Recognizing that violence poses an increasingly serious threat to peace and stability in Central America and supporting expanded cooperation between the United States and the countries of Central America to combat crime and violence.

Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and agree to the resolution (H. Res. 564) recognizing that violence poses an increasingly serious threat to peace and stability in Central America and supporting expanded cooperation between the United States and the countries of Central America to combat crime and violence, as amended.

Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous material on the resolution under consideration.

Mr. Speaker, I rise in strong support of this resolution and yield myself as much time as I may consume.

I want to thank our colleagues, Congressman Eliot Engel and Dan Burton, the Chair and ranking member respectively of the Western Hemisphere Subcommittee, for introducing this important legislation.

The measure brings a long overdue spotlight to the serious and growing problem of violence in Central America. The February murder of three Salvadoran legislators and the subsequent shocking murder in prison of the Guatemalan policeman linked to the crime illustrate the very real daily threat posed by violence in this region.

While this high-profile incident brought violence into the spotlight, it is unfortunately nothing new. In recent

years, murder rates have been increasing throughout Central America. In 2005, the estimated murder rate per 100,000 people was roughly 56 in El Salvador, 41 in Honduras, and 38 in Guatemala. These rates are extraordinarily high by international standards.

Much of the violence in Central America is closely related to drug trafficking. A report released by the United Nations in May argues that Central American countries are particularly vulnerable to violent crimes, fueled by drug trafficking, because they are geographically located between South America and the United States; in other words, between the world's largest drug-producing and the world's largest drug-consuming countries or areas. In fact, 90 percent of the cocaine shipped from the Andean region to the United States flows through Central America. This clearly plays a major role in triggering violence in the region.

If drugs are the primary factor in the scourge of violence, youth gangs are a close second. There's estimated to be about 70,000 youth gang members in Central America. Many of these gangs have ties to the United States and pose threats to security in our own communities.

We are beginning to address this violence crisis. The United States and Central American officials have started to work together to combat violence in Central America, but more needs to be done. This July, high-level officials from the United States and all seven Central American countries met to discuss security in the region, particularly addressing gangs, drug trafficking and arms trafficking. This meeting marked the first time in almost a quarter century that high-level officials from the United States and all the countries of Central America met formally to discuss security issues.

At the meeting, the State Department announced the U.S. strategy to combat criminal gangs from Central America and Mexico and pledged $4 million to help Central America deal with the youth gang issue. I applaud this meeting and the State Department's initiative and encourage Central American countries to go beyond a police-based approach and address the social roots of violent crime.

With passage of the important measure today, the United States Congress will recognize that violence poses an increasingly serious threat to peace and stability in Central America. This resolution encourages Central American and U.S. officials to meet on a regular basis to enhance further cooperation in curbing violence in the region.

The measure also recognizes the U.S. has a commitment of $4 million to tackle this problem, and that is a welcome start. But, importantly, this resolution notes that greater resources should be considered in the future to fight the problem of violence in Central America.

Our friends in Central America are great and close allies, and we should do everything we can to bring stability to these societies and to end excessive violence. That is why I urge all Members to support this resolution.

Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I yield 5 minutes to one of the co-authors of this legislation, the chairman of the Foreign Affairs Subcommittee on the Western Hemisphere, Mr. Engel.

Mr. Speaker, I have no further requests for time, and I yield back the balance of my time.

I thank my friend from California.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today in strong support of my House Resolution 564, which brings attention to the serious and growing problem of violence in Central America.

I first want to thank my colleague and the ranking member on the Western Hemisphere Subcommittee, Dan Burton, for introducing this resolution with me. I also want to thank Chairman Lantos and Ranking Member Ros-Lehtinen for their support of this bill.

The February murder of three Salvadoran legislators in the Central American Parliament and the subsequent shocking murder in prison of the Guatemalan policeman linked to the crime illustrate the very real daily threat posed by violence in Central America. While this high-profile incident brought violence in Central America to a spotlight, it is, unfortunately, nothing new.

Homicide rates in El Salvador and Guatemala are higher today than they were in those countries' civil wars. According to government statistics, Guatemala's murder rate has doubled since 1999.

As chairman of the Western Hemisphere Subcommittee of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, I focus intently on violence in Central America and the roots of this violence. At a recent hearing that I chaired on this topic, I was taken aback by the major role that drug trafficking plays in encouraging violence in the sub-region.

Ninety percent of the cocaine shipped from the Andean region to the United States flows through Central America. The sub-region's location between the highest drug-consuming and the highest drug-producing regions of the world make it particularly vulnerable. Unfortunately, we are the highest drug-consuming portion of that equation.

If drugs are the primary factor in this scourge of violence, youth gangs are a close second. The U.S. Southern Command has estimated that there are 70,000 gang members in Central America alone. Fortunately, we are beginning to address this crisis. The United States and Central American officials have started to work together to combat violence in Central America; but, obviously, much more needs to be done.

This resolution recognizes the recent progress that has been made in enhancing U.S.-Central American cooperation and combating violence in Central America. The seven countries of Central America, the Dominican Republic and the United States held its first-ever dialogue on democratic security in Guatemala City this July. That meeting was the first time in almost a quarter century that high-level officials from the United States and all of these countries met formally to discuss security issues.

At this meeting, Assistant Secretary of State for Western Hemisphere Affairs, Tom Shannon, announced that the U.S. strategy to combat criminal gangs from Central America and Mexico was beginning. The United States also pledged $4 million in assistance to help Central Americans begin to address this issue.

This resolution commends U.S. and Central American officials for their joint efforts to combat violence and encourages greater cooperation in the future. In the coming days, the Bush administration will present Congress with a plan to assist Mexico and Central America in dealing with issues of crime and violence, particularly as they relate to counternarcotics.

I look forward to working with my colleagues from the State Department and Central America as we begin to shape a future assistance package that will address violence in Central America.

Finally, I want to point to one area of progress that we have seen since this resolution was first introduced in July.

On August 1, Guatemala's legislature approved the international commission against impunity. This is a groundbreaking agreement between the Guatemalan Government and the United Nations to combat impunity in Guatemala. It is a major step for all of us who care so deeply about curbing violence in Central America, and I want to congratulate my colleagues in the Guatemalan Congress and the executive branch on this major accomplishment.

Let me say in closing that one of the things I have noticed as chairman is the feeling of neglect in the hemisphere that the other nations feel that the United States is not concentrating on this region, that we are looking elsewhere in the world. I think that this resolution and what we are doing goes a long way in combating that feeling.

I urge my colleagues to support House Resolution 564.

Mr. Speaker, I yield myself as much time as I may consume.

Mr. Speaker, I rise in support today of H. Res. 564 and join my colleagues in recognizing the efforts taken by the United States and seven Central American countries to confront gang violence in Central America.

The tragic nature of gang violence in Central America threatens the peace and stability of its neighbors to the north and to the south. Geographically located between the world's largest drug-producing and drug-consuming countries, Central America faces a seemingly insurmountable problem when forced to counter gang violence on its own.

For this reason, I was pleased to see that earlier this year, the United States and seven Central American countries took the first step towards finding an international solution to the growing level of violence in Central America by holding the first-ever dialogue on democratic security in Guatemala City.

As the transnational nature of gangs causes crime and violence in Central America to bleed into the United States, this resolution recognizes the importance of a continuing United States involvement and commitment of funds towards dealing with youth gangs in Central America.

Gangs have become more organized, more violent, and affect North America, Central America and South America. It also encourages Central America and U.S. officials to meet on a regular basis for further cooperation in combating crime and violence and commends these countries for taking the first step in the struggle for security by developing the United States' strategy to combat criminal gangs from Central America and Mexico.

While I am pleased to see the progress made this year, I also recognize the grave importance of sustaining these efforts while increasing our understanding of the roots of this epidemic. I look forward to our continued cooperation with our neighbors to the south and once again applaud the efforts already taken to counter this increasing threat to peace and security in our region.

Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I want to commend Mr. Engel, and I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of H. Res 564, and would like to take this opportunity to commend the countries in Central America that have pooled their time and expertise to discuss common goals through the Central American Integration System (SICA)-- which is an inter-governmental organization comprised of Belize, Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua, and Panama (with the Dominican Republic as an Associate Member).

I would also like to commend the United States government for its effort in addressing the issues of gangs, drug trafficking and arms trafficking through the Dialogue on Democratic Security that was held with the Central American Integration System countries in Guatemala City this past July.

Violence in Central America is a grave threat to the entire region. Recent numbers from the Andes and parts of Central America show that the murder rate is above forty per 100,000 people, and does not appear to be on the decline. The increasing prevalence of violence in this region raises serious concerns with high levels of insecurity and weak state capacity to deal with criminal activity. The transport of drugs and widespread gang activity create additional problems that must be tackled sooner rather than later.

It is this reason why I support H. Res 564, commending action taken to Combat Criminal Gangs from Central America and Mexico and encouraging regular meetings in which countries can build on existing cooperation toward this end.

I urge my colleagues to support this resolution.