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R E S O L U T I O N
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WHEREAS, For thousands of members of the American armed |
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forces who have served in wartime, the heat of battle has been |
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followed by the hardships and challenges of life as a prisoner of |
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war; and |
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WHEREAS, Harsh conditions and psychological duress have been |
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the common lot of POWs, and often the degree of cruelty inflicted |
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has reached the level of atrocity; the history of this country's |
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military conflicts is replete with such infamous cases; among the |
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horrors that attended the American Civil War were the Andersonville |
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and Libby prison camps in the South and Elmira in the North, where, |
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collectively, more than 16,000 prisoners died from a lack of food, |
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inadequate medical care, wretched sanitation, and exposure to the |
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elements; altogether, it is estimated that 56,000 men perished in |
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Civil War prisons; and |
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WHEREAS, In World War II, the notorious Bataan Death March |
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followed on the heels of the surrender of 70,000 American and |
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Filipino troops to the Japanese Army on April 9, 1942; treatment of |
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those prisoners was so brutal that the Japanese officer initially |
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in command was later tried as a war criminal and executed; still |
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further misery awaited POWs in the Philippines; in late 1944, with |
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U.S. forces poised to recapture the islands, the Japanese Army |
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herded more than 126,000 Allied prisoners into the holds of |
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merchant ships for the purpose of evacuation; many of those men died |
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as a result of fetid, overcrowded conditions and a lack of food and |
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water; in addition, over 21,000 Americans are believed to have been |
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killed or injured when the "hell ships" carrying them were attacked |
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by American planes and submarines; and |
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WHEREAS, American prisoner-of-war deaths during the Korean |
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War officially totaled more than 2,800, for a rate of over 40 |
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percent; before the creation of permanent prison camps, many of |
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those captured died on death marches to temporary facilities; |
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casualties were especially high in the first two years of the war, |
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largely due to a lack of food, shelter, and medicine; prisoners also |
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suffered physical abuse, and there were reported cases of torture; |
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and |
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WHEREAS, U.S. troops captured during the Vietnam War were |
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kept in primitive conditions in South Vietnam, North Vietnam, Laos, |
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and Cambodia; the so-called "Hanoi Hilton" prison in North Vietnam |
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was the scene of repeated torture, while one out of every three |
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Americans taken prisoner by the Viet Cong died from disease, |
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injury, or execution; and |
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WHEREAS, In today's military, women are increasingly |
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assuming risks on a par with men; Army Specialist Shoshana Johnson, |
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of El Paso, became one of the first two female POWs of Operation |
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Iraqi Freedom on March 23, 2003, when her convoy was ambushed in |
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Nasiriya; wounded in both ankles, she was held captive with other |
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members of her group until they were rescued on April 13, 2003; and |
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WHEREAS, Those prisoners of war who have survived their |
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ordeal have continued to lead lives of service; among the most |
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prominent is Congressman Sam Johnson, of Plano, who was shot down |
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during his second tour of duty as a fighter pilot in the Vietnam War |
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and who subsequently spent nearly seven years as a POW in North |
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Vietnam; after retiring from a highly decorated 29-year career in |
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the United States Air Force, Sam Johnson served in the Texas House |
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of Representatives from 1985 to 1991, when he was elected to the |
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U.S. Congress; and |
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WHEREAS, During the Vietnam War, the plight of American |
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military personnel who were listed either as having been captured |
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or as missing in action gave rise to the creation of the POW/MIA |
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flag; depicting the silhouette of a man flanked by a watchtower and |
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a strand of barbed wire, the flag flies, at the direction of |
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Congress, over the White House, the Capitol, and other specified |
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sites on the occasion of six annual national observances, including |
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Independence Day and Veterans Day; and |
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WHEREAS, Our nation is fortunate to have sons and daughters |
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whose love of country leads them to join one of the uniformed |
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branches, yet we are aware that in answering their nation's call, |
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they assume enormous burdens and risks; to those who have known the |
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terrible rigors of prison camps while serving in this country's |
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behalf, Americans owe a profound debt and eternal tribute; now, |
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therefore, be it |
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RESOLVED, That the House of Representatives of the 83rd Texas |
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Legislature hereby commemorate April 9, 2013, as Former POW |
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Recognition Day and honor all Texans who have experienced life as a |
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prisoner of war for their immeasurable courage, commitment, and |
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sacrifice. |