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  Jose Serrano is a Drug Czar
Posted by FoM on March 04, 2002 at 10:33:10 PT
Editorial 
Source: Washington Times 

justice The connection between narco-trafficking and terrorism is coming into sharper focus in wake of September 11 and quickly becoming a national-security priority. To a large degree, the Bush administration is giving that connection its due attention, but according to congressional sources, it is on the verge of making a serious misstep. Instead of supporting former Colombian police chief Jose Serrano — who trounced the most vicious drug cartels in the world and has a stellar human-rights record — as executive director of the U.N. Office for Drug Control and Crime Prevention, the State Department is backing a lackluster Italian nominee.

The State Department has its reasons for backing Italy's choice. The Italians, like the Americans, have been a top contributor to the U.N. drug program and would like to see their financial backing translate into greater influence there. The United States has made similar arguments in the past — drawing criticism from the Europeans — and is understandably sympathetic to this position. Also, the State Department is keen to stay in the good graces of European allies, since their support of America's counter-terrorist policies has become increasingly tenuous.

But Italy's candidate, Giuseppe Lumina, has no counternarcotics experience and the last U.N. drug czar, Italian Pino Arlacchi, was widely accused of fraud and mismanagement. Also, the State Department should keep close in mind that the next czar will be given a lead role in creating an anti-narcotics police force in Afghanistan. This task is critical, since the opium and heroin trade in that country was a key source of revenue for the Taliban and al Qaeda.

Mr. Serrano, who headed Colombia's anti-narcotics division before becoming police chief, had not a single human-rights violation complaint filed against the counternarcotics division during his last few years as police chief — even though he had stepped up activities. As police chief, Mr. Serrano cleaned up the force, dismissing 11,000 policemen and making it the most favored public institution in Colombia.

Washington has longed recognized Mr. Serrano's remarkable achievements. In July 2000, he became the first non-DEA agent to be honored with the DEA's special-agent award. While he was head of police, the International Association of Chiefs of Police named Mr. Serrano the "Best Policeman in the World." Former DEA chiefs Thomas A. Constantine and Donnie R. Marshall have written letters backing Mr. Serrano for the U.N. post, as have House Speaker Dennis Hastert and several other members of Congress, including Dan Burton, Benjamin Gilman, Asa Hutchinson, Henry Hyde, Cass Ballenger, Bob Barr, Jesse Helms, Mark Souder. They support Mr. Serrano because he is the best candidate for the U.N. drug-czar post. If the administration fails to do so, it will be difficult to imagine why.

Source: Washington Times (DC)
Published: March 4, 2002
Copyright: 2002 News World Communications, Inc.
Website: http://www.washtimes.com/
Contact: letters@washingtontimes.com

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Comment #7 posted by Doc-Hawk on March 07, 2002 at 09:23:47 PT:

Pino Arlacchi protests
Pino Arlacchi protested against the accusations in the article. His response is at: http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v02/n403/a06.html .

Maybe he was just incompetent.

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Comment #6 posted by E_Johnson on March 04, 2002 at 12:33:55 PT
Let's put on our thinking caps and try...
Former DEA chiefs Thomas A. Constantine and Donnie R. Marshall have written letters backing Mr. Serrano for the U.N. post, as have House Speaker Dennis Hastert and several other members of Congress, including Dan Burton, Benjamin Gilman, Asa Hutchinson, Henry Hyde, Cass Ballenger, Bob Barr, Jesse Helms, Mark Souder. They support Mr. Serrano because he is the best candidate for the U.N. drug-czar post. If the administration fails to do so, it will be difficult to imagine why.

Well let's start adding up the political capital of the people on this list and try to imagine why.

First let's look at Souder. Souder authored a bill that now even he disowns, which has angered the whole higher educational establishment in America and made it nearly impossible to recruit college aged Republicans at colleges other than Bob Jones U.

Souder also angered the Dutch when he claimed in the national press that they were a less moral people because they didn't attend church as much as Americans do.

Tom Constantine and Donnie Marshall have both been recently publicly tainted by revelations of inflated arrest figures at the DEA during their respective tenures as chief.

Asa Hutchinson is determined to go down in history as the nutcase who extended the War on Drugs to hemp oil, something that not one single country currently sitting on the INCB thinks is a worthy target of social and political concern or expenditure.

The Democrats have finally discovered the War on Drugs hurts the poor and minorities and isn't so great for the white middle class either.

Shall I go on trying to imagine the reasons?



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Comment #5 posted by FoM on March 04, 2002 at 12:24:05 PT
Money dictates what's moral and should be a law
If the US can find a way to get more control or prosper financially from shaking hands with an enemy they will do it because it keeps the focus on the one world system that our country is in high pursuit to achieve in my opinion.

Withholding money because we are sore losers and won't examine why we were removed is immoral to me.

[ Post Comment ]

 
Comment #4 posted by kaptinemo on March 04, 2002 at 12:18:23 PT:

Because the wounds still sting, that's why
You don't ask someone who's lost a leg how are they making out in dancing class. For another reason entirely, it's considered gauche amongst USG circles to ask US pols dependedent upon foreign goodwill why they took a load of brown smelly stuff from the Euros in being forced off the UN INCB.

The antis and their mouthpieces would dearly love to have the public forget all about that rank humiliation, and 'get back to work'...problem is, of course, that the rest of the planet has seen it happen. They won't play along in pretending it didn't. There's simply too much political capital to be made.

And as for all those glowing accolades by top DrugWarriors; keep in mind, the foreign press isn't quite as muzzled as our is by commercial concerns. They know Walters was one of Ollie's fingers in dealing with Noriega. They know where the skeletons are buried...and they are not impressed or afraid. Because they, like us, here, have long memories; for our DrugWarriors to sing the praises of Sr. Serrano's 'accomplishments' is eerily familiar to those of us who remember Barry's ringing paen of General Rebollo of Mexico...who was more crooked than a dog's hind leg. And was later caught with his hands in the narco's till.

We really don't know who our friends are down there...and we are fooling ourselves if we think we do. And for the DrugWarriors to support anyone for the position of UN DrugCzar while the US is trying to ignore UN spittle deposited upon it's face in being thrown off the UN INCB is one more example of the lengths these clotbrains will go to denigrate this country in the eyes of the world.

[ Post Comment ]

 
Comment #3 posted by MikeEEEEE on March 04, 2002 at 12:18:18 PT
Arrogance
Not sure if you know this but the Congress is keeping back money from the UN until they put the US back on the panels.

[ Post Comment ]
 
Comment #2 posted by FoM on March 04, 2002 at 10:58:55 PT
I've Wondered That Too EJ
U.S. Loses Seat on U.N. Drug Policy Panel
http://cannabisnews.com/news/thread9633.shtml

U.S. Has Lost Not 1 but 2 Seats on Key U.N. Panels
http://cannabisnews.com/news/thread9632.shtml

UN Cut US Off As Drug Monitor
http://cannabisnews.com/news/thread9627.shtml

U.S. Loses Seat on U.N. Narcotics Control Board
http://cannabisnews.com/news/thread9625.shtml


[ Post Comment ]

 
Comment #1 posted by E_Johnson on March 04, 2002 at 10:39:00 PT
Some missing information??
Ooops I guess they forgot to tell people that the United States was kicked off this board last year.



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