U.S. Rep. Eliot Engel Receives COA Chairman's Award

Prepared by Carin Zissis
May 12, 2009

COA Board President William Rhodes (L) presents the award to Rep. Engel.

At the opening reception for the 39th Washington Conference on the Americas, the Council honored U.S. Representative Eliot Engel (D-NY) with the Chairman's Award for Leadership in the Americas. The congressman serves as the chairman of the House Committee on Foreign Affairs and the Subcommittee on the Western Hemisphere. COA Board Chair William R. Rhodes commended Engel for "expertly" handling hemispheric affairs. Engel has also championed aid for prevention of HIV and malaria in the Caribbean.

Download an mp3 of Rep. Engels' remarks.

During his acceptance speech, the congressman gave his perspective on the Fifth Summit of the Americas in Port of Spain, where he led a congressional delegation. Calling U.S. President Barack Obama's performance at the summit as "stellar," Engel talked about the president's recommendation that the region move forward rather than remain mired in past disputes.

Engel also discussed the U.S. role in gun violence in Mexico as a result of illegal arms smuggling. The congressman commended Obama for supporting the Inter-American Convention against the Illicit Manufacturing of and Trafficking in Firearms, Ammunition, Explosives and other Related Materials. He pointed out that, while the United States accounts for 5 percent of the world's population, it consumes 70 percent of the world's illicit drug consumption. As a result, the congressman introduced legislation to reexamine U.S. drug policy and drug prevention programs.

The Council gives the Chairman's Award for Leadership in the Americas—the highest honor the Council can bestow—to a democratically-elected leader with a record of significant achievement in hemispheric affairs. Previous recipients include OAS Secretary General José Miguel Insulza; former U.S. Senator Robert Graham (D-FL); Congressmen David Dreier (R-CA), Kevin Brady (R-TX), and Jim Moran (D-VA); and former IDB President Enrique Iglesias.

For nearly four decades, the Washington Conference on the Americas has provided the top forum for government, industry, and policy leaders to engage in substantive analysis on timely themes affecting the Western Hemisphere.


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