Speech #1050184117

Mr. President. today I introduce the Central American and Caribbean Refugee Adjustment Act of 1998. This legislation will provide deserved and needed relief to thousands of immigrants from Central America and the Caribbean who came to the United States fleeing political persecution. In the 1980s. thousands of Salvadorans and Guatemalans fled civil wars in their countries and sought asylum in the United States. The vast majority had been persecuted or feared persecution in their home countries. The people of Honduras had a similar experience. While civil war was not formally waged within Honduras. the geography of the region made it impossible for Honduras to be unaffected by the violence and turmoil that surrounded it.