cannabisnews.com: Powell To Travel To Colombia





Powell To Travel To Colombia
Posted by FoM on August 28, 2001 at 10:01:50 PT
By Eli J. Jake
Source: United Press International
The State Department announced Monday that Secretary of State Colin Powell will travel to Colombia in September for consultations with President Andres Pastrana on Sept. 11 and 12, less than one month before Bogotá must decide whether to renew the demilitarized zone for the rebels there.State Department spokesman Richard Boucher said Monday that the United States was "very disappointed and concerned" about the way the main rebel group in Colombia, the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia, or FARC, has "misused the areas that they've had under their control." 
Earlier this summer, peace talks between the government and FARC broke down and since then the rate of violent incidents stemming from the demilitarized zone has increased. Boucher said the State Department was concerned, for example, about "indications that they were receiving terrorist training from the IRA." The Colombian government in 1998 called for five of its southern districts to be demilitarized.In the last week, the Washington Post and New York Times have run stories suggesting Washington was pressuring Pastrana to abandon the peace process altogether and retake the area run now by the FARC. But U.S. and State Department officials have told United Press International that U.S. officials have not yet gone this far."Yes it is true that we have concerns about the abuses taking place in the demilitarized area by the FARC, including keeping hostages and drug trafficking," one State Department official told UPI. "But we are not yet going to make recommendations based on these concerns." Undersecretary of State for Political Affairs, Marc Grossman, third in command at the State Department, will be traveling to Colombia at the end of the month, Boucher said Monday, in part to prepare for the Secretary's visit. Boucher said the Grossman visit was "a chance to go with an intra-agency delegation to discuss a variety of issues, all of which are important to the United States. And, obviously, the secretary's discussion will continue that." Another State Department official told UPI it was a chance to listen to Pastrana on issues of importance like the peace process. The Clinton administration began, and the Bush administration has continued, a massive aid package to Colombia mainly to fight narcotics trafficking to the United States. In 2000, Congress approved a $1.3 billion aid program for Colombia.President Bush has requested close to $900 million for Colombia this year, but the House has winnowed that figure down to approximately $750 million. The Bush package is broader in scope that the Clinton's plan in that it is aimed at funding Colombia and its neighbors as well as economic catalyst programs to develop alternatives to the coca economy.Boucher Monday said Powell would use the trip to "underscore continuing U.S. Government support for Colombia's efforts to combat the illicit drug trade, strengthen its democratic institutions, and promote economic and social development." Part of Clinton's aid package was a requirement that Pastrana make a number of changes to the military to address widespread human rights abuses. In the last month of Clinton's presidency he essentially waived those requirements, drawing criticism from the human rights community. "There is not a difference between the Bush and Clinton administration on Colombia so far," Robin Kirk, a senior researcher on Colombia for Human Rights Watch, told UPI Monday. "In that sense both the Bush administration and the Clinton administration have minimized the human rights issue." Kirk added, "As far as the information we have goes, there are still widespread links between the Colombian military and paramilitary groups. The Colombian military continues to shield high-ranking officers who have been charged with human rights violations. Human rights have not improved in Colombia."Eric Farnsworth, former policy director for President Clinton's special envoy to the Americas, said he would anticipate a strong public "statement of support and smiles ... but behind closed doors Secretary Powell will likely deliver a more direct message on the need to protect human rights.""Colombia's military has to stay clean if the U.S. congress is going to support the aid initiative," said Farnsworth.Boucher said Powell would raise the human rights issue in meetings with Pastrana at a news briefing Monday. Newshawk: ddddSource: United Press InternationalAuthor: Eli J. JakePublished: Monday, August 27, 2001Copyright 2001 United Press InternationalWebsite: http://www.upi.com/Related Articles & Web Site:Colombia Drug War Newshttp://freedomtoexhale.com/colombia.htmPeace Effort in Colombia Near a Standstillhttp://cannabisnews.com/news/thread10734.shtmlU.S. Officials Weigh Colombia's Aid Needshttp://cannabisnews.com/news/thread10718.shtmlU.S. Delegation To Support Colombia http://cannabisnews.com/news/thread10691.shtml 
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Comment #1 posted by Ethan Russo, MD on August 28, 2001 at 11:29:44 PT:
More Hypocrisy
"behind closed doors Secretary Powell will likely deliver a more direct message on the need to protect human rights."The Amerikan administration's idea of human rights does not require any action against the right wing paramilitary groups that also traffic in nose candy. It also does not preclude spraying people, their animals and food crops. The best thing we can do for Colombia is apologize for our past involvement and walk away, leaving some money for reasonable economic development. 
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