06 April 2004
European Union Joins U.S. in Designating Colombian Group as Terrorists
National Liberation Army is Colombia's second-biggest rebel group
By Eric Green
Washington File Staff Writer
Washington -- The European Union (EU) has joined the United States in designating Colombia's second-largest rebel group as a terrorist organization.
The EU said it was adding the left-wing group, called the National Liberation Army (known by the Spanish acronym ELN), to its list of outlawed organizations. The decision means the EU has adopted a common position to freeze funds and other financial assets of the rebel organization, and provide for police and judicial cooperation to prosecute ELN members. The EU created its list following the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks on the United States. The EU decision was announced in the April 3 "Official Journal of the European Union."
The EU has already put on the list the largest armed rebel group in Colombia -- the left-wing Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) -- along with a right-wing paramilitary group called the United Self-Defense Forces of Colombia (AUC).
The U.S. State Department previously designated all three Colombian groups as foreign terrorist organizations, which under U.S. law means that the organizations are subject to financial and immigration sanctions, potentially including the blocking of assets; the prosecution of supporters who provide funds; and refusal of visas.
Colombia has been the scene of a four-decade-old civil war, and is the world's biggest supplier of cocaine. Outlawed narco-terrorist groups in the country use the profits made from cocaine to finance their fight against the Colombian government.
General James Hill, commander of the U.S. Southern Command, said in March 24 congressional testimony that the ELN, with an estimated 3,500 to 4,000 members, is declining in importance. Hill told the U.S. House Armed Services Committee that "there has been some progress in encouraging the ELN to demobilize via peace talks, although those who refuse may merge with the FARC."
General Peter Pace, vice chairman of the U.S. Joint Chiefs of Staffs, told reporters February 25 that the three major narco-trafficking groups operating in Colombia will continue to conduct kidnappings and other terrorist acts for the present time, but he added that their days are "numbered."
Pace said the Colombian people want these outlawed groups "to become part of the society again and stop their terrorist acts."
Meanwhile, the EU also announced it has adopted a new aid plan of about $9.6 million (8 million euros) for Colombia. The objectives are to provide protection, assistance, and relief to the many victims of Colombia's armed conflict and to "alleviate the negative consequences" of the war on the country's internally displaced population.
The EU said Colombia has the world's largest internally displaced population -- almost three million people -- who have been forcibly displaced from their homes. The displaced often face food shortages and are forced to live in precarious shelters without access to such basic services as water, sanitation, and health care.
The conflict in Colombia is also increasingly having an effect on neighboring countries, such as Ecuador, where the EU said an estimated 50,000 Colombians have sought refuge.
(The Washington File is a product of the Bureau of International Information Programs, U.S. Department of State. Web site: http://usinfo.state.gov)
This page printed from: http://usinfo.state.gov/xarchives/display.html?p=washfile-english&y=2004&m=April&x=20040406154626AEneerG0.868313&t=livefeeds/wf-latest.html
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