Expressing the sense of the House of Representatives that the March 2007 report of the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime and the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development makes an important contribution to the understanding of the high levels of crime and violence in the Caribbean, and that the United States should work with Caribbean countries to address crime and violence in the region.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today in strong support of H. Res. 865, ``Expressing the sense of the House of Representatives that the March 2007 report of the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime and the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development makes an important contribution to the understanding of the high levels of crime and violence in the Caribbean, and that the United States should work with Caribbean countries to address crime and violence in the region,'' introduced by my friend and colleague Congresswoman Yvette Clarke, of which I am proud to be an original cosponsor.

Mr. Speaker, I have traveled in the Caribbean recently, and I, together with many of my colleagues on the Committee on Foreign Affairs, had the opportunity to meet with CARICOM leaders last year. I believe that it is extremely beneficial to all our nations, and to the international community, that we continue this trend of increasing engagement and interaction. Equally important is that we ensure that, in our process of engagement, that we are truly listening and responding to the concerns presented by government and civil society leaders of the Caribbean nations, as well as addressing our own social, economic, and security goals.

Crime and violence in the Caribbean region is undoubtedly one area in which our concerns are in line with local needs. Most observers have indicated that the level of crime and violence throughout the Caribbean basin has increased over the past decade, a trend confirmed by a joint report issued by the United Nations and the World Bank last year. This report, titled ``Crime, Violence, and Development: Trends, Costs, and Policy Options in the Caribbean,'' found that crime and violence have increased throughout the Caribbean to such an alarming extent that the region, as a whole, now has the highest overall crime rate of any region in the world.

Mr. Speaker, it is dangerous to characterize an entire region, as each nation is different; however, there are some general statistics regarding the Caribbean Community that cannot be ignored. While some countries have been relatively successful at maintaining low levels of crime, as a whole, the Caribbean has murder rates four times higher than those of the United States. Regional rape rates are above the global average, and three countries in the region are among the 10 countries globally with the highest rate of rape.

In addition to violent crime, trafficking of drugs remains a significant problem in the region, and one that has a serious impact on our own country as well. In 2005 alone, for example, 30 tons of cocaine transited through Jamaica, Haiti, and the Dominican Republic. According to the White House's Office of National Drug Policy, the Caribbean Corridor accounted for approximately 8 percent of the total documented flow of cocaine departing South America in 2004. The region also plays a prominent role in drug-related money laundering.

Mr. Speaker, these facts combine to create a crisis with long-term developmental consequences. Trade, commerce, tourism, and social well- being are all threatened by these crimes, and the nations in the Caribbean region will not be the only ones to suffer. Declining stability in the Western Hemisphere will seriously impair U.S. efforts to fight organized crime and drug trade, while instability in the Caribbean region has historically impacted immigration patterns to the United States. The Caribbean Community is one of our most important allies in ensuring our borders are secure--regional instability means gaps in our border protection efforts.

The United States must work together with our Caribbean friends and allies, to develop effective partnerships in search of workable solutions. If the Caribbean is destabilized, all of our nations will suffer the consequences. We have an opportunity to address this problem before it destabilizes much of the hemisphere and jeopardizes U.S. security.

Mr. Speaker, I strongly urge my colleagues to join me in supporting H. Res. 865 to express the sense of the House that the U.S. and its CARICOM allies take up the U.N./World Bank report's recommendations and work together to solve this potentially devastating problem before it is too late.

Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and agree to the resolution (H. Res. 865) expressing the sense of the House of Representatives that the March 2007 report of the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime and the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development makes an important contribution to the understanding of the high levels of crime and violence in the Caribbean, and that the United States should work with Caribbean countries to address crime and violence in the region, 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 I yield myself such time as I may consume.

Over the past decade, the level of crime and violence throughout the Caribbean basin has increased. Last year, the United Nations and the World Bank issued a joint report titled, ``Crime, Violence, and Development: Trends, Costs and Policy Options in the Caribbean'' which confirms this trend.

The report makes a very disturbing finding: Crime and violence have generally increased in the Caribbean, to the point where the region as a whole now possesses the highest overall crime rate of any region in the world.

While I note that each member of the Caribbean community is different, and that some countries are successful in maintaining relatively low levels of crime, the report's numbers, while taken as a whole, are alarming. They document extremely high levels of murder, rape, and drug trafficking on a massive scale.

If the high levels of crime and violence in the Caribbean persist, they will undermine long-term economic development by eroding the region's trade, commerce, and tourism.

The impact of this regional law and order would have a crisis which could extend beyond the borders of CARICOM states by impacting immigration patterns to the United States and by undermining our efforts to fight organized crime and drug trade. Regional instability related to crime and violence in the region could also undermine U.S. border security efforts.

As the report points out, the United States is part of the cause of some of these problems, and we could also be a big part in the solution. Our allies in the Caribbean stand ready to partner with us in finding workable solutions. We have an opportunity to address this problem before it destabilizes much of the hemisphere and jeopardizes U.S. security.

I urge my colleagues to support H. Res. 865 and the accompanying amendment in the nature of a substitute to express the sense of the House that the United States and its CARICOM allies take up the U.N./ World Bank report's recommendations and work together to solve this potentially devastating problem before it's too late.

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

I yield 5 minutes to the gentlewoman from New York (Ms. Clarke) who, incidentally, her district has one of the largest Caribbean communities in the United States, and her heritage is from the Caribbean. I am so pleased to yield her 5 minutes on her first resolution in her freshman year. I commend you for that.

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

Mr. Speaker, I'd like to thank the Representative from New Jersey (Mr. Payne) for yielding time, and for his words about this important resolution.

I also wholeheartedly thank Chairman Howard Berman of the Foreign Affairs Committee along with Western Hemisphere Subcommittee Chairman Eliot Engel, full committee ranking member Ileana Ros-Lehtinen, and subcommittee ranking member Dan Burton for their support and great help in moving this legislation through committee to the House floor.

The release of the U.N./World Bank report, ``Crime, Violence and Development: Trends, Costs and Policy Options in the Caribbean'' should be a wake-up call for every American interested in the security of our Nation.

As the report points out, a variety of factors, including some for which we in the U.S. are partly responsible, such as a seemingly insatiable and heavy illicit legal drug consumption and extremely problematic deportation policies has contributed to our neighboring Caribbean region having the highest crime rate in the world.

While today the region remains a wonderful place for Americans to visit, and most hospitable tourist destination in the world, in the long term, if this trend continues, it will wreak serious social, economic, and security troubles for many of the tranquil Caribbean nations.

Allowing this situation to deteriorate for years to come will ultimately create a security threat, not just for the Caribbean states, but, indeed, for our own country, as well as an unstable Caribbean region, and would create a vast vulnerability in America's border security.

Many of the problems identified by this report have long been recognized by Caribbean leadership. These emerging democracies and developing nations are doing everything within their means to collaborate on the safety of their respective nations and, by extension, our hemisphere.

Now, with the confirmation provided by this report in hand, ignorance is no excuse. The U.S. must partner with its Western Hemisphere neighbors and allow it to find workable solutions that will help the people of the Caribbean and ensure long-term security and stability of our region.

As the daughter of Caribbean immigrants, and a district that boasts the largest concentration of Caribbean Americans in the Nation, and as a member of the Committee on Homeland Security, I ask my colleagues to support this resolution calling for the U.S. to take up the solutions contained in the very important U.N./World Bank report. If we act now, we will help our allies to reduce crime greatly at levels before the situation becomes far less manageable and a threat to the Western Hemisphere that is, indeed, within our global community.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of H. Res. 865, welcoming the recommendations contained in the March 2007 World Bank report ``Crime, Violence, and Development: Trends, Costs, and Policy Options in the Caribbean.'' I would like to commend my colleague and sister from the Caribbean, Congresswoman Yvette Clarke inroducing this legislation.

Too often the Caribbean is overlooked when issues of global economy and diplomacy are discussed. I am pleased that H. Res. 865 urges the United States, other drug-consuming countries, and the Caribbean countries to increase counter-narcotics efforts in the Caribbean region. As a member of the House representing the U.S. Virgin Islands, I know firsthand the negative impact that crime can have on the economy of Caribbean islands. The report indicates that high rates of crime and violence in the Caribbean are undermining growth, threatening human welfare, and impeding social development. For the most part, the economy of the Caribbean is tourism driven. Safety and security are vital to providing quality tourism, and crime is a direct threat to the Caribbean tourism industry.

One contributing factor to the growing crime problem in the region is our country's deportation program that sends individuals who have

lived in this country for years--almost all their lives in some cases-- back to their native country, if they have committed a crime. The individuals who learned their trade in this country are sent back often with no notification, many times without any known family and sometimes not knowing the language, as in Haiti. As long as we continue to deport criminals as we do now, we will continue to seed the growing drug and criminal activity in the Caribbean. Churches, especially those associated with Prison Ministries International are concerned and actively pursuing programs to address this situation.

Today, H. Res. 865 takes a positive step toward addressing the crime in the Caribbean by recognizing that a resolution requires an approach that ``transcends Caribbean national boundaries.'' I am encouraged and hopeful that this report will provide a basis for developing good practices to eradicate crime in the Caribbean.

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

The alarming rate of crime and violence in the Caribbean region cannot be ignored. Several countries have reached the point of crisis, while attempting to counter the social, economic and political repercussions of organized gangs and narcotrafficking.

Murder rates in the Caribbean are higher than in any other region in the world, and have risen in recent years for many of the countries in the region. Recent increases in kidnappings have been observed in the region over the past few years, and assault rates, based on police reports, are significantly above the world average.

Serving as seemingly insurmountable obstacles to the economic and social progress of countries in the Caribbean, the pervasive nature of crime and violence again cannot be ignored. We have a shared responsibility to confront this threat and engage in coordinated efforts that improve the quality of life for all of our communities.

The security threats faced in the Western Hemisphere as a result of violence and narcotrafficking call for strong action on the part of our government. So far, our partnerships with countries throughout the hemisphere are demonstrating significant success in the fight against drugs and crime; such as the case of Colombia, where substantial improvements in security have yielded positive patterns of growth, stability, and investment.

We have good reason to be optimistic, Mr. Speaker. The deadly flow of

cocaine into the United States has seen a dramatic decline in the last few months. Purity levels are falling, and retail prices are rising.

We must remain committed to defeating the perilous threats of crime and violence that endanger the youth and prosperity of our Nations today. Together, we must tackle these challenges and strive to further tighten the bonds that hold us together as nearby neighbors.

I am confident that through future cooperation and coordination, we can continue to see success and support the true potential of our friends in the Caribbean.

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

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