, click here.

Case of Slain Irish Human Rights Attorney to Be Topic of Congressional Hearing

Tue, 14 May 2013 04:00:00 GMT

The British government’s refusal to conduct an inquiry into its collusion with paramilitaries responsible for murdering human rights lawyer Patrick Finucane will be the the topic of a hearing held Wednesday by Congressman Chris Smith (NJ-04), Chairman of the House congressional panel that oversees human rights.

    The British government committed to hold the inquiry in 2001, as part of the peace process following on the Good Friday Agreement. It has ever since evaded following through on its commitment, and in 2011 announced that it would not do so, though at that time it admitted collusion and apologized for it. Human rights groups and the Finucane family continue to press for an inquiry so that the individuals responsible for the murder – which an advisor to Prime Minister Cameron admitted was “the big one” in Northern Ireland - can be held accountable.

    The title of the hearing is “Recent Developments in the Investigation of the Murder of Human Rights Attorney Patrick Finucane,” which will be held before the Subcommittee on Africa, Global Health, Global Human Rights, and International Organizations chaired by Smith.

    Who:   Chairman Smith, Co-Chairman of the Ad Hoc Committee on Irish Affairs and Chairman of the House human rights subcommittee; and other members of the subcommittee, and witnesses:

Michael Finucane, son of slain human rights attorney Patrick Finucane
Brig. Gen. James P. Cullen (RET), USA, human rights attorney

When:             Wednesday, May 15 at 10 a.m.

Where:            Rayburn House Office Building, Room 2172

Live Webcast:         The hearing will be broadcast live at this site:

http://foreignaffairs.house.gov/hearing/subcommittee-hearing-recent-developments-investigation-murder-human-rights-attorney-Patrick

Rep. Smith Comments on Verdict in Dr. Gosnell Murder Trial

Mon, 13 May 2013 04:00:00 GMT

In the wake of the jury verdict today in the murder trial of Dr. Kermit Gosnell, Congressman Chris Smith (NJ-04), Co-Chairman of the House Bipartisan Congressional Pro-Life Caucus, released the following statement:

   “With today’s murder convictions of Dr. Gosnell, we’ve got to encourage Americans to ask—how different really is Gosnell’s House of Horrors from abortions that occur in clinics throughout the country? Not much, not much at all,” said Smith.

   “There are Kermit Gosnells all over America—predators, child abusers, exploiters of women.

   “Some abortionists may have cleaner sheets than Gosnell, and better sterilized equipment and better trained accomplices, but what they do—what Gosnell did—kill babies and hurt women—is the same.

   “Will Americans ever be told the horrifying details as to how—and how often—abortionists dismember, decapitate, and chemically poison innocent babies?

   “Where is the outrage, over the 55 million child victims who have been brutally killed by abortion over the last 40 years, and the millions of women have been hurt physically, emotionally, psychologically?

   “And why the appalling lack of compassion—why the empathy deficit for the victims, women and children by so many, including and especially President Obama. Women and Children Deserve better.

   “And of course Gosnell’s trial isn’t the first to rip the benign façade of legitimacy from the abortion industry.

   “As far back as 1975, Dr. Kenneth Edelin was convicted by a jury in Boston of murdering a little African-American baby boy. That conviction was subsequently overturned by the Massachusetts Supreme Court.

   “How did Planned Parenthood react to the reversal? With euphoric celebration. Years later Edelin became the Chairman of the Board of Planned Parenthood Federation of America—and was given the Margaret Sanger Award in 2008 (in 2009, Planned Parenthood gave the Sanger award to Hillary Clinton). And like Gosnell, not a single tear for the boy murdered in Boston City Hospital.”

'Left-Behind' Parents, State Dept. to Testify about Int’l Child Abduction

Wed, 08 May 2013 04:00:00 GMT

Efforts to bring home American children abducted to overseas destinations and wrongfully held, will be the topic of a hearing held Thursday by Congressman Chris Smith (NJ-04), Chairman of the House congressional panel that oversees human rights.

    Testifying before the subcommittee will be Iraqi War veteran Marine Sgt. Mike Elias and other “left behind” parents of American children abducted to India, Japan, Egypt and Brazil (just a few of the thousands of U.S. kids held wrongfully overseas).

    The title of the hearing is “Resolving International Parental Child Abductions to Non-Hague Convention Countries,” which will be held before the Subcommittee on Africa, Global Health, Global Human Rights, and International Organizations chaired by Smith.

Who:   Chairman Smith, and other members of the subcommittee, and witnesses:

The Honorable Susan Jacobs, Special Advisor for Children's Issues, Bureau of Consular Affairs, U.S. Department of State
Patricia Apy, attorney specializing in international abduction cases, Paras, Apy & Reiss, P.C.
Bindu Philips, mother of children abducted to India
Colin Bower, father of children abducted to Egypt
Michael Elias, father of children abducted to Japan
David Goldman, father of child abducted to Brazil, brought back to U.S. after 5 years

When: Thursday, May 9 at 10 a.m.

Where: Rayburn House Office Building, Room 2172

Dept. of Interior funding will assist national parks, wildlife refuges and historic places in N.J.

Tue, 07 May 2013 04:00:00 GMT

“The U.S. Department of Interior’s (DOI) release of nearly $475 million today will help assist in the recovery of national parks, wildlife refuges and historic places in Monmouth and Ocean Counties, and across the state,” said Rep. Chris Smith (NJ-04) whose congressional district includes hard-hit coastal areas in Monmouth and Ocean Counties along the Jersey Shore.

    “This specific funding through the Department of Interior will not only enable the restoration of public areas, facilities and roads, but it will also help reenergize local economies and reopen areas damaged by Sandy to visitors and recreational activities,” Smith said.

    Smith highlighted the following New Jersey projects listed in the Department of Interior’s announcement:

the Gateway National Recreation Area, which spans New York and New Jersey will receive just over $150 million for repair projects in both states.   The National Park Service will contribute to the rebuilding of transportation infrastructure and facilities on Sandy Hook, which reopened earlier this month;
The Edwin B. Forsythe National Wildlife Refuge in Ocean County will receive more than $20 million for restoration projects such as road and trail repairs and electrical improvements;
$16 million of the $40 million total in Historic Preservation funding will go to eligible projects in New Jersey on the National Registry of Historic Places; and
Statue of Liberty National Monument, will receive about $60 million for repair of damages it sustained in Superstorm Sandy.

    In addition to the parks, historic preserves and refuges, Smith also highlighted funding targeted specifically for the relocation and rebuilding of DOI’s Ohmsett facility, located on the installation’s land leading to Sandy Hook Bay and operated by Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement (BSEE).

    “The DOI has recognized the critical nature of the environmental and cleanup research conducted at the Ohmsett facility and specifically its impact on national preparedness,” Smith said. “The facility has been key in properly training responders for major oil spills including responders from the Coast Guard’s National Strike Force,” he said.

    “The funding will be used to relocate and rebuild the damaged facilities further inland, to continue operations while mitigating the possibility of damaged caused by future storms,” Smith said.

    Smith who has toured the facility with Earle’s Commanding Officer Captain “Fuzz” Harrison said, “The men and women at the Ohmsett facility took great pains to prepare for the storm in the days before Sandy by securing equipment and removing approximately 30,000-35,000 gallons of oil. They then worked around the clock to recover after the damages were sustained—despite a lack of power and delays caused by the Nor’easter.

    “This funding is another step toward a full recovery for our state,” said Smith. “New Jersey is resilient and with a little help, we are rebuilding stronger.”

    The funding announced by DOI is about 60 percent of the total funds that the agency received under the nearly $60 billion in federal funding provided earlier this year through the Disaster Relief Appropriations Act of 2013 (PL 113-2).

Marking Lyme Disease Awareness Month

Tue, 30 Apr 2013 04:00:00 GMT

Gearing up to renew the fight against Lyme disease, including prevention, research, diagnostics and treatments, Rep. Chris Smith (NJ-04) joined the President of the Lyme Disease Association, a researcher from the University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey, and county and health officials to kick-off Lyme Disease Awareness Month.

    Smith, who founded and co-chaired the Lyme Disease Caucus in Congress, has introduced legislation to establish a federal Tick-Borne Diseases Advisory Committee. The bill will promote development of new and improved diagnostic tests, boost surveillance and reporting, push clinical outcomes research and expand efforts to prevent this dreaded disease.

    “People suffering the devastating and debilitating consequences of Lyme and other vector-borne diseases deserve no less,” said Smith, whose home state of New Jersey is one of the most heavily impacted states and who has worked on Lyme Disease since the early 1990s. “Less than 10 percent of cases are believed to be reported, according to the CDC. As Chairman of the Lyme Disease Caucus in the House of Representatives, I’ve introduced comprehensive legislation– H.R. 611 the Lyme and Tick-Borne Diseases Prevention, Education, and Research Act of 2013. The bill would authorize $20 million a year for five years on new research and establish an Advisory Committee to bring real input and scrutiny to this vexing and misunderstood disease.”

    Under the legislation, the Advisory Committee would be tasked with enhancing communication among federal agencies, medical professionals, and patients/patient advocates and to ensure that a broad spectrum of scientific viewpoints is represented in public health policy decisions. The bill also requires that the information disseminated to the public and physicians is balanced. There has been great concern over the last several years that meritorious analyses and opinions regarding “chronic” Lyme have been withheld from doctors, patients and insurers.

    “While entering Lyme Disease Awareness Month in May, we need to remember that NJ ranks 3^rd nationwide in case numbers and that the ticks which transmit Lyme disease become more active when temperatures are above 35°,” said Pat Smith, president of the national non-profit Lyme Disease Association. “Children 5-14 are at the highest risk of acquiring the disease, so it’s imperative that parents educate their children about tick avoidance and tick checks, since if not diagnosed and treated early, Lyme can lead to disseminated infection, affecting every system in the body. Early symptoms may include a flu-like illness and rash, but mental confusion, memory and concentration problems, joint & muscle problems, heart palpitations, and gastrointestinal problems may occur over time.”

    James Occi, MA, MS, a Research Teaching Specialist at the University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey with 20 years of experience in microbiology and medical entomology, has particular expertise in tick-borne diseases.

    “Prevention is the best management of this disease,” Occi said.

    Also participating were Mike Meddis, Monmouth County Health Officer, Sandy Van Sant, Wall Twp Health Officer from the Monmouth Regional Health Commission, and Wall Committeeman George Newberry.

    In 2011, 96 percent of Lyme disease cases were reported from 13 states, including New Jersey.

    The Lyme Disease Caucus is dedicated to educating Members of Congress and staff about Lyme and other tick-borne diseases, as well as advancing initiatives that are designed to help the estimated 275,000 Americans who develop Lyme disease each year and all of those living with the disease.

    The other heavily impacted states include Virginia and New York, and Co-chair Rep. Frank Wolf (VA-10) and Rep. Chris Gibson (NY-19) have agreed to become original cosponsors of the legislation to continue their advocacy in support of greater federal efforts to treat and care for individuals suffering from Lyme in their states and districts.

    Lyme is the most prevalent vector-borne disease in the U.S. today. If not diagnosed and treated early, Lyme disease can lead to disseminated infection and can affect every system in the body, including the central nervous system. Later symptoms of Lyme disease include arthritis of weight-bearing joints; neurological problems, such as facial paralysis, encephalopathy, memory problems, weakness of the extremities; and heart symptoms, such as heart block and inflammation of the heart muscle. Lyme has been reported in every U.S. state and is becoming more prevalent.

USCIRF Report Shows Severe Threats to Int’l Religious Freedom

Tue, 30 Apr 2013 04:00:00 GMT

Congressman Chris Smith (NJ-04) noted with concern the findings of the 2013 Annual Report by the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF), which is required by Congress to evaluate religious freedom conditions and offer recommendations on protection of religious freedom in countries where abuses are severe.

    “This year’s report shows that, at the very least, the United States must do more to ensure that countries receiving hundreds of millions of dollars in U.S. assistance are not simultaneously committing gross violations of their citizens’ right to religious freedom,” said Rep. Smith, referring to several of the countries covered by the report, including Egypt, Pakistan, and Iraq. Rep. Smith has chaired multiple hearings on the abductions and forced conversions of Coptic women and girls and strongly supported Congressional efforts to require improvement in Egypt’s religious freedom before disbursement of U.S. assistance to Egypt. “Unfortunately, the Administration waived the reasonable requirement on Egyptian assistance and also failed to designate Egypt as a Country of Particular Concern (CPC).”

    “The Obama Administration must make better use of the tools given to them by Congress to advance and protect religious freedom, including the sanctions required by the 1998 International Religious Freedom Act,” Smith said. He also said that because so many countries that are currently designated as CPCs are not sanctioned or did not receive any new sanctions when they were so designated, these countries have no incentive to improve—the Administration’s unwillingness to act removes the “teeth” from the law created by Congress.

    “In China, religious freedom regressed markedly in 2012 for Tibetan Buddhists and Uighur Muslims; Catholic clergy were thrown into detention or disappeared, Falun Gong adherents faced torture, and attorneys who bravely tried to defend religious rights were harassed, intimidated, disbarred, or disappeared themselves—yet the Administration refuses to apply real sanctions against the Government of China and continues business as usual,” Smith noted from the report.

    The USCIRF 2013 Annual Report details abuse in 23 countries and recommends that the Secretary of State designate the following countries as CPCs: Burma, China, Egypt, Eritrea, Iran, Iraq, Nigeria, North Korea, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, Sudan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan Uzbekistan, and Vietnam. “As a nation, we must not turn a blind eye or lend unconditional support to governments that systematically, consistently, and egregiously violate the religious freedom of their citizens or create a climate of impunity for others to do so,” said Smith.

    Smith is Chairman of the Subcommittee on Africa, Global Health, Human Rights and International Organizations in the Foreign Affairs Committee, as well as Chairman of the Commission on Security and Cooperation in Europe (Helsinki Commission) and a member of the Congressional-Executive Commission on China. He is also a member of the Executive Committee of Tom Lantos Human Rights Commission.

    USCIRF is a non-partisan federal agency whose Commissioners are appointed by the President and the leadership of the Congress to ensure that religious freedom plays a central role in U.S. foreign policy. Smith chaired the committee hearings that prepared the passage of the 1998 International Religious Freedom Act (IRFA).

Smith to Be Honored as ‘Congressional Autism Hero’ by Top Autism Group

Thu, 25 Apr 2013 04:00:00 GMT

One of the leading autism groups in the world will honor Congressman Chris Smith (NJ-04)—the author of key enacted laws to combat autism and co-Chairman of the Congressional Coalition on Autism Research and Education (C.A.R.E.)—at a event tonight sponsored by Autism Speaks in the nation’s capital.

    “The toll of autism in terms of its impact on the life of a child and a family is tremendous,” said Smith, author of the Combating Autism Reauthorization Act, Public Law 112-32, signed into law in September 2011. “We must seek ways for early diagnosis, effective treatment and even hope for a cure someday. There is so much more work to do, but I am especially honored to receive this recognition during National Autism Month.”

    Smith’s landmark legislation enacted in 2000—the Autism Statistics, Surveillance, Research and Epidemiology Act (Title I, P.L. 106-310) created the first comprehensive federal program to combat autism. In 2011, another piece of legislation he authored, The Combating Autism Reauthorization Act (CARA),” now Public Law 112-32, was enacted and will provide $693 million to continue federal programs through 2014.

    The event will be hosted by the Embassy of Sweden at its House of Sweden complex, and is sponsored by the Autism Speaks National Capital Area organization and its Autism Speaks to Young Professionals (AS2YP) Committee. AS2YP will recognize Smith as a “Congressional Autism Hero” for his work on fighting the disability.

    The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) in 2012 released alarming data showing that one in every 88 American children and one in every 49 New Jersey children has a form of autism, affecting five times more boys than girls. Earlier this year a new CDC survey suggested an even higher national rate of one in 50 autism prevalence rate, heightening the need for a national strategy to address the epidemic.

    Also staggering are the estimated financial costs of the disability— $126 billion per year in the U.S.–-a number that has more than tripled since 2006. In the U.S., the cost of providing care for each person with autism affected by intellectual disability through his or her lifespan is $2.3 million.

    “The federal government must work to explore and identify the factors that cause autism and seek out the best ways to diagnose autistic children as early as possible. The earlier interventional care can start, the better for the quality of life for a child,” said Smith, who also authored the provision in Title I of the Children’s Health Act (PL 106-310) which created the Centers of Excellence in Autism and Pervasive Developmental Disabilities at the CDC. “Families who live with autism have pinned their hopes on research and new treatments.”

    Smith’s law, CARA, signed on September 30, 2011, authorized for each of the next three fiscal years: $22 million for the Developmental Disabilities Surveillance and Research Program; $48 million for Autism Education, Early Detection, and Intervention, and $161 million for hundreds of research grants at the National Institutes of Health (NIH), and for the Interagency Autism Coordinating Committee.

Statement of Ad Hoc Committee on Irish Affairs and Friends of Ireland In Response to Judge’s Order in Finucane Case

Thu, 25 Apr 2013 04:00:00 GMT

Yesterday Judge Ben Stephens ordered the British Government to disclose to the court documents related to the government’s decision to deny a promised public judicial inquiry into government collusion in the 1989 murder in Northern Ireland of human rights attorney Patrick Finucane. In response to the order, the Congressional Ad Hoc Committee on Irish Affairs and the Congressional Friends of Ireland release the following statement:

    “Judge Stephens’ order yesterday demonstrates that the British government is continuing to withhold crucial information on its decision not to establish a public judicial inquiry into the murder of Patrick Finucane. We hope that after the judge reviews the documents, he compels the government to release them to the family of Pat Finucane, which continues to press for the fulfillment of the promise made in the 2001 Weston Park Agreement. This commitment, which the British government freely undertook, was to conduct a public inquiry regarding collusion in the Finucane murder if so recommended by former Canadian Supreme Court Justice Peter Cory. Justice Cory formally recommended such an inquiry in 2004. Since that time the British government has delayed. It has changed its law on public inquiries, so as to give it political control over what in 2001 was a judicial process. Most recently the British government has admitted there was collusion, apologized for it… and announced that it will not conduct the promised inquiry. In effect, its current position is that its officials committed a serious crime, but it will not allow the crime to be investigated. This is untenable and unworthy of a democratic government.

    “It’s particularly notable that the judge cites correspondence in which an intelligence advisor wrote to Prime Minister Cameron that, ‘… even by Northern Ireland standards the facts are grisly. Moreover, in terms of allegations of British state ‘collusion’ with loyalist paramilitaries, this is the big one… Some of the evidence available only internally could be read to suggest that within Government at a high level this systemic problem with loyalist agents was known, but nothing was done about it.’ The following day the same advisor wrote to the Prime Minister, ‘this was an awful case and as bad as it gets.’

    “All this underscores the need for justice and accountability in this case. Rather than compound its crime against the Finucane family and undermine the peace process by endless delays and legislative and legal maneuvering, we urge our respected friend and ally to honor its promise to hold a public judicial inquiry.

    “Once again we encourage Prime Minister Cameron not to wait for a court to compel his government to call the promised inquiry – but to do it now as a demonstration of his personal commitment to justice."

                                Rep. Chris Smith
                                Co-Chairman, Ad Hoc Committee on Irish Affairs

                                Rep. Peter King
                                Chairman, Friends of Ireland
                                Co-Chairman, Ad Hoc Committee on Irish Affairs

                                Rep. Richard Neal
                                Co-Chairman, Friends of Ireland

Congress has held 14 hearings, chaired by Rep. Chris Smith (NJ-04), on the Northern Ireland justice and peace process, many of them focused on issues of Northern Ireland police reform and government collusion in crimes of paramilitary organizations. Four of Rep. Smith’s bills and resolutions have been passed addressing the British government’s role in the murder of Pat Finucane, most recently H. Con. Res. 20 (110th Congress).