Remarks of Ambassador Charles L. Glazer
IV Annual Gang Conference
April 8, 2008

It is an honor for me to be with you this morning as we come together to discuss one of the most important issues facing this hemisphere – the continued growth of transnational crime. 

We are here today to join forces against a common threat, and we are in the midst of a struggle that we cannot afford to lose.         

Make no mistake about it:  Street gangs such as MS-13 and the 18th Street Gang pose a genuine transnational security threat to El Salvador, neighboring Central American countries, Mexico, and the United States. 

Here in Central America, the negative impact of street gang activity is more apparent every day. 

The rising tide of gang-related violence claims the lives of innocent citizens who simply want to go about their daily activities in peace. 

Extortion and the threat of gang violence discourage investment, hamper economic growth, and encourage citizens of the region to leave their country in search of safer streets and greater economic opportunity elsewhere. 

Of great concern is that decreasing levels of public security undermine confidence in democratic institutions and cause the public to lose faith inthe ability of their elected leaders, their police forces, their judges, and their prosecutors to keep the streets safe for law-abiding citizens. 

The government’s number one responsibility is protecting its citizens.  All people living in democratic countries have the right to be safe in their homes, on the streets, on public buses, and at their place of work. 

Citizens who cannot depend on their government to ensure their safety will eventually take the law into their own hands.

That’s not democracy.  That’s society beginning to unravel.  We are all here today because none of us wants that.

Although we face a daunting struggle against transnational crime, I am heartened by the fact that this conference’s host, El Salvador, has taken a leadership position in the region in fighting organized crime, criminal gangs, and narcotics traffickers.  El Salvador hosts two institutions key to improving public security in Central America: the International Law Enforcement Academy (the “ILEA”), which trains police, judges and prosecutors from throughout the Western Hemisphere; and the Comalapa Cooperative Security Location (the “CSL”), which is an operational hub for detecting, monitoring, and interdicting narcotics trafficking in the region.  Both the ILEA and the CSL serve as visible reminders of the strong partnership between the United States and El Salvador.

The ILEA and the CSL are but two examples of the broad cooperation that we have undertaken with our Salvadoran partners. 

The Transnational Anti-Gang Unit (TAG,) developed by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and based here in San Salvador, combines the expertise and resources of the participating countries and agencies to aggressively investigate, disrupt, and dismantle transnational gangs like MS-13 and 18th Street. 

In addition, identifying and tracking gang members in El Salvador and neighboring countries will be aided by the Central American Fingerprint Exploitation Initiative (CAFÉ). Under CAFÉ, criminal fingerprints and other biometric records from Mexico, El Salvador, Guatemala, Belize and Honduras are entered into the FBI’s fingerprint databases, which can be searched by law enforcement agencies of the participating countries.    

In order to complement the work of the TAG and CAFÉ, we have also created the
position of Regional Gang Advisor.  This important State Department official, based in San Salvador has regional responsibilities. The Regional Gang Advisor will work with US and local law enforcement authorities to strengthen the institutions that will fight gangs throughout the region.

In El Salvador, as in neighboring countries, much remains to be done to strengthen the nation’s crime-fighting capacity. 

In a speech I gave in San Salvador in March, I set out several legal reforms I believe are critical to getting violent criminals off the streets. 

They bear repeating here, the  National Assembly should approve a revised criminal procedures code soon to ensure transparency and predictability in criminal courts. 

The police and fiscalía deserve to have criminal cases heard quickly and decided impartially according to the law.  The legislature should also ratify a new bilateral extradition treaty so that people who have committed crimes in the US and have fled to El Salvador are returned to the US to face justice.  Another key tool in the fight against crime is the wire tap. Wire tapping is critical to tracking down criminals, and to infiltrating and eliminating criminal organizations.  In fact, the Director of the FBI has told me that the wire tap is THE most effective tool to fight organized crime. 

Finally, the Assembly should enact an asset forfeiture law without delay, because the Government needs access to the ill-gotten assets of criminals. 

The U.S. has taken many steps to support El Salvador and its neighbors in their fight against crime, and we will take more.  As many of you are aware, President Bush recently forwarded a funding proposal to Congress called the Merida Initiative. 

As part of this bold foreign assistance proposal, the President has asked Congress to appropriate $50 million to help combat crime in Central America in 2008, as well as an additional $100 million in 2009.  And President Bush has said this would be just a start.  The Merida Initiative would provide countries in Central America with significant assistance for police training, equipment, and institutional support. 

President Bush proposed Merida to Congress because he is convinced, as am I, that transnational crime requires a coordinated response, a response in which the countries of the region share resources, information, expertise and experiences to confront this common threat. 

If Congress moves quickly to approve the Merida Initiative, as I hope it does, the US Government will be able to strengthen its partnership with our neighbors, further assist their critical crime fighting institutions, and fortify the regional response to transnational crime.

Here in El Salvador, the police are working hard every day to confront the problem of crime with limited personnel and financial resources. 

The United States stands ready to help the police ensure their resources are targeted as efficiently as possible against the many threats facing Salvadorans.  The Merida Initiative would assist in that endeavor.

In closing, let me reiterate to all of you who have come from countries throughout the region, and especially all of my Salvadoran friends gathered here today, that the United States is dedicated to working with you to meet the challenge of transnational crime, and to strengthening democracy in our respective countries.    

To my many American friends and colleagues gathered here today, I thank you for joining us today and I congratulate and thank you for your dedication to fighting for justice and public safety in the U.S. and abroad. 

Most importantly, I invite you to roll up your sleeves and spend the next three days working with your colleagues from the region to develop effective,creative strategies to make all our countries safer from the threats of transnational crime. 

Thank you.