Providing for Consideration of H.R. 3688, United States-Peru Trade Promotion Agreement Implementation Act

PROVIDING FOR CONSIDERATION OF H.R. 3688, UNITED STATES-PERU TRADE PROMOTION AGREEMENT IMPLEMENTATION ACT -- (House of Representatives - November 07, 2007)

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Mr. LINCOLN DIAZ-BALART of Florida. I thank my friend and I thank you, Mr. Speaker.

The goal, Mr. Speaker, of our trade policy should be free trade among free peoples. And this agreement that we bring to the floor today, I think, is so important for many ways. If there is a nation that not only is a friend, but that has withstood extraordinary challenges, including violence, terrorism, extraordinary attacks to its free institutions, it is our neighbor and our friend, Peru. And they have, the prior administration with President Toledo, now the administration of President Alan Garcia, they have repeatedly demonstrated that they wish to deepen their relations with the United States, that they wish to tie their economic future to the United States. And tonight is our opportunity to respond and say to our friend, Peru, we recognize the steps you have made. We recognize not only the good-faith efforts that you've made to come to this agreement and to, by the way, renegotiate it after the political dynamic change. The situation changed here a year ago, and a renegotiation was required by the new leadership in this Congress of President Garcia.

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And the Peruvian Government demonstrated once again good faith and walked the extra mile to come to this agreement. This agreement is in the interest of the United States, of the workers in the United States, and it's in the interest of Peru.

When I say ``free trade among free peoples,'' Mr. Speaker, I think it's important to realize that peoples throughout the world should have an opportunity to raise their voices, to be heard, to form civil society, environmental groups, labor groups, to fight for their rights, to fight for their human rights, for their legal rights. In Peru, despite extraordinary challenges, there is freedom, and people can organize, as they can in the United States,

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in civil society, in environmental organizations and labor organizations and others to demand their rights and speak up when their rights are violated. That's the great difference when we, for example, trade with a democracy with great challenges like India or a tyranny like, for example, Communist China. I always like to point out the difference. Free trade with free peoples.

Tonight we enter into an agreement with a free people that is, in addition to being free, a great friend of the United States. So it is my privilege tonight to ask for our colleagues to support this rule and the underlying legislation.

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