[Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States: George W. Bush (2007, Book I)]
[March 10, 2007]
[Pages 279-281]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office www.gpo.gov]



The President's Radio Address
March 10, 2007

    Good morning. Today Laura and I are in Latin 
America, where we are visiting five countries: Brazil, Uruguay, 
Colombia, Guatemala, and Mexico. These countries are part of a region 
that has made great strides toward freedom and prosperity in

[[Page 280]]

the past three decades. They have raised up new democracies, and they 
have undertaken fiscal policies that have brought stability to their 
economies.
    Yet despite the progress we have seen, many citizens in our 
hemisphere remain trapped in poverty and shut off from the promise of 
this new century. Nearly one out of every four people in Latin America 
lives on less than $2 a day. Many children never finish grade school. 
Many mothers never see a doctor. The fact is that tens of millions of 
our brothers and sisters to the south have yet to see improvements in 
their daily lives, and this has led some to question the value of 
democracy.
    Our Nation has a vital interest in helping the young democracies in 
our neighborhood succeed. When our neighbors prosper, they create more 
vibrant markets for our goods and services. When our neighbors have a 
hopeful future in their own countries, they can find work at home and 
are less likely to migrate to our country illegally. And when our 
neighbors feel the blessings of liberty in their daily lives, the appeal 
of radicalism declines and our hemisphere becomes more secure.
    The United States is doing its part to help our neighbors in Latin 
America build a better life for themselves and their families. We are 
helping these young democracies make their governments more fair, 
effective, and transparent. We are supporting their efforts to meet the 
basic needs of their citizens, like education, health care, and housing. 
And we are increasing opportunity for all by relieving debt, opening up 
trade, and encouraging reforms that will build market economies, where 
people can start from nothing and rise as far as their talents and hard 
work can take them.
    On Monday, I will meet a Guatemalan citizen 
who has experienced the power of open trade and free economies; his name 
is Mariano Canu. Twenty years ago, he was an indigenous farmer whose 
land provided barely enough corn and beans to feed his family. No one in 
his family had ever been to college, and most of the people in his 
village never got past the sixth grade. And his own children's prospects 
for prosperity looked just as bleak.
    Mariano was determined to do better for his 
family, so he organized an association of small farmers called 
Labradores Mayas. He persuaded his fellow farmers to switch their crops 
to vegetables they could sell overseas, high-value crops like lettuce, 
carrots, and celery. Soon they were selling to big companies like Wal-
Mart Central America. Today, the business he helped establish is 
thriving, and it supports more than 1,000 jobs. It also has supported 
something else, a college education for Mariano's son.
    Mariano is showing what the people of Latin 
America can accomplish when they are given a chance. We must help others 
like him gain the opportunity to build a better life for their families. 
The generosity of the American people is helping our neighbors in Latin 
America build free and vibrant economies. By doing so, we will increase 
living standards for all our citizens, strengthen democracy in our 
hemisphere, and advance the cause of peace.
    Thank you for listening.

Note: The address was recorded at 7 a.m. on March 9 at the Hilton Sao 
Paulo for broadcast at 10:06 a.m. on March 10. The transcript was made 
available by the Office of the Press Secretary on March 9, but was 
embargoed for release until the broadcast. Due to the 3-hour time 
difference, the radio address was broadcast after the President's 
remarks in Uruguay. The Office of the Press Secretary also released a 
Spanish language transcript of this address.

[[Page 281]]