This resolution reaffirms the importance to U.S. national interests of combating corruption, strengthening democratic institutions, and supporting judicial independence in El Salvador. Further, it urges El Salvador to respect its democratic institutions, including by strengthening government transparency, and to uphold human rights.
[Congressional Bills 117th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H. Res. 408 Introduced in House (IH)]
<DOC>
117th CONGRESS
1st Session
H. RES. 408
Urging the Government of El Salvador to respect the country's
democratic institutions.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
May 17, 2021
Mr. Sires (for himself, Mr. McCaul, Mr. Meeks, Mr. Green of Tennessee,
Mrs. Torres of California, Mr. McGovern, Mr. Castro of Texas, Mr.
Vargas, Mr. Grijalva, Ms. Garcia of Texas, Mr. Cicilline, Ms. Kelly of
Illinois, Mr. Trone, Mr. Soto, Ms. Wasserman Schultz, Mr. Vicente
Gonzalez of Texas, Mr. Pfluger, and Mr. Espaillat) submitted the
following resolution; which was referred to the Committee on Foreign
Affairs
_______________________________________________________________________
RESOLUTION
Urging the Government of El Salvador to respect the country's
democratic institutions.
Whereas El Salvador held legislative, municipal, and Central American Parliament
elections on February 28, 2021;
Whereas the preelectoral period was marked by increased tensions and the
reemergence of political violence, resulting in two known deaths;
Whereas the Organization of American States Election Observation Mission issued
a statement on March 1, 2021, in which it ``[congratulated] the
Salvadoran people who, with patience and democratic conviction, went to
the polls on February 28 to express their will clearly and peacefully'';
Whereas the political party of President Nayib Bukele, Nuevas Ideas, won a
sweeping majority of legislative seats in the February 2021 elections;
Whereas electoral officials were threatened during the vote count;
Whereas, in September 2019, President Nayib Bukele signed an agreement with the
Secretary General of the Organization of American States to establish
the International Commission Against Impunity in El Salvador (CICIES) in
order to ``support, strengthen, and actively collaborate with the
institutions'' of the Salvadoran state . . . ``responsible for
preventing, investigating, and punishing acts of corruption and related
crimes'' and by April 2021, the CICIES confirmed that it had sent twelve
cases of possible corruption-related crimes to the office of the
Attorney General;
Whereas the Government of El Salvador has increasingly been denounced for its
attacks on press freedoms by organizations such as the Inter-American
Commission on Human Rights and the Committee to Protect Journalists;
Whereas, during its inaugural session on May 1, 2021, the Legislative Assembly
of El Salvador overwhelmingly approved motions to remove and replace all
five members of El Salvador's Constitutional Chamber of the Supreme
Court and the Attorney General without just cause;
Whereas, also on May 1, 2021, the Legislative Assembly's measure was determined
unconstitutional by the deposed Constitutional Chamber, the Justices
were prevented from carrying out their duties by the national police,
and the ruling was subsequently removed from the official website;
Whereas, on May 5, 2021, the Government of El Salvador implemented a law
granting legal immunity to government officials for conduct related to
public procurements during the COVID-19 pandemic;
Whereas, in recent weeks, top government officials have proposed a constituent
assembly with reforms, including permitting Presidential reelections;
and
Whereas the Government of El Salvador has discussed limiting democratic space
for independent civil society: Now, therefore, be it
Resolved, That the House of Representatives--
(1) congratulates the people of El Salvador for exercising
their fundamental right to vote for legislative, municipal, and
Central American Parliament positions;
(2) reaffirms that combating corruption, strengthening
democratic institutions, and supporting judicial independence
in El Salvador are in the United States national interests, as
they directly support regional security objectives of the
United States, including reducing irregular migration,
combating drug trafficking and violence, protecting human
rights, and promoting prosperity and economic development;
(3) recognizes El Salvador's progress in reducing homicides
by nearly 50 percent from 2019 to 2020, the lowest level in two
decades;
(4) encourages the Government of El Salvador to expand
bilateral efforts with the United States to address the root
causes of migration;
(5) condemns the process by which five constitutional court
judges were removed without clearly established legal cause and
replaced in a way that circumvented the legally prescribed
vetting process for selecting new justices;
(6) urges the Government of El Salvador to respect the
independence of the judicial branch and the separation of
powers as provided in the Salvadoran Constitution;
(7) urges the Government of El Salvador to guarantee the
independence of the Human Rights Ombudsperson (Procurador de
DDHH), the Magistrates of the Tribunal for Expenditures
(Tribunal de Cuentas), and the Supreme Electoral Tribunal,
including refraining from dismissing the Ombudsperson and
Magistrates;
(8) calls on the Government of El Salvador to guarantee the
freedom of the press and refrain from intimidating or harassing
journalists or media outlets;
(9) urges the Government of El Salvador to uphold the
rights of freedom of expression, association, and assembly,
including for human rights organizations and anticorruption
activists, in accordance with El Salvador's commitments under
the American Convention on Human Rights;
(10) recognizes the Government of El Salvador's willingness
to work with the Organization of American States to fight
corruption and encourages the Government of El Salvador to
fully cooperate with the International Commission Against
Impunity in El Salvado (CICIES);
(11) expresses deep concern about the passage of a law that
could provide immunity for current public officials engaged in
acts of criminality or corruption during the COVID-19 pandemic;
(12) conveys the strong United States interest in ensuring
that all twelve corruption cases investigated by the CICIES and
referred to the Attorney General are completed, given the
support of the United States in El Salvador's fight against
corruption;
(13) expresses concern about whether the newly appointed
Attorney General will objectively apply the law, particularly
given his recent comments suggesting he might close
investigations into alleged corruption by the Bukele
administration;
(14) recognizes the significance of the 1992 Peace Accords
that ended a decade-long civil conflict and established the
foundation of El Salvador's democratic governance, and urges
the Government of El Salvador to continue cooperation on
investigations of human rights cases;
(15) urges the Government of El Salvador to refrain from
politicizing the military, police, and criminal justice
institutions and to ensure that they can effectively fulfill
their public functions while protecting human rights;
(16) encourages the Government of El Salvador to strengthen
government transparency and guarantee access to public
information, in accordance with Salvadoran law;
(17) encourages all political parties and political figures
to embrace peaceful and constructive engagement through
democratic, institutional channels as the proper means to
achieve their goals;
(18) encourages the United States Government to appoint a
Senate-confirmed Ambassador to El Salvador as urgently as
possible;
(19) encourages the United States Government to prioritize
mitigating the root causes of migration, anticorruption,
promoting the rule of law, and economic development in its
bilateral relationship with El Salvador; and
(20) urges the United States Government to work with the
Government of El Salvador to implement economic policies
recommended by the private sector and civil society
organizations that aim to reduce poverty, create employment,
and promote sustainable economic growth.
<all>
Introduced in House
Introduced in House
Referred to the House Committee on Foreign Affairs.
Committee Consideration and Mark-up Session Held.
Ordered to be Reported by Voice Vote.
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