Date: 2007-11-13
Speaker: LINDA T. SANCHEZ (democrat)
Chamber: H

of -California. I want to thank the gentleman for graciously yielding me so much time. I would also like to thank the distinguished chairman of the House Committee on Foreign Affairs. Congressman TOM LANTOS. and the distinguished ranking member. Ileana RosLehtinen. for supporting this important resolution that I am offering today. The U.S. has had its share of natural disasters recently. from Hurricanes Katrina and Rita in 2005 to this years southern California wildfires. some of which are still burning as I speak. As we have learned. it is difficult even for the United States. one of the wealthiest nations in the world. to adequately care for our victims and rebuild our communities once we have experienced one of these natural disasters. In loth of those disasters. our neighbor was there to help us with emergency relief units and firefighters. Now Mexico faces the challenge of a devastating natural disaster within its own borders. This resolution recognizes the plight of our Mexican neighbors and expresses our desire and commitment to support Mexico during one of the worst natural disasters in its history. a disaster which the countrys President has described as one of the worst not only because of the size of the area affected but because of the number of people affected. As many Americans already know. a series of storms brought torrential rainfall to southern Mexico. especially the States of Tabasco. and Chiapas. causing various rivers to overflow their banks. At least half a million peoples homes have been damaged or destroyed and perhaps double that number are without utilities or cut off from transportation routes. In the State of Tabasco. as was already mentioned. 100 percent of the agricultural crops have been lost and 80 percent of the state is underwater. Its incredible. Truly. this is a disaster of epic proportions. In this agricultural area. even those who were able to stay safe during the storm will face many challenges in the weeks ahead. Having lost their crops. which for many are their sole source of income. surviving and keeping their families fed and intact will be difficult. In addition to picking up the pieces of their lives after losing their homes and crops and everything that they owned. the flood survivors face increased threats from diseases like malaria. dengue fever and cholera. As a good neighbor. it is imperative that we do all that we can to -help Mexico ensure that the flood victims can indeed get back on their feet. It is the least we can do for a neighbor who did what it could to help us in our times of need when we experienced natural disasters. I also want to take a moment to commend and comment on Mexican President Felipe Calderon for leading his countrys rapid response to this devastation arid for the work that he did before the rains fell to avert an even greater catastrophe. The Presidents. swift reaction avoided even greater disaster. and I applaud his efforts. They really were impressive. This resolution today expresses the sympathy of the U.S. House of Representatives during this time and pledges our continued assistance. We want to acknowledge theprompt humanitarian response that has come from many quarters. not just the Mexican Government but international organizations and relief bodies. We must continue to support these efforts as long as they are necessary. I urge my colleagues not only to support this resolution but to work together to ensure that its goals are realized. I urge us to continue to work in a bipartisan manner to.address this humanitarian crisis. We must not just speak of our good intentions. we must act on them. We must immediately make assistance available to Mexican authorities so that Mexico can continue to provide relief aid to the victims as the effects of the flooding continue to unfold. I strongly encourage my colleagues to support this resolution. .