By Karla Wennerstrom
When Congressman Erik Paulsen arrived in Yemen, he had a special delivery with him for Eden Prairie native Colleen Traughber -- Doritos.

"I offered to bring three bags of Doritos," he said. Traughber, who works as a control officer at the Yemen embassy, heard that Paulsen was coming and had her parents, who still live in Eden Prairie, contact him. Paulsen lives in Eden Prairie and his Minnesota office is located here as well.

The purpose of the Africa trip, with other representatives including Adam Smith of Washington and Jim Cooper of Tennessee, "was to educate key Congressional members about the political, security and humanitarian situations of key countries in the region," according to a news release.

The group visited six countries in Africa and the Middle East in six days -- Yemen, Democratic Republic of Congo, Egypt, Kenya, Morocco and Burkina Faso -- returning in late April.

The delegation arrived in Kenya days after the Maersk Alabama captain's rescue from Somali pirates.

"That was part of the whole intent of the trip in the first place, examining the region … with a focus on what our counter-terrorism efforts are," Paulsen said. "We actually got briefed by those that were involved in that operation."

Paulsen said, "I was just a little bit surprised and amazed at how connected Minnesota was to the area. I met Minnesotans, even Eden Prairie residents, at every stop I made. The other delegation members were joking with me about how I met Minnesotans at every stop."

Traughber wasn't the only Eden Prairie connection Paulsen found on the trip.

In Morocco, he met Andy Hamann, a 1988 Eden Prairie High School graduate, who works in the Moroccan Embassy for the Air Force and was a Rep. Bill Frenzel academy appointee.

In Congo he met Chelsie Frank, whose parents live in Eden Prairie.

She works for HEAL Africa, a "nonprofit medical organization specializing in caring for women who have been rape victims."
Frank wrote in a blog post, "The delegation came to learn about HEAL Africa's work combating sexual violence and caring for its victims.

They toured the hospital and conducted an interview with a rape survivor. They also heard about HEAL Africa's advocacy work in conjunction with the American Bar Association to promote women's rights and prosecute offenders. At the end, they pledged their solidarity and support for HEAL Africa's work.

"I was able to speak at length with one Congressman [Erik] Paulsen from Minnesota. Paulsen was interested in understanding the larger social context of rape in Congo. After hearing from one survivor, he compassionately asked questions to try and understand the vast differences between women's lives in the West and women living in war-torn Congo," she wrote. "I hope that their visit will bring more media attention and political will to end the violence in Congo."

Paulsen said that the 30,000 people at the refugee camp the group visited in Congo were not from other countries, "they're displaced internally in the Congo." And half of those were children.

Paulsen said that before he left for Africa, he reached out to Eden Prairie's Somali community, talking with Murshid Barud. "I reached out right away to the Somali community in Eden Prairie."

Paulsen said Somali Eden Prairie residents told him that whenever U.S. taxpayer dollars are spent, Congress should work to ensure that it's going to real humanitarian efforts.

"Many would like to return to Somalia someday – but there’s no government structure there that would even allow them to do that," he said.

"I had a private meeting with the defense minister of Kenya, who is Somalian and I also had a private meeting with the deputy speaker of parliament in Kenya, who is also Somalian in background," Paulsen said.

"The horn of Africa is a global hotspot," Paulsen said of the purpose of the trip. "I think it’s going to continue to be so. Congress is going to play a big role in a lot of these issues. ... Just knowing that I represent such a large Somali population and large Liberian population as well, it was educational for me."
Paulsen said Congress needs to make sure foreign aid is going where it's intended to go.

"We do need stable governments in that part of the world," he said. "It’s in our interests to be engaged."

In addition to the Doritos, Paulsen delivered encyclopedias for an organization called Books for Africa, he said.