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Skriven 2005-05-25 23:33:06 av Whitehouse Press (1:3634/12.0)
Ärende: Press Release (0505256) for Wed, 2005 May 25
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President Celebrates Asian Pacific American Heritage Month
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For Immediate Release
Office of the Press Secretary
May 25, 2005

President Celebrates Asian Pacific American Heritage Month
The East Room

President's Remarks
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4:00 P.M. EDT

PRESIDENT BUSH: Thank you for coming. Good afternoon, and welcome to the
White House. I am glad you're here. I'm proud to be with you to celebrate
Asian Pacific American Heritage Month. And we are joined by a very special
guest, a close friend of America, a man with whom I just had a very good
visit, President Yudhoyono from Indonesia. Welcome, Mr. President.
(Applause.)

Before we award our Volunteer of the Year awards, the President has
graciously offered to give some remarks. And, unfortunately, I'm going to
give some, too. (Laughter.) Before I begin I do want to introduce Agus and
Edhie, the President's sons. Welcome. We're glad you're here. Agus will be
getting married on July the 8th. (Applause.)

This is a time to celebrate the achievement of millions of Americans of
Asian Pacific ancestry. Today, Asian Pacific Americans are making their
mark in all walks of life, including business and politics, and education
and community service, and the arts and science.

I'm fortunate to have many Asian American in my Cabinet and in my
administration, two of who are here with us today. I want to thank the
Secretary of Labor, Elaine Chao, for joining us. (Applause.) And the
Secretary of Transportation, Norm Mineta. (Applause.)

Andrew Natsios, of USAID, is here. Andrew, it's good, it's good you're
here, because we're going to be talking about tsunami relief in a minute. I
want to thank Betty Wu, who is the Chairman of the President's Advisory
Commission on Asian American and Pacific Islanders. I want to thank all the
commission members who are here today.

I want to thank my friend, Ambassador Sichan Siv, from the United Nations.
Where is he? Where is Sichan? There he is. Welcome, Sichan. You did a fine
job. (Applause.) I'm glad Martha is here. Delegate Eni from Samoa, thank
you for coming, sir. Proud you're here. Is Lisa here? Senator Murkowski
just came in from the state of Alaska. Proud you're here. (Applause.) I see
we got a lot of members of the Diplomatic Corps who are here. Welcome,
Ambassadors. Thank you for coming. Proud you're here. And again, Mr.
President, thank you for joining us as we celebrate Asian Pacific Heritage
Month.

Indonesia and America may be on the opposite sides of the ocean, but we
have a lot in common. We are both among the world's largest democracies. We
both share a belief that our great diversity is a source of strength. And
when the tsunami hit, citizens from both our countries took it upon
themselves to come to the aid of those in distress.

The tsunami that began in the Indian Ocean struck Indonesia just two months
after the President came into office. I understand that when the tsunami
hit, His Excellency was in a remote province of his country. And the moment
he heard what happened, he rushed to the scene. He didn't hesitate. He
rushed to not only help, but to make a personal assessment of what needed
to be done. After declaring a national emergency, he moved quickly to clear
away the bureaucratic obstacles and visa requirements so that the path
would be clear for international relief workers.

By acting with skill and courage, Mr. President, you helped bring your
country together in a time of great crisis. And thank you for that kind of
leadership. (Applause.)

And the people of Indonesia responded in kind. Religious organizations and
business people and the Indonesian Red Cross and thousands of ordinary
citizens traveled at their own expense to the hard-hit province of Aceh to
pitch in, to do their duty as a citizen of a free democracy.

And the need was great. More than 125,000 Indonesians have been confirmed
dead. Think about that. Another 37,000 are missing. More than
half-a-million have been forced from their homes. Your fellow citizens
provided first aid and you helped evacuate victims and distributed relief
supplies. And it was a good example of how government and individuals work
together.

But it was also important for the world to respond. And I'm proud of the
response of the United States government and her people. Our United States
military was on the scene with an aircraft carrier. And we had sailors and
Marines working around the clock to show the people of your part of the
world that our hearts are big, that we care about people from all walks of
life, that the compassion of America runs deep and strong.

Shortly after the disaster struck, the United States pledged $350 million
in aid for the region. Providing relief, our country has really, I hope,
showed that we're a friend when you've got a problem. But a friend doesn't
quit when a problem persists. And so, earlier this month, Congress approved
my request for additional tsunami relief and reconstruction help, bringing
total U.S. aid to more than $850 million.

The people of your country need to know, and the people of the countries
affected by the tsunami relief need to know, that when America gives a
pledge to help, we'll keep our word, and that when America says that we
stand with you, we mean it. So, Mr. President, please take this message
back to the people of Indonesia. (Applause.)

Finally, I'm proud that volunteers from our Asian Pacific American
community were among those who stepped forward to help the victims of the
tsunami relief -- of the tsunami. Their efforts ranged from serving on
humanitarian missions to raising money, to rebuilding an orphanage.
Americans from all over our country, from all walks of life, used their
time and talents and compassion to make a difference. Heck, I even called
on two former Presidents -- (laughter) -- 41 and 42 -- (laughter) -- Bush
and Clinton -- (laughter) -- to join together to send a message that we're
not talking politics, we're talking about helping people get their feet
back on the ground -- get their feet back on the ground. We're talking
about helping to save lives. That's the American spirit, Mr. President.
That's how we like to do things in this country. (Applause.)

And today, we've gathered to honor some of our fellow citizens with
volunteer service awards. People from the Asian Pacific community have
heard the call to serve something greater than themselves. And before we
present those awards, however, Mr. President, I'm honored to welcome you to
the White House and welcome you to the podium so that you can deliver a few
remarks.

Please welcome the President. (Applause.)

PRESIDENT YUDHOYONO: President Bush, distinguished guests, ladies and
gentlemen. Thank you, Mr. President, for inviting me to join you here
today. I stand before you here to deliver a message of thanks from a
grateful nation halfway around the world.

My country, Indonesia, suffered most from the horrible tsunami last
December. Some 200,000 people were killed in a matter of minutes, and over
500,000 survivors lost their homes.

When I arrived in Aceh the day after the tsunami, almost everything close
to the sea had been destroyed, flattened to the ground, swept by the waves.
Nothing had ever prepared us for something like this -- nothing. It was
under these circumstances that we experienced an incredible display of
global solidarity immediately after the tsunami. And it was during this
desperate time that American servicemen came and helped.

The USS Abraham Lincoln arrived with its much needed helicopters to help
deliver food and supplies to survivors that could not be reached by land.
And USS hospital ship Mercy provided medical care to the injured and the
sick, at a time when we were all worried that more people would die from
diseases than from the tsunami.

I remember my heart almost sank one day when I heard that a U.S. Seahawk
helicopter had crashed. But I was glad to hear directly from Ambassador
Lynn Pascoe that the crews were all right, even though their Seahawk had to
make an emergency landing on a paddy field. And not surprisingly, the crews
were itching to get back into action to save lives.

America has every reason to be proud for what your government, your
heroism, and your volunteers have done for the tsunami victims. This was a
time for valor and selfless sacrifice. The tsunami produced a lot of
heroes: heroes who saved lives, heroes who gave hope to those who are
suffering, and Americans were among these heroes. You all should be proud
of that.

The funds that have been collected from millions of Americans will be very
helpful to help the Acehnese rebuild their lives. But I want you to know
what really mattered was that they all came from the heart. What really
mattered was that each of you reached not so much into your pocket as into
the new depth of your conscience, compassion and solidarity. What really
mattered was that you saw the pain of others and tried to help. And with
all our tears, words and deeds, what we all did together was to prove that
the greatest wrath of nature was no match for the greater force that is the
human spirit.

I said something earlier about reaching out. Let me read you a letter from
Maggie, a third grader from K-4 Elementary in Charlevoix, Michigan, which,
through some good fortune, I managed to obtain from AmeriCorps. Maggie was
writing to a tsunami kid she did not know. This is what Maggie wrote: "Dear
friends: Hi. My name is Maggie. I am sorry what happened in your country. I
have heard some things about it. I hope your family and friends are okay.
In church, I pray for you and your country. In school, we are raising money
for your country. We have a loose-change bucket, and kids bring money in.
Also, we are making tsunami bracelet to raise money, too. I have made you
one. I hope you like it. I will continue praying for you and your country
in church. Your friend, Maggie."

I faxed Maggie's letter to Aceh, to be passed on to an Acehnese youngster,
and a few days later I received a response letter from Nada Lutfiah, a
young girl from Banda Aceh. That is what Nada looks like.

PRESIDENT BUSH: There's your picture. Is this her?

PRESIDENT YUDHOYONO: Yes, sorry. This is her. (Laughter.) Nada looks like
-- (applause.) Nada Lutfiah. (Applause.) Nada wrote to Maggie, and I
translate into English. "My good friend: Hello, friend. My name is Nada
Lutfiah. I was so happy and my heart was touched to receive the letter you
sent us. My family, my dad, mom, older brother and younger brother have
disappeared, and now I live with my cousins. I hope you are healthy and
well where you are. I am so glad you are paying attention to us here. I
hope to receive your bracelet in the coming days, because I want to wear it
on my arm to remind me that I have new friend. Your friend, Nada."

I have asked my Ambassador Soemadi to personally deliver Nada's letter and
photo to Maggie in Michigan.

These two letters are extraordinary, both in the words they conveyed, and
in the fact that two youngsters from entirely different background made a
connection: An American girl who prays at church, collects lose change and
make bracelet for tsunami kids two oceans away; an Indonesian Muslim girl
who lost all her family, and wants to kill the pain and is eager just to be
a kid again, just like Maggie. I think the world will be a better place if
all of us start to have connections and conversation the way Maggie and
Nada did.

I thank you very much. (Applause.)

PRESIDENT BUSH: Mr. President, thank you very much for such a powerful
speech. And it's in that spirit of compassion that we -- it's my honor to
now award the volunteer awards.

Commander, please read the citations.

(The awards are presented.) (Applause.)

PRESIDENT BUSH: Mr. President, I hope you can tell by the short
presentation of -- to some of our great citizens that the true strength of
America, our true strength lies in the hearts and souls of our citizens.

I'm proud that you've joined us today. Thank you all for coming. May God
bless our respective countries, and may God continue to bless the American
people. (Applause.)

END 4:24 P.M. EDT

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