[Congressional Record Volume 167, Number 195 (Friday, November 5, 2021)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1205]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




 REINFORCING NICARAGUA'S ADHERENCE TO CONDITIONS FOR ELECTORAL REFORM 
                              ACT OF 2021

                                 ______
                                 

                               speech of

                            HON. ALBIO SIRES

                             of new jersey

                    in the house of representatives

                      Wednesday, November 3, 2021

  Mr. SIRES. Mr. Speaker, I would like to address S. 1064, the 
Reinforcing Nicaragua's Adherence to Conditions for Electoral Reform 
Act of 2021, or the RENACER Act. I introduced the House version of the 
RENACER Act in April with Congresswoman Maria Elvira Salazar, Ranking 
Member of the Western Hemisphere Subcommittee Mark Green, and Reps. 
Deutch, Wasserman Schultz, Murphy, and other bipartisan colleagues. 
This bill builds on the Nicaragua Investment Conditionality Act of 
2018, or the NICA Act, and expands the United States' toolbox to 
address the challenges to democracy faced in Nicaragua. Congress passed 
the NICA Act in 2018 in the aftermath of Ortega's brutal crackdown of 
protesters that year. Since 2018, the Ortega regime's criminalization 
of dissent has only continued; and since I introduced RENACER in April, 
the regime arrested almost 40 opposition figures, including eight 
possible presidential candidates.


 =========================== NOTE =========================== 

  
  November 5, 2021, on page E1205, the following appeared: Mr. 
SIRES. Mr. Speaker, I would like to address S. 1046, the 
Reinforcing Nicaragua's
  
  The online version has been corrected to read: Mr. SIRES. Mr. 
Speaker, I would like to address S. 1064, the Reinforcing 
Nicaragua's


 ========================= END NOTE ========================= 


  Daniel Ortega has made it clear that he will go to any lengths to 
maintain power. The United States Government must use every diplomatic 
tool available to ensure free, fair, and competitive elections in 
Nicaragua. We should implement a results-oriented diplomatic strategy, 
in coordination with our allies, that aligns sanctions with specific 
outcomes. This will be the most effective way to counter the Ortega 
regime's efforts to use repression, persecution, and fear to prevent 
the Nicaraguan people from expressing their will at the ballot box.
  This legislation would also expand oversight of international 
financial institutions' lending to Nicaragua, to ensure that any funds 
are helping the Nicaraguan people and not filling the coffers of 
corrupt actors in government. The RENACER Act also strengthens 
protections for humanitarian and human rights needs of the Nicaraguan 
people, so that our policies do not inadvertently harm the very people 
we seek to help. Finally, the legislation requires a number of reports, 
including on acts of corruption committed by the Ortega government and 
his family members and on human rights violations against communities 
marginalized by the regime.
  By passing the RENACER Act, we will send a strong message that we 
stand with the political prisoners, their families, and with all 
Nicaraguans in defending their right to choose their own leaders. We 
will show unequivocally our firm support for the democratic aspirations 
of the Nicaraguan people. I urge my colleagues to support this 
legislation and stand up for the Nicaraguan people.

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