[Congressional Bills 110th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H. Res. 564 Introduced in House (IH)]







110th CONGRESS
  1st Session
H. RES. 564

Recognizing that violence poses an increasingly serious threat to peace 
 and stability in Central America and supporting expanded cooperation 
   between the United States and the countries of Central America to 
                       combat crime and violence.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                             July 23, 2007

    Mr. Engel (for himself and Mr. Burton of Indiana) submitted the 
 following resolution; which was referred to the Committee on Foreign 
                                Affairs

_______________________________________________________________________

                               RESOLUTION


 
Recognizing that violence poses an increasingly serious threat to peace 
 and stability in Central America and supporting expanded cooperation 
   between the United States and the countries of Central America to 
                       combat crime and violence.

Whereas murder rates have been increasing throughout Central America in recent 
        years;
Whereas in 2005, the estimated murder rate per 100,000 people was roughly 56 in 
        El Salvador, 41 in Honduras, and 38 in Guatemala;
Whereas the February 2007 murder of 3 Salvadoran legislators from the Central 
        American parliament and the subsequent murder in prison of the 
        Guatemalan policemen linked to the crime clearly illustrated to the 
        international community the threat posed by violence in Central America;
Whereas a May 2007 report by the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime 
        (UNODC) makes the case that Central American countries are particularly 
        vulnerable to violent crimes fueled by drug trafficking and corruption 
        because they are geographically located between the world's largest drug 
        producing and drug consuming countries;
Whereas 90 percent of the cocaine shipped from the Andes to the United States 
        flows through Central America and thus contributes to increased violence 
        on the Central American isthmus;
Whereas Central American governments and United States officials have attributed 
        a large proportion of the rise in violent crime in Central America to 
        youth gangs, many of which have ties to the United States;
Whereas UNODC estimates that there are 69,145 gang members in Central America;
Whereas on June 7, 2005, the Organization of American States (OAS) passed a 
        resolution to urge member states to support the creation of holistic 
        solutions to the gang problem;
Whereas Guatemala has experienced a surge in female murders during the past 3 
        years, with many of those murders allegedly committed by drug 
        traffickers and other organized criminal groups;
Whereas violence between partners, particularly violence by men against their 
        wives or girlfriends, is widespread in Central America and an 
        International Violence Against Women Survey comparing selected countries 
        in Africa, Latin America, Europe, and Asia found that 60 percent of 
        women in Costa Rica--often considered the least violent country in 
        Central America--reported having experienced domestic violence during 
        their lives;
Whereas the House Foreign Affairs Subcommittee on the Western Hemisphere held a 
        briefing and hearing on June 26, 2007, on violence in Central America;
Whereas the Guatemalan government and the United Nations signed a groundbreaking 
        agreement in December 2006 to establish the International Commission 
        Against Impunity in Guatemala (CICIG) which still must be approved by 
        the country's legislature;
Whereas the Central American Integration System (SICA) is an inter-governmental 
        organization formed in 1991 comprised of the following member states: 
        Belize, Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua, and 
        Panama;
Whereas SICA and the United States held their first ever Dialogue on Democratic 
        Security in Guatemala City from July 16 through 18, 2007, which focused 
        on gangs, drug trafficking, and arms trafficking;
Whereas SICA and the United States signed an agreement at this meeting to 
        improve intelligence sharing and policing and to institutionalize 
        dialogue on regional security;
Whereas this meeting was the first time in almost a quarter century that high 
        level officials from the United States and all 7 Central American 
        countries have met formally to discuss security issues;
Whereas United States Assistant Secretary of State for Western Hemisphere 
        Affairs Thomas Shannon announced at this meeting the United States 
        Strategy to Combat Criminal Gangs from Central America and Mexico 
        designed to prevent youth from entering gangs and strengthen the fight 
        against gang-related violence and other crimes;
Whereas Assistant Secretary Shannon recognized at this meeting that youth gang 
        delinquency ``has profound social roots and our way of fighting it 
        cannot only be through policing'';
Whereas the United States pledged $1,000,000 at this meeting to help Central 
        American governments draft a regional strategy to fight youth gangs and 
        drug trafficking and $3,000,000 to fund rehabilitation programs for 
        youths in gangs; and
Whereas an enhanced political commitment and cooperation between the United 
        States and Central America on security issues can help curb violence in 
        Central America: Now, therefore, be it
    Resolved,  That it is the sense of the House of Representatives 
that--
            (1) crime and violence pose an increasingly serious threat 
        to peace and stability in Central America;
            (2) officials from Central America and the United States 
        should be commended for holding a historic meeting to discuss 
        regional security strategies;
            (3) the announcement on July 18, 2007, of the United States 
        Strategy to Combat Criminal Gangs from Central America and 
        Mexico should be commended;
            (4) the President of the United States should follow 
        through on commitments made in the United States Strategy to 
        Combat Criminal Gangs from Central America and Mexico with 
        concrete actions;
            (5) the commitment of funds by the United States to fight 
        youth gangs in Central America is an important step forward and 
        greater resources should be considered in the future to fight 
        this problem due to its severity and its transnational nature; 
        and
            (6) Central American and United States officials should be 
        encouraged to meet on a regular basis to further cooperation in 
        combating crime and violence in Central America.
                                 <all>