pd08mr99 The President's News Conference With Prime Minister Massimo D'Alema of...

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poverty schools is welcome, but we must not rest until all students meet 
the challenging standards we set for them. That is why I urge Senators 
in both parties not only to support this week's vote to put 100,000 new, 
well-prepared teachers in the classroom but also to enact my ``Education 
Accountability Act.'' This act will help move our education system 
forward by ensuring that States and school districts end social 
promotion, phase out the use of unqualified teachers, turn around low-
performing schools, provide parents with report cards on schools, and 
implement effective discipline policies. While our education reform 
efforts are clearly headed in the right direction, we must take these 
important steps to close the gap between students and increase the pace 
of reform.


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[Page 334-335]
 
Monday, March 8, 1999
 
Volume 35--Number 9
Pages 329-376
 
Week Ending Friday, March 5, 1999
 
Proclamation 7169--Irish-American Heritage Month, 1999

March 1, 1999

By the President of the United States

of America

A Proclamation

    During the month of March each year, as millions of Americans 
celebrate St. Patrick's Day, we remember with special pride our Irish 
heritage. We remember our ancestors who stood on Ireland's western 
shores, yearning for the promise of America. Fleeing famine and 
injustice, they longed for a new world of opportunities. Millions of 
these courageous men and women set sail from Ireland, leaving behind all 
that they had ever known to seek the promise of America. They gave to 
their new homeland their strength and spirit, sinew and determination, 
eloquence and wit. In return, America offered them the opportunity for a 
better life, the chance to rise above poverty and discrimination, and a 
future where they could live out their dreams.
    The Irish who came to America endured many hardships, but they 
prospered and helped to build our country with innumerable physical and 
intellectual contributions. They gave us Presidents like Woodrow Wilson, 
John Kennedy, and Ronald Reagan; patriots like John Barry and Stephen 
Moylan, who fought fiercely for American independence in the 
Revolutionary War; jurists like Justice William Brennan, who championed 
justice and equality; suffragists and social reformers like Maria 
McCreery; journalists, peacekeepers, artists, playwrights, labor 
leaders, and educators. These and so many other Irish Americans seized 
the opportunity of freedom America promised. From their grand literary 
tradition to their deep religious faith, Irish Americans and their 
descendants have enriched every facet of American history.
    But Irish-American Heritage Month is a time to look to the future as 
well as to the past. Today we rejoice at the promise of peace in 
Northern Ireland and the resolve of her people to approach their 
differences not with weapons, but with words. While the path to peace is 
rarely easy, it is by necessity a community effort. Americans are a 
vital part of the process in Northern Ireland by virtue of our shared 
heritage and shared goal of lasting peace and a better future for all 
God's children. By lending our hearts, minds, and prayers to the work of 
peace, we can best fulfill our obligation to the generations of Irish 
men and women who have given so much to our Nation's life and history.

[[Page 335]]

    Now, Therefore, I, William J. Clinton, President of the United 
States of America, by virtue of the authority vested in me by the 
Constitution and laws of the United States, do hereby proclaim March 
1999 as Irish-American Heritage Month. I call upon all the people of the 
United States to observe this month with appropriate ceremonies, 
programs, and activities.
    In Witness Whereof, I have hereunto set my hand this first day of 
March, in the year of our Lord nineteen hundred and ninety-nine, and of 
the Independence of the United States of America the two hundred and 
twenty-third.
                                            William J. Clinton

[Filed with the Office of the Federal Register, 11:21 a.m., March 2, 
1999]

Note: This proclamation was published in the Federal Register on March 
3.


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[Page 335-336]
 
Monday, March 8, 1999
 
Volume 35--Number 9
Pages 329-376
 
Week Ending Friday, March 5, 1999
 
Proclamation 7170--Women's History Month, 1999

March 1, 1999

By the President of the United States

of America

A Proclamation

    A little more than a century ago, an editorial in the Pittsburgh 
Dispatch opposing women's suffrage and criticizing women in the work 
force so infuriated a young reader that she wrote a letter in protest. 
Her articulate response prompted the newspaper's editor to offer her a 
job, and thus Elizabeth Cochrane--later known as Nellie Bly--began her 
career in journalism. A pioneer of investigative reporting, she exposed 
the brutal conditions in the care of the mentally ill, reported on poor 
working conditions in factories, and wrote of the indignities suffered 
by women in prison. This year, as we reflect on America's past in 
preparation for our celebration of the new millennium, we recognize that 
the talent, energy, intellect, and determination of countless women like 
Nellie Bly have shaped our destiny and enriched our society since our 
earliest days as a Nation.
    From the women who organized the East India Company tea boycotts 
before the Boston Tea Party to Deborah Sampson, who fought as a soldier 
in the Revolutionary War; from Angelina and Sarah Grimke, who spoke out 
against slavery to Harriet Tubman, who risked her life as a conductor on 
the Underground Railroad; from suffragist Carrie Chapman Catt to 
sharecropper Fannie Lou Hamer, who faced violence and endured 
intimidation to become a leader of the Civil Rights movement; from 
environmentalist Rachel Carson, who changed our way of looking at the 
world, to physicist Chien-Shiung Wu, who changed our way of looking at 
the universe, women's history is truly America's history. That is why I 
was pleased to establish in July of last year the President's Commission 
on the Celebration of Women in American History, whose recommendations 
will help us to better understand and rejoice to appreciate the role and 
accomplishments of women.
    During Women's History Month, we honor the generations of women who 
have served our Nation as doctors and scientists, teachers and factory 
workers, soldiers and secretaries, athletes and mothers. We honor the 
women who have worked the land, cared for children and the elderly, 
nurtured families and businesses, served in charitable organizations and 
public office. And we remember the good friends we have so recently 
lost--women such as Bella Abzug, Marjory Stoneman Douglas, and Florence 
Griffith-Joyner--whose achievements and example continue to light our 
lives.
    But we must do more than remember. We must build on the legacy of 
the millions of women, whether renowned or anonymous, who have 
contributed so much to the strength and character of our Nation. We must 
ensure that women have equal access to the education and opportunities 
they need to excel. We must guarantee that women receive equal pay in 
the workplace. We must promote policies and programs--including 
affordable, high-quality child care--that enable working women to 
succeed both on the job and in their homes. And we must work to ensure 
that women have the comfort of knowing they can retire in security. 
Women who have gone before us accomplished so

[[Page 336]]

much, often in the face of hardship and discrimination; we can only 
imagine what women will accomplish in the future if we break down the 
remaining barriers that prevent them from reaching their full potential.
    Now, Therefore, I, William J. Clinton, President of the United 
States of America, by virtue of the authority vested in me by the 
Constitution and laws of the United States, do hereby proclaim March 
1999 as Women's History Month. I encourage all Americans to observe this 
month with appropriate programs, ceremonies, and activities, and to 
remember throughout the year the many heroic women whose many and varied 
contributions have enriched our lives.
    In Witness Whereof, I have hereunto set my hand this first day of 
March, in the year of our Lord nineteen hundred and ninety-nine, and of 
the Independence of the United States of America the two hundred and 
twenty-third.
                                            William J. Clinton

[Filed with the Office of the Federal Register, 11:21 a.m., March 2, 
1999]

Note: This proclamation was published in the Federal Register on March 
3.


<DOC>
[Weekly Compilation of Presidential Documents]
 [frwais.access.gpo.gov]
                         

[Page 336-337]
 
Monday, March 8, 1999
 
Volume 35--Number 9
Pages 329-376
 
Week Ending Friday, March 5, 1999
 
Proclamation 7171--Save Your Vision Week, 1999

March 1, 1999

By the President of the United States

of America

A Proclamation

    Vision is an extraordinary blessing--one that should be cherished 
and protected. Complex and remarkable organs, the eyes work in concert 
with the brain to produce vision, allowing us to experience the beauty 
and variety of the physical world around us.
    Because blindness and vision loss are often avoidable, the 
maintenance of good vision must be a top health priority and an integral 
part of every American's overall health care routine. Preventative eye 
care is particularly important because there are often no warning signs 
or pain associated with many eye diseases, and, by the time vision loss 
is identified, it is frequently too late to undo the damage. Periodic 
dilated pupil eye examinations can reveal the early signs of eye disease 
and buy precious time for treatment.
    It is equally important to protect our eyes from injury, another 
leading cause of vision loss. Each year, more than 2.4 million eye 
injuries occur in the United States. By using protective eyewear when 
working with machinery or chemicals, playing sports, or engaging in 
other recreational activities, we can help prevent irreparable loss of 
sight.
    Taking measures to prevent vision loss in our children is especially 
important because their early development and academic achievement can 
suffer due to vision problems or diseases. Even before they begin 
school, children should undergo a complete eye examination so that poor 
vision or eye disorders can be appropriately treated.
    As the 21st century fast approaches, our national investment in 
research to prevent, postpone, and treat eye diseases and disorders has 
produced substantial results. Laser technology, new medications, gene 
mapping, innovations in diagnostic techniques, and other sight-saving 
discoveries are improving the lives of millions of Americans. These 
advances in medical research, combined with preventative eye care and 
increased safety measures, can all work to preserve our gift of sight.
    To remind our citizens of the importance of safeguarding their 
eyesight, the Congress, by join resolution approved December 30, 1963 
(77 Stat. 629; 36 U.S.C. 169a), has authorized and requested the 
President to proclaim the first week in March of each year as ``Save 
Your Vision Week.''
    Now, Therefore, I, William J. Clinton, President of the United 
States of America, do hereby proclaim March 7 through March 13, 1999, as 
Save Your Vision Week. I urge all Americans to participate by making eye 
care and eye safety an important part of their lives and to ensure that 
dilated eye examinations are included in their regular health 
maintenance programs. I invite eye care professionals, the media, and 
all public and private organizations dedicated to preserving eyesight to 
join in activities that will raise awareness of the measures we can take 
to protect and sustain our vision.

[[Page 337]]

    In Witness Whereof, I have hereunto set my hand this first day of 
March, in the year of our Lord nineteen hundred and ninety-nine, and of 
the Independence of the United States of America the two hundred and 
twenty-third.
                                            William J. Clinton

[Filed with the Office of the Federal Register, 11:21 a.m., March 2, 
1999]

Note: This proclamation was published in the Federal Register on March 
3.


<DOC>
[Weekly Compilation of Presidential Documents]
 [frwais.access.gpo.gov]
                         

[Page 337]
 
Monday, March 8, 1999
 
Volume 35--Number 9
Pages 329-376
 
Week Ending Friday, March 5, 1999
 
Letter to Congressional Leaders Transmitting a Report on International 
Agreements

March 1, 1999

Dear Mr. Speaker:  (Dear Mr. Chairman:)

    Pursuant  to  subsection  (b)  of  the  Case-Zablocki Act, (1 U.S.C. 
112b(b)), I hereby transmit a report prepared by the Department of State 
concerning international agreements.
    Sincerely,
                                            William J. Clinton

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