[Congressional Record Volume 155, Number 149 (Thursday, October 15, 2009)]
[House]
[Page H11434]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]


     HAITIAN PEOPLE PURSUE STABLE, PROSPEROUS AND DEMOCRATIC FUTURE

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Under a previous order of the House, the 
gentlewoman from Florida (Ms. Ros-Lehtinen) is recognized for 5 
minutes.
  Ms. ROS-LEHTINEN. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to express my 
longstanding commitment to assist the Haitian people in their pursuit 
of a stable, prosperous and democratic future.
  During my trip to Haiti, I was reminded of the tremendous challenges 
facing this island nation. The U.N.'s appointment of President Clinton 
as special envoy to Haiti has helped to keep a much-needed spotlight on 
Haiti. President Clinton's appointment of Dr. Paul Farmer as the Deputy 
U.N. Special Envoy for Haiti, adds an invaluable wealth of experience 
and knowledge to the U.N.'s work in Haiti.
  As a founder of Partners in Health and the Institute for Justice & 
Democracy in Haiti, Dr. Farmer has demonstrated a selfless commitment 
to the advancement of health and democracy in Haiti for the past 20 
years. I have witnessed firsthand Dr. Farmer's dedication to helping 
improve the lives of those in need.
  He has strong south Florida ties. I am proud to call him a friend, 
along with our mutual friend, Jennie Block, who has also worked so hard 
on issues of concern to the Haitian community.
  I understand that the conference on the Inter-American Development 
Bank in Haiti went quite well. I was pleased to see that the United 
Nations voted unanimously this week to extend the authorization for the 
U.N. Mission in Haiti for another year.

                              {time}  1715

  I would also like to take a moment to express my condolences to the 
families of those who lost their lives in last weekend's plane crash 
during a U.N. mission. The U.N. mission in Haiti has helped to play an 
important role in bringing security and stability to some of the most 
dangerous neighborhoods in Haiti. I continue to support its mission and 
the many men and women from around the world who work to carry it out.
  However, it seems that Haiti just can't get to the next step. From 
assistance to debt relief, from trade benefits to hurricane recovery, 
U.S. policy toward Haiti has run the gamut, but it is not achieving the 
long-term goals that we had hoped for for the Haitian people and that 
the Haitian people want for themselves and their nation.
  I am pleased to know that our State Department is taking a closer 
look at some of the challenges we are facing in Haiti. Last week, 
Secretary Clinton's chief of staff and her point person on Haiti 
briefed Members on some of the initial findings of this review.
  I am confident that this review will help us to better understand how 
U.S. assistance to Haiti can be better targeted and supportive of 
Haiti's own plans and goals; how assistance within the donor community 
can be better coordinated; how the U.S. can better engage the Haitian 
Diaspora in our assistance efforts; and, finally, how the U.S. can 
finally make our assistance sustainable so that outside efforts can 
ultimately be transferred into the hands of the Haitian government and 
its people.
  It is crucial that the efforts made by the U.S., the U.N. and others 
are effectively coordinated to ensure maximum efficiency and maximum 
benefit for the people of Haiti. Innovative microcredit and 
microenterprise programs would help to empower individuals, create 
self-reliance and create sustainability at the grassroots level. We 
should also look at the very small-scale renewable energy programs for 
impoverished rural villages and settlements that are not served by 
electric grids.
  One of the immediate ways we can help the people of Haiti would be to 
grant temporary protected status to the Haitians currently living in 
the U.S. Granting TPS to Haitians is the missing piece of a successful 
U.S. approach to supporting the people of Haiti in the short and long 
term. I will continue to work with my colleagues to encourage the 
administration to take this important step.
  In addition, I will continue to support Haiti's inclusion in security 
initiatives, such as the Merida Initiative, to ensure that the U.S. is 
doing all we can to help President Preval in his efforts against the 
narcotraffickers.
  Success in Haiti is in the U.S. national security interest, and we 
must work together to help address the many challenges we face and that 
our Caribbean neighbor faces day in and day out.

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