LEGISLATIVE ACTION NEEDED!
Contact the Foreign Policy Staffer in the Washington DC Office of Your Senators!  

On Thursday, May 23, 2013, U.S. Senator Cardin (D-MD) circulated a Senate sign-
on “Dear Colleague” letter to Secretary of State John Kerry addressing deepening
concerns about Human Rights and the Rule of Law in Honduras.

The letter states that violence and impunity for state security forces in
Honduras has reached intolerable levels and cites concerns related to
extrajudicial killings, linkages to death squads, and increasing militarization
of civilian law enforcement.

The letter also raises the concern that State Department certifications
intended to ensure that U.S. foreign aid supports the rule of law in
Honduras, may contradict the reality on the ground.

The letter asks State Department to:

Provide Congress with a detailed assessment of the efficacy of current
Honduran government efforts to address this issue as mandated by
FY12 Appropriations language;

Conduct a detailed review of specific State Department actions to help
ensure that no U.S. funds are being used to support police implicated
in human rights violations; and

Make every reasonable effort to help ensure that Honduras’ upcoming
November 2013 elections are free, fair and peaceful.

Please call the foreign policy aide in your Senators DC office and urge your Senator to sign the letter.
The Congressional Switchboard number is: (202) 224- 3121

(To identify your Senator, go to the website below and select your state from
the menu in the upper right hand corner http://www.senate.gov/index.htm)

Ask to speak with the aide who handles foreign policy and use the script below.
If the foreign policy aide is not is not available, ask to leave a message on his/
her answering machine.  Be sure to ask for the name of foreign policy staffer
so you can follow up.

Script:
“My name is _____.  I am a constituent in (town / city neighborhood).  I am calling to ask
Senator _____ to sign the Benjamin Cardin letter on Human Rights and the Rule of Law
in Honduras.   Has Senator ____ seen this letter?  Can I count on him/her to sign on?
Please call me this week at (your phone number) to let me know if you have seen the
letter, and if Senator_____ will sign it. Thank You.”

The deadline for sign-on is Friday, June 7 at 5:00 PM

To sign on to the letter, the legislative staffer who handles foreign policy
must call or email algene_sajery@cardin.senate.govor
nate_somers@cardin.senate.govin Senator Cardin’s office.
Please contact the aide every few days to make sure that the
staffer has asked the Senator to sign on.

Let us know if your Senator agrees to sign on.

Thank you for taking action on behalf of human rights in Honduras.

Jenny Atlee
Friendship Office of the Americas
PO Box 926
Greenbelt, MD 20768
202-241-3399