Word: commonwealths
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...Puerto Rico's first chance since 1967 to determine its political future, residents voted to maintain commonwealth status by a plurality of 48.4 percent, with statehood following closely with 46.2 percent...
...most important thing to remember is thatour vote doesn't mean anything," said Carlos R.Mendez-Buso '95, who is pro-commonwealth. "It alldepends on what the U.S. government wants...
Graduate student Jorge R. Marquina, whosupports Puerto Rican statehood, said he wasdisappointed by the outcome of the vote. "Roughlyhalf [of Puerto Rico] is afraid to change, so theycling to the present, this commonwealth, [whichis] a colony of another name," he said...
Though they differ on some policies, advocates of independence and the status quo agree on one critical point: survival of Puerto Rico's culture depends on political space between their island and the U.S. One of the commonwealthers' best slogans promises voters "the best of both worlds" if they retain the present system with only minor changes -- still more federal assistance, for example. Celeste Benitez, who directs the Populares' campaign to preserve the commonwealth status, argues, "We are a people with our own language, our own culture. This plebiscite is about preserving that identity...
...early years of commonwealth, adroit use of Section 936 and other incentives raised Puerto Rico from dire poverty to one of the highest living standards in Latin America. But progress has stalled. Industrial development has failed so far to move the island's per capita income close to mainland levels. Unemployment is now 18%, and half the people get some form of public assistance. This year Congress voted to reduce the 936 tax benefit starting in 1994. Statehood would accelerate 936's demise. "It would be a disaster," says Alex Maldonado, a former newspaper editor who is writing an economic...