DATE=3/8/2000
TYPE=BACKGROUND REPORT
TITLE=COLOMBIA DRUGS
NUMBER=5-45597
BYLINE=RHODA METCALFE
DATELINE=BOGOTA
INTERNET=YES
CONTENT=
VOICED AT:
INTRO: The U-S Congress is considering additional aid
to Colombia to attack its burgeoning drug production
in the midst of a seemingly endless guerrilla war.
There are fears this could lead to increased U-S
entanglement in the South American nation. Rhoda
Metcalfe in Bogota reports there is also concern over
the likelihood of a blood bath in regions that grow
coca, the raw material of cocaine.
TEXT: /// SOUND -- leaves being picked, men talking
///
Here in the lower Putumayo region of southern
Colombia, virtually all the 30-thousand farmers and
workers make their living off this harvest of coca
leaves. Located in Colombia's Amazon region, far from
government control, Putumayo produces close to a
quarter of the world's cocaine. This is why the
Clinton administration is so eager to send more than a
billion dollars worth of helicopters, weapons, and
training to Colombia -- to create crack anti-drug
teams to wipe out the production. Washington's anti-
drug Czar, retired General Barry McCaffrey, is leading
the charge. He argues Colombians want this as much as
the United States does, because the drugs are fuelling
a devastating guerrilla war.
/// MCCAFFREY ACT ///
You have to understand the level of suffering
that Colombia is undergoing. A half-million
Colombians have fled the country in the past few
years. Somewhere between 700-thousand and a
million people have been driven out of their
homes. At the heart and soul of this problem is
the hundreds of millions of dollars that come
from these illegal drugs.
/// END ACT ///
U-S officials like General McCaffrey believe the
military aid will hit two targets at once - knocking
out cocaine production, and cutting off the income
that has allowed Colombia's guerrilla group known as
the FARC to become the most powerful insurgent force
in the hemisphere. The rebels control much of
Putumayo. They protect the coca farmers in exchange
for a lucrative cut. Rebel leaders have made it clear
they see the proposed U-S aid as a direct assault
against them.
/// TRINIDAD SPANISH ACT FADES UNDER ///
In a recent TV interview, one of the top leaders of
the FARC, Simon Trinidad, warned that the U-S package
will force them to escalate the war. There is also a
fear that Americans who are already a target for rebel
kidnappings will become a direct military target for
the guerrillas. If that's the price Americans may pay,
what will be the cost to Colombians?
/// SOUND -- shots, crowd ///
The Putumayo coca region is already a powder keg. Coca
growers marched in the streets four years ago to
protest the government's plan to destroy their crops.
The marches got ugly -- with shooting, tear gas, and a
lot of casualties. It's a lawless region, where the
people protect their livelihood anyway they can.
Sergio Uribe is a long-time Colombian analyst of the
illegal drug industry. He believes the United States
is not prepared for the chaos this mass anti-drug
campaign will spark.
/// FIRST URIBE ACT ///
You will have blood -- and large amounts of
blood. All you're going to do is get the state
hated more than it already was before, and get
the FARC to have more legitimacy within the
region. And the human rights people will shout
"violation of human rights!"
/// END ACT ///
The Colombian government believes it can avoid a mass
uprising through alternative development. It is
looking for more than a billion dollars to create new
products and jobs. The U-S proposal includes some
money for this, but Colombia is hoping the Europeans
will come through with most of the necessary
resources. Even if they do, many analysts like Mr.
Uribe doubt that will stave off the conflict, because
alternative development has never worked in Colombia.
/// SECOND URIBE ACT ///
It's been used to pay political favors to local
congressmen. People who had been working on
this for 10 years were kicked out. There are no
new ideas on alternative development in Colombia
/// END ACT ///
Violence aside, some analysts doubt this plan for mass
coca eradication will actually wipe out the crop.
/// SOUND -- plane flying ///
Aerial fumigation has been used for 10 years in
Colombia. Farmers have always just moved their crops,
and coca production has continued to rise. But
Colombian officials argue the new campaign will be so
huge, there will be nowhere to run.
Many Colombians also hope the U-S aid will strengthen
the army against the guerrillas. They may be
disappointed. With U-S politicians fearful of getting
entangled in the rebel war, and also worried about
strengthening military squads involved in human rights
abuses, the aid - if it arrives - is expected to be
heavily restricted -- for use only where drug crops
are grown. So if rebels attack a military base
elsewhere in the country, those new helicopters should
stay firmly on the ground. Or will they? That is what
the U-S Congress must decide. (Signed)
NEB/rm/gm
08-Mar-2000 12:25 PM EDT (08-Mar-2000 1725 UTC)
NNNN
Source: Voice of America
.
|
NEWSLETTER
|
|
Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list
|
|
|
