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Dr. José Celso Barbosa,
in order to cement the ideal of Puerto Rican statehood, founded
the Puerto Rican Republican Party ("Partido Republicano
Puertorriqueño") on July 4th, 1899. The Republican
Party obtained the legislative majority from 1900 to 1904. It
had the difficult and delicate task of adopting the American
political system to the colonial reality of the island.
During those four years, the legal
foundations for 20th Century Puerto Rico were approved. The most
significant legislation included: trial by jury; writ of habeas
corpus; beginnings of the first labor legislation; freedom of
religion, speech and the press; the political, civil, penal,
criminal and procedural codes; tax law; the new electoral law
which granted a vote to the illiterate; Spanish and English as
official languages; the establishment of the public school system,
and scholarships to study in the United States; the establishment
of industrial schools and the University of Puerto Rico; the
position of official historian of Puerto Rico; and the creation
of the island police force.
For Barbosa, "Americanization"
was not incompatible with island patriotism, but rather it was
the vital instrument by which to obtain social justice and economic
progress. For him, political unity with the United States did
not imply dissolving the cultural personality of the Puerto Rican
people. Political assimilation was not synonymous with cultural
assimilation. He was convinced that Calderón's native
tongue could coexist with that of Shakespeare, thus creating
a more educated and dynamic people. -Gonzalo F. Cordova
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THANKS TO THE PDP, PUERTO RICO'S
FREE LUNCH WILL SOON BE OVER
Make no mistake about it, the prospect of
federal taxation for Puerto Rico's elite, not the voter's preference
for the status quo tipped the scales against an outright statehood
triumph on December 13th. Paying little or no taxes under the
porous Hacienda collection apparatus, the wealthy five percent
among us feared the efficiency of the Internal Revenue Service
more than they fancied commonwealth.
For having artfully raised the specter of
federal taxation as the curse of statehood, commonwealth advocates
have rubbed the noses of American taxpayers in the more than
$10 billion yearly Puerto Rican subsidy, inviting re-evaluation
of the "something for nothing" philosophy that has
served as the PDP's underpinning over these past 45 plus years.
Washington will take away our "free lunch"
as Young and his congressional colleagues investigate the implications
and causes of the 'None of the Above' results. Spurred on by
their stateside constituents legislation will almost certainly
be introduced and passed to make us carry our own weight fiscally.
Once having achieved the dubious distinction
of first class US citizenship tax-wise -- thanks to the PDP,
full and equal American citizenship as residents of the fifty-first
state will almost certainly soon follow thereafter as sure as
night follows day. -Miriam Ramirez de Ferrer
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The recent referendum in Puerto Rico was supposed to set the
course for the island's political future. Instead, the vote left
the outlook for the Caribbean island as cloudy as a stormy sky.
[T]he ballot was so crowded with options and the various parties
ran such negative campaigns, it should not be surprising that
disgusted citizens lodged a protest vote in a contest they recognized
would be meaningless.
Congress should approve another referendum , this one binding
and including only viable options. "None of the above"
does nothing to resolve the island's future. -The Tampa Tribune,
Editorial
Congress must select and fairly define
the Puerto Rican status choices it would be prepared to accept.
These would include a version of commonwealth that enabled Puerto
Rico to be governed in a fully democratic manner, statehood,
and nationhood of one sort or another -- independence or "free
association." It would then be up to Puerto Ricans to make
an informed and realistic decision among them. The decision and
the resulting transition may take years. But nothing less will
satisfy the obligation to convert an imperial property into a
place of dignity for American citizens who are equal in rights
to all others. -Washington Post, Editorial
Confusion Over the Puerto Rican Vote
The only clear message from the recent
plebiscite in Puerto Rico is that the question of the island's
political future remains deeply divisive. Congress's failure
to sponsor orderly balloting that would give the island's 3.8
million voters a meaningful say about their political status
has not helped.
Congress can reduce the confusion by crafting a referendum with
input from Puerto Rican leaders on all sides that accurately
reflects the options available. "None of the above"
does not move Puerto Ricans any closer to defining their future.
-New York Times, Editorial
"I am confident that once Congress
has assumed its responsibilities under the Constitution's Territorial
Clause and defined the real status options available to the people
of Puerto Rico, they will choose statehood.
"Born in 1904, a citizen of the US
by law in1917, I look forward to celebrating my own centennial
under a fifty-one star flag." -Luis A. Ferré
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Washington -- Nothing in the current US-Puerto
Rico relationship would prevent Congress from levying federal
taxes in Puerto Rico under commonwealth, the Congressional Research
Service's constitutional expert said.
"Congress has full powers to tax the
US territories and there is nothing special under commonwealth
relationship to stop it," said John Killian, who often writes
opinions for Congress on Puerto Rico. "Taxation without
representation is just a slogan. There is nothing in the Constitution
about it," Killian said.
[A] "trend" may be building here
to get Puerto Rico to contribute to the federal treasury... [as]
federal officials here ask why the island is receiving some $10
billion yearly in federal funds without contributing to the federal
treasury. -Robert Friedman, The San Juan Star
After four centuries of colonialism under
Spain, and a century and three days after the signing of the
Treaty of Paris of Dec. 10, 1898, we expected a decision in favor
of decolonization.
Each of the options on the plebiscite ballot
was to confer dignity, liberty and pride on all Puerto Ricans.
But each of the three status formulas implied the assumption
of certain duties and responsibilities.
Unfortunately, 50% of the voters decided
not to decide. Puerto Rico decided not to decide. The decision
is now up to Washington. -Neftali Fuster
"Ultimately,
Puerto Ricans will be faced with two choices: independent status
or statehood." -Rep. Dan Burton (R-IN)
"The days
of the virtual one-way flow of U.S. federal dollars flowing into
Puerto Rico as a commonwealth are ending", Rep. Don Young
(R-AK)
UNDERSTANDING
THE PUERTO RICO STATUS VOTE
Voter rejection of the present territorial
commonwealth status, rejection of independence in any form, combined
with voter reluctance to make a choice among known options, reflects
a need for federal territorial policy reform which Congress can
no longer ignore. For only Congress has the authority and responsibility
under the U.S. Constitution to define the terms for resolution
of Puerto Rico's status.
The historical vote favoring statehood
over all available options sets the stage for further integration
of Puerto Rico into the political, economic and fiscal system
of the nation. Ultimately, Congress must exercise its exclusive
power to define terms for Puerto Rico to remain under U.S. sovereignty
or achieve separate sovereignty. Only then can the U.S. citizens
in Puerto Rico make an informed choice in a Congressionally sponsored
self-determination process to resolve the status of the territory
permanently. -Citizens Educational Foundation
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