[Congressional Record Volume 172, Number 94 (Wednesday, June 3, 2026)]
[House]
[Page H3783]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




               CALLING FOR RELEASE OF RUTH ELEONORA LOPEZ

  (Mrs. RAMIREZ asked and was given permission to address the House for 
1 minute and to revise and extend her remarks.)
  Mrs. RAMIREZ. Madam Speaker, I rise today to join human rights 
defenders across the world to call for the immediate and unconditional 
release of Ruth Eleonora Lopez, who has been held in pretrial detention 
for over 1 year without any due process and without access to her 
family or even her lawyer.
  A Salvadoran lawyer and human rights defender, Ruth is a political 
prisoner, unjustly targeted for her tireless fight against corruption 
and her demands for justice, accountability, and transparency from 
Bukele's government in El Salvador.
  Authoritarians want to strike fear into our hearts. They want to 
punish dissent, and they want to criminalize those who would be willing 
to speak truth to power. But we will not concede the power of the 
people, and we will not be silent.
  I unequivocally stand in solidarity with Ruth Lopez, her family, and 
human rights defenders. I say to them that they are not alone. We are 
with them, and we will not forget them.

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