The report says the minority regime ruling Rhodesia has been recalcitrant, in spite of the tremendous changes all around it (especially the independence in Mozambique) and the growing militancy of its own African population; in this context, Congressional passage of the sanctions bill could still play an important political role. The report says as the political merits of the sanctions bill move into the limelight, the economic arguments surrounding it have receded; since the stainless steel industry is facing problems of declining demand due to the growing recession, supplies of chrome and ferrochrome are no longer as immediate a concern; instead, at least part of the industry is looking...
The report says the minority regime ruling Rhodesia has been recalcitrant, in spite of the tremendous changes all around it (especially the independence in Mozambique) and the growing militancy of its own African population; in this context, Congressional passage of the sanctions bill could still play an important political role. The report says as the political merits of the sanctions bill move into the limelight, the economic arguments surrounding it have receded; since the stainless steel industry is facing problems of declining demand due to the growing recession, supplies of chrome and ferrochrome are no longer as immediate a concern; instead, at least part of the industry is looking toward the Byrd Amendment repeal as a possible vehicle for challenging growing imports of Japanese specialty steel into this country. The report says the Subcommittee on International Organizations voted on March 11 to accept an amendment to the sanctions bill which would require certification of imparts of all steel mill products to insure that they contain no Rhodesian chromium. The report says under this provision, "any interested person" could request the Secretary of the Treasury to conduct an investigation with respect to the adequacy of the information provided in the certificate; if the Secretary finds that the certificate does "not adequately establish that the steel mill product does not contain chromium in any form which is of Southern Rhodesian origin," the product will not be released from customs custody except under bond. The report says the impetus for the amendment came from the Eastern Stainless Steel Company, which decided to support the sanctions bill if it included the certification amendment; the bill's sponsors were glad to find support from within the ranks of the steel industry, which had up until then been unanimously opposed to the bill; the United Steelworkers also supported the amendment. The report says three members of Congress, Representatives John Dent, Richard Ichord and Harold Runnels, completed an unusual one-week ·trip to Rhodesia, a country whose minority regime the U.S. does not recognize and with which the U.S. has no diplomatic relations; they made the trip against the urging of the State Department that the trip could be perceived as an official U.S. delegation which could give a considerable political boost to the illegitimate Rhodesian Front regime; but the Congressmen seemed more interested in posing as "experts" on the political situation in Rhodesia when they oppose the sanctions bill in Congress in the next few months. The report says Representative Richard Ichord has also become an active opponent of the sanctions measure; it was he who took the initiative in February to have the sanctions bill referred to the conservative Armed Services Committee, of which he is a member; Ichord has made public statements against sanctions for the last year, calling them hypocritical and ineffective, and he testified against sanctions before the House Rules Committee last summer. The report says Representative Runnels has not been as involved in the sanctions debate, but he has voted twice for the Byrd Amendment; he is also a member of the Armed Services Committee, so he may take on a larger role if the bill is referred to that Committee this year. The report includes the addresses of the Washington Office on Africa (WOA) and the American Committee on Africa (ACOA).
