mr. speaker , i yield myself such time as i may consume . 
mr. speaker , i rise in strong support of the resolution . 
let me first pay tribute to my good friend and colleague , the gentlewoman from florida ( ms. ros-lehtinen ) xz4003440 for her work on this resolution , and for her outstanding leadership on our subcommittee on the middle east and central asia . 
mr. speaker , the resolution before the house expresses the grave concern of the congress regarding the ongoing occupation of lebanon by syria . 
mr. speaker , i first visited lebanon and syria in 1956 , almost half a century ago . 
lebanon was a prosperous , free , open and democratic society . 
i remember going to the bekaa valley , to the city of ba'albak , where among the ancient roman ruins shakespeare was performed on alternate nights in english and french . 
since 1976 , syria has occupied lebanon with brutal force . 
our resolution appropriately demands that the occupation end now . 
yesterday , mr. speaker , the people of lebanon tore down gigantic billboards in lebanon that portrayed the former and current syrian dictators , mr. assad and his father . 
just imagine having in the united states huge billboards of joe stalin or the ayatollahs of tehran , how we would feel about this ? 
well , that is how the lebanese people felt about having these gigantic billboards pay tribute to a country which occupies their land . 
as we speak , there is no syrian embassy in lebanon . 
what could speak more eloquently of the colonial outlook that the syrian regime has towards lebanon ? 
in colonial times , the colonial power did not have an embassy in its colony because it did not recognize it as an independent , sovereign nation . 
that is precisely the attitude of syria towards lebanon today . 
all of us have been inspired by what the lebanese call their `` independence '' uprising . 
by passing our resolution , the congress will express its solidarity with the brave anti-syrian occupation , freedom-loving demonstrators in martyrs square in beirut . 
mr. speaker , bashar assad , syria 's ruler , continues to play games with the international community . 
as his speech earlier this month showed , he still believes he can ignore the international community 's demand that syria withdraw immediately and totally from lebanon . 
let us not be fooled by his promises of gradual withdrawal delinked from time tables . 
if you can tell a man by his friends , all you need to know about assad is that his only friend in lebanon is the terrorist gang hezbollah . 
mr. speaker , syria has not only persecuted the lebanese people , arresting , abducting , torturing and killing opponents , most recently the prime minister of lebanon , it has also destroyed lebanon 's lively institutions , rendering them little more than outposts of syrian control . 
these crimes have taken place on the soil of what was once the arab world 's lone democracy . 
that is why it is vital that the lebanese people succeed in throwing off syrian rule and that the lebanese be allowed to conduct free and fair parliamentary elections this spring , unimpeded by the fist of syria 's military or the brutal machinations of its intelligence agents . 
mr. speaker , we stand shoulder to shoulder with those who seek full restoration of sovereign , democratic rule in lebanon . 
i strongly support this resolution , and urge all of my colleagues to join me in sending a message of hope to the lebanese people . 
mr. speaker , i reserve the balance of my time . 
