[Congressional Record Volume 154, Number 84 (Wednesday, May 21, 2008)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E1006-E1007]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                  INTERNATIONAL FOOD CRISIS AND HAITI

                                 ______
                                 

                               speech of

                       HON. DONNA M. CHRISTENSEN

                         of the virgin islands

                    in the house of representatives

                         Tuesday, May 20, 2008

  Mrs. CHRISTENSEN. Madam Speaker, I could not travel to Haiti with my 
colleagues last week, but I have been there several times over the past 
12 years, and it breaks my heart to see a country which ought to have 
had so much promise in the critical state it now is. I have to agree 
with what I have heard from many Haitians, that the day to day 
existence of the people is worse than it ever was during the Duvalier 
period.
  The people of Haiti welcomed the democracy our country helped to 
bring. They participated enthusiastically in the electoral process.

[[Page E1007]]

They were patient as they waited for the assistance that never came in 
full.
  Today they are in the middle of a terrible food crisis--one that we 
can and must do what we can--and we can do a lot--to abate.
  The food crisis in Haiti is responsible for recent riots, killings, 
and the ousting of the country's prime minister. In just the past few 
weeks, five Haitians and one United Nations worker were killed in the 
violent protests stemming from the overwhelming food shortage. The 
situation, which has been labeled a ``silent tsunami'' by the U.N. 
World Food Programme, has not received the attention and action it 
warrants.
  Haiti is our neighbor. In my estimation, we have not done all that we 
could and should have to avert this and every other crisis it has faced 
in recent years. The instability that is increasing every day, not only 
threatens the life of every Haitian but can destabilize the region and 
send adverse ripples here.
  Madam Speaker, I applaud the current administration's commitment to 
provide $200 million in emergency food aid. I implore my colleagues to 
join me in urging the President to commit no less than $60 million of 
the $200 million for Haiti.
  We need to pass the HERO Act to provide investment and create jobs.
  I am also calling on this Congress to pass Temporary Protected Status 
for the people of Haiti in this time of great peril. In the face of the 
inequity in treatment of Haiti under immigration, it is the least we 
can do.
  It is time for the United States to take seriously our obligation as 
the lead Nation in this hemisphere and assist our neighbor in this time 
of extreme need.

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