Post by Logan on Jun 9, 2016 2:36:00 GMT -6
Weighted by Debt, Puerto Ricans Divided Over Federal Oversight
“We are the ones who have to solve this, not the federal government,” said Mariana Reyes, 41, a community activist and former journalist who runs La Junta, a burger spot that features music and art in San Juan. “Those chavos” — the money — “for the bondholders, where will they come from: layoffs, pensions, services. What’s not fair is not fair.”
In their view, the bill would benefit the hedge funds that lent Puerto Rico the money, not Puerto Rico. And they argue that the island’s fate, its laws and regulations, should not be trumped by people who, for the most part, will not be Puerto Rican and will know little about the intricacies of life on the island.
If approved by Congress, the board would be run by seven members selected by President Obama from candidates proffered by Republicans and Democrats in Congress. At least one of the seven members must be a resident of Puerto Rico.
Coursing through the opposition movement is frustration and an infuriating feeling that the federal government believes Puerto Rico incapable of fixing its own problems without paternalistic intervention. It speaks loudly to Puerto Rico’s longstanding, emotionally fraught conflict over its in-between status as a United States commonwealth, neither state nor independent country.
Read more: www.nytimes.com/2016/06/09/us/puerto-rico-divided-over-federal-oversight-of-economy.html
“We are the ones who have to solve this, not the federal government,” said Mariana Reyes, 41, a community activist and former journalist who runs La Junta, a burger spot that features music and art in San Juan. “Those chavos” — the money — “for the bondholders, where will they come from: layoffs, pensions, services. What’s not fair is not fair.”
In their view, the bill would benefit the hedge funds that lent Puerto Rico the money, not Puerto Rico. And they argue that the island’s fate, its laws and regulations, should not be trumped by people who, for the most part, will not be Puerto Rican and will know little about the intricacies of life on the island.
If approved by Congress, the board would be run by seven members selected by President Obama from candidates proffered by Republicans and Democrats in Congress. At least one of the seven members must be a resident of Puerto Rico.
Coursing through the opposition movement is frustration and an infuriating feeling that the federal government believes Puerto Rico incapable of fixing its own problems without paternalistic intervention. It speaks loudly to Puerto Rico’s longstanding, emotionally fraught conflict over its in-between status as a United States commonwealth, neither state nor independent country.
Read more: www.nytimes.com/2016/06/09/us/puerto-rico-divided-over-federal-oversight-of-economy.html