A continuación, la ponencia que el Partido Popular Democrático, escrita por su presidente, Héctor Ferrer Ríos, expuso hoy en la Cámara de Representantes, en Washington, que expresa la posición del partido sobre el proyecto para celebrar un plebiscito sobre el futuro del estatus políticos de Puerto Rico.

DEPOSITION AT UNITED STATE CONGRESS
BY HECTOR FERRER RIOS
PRESIDENT POPULAR DEMOCRATIC PARTY

Good morning, Mr. Chairman Rahall, Ranking Member Hastings and distinguished members of the Committee. My name is Hector Ferrer; I come before you as President of the Popular Democratic Party, House Minority Leader and on behalf of thousands of Puerto Ricans, who would be denied their natural right of self determination, if HR 2499 becomes law. Along with my oral testimony, I am submitting for the record, our previously written testimony to the Committee, sent electronically on Monday June 22nd, 2009. HR 2499 is not a self-determination process.  How can it be, when the process has been carefully crafted to favor statehood in a highly irregular two-round plebiscite, whereby the commonwealth option is put for ratification or rejection, alone and unnamed, in the first round. The intention is obvious, commonwealth has been the winner of all plebiscites held in the past 60 years. Statehood cannot beat commonwealth in a face to face contest but this scheme wherein commonwealth is faced against a merger of pro-statehood and independence forces, will create a narrow majority against commonwealth. 

The second round would be then a run-off election, but not in the traditional sense of a run-off between the two most voted options in a first round. It would be a run-off between the historically second and third place finishers, and a third option that’s not supported by any principal party on the island.  This second round is conceived only to construct an artificial majority for statehood.Members of the committee, this bill is not a self-determination process.  It is a well designed scheme to force statehood upon Puerto Rico, without a fair and democratic process.

 Mr. Chairman, HR 2499 doesn’t comply with two important commitments made to the people of Puerto Rico.   First of all, on February 12, 2008 President Barack Obama wrote to the former governor Acevedo Vilá that he as President, and I quote: “will work closely with the Puerto Rican government, its civil society, and with Congress to create a genuine and transparent process for self-determination that will be true to the best traditions of democracy.  As President, I will actively engage Congress and the Puerto Rican people in promoting this deliberative, open and unbiased process, that may include a constitutional convention or a plebiscite, and my administration will adhere to a policy of strict neutrality on Puerto Rican status matters.
My administration will recognize all valid options to resolve the question of Puerto Rico’s status, including commonwealth, statehood and independence.”  

 Secondly, the 2008 Democratic National Convention Platform, approved on August 25, 2008 by the 2008 Democratic National Convention states on page 57,  that “The White House and Congress will work with all groups in Puerto Rico to enable the question of Puerto Rico status to be resolved during the next four years.”  So my question to you, distinguished members of the committee, is this an open and unbiased process?, in what page or section of HR 2499 the people of Puerto Rico can choose the valid option of commonwealth as promised by President Barack Obama, and defined by those who support it?, and finally, when was my party invited to “create a genuine and transparent process for self-determination that will be true to the best traditions of democracy.?”

 Mr. Chairman, and distinguished members of the committee, I invite you to start all over again.  As President of the Popular Democratic Party I encourage Congress to insist upon a real self-determination mechanism that will not force statehood upon the people of Puerto Rico, and instead to support a process that will provide productive and democratic valid options. HR 2499 does not do that.
 
 Nevertheless, if the determination of this committee and of Congress is to favor statehood, I will make things simpler for you. I propose only one simple plebiscite.

Let the people of Puerto Rico decide: Statehood: Yes or No. Governor Fortuño recently said “Is time for them to consult us”. Grant Governor Fortuño’s wish, let the people of Puerto Rico decide: Statehood: Yes or No. I will also insist, respectfully, that you outline statehood to the people of Puerto Rico.  Tell us if you are willing to commit to statehood on a first vote, with a simple majority.  Or is it  going to be like the process held by Hawaii and Alaska that took at least three elections and a supermajority of the vote of almost 90% percent?  Tell us the people of Puerto Rico, if we will be admitted as the first Spanish speaking State, if the seven representatives from Puerto Rico to this Congress will be allowed to express themselves in their native language. Or tell a country were less than 15 percent of its people are fully-bilingual if we need to comply with English as our primary language, like Louisiana, Utah, Oklahoma and New México did. Explain to us that with statehood our tax burden will increase.  Tell us that we will loose our international representation in sports and cultural activities.  And also, explain to us if the route to statehood is through becoming an incorporated territory for an unknown amount of years. Tell us that Alaska fought for almost forty years before being granted statehood and Hawaii for almost sixty years, after being accepted as an incorporated territory.

 HR 2499 is the continuous effort started 10 years ago in this same Congress with what was known as the Young Bill.  When the bill didn’t prosper, the same characters that come here today, went to Puerto Rico and approved a plebiscite defining commonwealth without our participation.  Their goal was to provoke an artificial majority in favor of statehood and with the intention of disenfranchising the majority of the voters of Puerto Rico.  The result of that attempt was that 50.3 percent of the voters rejected all the definitions and voted for the NONE OF THE ABOVE.  Statehood lost again.  To avoid a repetition of that humiliating defeat, Governor Fortuño’s recently appointed judges  to our Supreme Court have, in a three week old decision, also disenfranchised that 50.3 percent of the votes by eliminating that option.

 So, Mr. Chairman and distinguished members of the committee, what I am saying is that it is a shame that people come here to this Congress asking for statehood based on disenfranchising the majority of the voters.  What a way of asking for statehood.

 On behalf of myself and thousands of American citizens who support the full development of the autonomous character of the Commonwealth based on the principles of sovereignty, association and joint responsibilities within a compact with the United States, respectfully request to be included in this process and not excluded.  The Popular Democratic Party believes in a political association with dignity, no colonial or territorial between Puerto Rico and the United States, based in the right of the people of Puerto Rico to decide its, fundamental issues and the permanence and irrevocability of our American citizenship.