Lays Out Vision for the Future of U.S. Relations with Latin America

November 1, 2010 – Today, after 30 years as a member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, Senator Chris Dodd (D-CT) chaired a full committee hearing on the future of U.S. policy towards Latin America. The hearing, Dodd’s last, focused on ways the United States can improve and enhance our relationship with the countries in the Western Hemisphere. Dodd is a senior member of the Committee and Chairman of the Subcommittee on Western Hemisphere, Peace Corps, and Global Narcotic Affairs.

“Over the course of my service in the Senate, I’ve tried to play a role in shaping American policy towards our neighbors to the south.  And although we’ve made progress, as I leave the Senate, it is long past time for a fundamental shift in how we think about and relate to the region,” said Dodd.

“I’ve seen so much change, so much progress, and so much hope.  And even though my public service may be coming to an end, I feel strongly that we are just at the beginning of a new era in this special relationship.  The future truly is bright in our neighborhood.”

Dodd’s interest in Latin America was fostered during his time as a Peace Corps volunteer in the Dominican Republic from 1966 to 1968. For 30 years, he served as either Chairman or Vice Chairman of the U.S. – Mexico Interparliamentary Group, which brings together Mexican and American legislators on an annual basis to address matters critical to the U.S. – Mexico relationship.

Dodd also led the Senate Central America Negotiations Group during the 1980s, which monitored the progress of the Guatemala City accord. He also has been a longstanding critic of the United States embargo against Cuba and recently was an original co-sponsor of the Freedom to Travel to Cuba Act, which would lift travel restrictions on all Americans wishing to travel to Cuba.

Below are Dodd’s remarks as prepared for delivery.

Good Afternoon.  Let me begin this hearing by thanking Chairman Kerry for allowing me to take the gavel at this full committee hearing on Latin America.  Today marks my last hearing as a member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee.  For over 30 years, I have had the tremendous honor and privilege to serve as a member of this committee, and as chairman or ranking member of the subcommittee on the Western Hemisphere, Peace Corps and Global Narcotics Affairs.

Throughout my service on this committee, I have had the opportunity to work with a number of incredible individuals, both Republicans and Democrats alike, in tackling some of the most significant challenges facing our nation. And while, unfortunately, there isn’t enough time today to mention all of them, I would like to take this moment to recognize a few.

From Jesse Helms and Claiborne Pell, to Senator Lugar and our nation’s Vice President, Joe Biden—this committee has benefitted from a truly illustrious group of Senators at its helm over the years.  This committee has grappled with the most pressing international challenges facing the United States, and done so in a bipartisan spirit.  Chairman Kerry has continued to lead the committee in this great tradition.  I’m glad that Senator Lugar is here today to serve as the Ranking Member of this hearing—it is a fitting finale to our partnership in Latin America, and further evidence of Senator Lugar’s tremendous commitment to the region, it’s people and democracy.

Let me also welcome our four distinguished witnesses and friends here today. I have not only benefited from their professional knowledge, but have grown to know them personally.  I look forward to hearing your thoughts and ideas.

Ms. Joy Olson, is the Executive Director of the Washington Office on Latin America and has decades of experience working to improve human rights in Latin America, raising issues that would otherwise have been ignored, so I thank her for her work.

Mr. Mark L. Schneider and I have known each other for many years from his time at the Peace Corps, USAID, and now with the International Crisis Group where he serves as Senior Vice President and Special Adviser on Latin America.  Mark also has a deep knowledge of Haiti, and I look forward to hearing his thoughts on those matters.

Dr. Cynthia J. Arnson is the Director of the Latin American Program at the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars. Her academic work over the years on governance, human rights and conflict in Latin America has been profound and extremely important to furthering progress in the region.

Finally, I am happy to welcome Ambassador Jaime Daremblum. Ambassador Daremblum is a Senior Fellow and the Director of the Center for Latin American Studies at the Hudson Institute. He served as Ambassador of Costa Rica to the United States from 1998 to 2004.

In 1966, I arrived in the rural village of Moncion in the Dominican Republic as a volunteer for the Peace Corps.  Today, nearly half a century later, I’m chairing my last hearing as Chairman of the Senate Subcommittee on Western Hemisphere, Peace Corps, and Global Narcotics Affairs.  

And, in that time, Latin America has undergone remarkable change—much of it positive.  We are now seeing the development of a new middle class, the consolidation of democracy, the propagation of effective fiscal and social policies, and the rise of new global powers.

Over the course of my service in the Senate, I’ve tried to play a role in shaping American policy towards our neighbors to the south.  And although we’ve made progress, as I leave the Senate, it is long past time for a fundamental shift in how we think about and relate to the region.  

Because Latin America is not our backyard.  It is our neighborhood.  And when we focus exclusively on the challenges still faced by our neighbors—and the related dangers we, ourselves, face—we run the risk of missing out on the opportunities their progress has created.

First and foremost, democracy is becoming more widespread and more durable.  In Colombia and Chile, citizens recently exercised their right to vote in successful, peaceful, fair elections.  In Brazil, where President Lula has led so well, they have just elected their first female president, Dilma Rousseff. Her election along with President Cristina Fernandez, President Laura Chinchilla, as well as former President Michele Bachlet, among others, sends a strong message to a generation of Latin American women that they too are part of the region’s future.  

Meanwhile, the Latin American economy, long defined as “emerging,” has finally emerged.  In the five years leading up to the 2008 global financial crisis, Latin American economies experienced growth rates of 5.5 percent, while keeping inflation in single digits.  And when the crisis did hit, Latin America stood strong, weathering the crisis better than any other region in the world.

While income inequality remains a significant issue (as it does in the United States I might add), forty million Latin Americans were lifted out of poverty between 2002 and 2008.  

It’s not just the increasingly stable economy that is providing opportunity for historically poor Latin Americans.  Governments are beginning to deliver the education, health care, and social services necessary for sustaining growth and progress.  Conditional cash transfers like Mexico’s Oportunidades program and Brazil’s Bolsa Familia have reduced poverty, increased school attendance, and provided hope for a generation of low-income families that otherwise would have remained marginalized.

There is still work to do, of course.   Drug trafficking and related violence plagues our Mexican neighbors to the South.  In many parts of Central America, citizens are forced to live and work behind barbed wire and blast walls—El Salvador and Honduras have some of the highest murder rates in the world.  Kidnapping, rape and other violence is soaring.  And corruption and ineffective judicial mechanisms, including police, remain serious, systemic problems.  Despite what are tremendous and positive gains, Colombia still has one of the highest rates of internally displaced persons in the world.  While Brazil’s economic growth and poverty reduction are remarkable, systemic violence still plagues that country—as demonstrated by recent efforts to regain control of Favelas from drug gangs in and around Rio de Janeiro.  

Venezuela and Cuba remain examples of democracy denied.  Haiti’s desperate poverty and its struggle to recover from the devastating earthquake and recent cholera outbreak is heart wrenching.

Out of the spotlight, there are still developmental challenges: productivity is growing too slowly, saving is too low, and too much of the labor force remains in the informal economy.  Women and the indigenous still face discrimination, and the poor are still too often excluded.

But that old metaphor—Latin America as the United States’ backyard—is indicative of the American habit of viewing the region solely in terms of problems to be solved, not opportunities to be celebrated.  In turn, our neighbors too often see us as paternalistic instead of recognizing our commonality.

What a shame.  Because despite these challenges, there is so much opportunity to be found in Latin America.

After all, we are #2 in the world in Spanish speakers.  Our enormous and influential Latin community has brought cultural and familiar ties to the forefront along with our geographical proximity.  And not only do we share a common colonial history, there’s reason to believe that our paths forward may converge, as well.

But to harness these opportunities, each of us has a role to play.

Latin American and Caribbean nations have concerns about sovereignty, and I appreciate those concerns.  But the challenges we face respect no border.  We must be able to encourage our neighbors to strengthen their social programs, invest in infrastructure, and trust in democracy and to work together in doing so.

The Obama administration’s work to integrate the Central American Regional Security Initiative and the Caribbean Basin Security Initiative with the Mérida Program is a step in the right direction, as is the administration’s  new, though long overdue, focus on vital institution building and civil society programs in Mexico.

But, the militarization of our response to the challenges we face in Mexico is a huge mistake.  And I remain deeply concerned that not enough effort, creativity, and attention is being focused on tackling the root causes of these problems in Mexico.  

I’ve also urged our government to continue its policy of encouraging the social and economic development that has brought Latin America so far along.  On my recent trip to Panama, I saw first-hand the good work USAID is doing.  I applaud the work we’re doing to help women entrepreneurs through the Pathways to Prosperity program, and at-risk youth through the Obra Initiative.  And I want to see more programs like them.  

We must look beyond the elites with whom we traditionally engage, and work with new and emerging leaders, including the dynamic mayors, governors and other local leaders who have emerged in a region where 75% of the population lives in urban centers.  

This outreach must also include women, the indigenous, the poor, minorities, and those who have traditionally been excluded from the public square.  I know this is a priority for Secretary Clinton and I applaud her leadership on this front.  

And, to strengthen our economic ties, I urge Congress to pass the Colombia and Panama free trade agreements.  Our expertise can also come in handy as our partners restructure their tax systems and collection mechanisms, helping to address inequality.

In Venezuela, where there is real cause for concern, we cannot bury our heads in the sand.  We must address this challenge in a smart and sophisticated way.

Earlier this year, the Inter-American Commission on Human rights released a report that raised serious concerns regarding the further degradation of human rights in Venezuela.  The situation is unacceptable.  But this is not a case of the United States vs. Venezuela, but rather Venezuela vs. democracy.  Simply refusing to talk to Caracas won’t do a thing to empower moderates and democratic advocates, loosen political restrictions, or encourage the Venezuelan people and its neighbors to push for change.

The same principle applies in Cuba.  I returned from Cuba a few weeks ago, stunned to see that the country is finally making some of the critical changes in its own society that all of us, including the Cuban people, have wanted for so long.   The Cuban Government recently announced that one million Cubans have been let go from the Government payrolls and instead will be allowed to run their own businesses.  With the help of Cardinal Ortega and the Spanish Government, political prisoners are being released.

No, you don’t have to approve of the way Cuba is run—and I certainly don’t.  Cuba clearly still has a long way to go to, and nobody is arguing to the contrary.  But the simple truth is that Cuba is changing.

So the question I have to ask is, why aren’t we?

Why don’t we, Americans, have the courage to change 50 years of failed policy toward the island?  Why are we stuck in an anachronistic policy that reflects the world of 1963 better than 2010?  We must summon the courage and the wisdom to change course on Cuba. We must look forward.

I count my extensive travel through Latin America as one of the great privileges of my life and my time as a Senator.  I’ve seen so much change, so much progress, and so much hope.  And even though my public service may be coming to an end, I feel strongly that we are just at the beginning of a new era in this special relationship.  The future truly is bright in our neighborhood.

Thank you and I look forward to hearing your testimony.