January 10, 2006

The Honorable George W. Bush
The White House
1600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW
Washington, DC 20500

Dear President Bush,

In October 2005, severe floods and mudslides caused by Hurricane Stan devastated parts of Central America and southern Mexico. We write to encourage a generous U.S. response, and urge you to provide additional reconstruction assistance to affected countries and grant Temporary Protected Status (TPS) to Guatemalans and renew TPS for Salvadorans living in the United States.

Guatemala was most severely affected by Hurricane Stan; entire communities were buried by mudslides. The United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) estimates that over 600 people were killed and over 800 remained missing at the end of October. Almost 35,000 houses were damaged or destroyed and approximately 475,000 people were affected by the storm. El Salvador suffered through a volcanic explosion, then was hit by Stan. Seventy-one people died, and more than 72,000 people were evacuated to shelters. There was damage as well in southern Mexico, along the Mexico-Guatemala border.

Three months later, Central Americans face a serious food shortage due to destruction of crops and livelihoods. The United Nations World Food Programme has issued an urgent appeal to donors to help feed an estimated 285,000 victims of Hurricane Stan, facing a severe hunger crisis this winter.

A practical way in which the United States can help Central Americans help themselves is to provide Temporary Protected Status to Guatemalans and renew TPS for Salvadorans living in the United States, who together send an estimated $4.5 billion per year in remittances to their families. Their contributions to the reconstruction of their countries are essential, and we strongly urge you to grant TPS, as soon as possible, in light of the magnitude of the disaster facing the region. While we recognize the political sensitivities involved, this one action could contribute substantially to reconstruction.

In addition, we believe the United States should designate additional reconstruction assistance beyond the development assistance included in the FY06 budget, which maintains aid to Central America at previous year levels. We appreciate that USAID has provided some emergency assistance but believe that a substantial increase is necessary for Guatemala and El Salvador. Given the series of humanitarian crises around the world in the last several months, we are deeply concerned that the response to Hurricane Stan has not been adequate. We are convinced that the United States must make a more generous response to this year’s terrible natural disasters, both in our own country and abroad.

Thank you for your attention to this important issue.

Rajyashri Waghray
Director, Education and Advocacy
Church World Service

Rev. Elenora Giddings Ivory
Director, Washington Office
Presbyterian Church (USA)

Richard Parkins
Director
Episcopal Migration Ministries

James E. Winkler
General Secretary
General Board of Church and Society
United Methodist Church

Joy Olson
Executive Director
Washington Office on Latin America

Raymond C. Offenheiser
President
Oxfam America

J. Daryl Byler
Director
Mennonite Central Committee
U.S. Washington Office

Mary Catherine Rabbitt, SL
President
Sisters of Loretto/Loretto Community

Richard Erstad
Director, Latin American and Caribbean Regional Program
American Friends Service Committee

Marie Dennis
Director
Maryknoll Office for Global Concerns

The Rev. Cally Rogers-Witte
Executive Minister
Wider Church Ministries
United Church of Christ

Simone Campbell, SSS
National Coordinator
NETWORK, a National Catholic
Social Justice Lobby

Tara Carr-Lemke
Washington, DC Policy Office Director
SHARE Foundation: Building a
New El Salvador Today

Maricela Garcia
President
National Coalition of Guatemalan Organizations (CONGUATE)

Adam Isacson
Director of Programs
Center for International Policy

Barbara Gerlach
Colombia Liaison
United Church of Christ Justice
and Witness Ministries

Charlie Clements
President
Unitarian Universalist Service Committee

Rev. Dr. James B. Vigen
Director for International Relations and Human Rights
Evangelical Lutheran Church
in America, Washington Office

Neil Greenbaum
President & CEO
Hebrew Immigrant Aid Society (HIAS)

Emily S. Goldman
Senior Program Officer
Robert F. Kennedy Memorial Center
for Human Rights

Seamus P. Finn, OMI
Director
Oblate Justice and Peace/Integrity of Creation Office

Andrew de Sousa
National Organizer
Network in Solidarity with the
People of Guatemala

Patricia Davis
Guatemala Human Rights
Commission/USA

Richard Kamp
Director
Border Ecology Project

Marcia Soto
President
Confederación de Federaciones
Mexicanas del Medio Oeste

Tanya Snyder
Executive Director
Voices on the Border

Claudia Lucero
Vice-President
Durango Unido en Chicago

Stephen Coats
Executive Director
U.S./Labor Education in the
Americas Project

Mark L. Berenson
Co-Director
Committee for Inter-American
Human Rights

Rev. David A. Vargas
President
Division of Overseas Ministries
Christian Church (Disciples of Christ)

John Lindsay-Poland
Director
Fellowship of Reconciliation Task Force on Latin America and the Caribbean

Elaine Nonneman
Trustee
Channel Foundation

Bob Schwartz
Executive Director
Disarm Education Fund

Harold M. Baron
Chairman of the Board
Foundation for Self-Sufficiency
in Central America

Mónica C. Larenas
Program Officer
Fund for Nonviolence

Todd Flory
Legislative Associate
Brethren Witness/Washington Office

Doug Hellinger
Executive Director
The Development GAP

T. Michael McNulty, SJ
Justice and Peace Director
Conference of Major Superiors of Men (CMSM)

Cc: Adolfo Franco, Assistant Administrator, Latin America and Caribbean Bureau, USAID
David E. Lindwall, Director, Office of Central American Affairs, U.S. State Department
Robert Divine, Acting Deputy Director, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services,
Department of Homeland Security

To respond to this letter, please reply to Lisa Haugaard, Executive Director, Latin America Working Group. 424 C Street, NE, Washington, DC 20002 Ph: 202-546-7010 F: 202-543-7647