Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume, and I rise today in strong support of this concurrent resolution that expresses the sense of Congress that the United States should actively support efforts in Nicaragua to move that country towards an immediate and full restoration of a functioning democracy.

Further, the resolution calls on the United States and the international community, including the Organization of American States, to actively support the government of Nicaragua and civil society as they work to establish the necessary conditions to ensure a free, fair and transparent electoral process.

Throughout the 1980s and the 1990s, Latin America and the Caribbean, with the notable exception of Cuba, made remarkable progress towards democracy. I believe much of the credit for this progress is due to the courageous leadership of many democracy-minded people in the region who grew weary of the brutal dictatorships, but also the dedication of people like former President Ronald Reagan and others in the U.S. and elsewhere who invested in the future of these countries by helping to plant the seeds of democracy and nurturing them over time.

That investment is paying off, but we should be under no illusions that the work is complete. The truth is that, 15 years after the Managua Spring, democracy and freedom in Nicaragua are being eroded. While democracy is still holding on, it is not without its opponents, and in Nicaragua, the alarm bells are ringing.

Right now in Nicaragua, the hard left and the corrupted right are making common cause in attempting to bring down the democratically elected government of Enrique Bolanos. Sandinista leader Daniel Ortega in alliance with convicted former president Arnoldo Aleman has entered into an arrangement known as the Pact that poses a real and present danger to every democratic institution in that country, from the national assembly, the national electoral council, to the supreme court right on down.

For example, the Pact, through its control of the National Assembly of Nicaragua, tried to strip President Bolanos of his constitutional powers through what is known as the Stability and Governability of the Country Law. In October, however, the assembly, under pressure from the international community and perhaps the introduction of this resolution, voted to postpone this law until after President Bolanos leaves office in January of 2007.

Delaying the governability law has allowed Nicaragua to avoid an immediate constitutional crisis. But as President Bolanos said quite clearly during a recent visit with members of our subcommittee here in Washington, which I chair, the future of Nicaraguan democracy remains under threat and that the United States needs to pay attention before it is too late.

I believe that we must do what we can to ensure that the upcoming elections in Nicaragua are free and fair. Passage of this resolution will send a loud and clear message to the political elements that are attempting to subvert Nicaraguan democracy that the United States does not abandon friends who have stood so strong for the value of democracy.

While the recent actions of the Ortega-Aleman Pact indicate they may have abandoned their immediate efforts to overthrow President Bolanos, we should be under no illusion that they have given up their longer-term goal of returning Nicaragua to the days of oppression and dictatorship. So many Nicaraguans died during the years of violence and civil war for the dream of a free and democratic Nicaragua. Their sacrifice should not be in vain. We must work with the democratic forces of Nicaragua to ensure that Nicaragua continues to thrive and benefit for the people of that nation.

The resolution before us sets out a path which I believe and many of my colleagues on both sides of the aisle believe will ensure that democracy remains viable in Nicaragua. I urge my colleagues to show their support for democracy in Nicaragua by supporting this resolution.

Let me just end by saying, thank you to Mr. Lantos, my very good friend, for his leadership and his hard work on this and a lot of other legislation. Let me just say that Mr. Lantos and I were both here back in the 1980s when the war took place in Nicaragua and El Salvador, and we saw the horrible result of dictatorships. We saw the horrible result of civil war, and democracy has changed that whole region down there. And we think it is extremely important that we do everything we can to support democratic institutions so that we do not have the bloodshed that we saw back in the 1980s and we do not see the massive flight of people leaving that region to get to the United States and elsewhere to get away from those wars. So I think this resolution sends a strong message. Once again, I thank Mr. Lantos.