Washington, D.C. – Today, U.S. Rep. Ed Royce (R-CA), Chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, announced the following upcoming Committee events:

Wednesday, June 12

Hearing: Modernizing U.S. International Food Aid: Reaching More for Less

10:00 a.m. on Wednesday, June 12 in 2172 Rayburn House Office Building

Committee on Foreign Affairs

Rep. Ed Royce (R-CA), Chairman

Invited witnesses include:

The Honorable Andrew Natsios
Executive Professor
The George H.W. Bush School of Government and Public Service
Texas A&M University
(Former Administrator of the United States Agency for International Development)

The Honorable Dan Glickman
Executive Director
Aspen Institute Congressional Program
(Former Secretary of Agriculture)

Chairman Royce on the hearing: “Modernizing U.S. international food aid to help more people facing starvation, more quickly, at a lower cost is common sense, especially given our national debt.  By reforming food aid, we can reach more people in need, while at the same time saving hundreds of millions of dollars.  At this hearing, the Committee will hear from two top food aid experts about the best approaches to improving our current, inefficient system of food aid delivery.” 

 

Wednesday, June 12

Subcommittee Hearing: American NGOs Under Attack in Morsi’s Egypt

1:00 p.m. on Wednesday, June 12 in 2172 Rayburn House Office Building

Subcommittee on the Middle East and North Africa

Rep. Ileana Ros-Lehtinen (R-FL), Chairman

Invited witnesses include:

The Honorable Lorne W. Craner
President
International Republican Institute
(Former Assistant Secretary for Democracy, Human Rights and Labor)

Mr. Charles W. Dunne
Director
Middle East and North Africa
Freedom House

Ms. Joyce Barnathan
President
International Center for Journalists

Mr. Kenneth Wollack
President
National Democratic Institute

Chairman Ros-Lehtinen on the hearing: “Earlier this week an Egyptian court sentenced 43 NGO workers, including 16 Americans, to up to five years in prison and completely shut down, and seized the assets of, 3 American NGOs – Freedom House, the International Republican Institute (IRI) and the National Democratic Institute (NDI). This ruling against American NGO’s serves as an unfortunate reminder that Egypt under Morsi is going down the wrong path of suppressing civil society and undermining democratic principles. This hearing will examine the trial, its repercussions for civil society in Egypt, and Morsi’s attempts to push a new draft NGO law that would severely restrict the efforts of those working in Egypt to help foster the political reforms that so many had called for in the demonstrations in Tahrir Square. We are almost a year into the Morsi era and Egypt has regressed in so many areas, which underscores the importance for the United States to condition our aid to Egypt so that we can advance rule of law, civil society and democratic reforms.”

***See foreignaffairs.house.gov for updates.

***Coverage note:  All Foreign Affairs Committee proceedings are webcast live at foreignaffairs.house.gov/live-video-feed.

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