The president's message is simple: the
United States has not forgotten its
neighbors to the south.
He said, "The working poor of Latin
America need change and the United
States of America is committed to that
change."
Administration officials say they are
well aware U.S. efforts in the region
have been overshadowed by developments
elsewhere in the world. They say they
understand why some in Latin America
feel they have been ignored and
strenuously argue that is not the case.
In a Washington speech to a group of
Hispanic business leaders, President
Bush said he remains committed to
bolstering democracies in the region,
and helping them serve the poor. He said
despite economic gains throughout the
hemisphere, too many people remain mired
in poverty.
"Nearly one out of four people in Latin
America live on less than two dollars a
day," he said. "Many children never
finish grade school. Many mothers never
see a doctor. In an age of growing
prosperity and abundance, this is a
scandal and a challenge."
Mr. Bush said the United States will
provide tens of millions of dollars in
additional aid in three key areas:
education, health care and housing. He
said new programs will be set up to help
disadvantaged students, promote home
ownership, and get health services to
those most in need.
The president made specific mention of a
new regional medical training facility
that will be set up in Panama. He also
announced the U.S.S. Comfort - a navy
medical ship that saw service in the
Iraq war - will be sent to Latin America
and the Caribbean.
Mr. Bush said, "The Comfort will make
port calls in Belize and Guatemala and
Panama and Nicaragua and El Salvador and
Peru and Ecuador and Colombia, Haiti,
Trinidad and Tobago, Guyana and
Suriname."
"It is going to be busy. Altogether the
Comfort's doctors, nurses and health
care professionals expect to treat
85,000 patients and conduct up to 1,500
surgeries," he added.
The president delivered the speech just
three days before he is set to leave
Washington on a week-long journey to
Brazil, Uruguay, Colombia, Guatemala and
Mexico.
Aides say he has wanted to make the trip
for some time to highlight his
commitment to the region, and they note
that his schedule includes numerous
visits to facilities that are trying to
make a difference in the lives of the
poor and the disenfranchised.
This is Mr. Bush's most extensive trip
to Latin America since taking office in
January 2001. And it comes at a time
when Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez is
trying to galvanize anti-U.S. sentiment
in the region.
At a briefing for reporters, White House
spokesman Tony Snow was asked if
President Bush is going to Latin America
to counter the Venezuelan leader's
growing influence.
He said, "There have been a number of
cases in which that government has tried
to intervene in elections, and so far is
batting zero."
Snow said the main reason for the trip
is to underscore the U.S. commitment to
the region, and the president's firm
belief that good governments committed
to democracy and free markets have the
potential to lift their people out of
poverty. |
|
布什总统的信息很简单，这就是美国没有忘记南部的邻国。
布什说：“拉美地区的劳苦人民需要变革，美国致力于这种变革。”
布什政府官员说，他们非常清楚，美国在拉美地区的努力因为世界上其他地方所发生的事情而不被注意。这些官员说，他们理解为什么拉美地区的一些人感到被忽略。这些官员极力地辩解说，情况并不是这样。
布什总统在华盛顿对一个拉美裔的商界领导团体发表讲话时说，他仍然致力于促进拉美地区的民主发展以及帮助这些民主国家为贫困人口服务。他说，尽管整个南半球的国家在经济上得到发展，但是太多的人仍然处于贫困的之中。
布什说：“拉美地区将近四分之一的人每天的生活费不到两美元。很多孩子读不完高中。很多母亲一辈子看不起医生。在一个日益繁荣的时代，这种情况太说不过去了，这是一个挑战。”
布什说，美国将在教育、医疗和住房这三个关键的领域提供上千万美元的额外援助。他说，将设立新的项目来帮助贫困家庭的孩子，使穷人拥有自己的住房以及给那些最需要的人提供医疗服务。
布什总统具体提到将在巴拿马设立一个新的地区医疗培训设施。他还宣布把在伊拉克战争中服过役的安慰号海军医疗船派往拉美和加勒比海地区。
布什说：“安慰号医疗船将访问伯利兹、危地马拉、巴拿马、尼加拉瓜、萨尔瓦多、秘鲁、厄瓜多尔、哥伦比亚、海地、特立尼达和多巴哥、圭亚那和苏里南。这艘船会很忙。安慰号上的医生、护士和医护专业人员预计总共要治疗8万5千个病人，做多达1500个手术。”
布什总统在他准备离开华盛顿对巴西、乌拉圭、哥伦比亚、危地马拉和墨西哥进行为期一周的访问前发表上述演讲。布什的助手说，布什总统一直希望进行这次访问，以强调他对这个地区的承诺。他们提到，布什的行程包括访问那些给贫困无助的人的生活带来影响的设施。
这是布什总统2001年1月就任以来对拉美地区进行的最长的一次访问。这次访问也是在委内瑞拉总统查维斯试图在该地区挑起反美情绪的时候进行。
在给记者举行吹风会时，白宫发言人托尼.斯诺被问及布什总统访问拉美是否是为了抵消委内瑞拉总统查维斯在该地区越来越大的影响力。斯诺说：“好几次，委内瑞拉政府试图干预选举。到目前为止，还没有得逞。”
斯诺说，这次访问的主要目的是强调美国对该地区的承诺以及布什总统的坚定信念，这就是致力于民主和自由市场的好政府有潜力使他们的人民摆脱贫困。 |
