of you, and tell you how to communicate with us under the present strained circumstances.

But the question I would like you to think about and answer is, if you had the contract to reinvent public diplomacy, what would you do? We need a starting place. You have given us a lot to think about. But just what would you do if you had the task, the contract to reinvent public diplomacy? Think about it and write to us, and Doug will tell you how to reach us.

And I speak for everybody on the Committee, those who are here and those who aren't, in expressing profound gratitude. Thank you. The Committee stands adjourned.

[Whereupon, at 12:40 p.m., the Committee was adjourned.]

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APPENDIX

MATERIAL SUBMITTED FOR THE HEARING RECORD

PREPARED STATEMENT OF THE HONORABLE BENJAMIN A. GILMAN, A REPRESENTATIVE IN CONGRESS FROM THE STATE OF NEW YORK

I want to commend Chairman Hyde for holding this important hearing at this time. Clausewitz said that war is an extension of policy by other means. To put it more simply, nations go to war when policy has failed. Two months ago, over 4,000 New Yorkers lost their lives due to a policy failure. We are now at war to correct our course. We have taken a two-pronged approach to this offensive—a military and a diplomatic one. The military effort appears to be going well, incorporating new thinking and breaking new ground. While political and diplomatic effort has also been generally going well, we are still uncertain of its long-term impact.

Yesterday, we learned that as a part of our effort to win over the Pakistani people, we will be giving their nation over a billion dollars in assistance. While Pakistan is currently playing an important role in helping our effort to root out the Taliban, we should bear in mind that in the immediate past Pakistan, with the support of Saudi Arabia, created and sustained them. Our plan apparently is that by creating jobs and eradicating poverty the Pakistani people will turn their back on the Islamic extremism that has a strong foothold in that country.

While I support that plan, I question its implementation. Over the years, the United States dispersed billions of dollars of assistance to nations in the region. Even before the September 11th attack, we were the largest contributor of food assistance to Afghan refugees. Yet in most of the nations in South Asia, the feeling with regard to United States policy is not one of gratitude, but rather it is of disdain and distrust.

Hopefully, our witnesses will inform our Committee what we are doing wrong and how can we be more effective in our nation's public diplomacy.

PREPARED STATEMENT OF THE HONORABLE JOSEPH R. PITTS, A REPRESENTATIVE IN CONGRESS FROM THE STATE OF PENNSYLVANIA

Thank you, Mr. Chairman, for convening this important hearing to critically examine America's public diplomacy efforts. Let me begin by giving my appreciation to the hard work that has been done to further America's public diplomacy by diplomats as well as individuals at VOA and RL-RFA.

Numerous reports and analyses reflect that the battle in which we are currently engaged is not only a military battle, but also a battle to win the hearts and minds of the people of Afghanistan.

It is not acceptable that a country with the capability and means such as ours fails so miserably at communicating our intent to offer peace, freedom, and prosperity to Afghanistan and to offer the world protection from terrorist atrocities. It does not matter if we offer liberty and justice if we cannot deliver or communicate that message.

Providing access to information for the Afghan people, other than what the Taliban deems fit to allow, is key to bringing freedom and stability to Afghanistan. By strengthening the reporting and broadcasting capabilities in Afghanistan, we will help our nation and the nation of Afghanistan. We must combat the damage done by Osama bin Laden by getting our own information to the Afghan people. Bin Laden and his cohorts in the Taliban have created a disparate information gap through banning computers, media and other forms of communication. We must fill that gap. The Afghan people need factual information as they reconstruct their nation.

It is vital that our nation restore our credibility in the eyes of the people of Afghanistan and the surrounding region. We must assure the people of Afghanistan that even though our government disengaged them after their war with Russia and their loss of at least 1.5 million lives, the American people have not forgotten their sacrifice. The people of Afghanistan need to know that the international community is clearly aware that their suffering is caused by the Taliban and this regime's wasting of the tremendous resources of Afghanistan and its people. The Taliban has not provided the people of Afghanistan with basic necessities such as food and shelter, but has increased their suffering so that more people than ever are starving, freezing to death, or dying from easily preventable medical problems. The Taliban callously allows the Afghan people to die. It is the international community and aid organizations who have given food and medicine, who have helped build wells and shelters. The Taliban, in its commitment to conflict, has used the resources of this nation for its own selfish and destructive aims.

The end of this conflict is nowhere in sight. The void that remained upon our departure was filled by officials whose actions led to millions of internally displaced Afghans. We cannot let the Taliban win by spreading the propaganda that the United States will again disengage the Afghan people. The manner in which the United States conducts itself and the information we share with Afghanistan and the world will impact our ability to forge a global and steadfast alliance.

Mr. Chairman, I would also like to note that Americans are sometimes accused of being insensitive in our interaction with other cultures. We are repeating this mistake in our public diplomacy efforts. We are attempting to reach people in other countries by means of American culture. and we wonder why we are failing. Processes and communication methods that are effective in the United States are not effective overseas. It is essential that we make proper cultural perspective a priority. We are trying to win a war-we must do our research! We must empower and connect those who truly understand the people to whom we are trying to reach. Government officials must reach out to NGOs and laymen who know, understand, and can communicate with the people. We have to recognize that, while diplomacy by means of the media is important, nothing can replace the effectiveness of true relationship building. People to people diplomacy is one of the most valuable means of building relationships and trust. In many of these cultures, personal relationships are of the utmost importance.

A friend of mine from a Muslim nation told me the principles of his political party-that true relationships develop when individuals get to know each other. As they get to know one another, they learn to trust each other. And as that trust develops, they are able to begin to cooperate and work together. Only with that trust through relationship does true cooperation follow. We can begin to be truly effective in communicating to people in the world if we speak through those they already trust.

So, as we examine United States diplomacy by means of media and public education this morning, we must remember to be sensible in the way that we communicate. Mr. Chairman, I appreciate the opportunity to take a critical look at the efforts by the United States thus far and to determine how we may increase our ability to be more effective as we move forward.

Thank you.

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