Text of Letter to President Clinton from U.S. Congressman Luis V. Gutierrez re Vieques Fast
June 16, 2000

The Honorable William J. Clinton
President of the United States
The White House
Washington, D.C. 20500

Dear Mr. President:

I am writing to inform you that a young Puerto Rican man is currently engaged in a hunger strike in Lafayette Park. He is engaged in this act of self-sacrifice to urge you to meet with the leaders of the people of Vieques and the religious leadership of Puerto Rico to discuss your directive on Vieques. His action is in support of a petition for a meeting with you signed a in a letter dated December 20, 1999 by the leaders of Vieques and by a petition made to you on several occasions by letter and expressed in meetings with your staff by the religious leaders of Puerto Rico.

This brave individual is Héctor Rosario, a first-year student in the mathematics Ph.D. program at Dartmouth College in New Hampshire. He completed an M.A. in mathematics at Teachers' College at Columbia University. Héctor began his hunger strike on Tuesday and intends to keep his vigil until you respond. I urge you to grant his request.

As I believe you must be aware, your directive on Vieques has been rejected by the overwhelming majority of the people of Puerto Rico as a solution to the abusive and immoral use of Vieques by the U.S. Navy. The leadership of the people of Vieques and the religious leadership of Puerto Rico are eager to meet directly with you to discuss the terrible human costs of your mandate. I am pleased to add my voice to their request.

I hope to hear soon that you have granted this reasonable request. Thank you for your attention to my concerns.

Sincerely,

(signed)

Luis V. Gutierrez
Member of Congress