WASHINGTON — Puerto Rican politicians pleaded with a Senate committee Thursday to establish the groundwork for granting the U.S. territory statehood or allowing for its independence.
Although the officials represent political parties with very different ideas for Puerto Rico’s future, they agreed that a resolution to the issue is long overdue.
“It’s about time you start speaking frankly to the Puerto Rican people about under what conditions you would accept for statehood,” Ruben Berrios, president of the Puerto Rican Independence Party, told the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee. “If it is statehood, state the conditions for statehood. If it is free association, state the conditions for free association.”
Puerto Rico’s history with the United States is long and complicated, but one of the most significant developments was the Jones-Shafroth Act of 1917, which granted all Puerto Ricans American citizenship and was signed into law by then-President Woodrow Wilson.
Like Guam and American Samoa, Puerto Rico is an unincorporated territory. This status affords residents fundamental U.S. rights as a matter of law, but provides only select constitutional rights. Puerto Ricans cannot vote in U.S. presidential elections, but pay Social Security and are therefore eligible for its benefits.
While Puerto Rican political parties agree with the people that the time to act is now, each wishes to see different end results. The New Progressive Party is championing statehood while the Puerto Rican Independence Party favors unrestricted sovereignty.
“The U.S. invaded Puerto Rico and consulted nobody. Under international law you should devolve our powers so we have self-determination,” said Berrios.
“There is no majority support for Puerto Rico being treated as a sovereign nation,” responded Pedro Pierluisi, resident commissioner of Puerto Rico and a member of the New Progressive Party. “If somebody proposes that, I think the overwhelming majority of Puerto Ricans will reject it.”
Puerto Rico faces enormous social and economic challenges that most say are only exacerbated by its uncertain status.
“The lack of resolution of Puerto Rico’s status not only distracts from addressing these and other issues—it contributes to them,” said Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Ore., chairman of the Senate committee.
One of the biggest issues a strikingly high violent crime rate. According to a United Nations study on global homicide, Puerto Rico had 26.2 murders for every 100,000 citizens in 2010—a rate higher than the most recent data for Rwanda, North Korea and Panama.
The results of a November 2012 referendum on the political status of Puerto Rico confirm that the status quo for the territory is not supported by the majority of its people.
The first question on the ballot asked Puerto Ricans whether they wanted to continue with the island’s current territorial status. Fifty-four percent voted no.
To the second question — what political status would they prefer—statehood, independence or a sovereign nation with free association with the United States — 61 percent said statehood.
“This is the most democratic nation in the world and you cannot ignore that vote,” Pierluisi said.” You need to respond to that vote.”
But changing Puerto Rico’s status will not be easy, some committee members said.
“The fact that Puerto Rico has been engaged with this issue for many decades and the fact that you have many more options available to you makes it perhaps more difficult,” said Sen. Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska.
Wyden said that the committee is looking to bring bipartisan recommendations on the issue to the rest of Congress and the Obama administration. Obama has announced that he is seeking $2.5 million to conduct the first U.S.-funded vote on the issue.
“We’ve danced semantically around this long enough. We have to move forward and make decisions here,” said Sen. Martin Heinrich, D-N.M.
But the promises of the committee and the administration were not enough for Berrios.
“Nothing is going to happen here. You will not act, don’t kid yourself,” he said.