cannabisnews.com: Colombia Says It Cut Coca Crop





Colombia Says It Cut Coca Crop
Posted by FoM on March 01, 2002 at 12:01:48 PT
By Christopher Marquis
Source: New York Times
The government of Colombia said today that it had significantly reduced the amount of coca under cultivation through an aggressive, American- backed eradication campaign. But Washington is delaying the release of its own estimates, which have fueled disagreement between administration policy makers and C.I.A. analysts.The annual estimates of production of coca — the raw material for cocaine — are important in determining the effectiveness of a strategy at the core of the United States' counternarcotics plan in the Andes in which Washington has invested more than $1.3 billion.
This year's results are especially significant because they reflect a sustained fumigation effort under Plan Colombia, which set a goal of cutting overall cultivation in half within five years. Focused in the southern provinces of Putumayo and Caqueta, the drive has involved crop- dusters spraying herbicides, combat helicopters and American-trained counternarcotics battalions.Colombia's justice minister, Rómulo González, announced today that the total amount of coca under cultivation was about 358,000 acres as of Nov. 1, an 11 percent reduction over the previous 14-month period. The Bush administration, meanwhile, is struggling with its own estimates. Officials said there is a dispute between C.I.A. analysts who believe that coca production has stabilized or slightly increased, and administration policymakers who insist it has gone down.The State Department's counter- narcotics office, had planned to release its estimates on Colombia on Friday as part of its annual report to Congress on the narcotics fight worldwide, a spokeswoman said. But the office has not yet received final numbers from the Central Intelligence Agency, she said.The C.I.A.'s Crime and Narcotics Center uses satellite imagery and sampling techniques to determine the amount of illegal drugs under cultivation around the world.Mark Mansfield, a C.I.A. spokesman, said the analysts would present their estimate for Colombia within a few days. He declined to discuss the results. Last year, the administration reported that coca growth had surged by 11 percent in Colombia.Colombian officials today challenged the C.I.A.'s methodology and sampling techniques. "I don't think they are in a position to refute our figures, not scientifically or technically," Mr. Gonzalez told reporters.The chief United Nations counter- narcotics representative in Colombia today said he agreed with the Colombians' findings."We are very comfortable with that figure," said the representative, Klaus Nyholm. "It's based on satellite photos, overflights and visits on the ground. It's not 100 percent, but it's as close as it gets."A State Department official said it was the first time she could recall that the department would release its worldwide report on drugs without the statistics from Colombia. She attributed the delay to technical problems, not a dispute over what the numbers would show."We've always gotten our numbers from them," the official said. "The people who put the numbers together are analysts, not political types."Source: New York Times (NY)Author: Christopher MarquisPublished: March 1, 2002Copyright: 2002 The New York Times CompanyContact: letters nytimes.comWebsite: http://www.nytimes.com/Forum: http://forums.nytimes.com/comment/Related Articles & Web Site:Colombia Drug War Newshttp://freedomtoexhale.com/colombia.htm US, Colombia Engaged in Numbers Warhttp://cannabisnews.com/news/thread12120.shtmlU.S. To Be Drawn Into Colombian War? http://cannabisnews.com/news/thread12094.shtmlBush's $19 Billion Antidrug Plan http://cannabisnews.com/news/thread11997.shtml
Home Comment Email Register Recent Comments Help




Comment #2 posted by mayan on March 01, 2002 at 17:25:53 PT
Demand Will Be Supplied...
So what if they destroy all of the coca in Columbia? It will simply come from somewhere else! Duh!!! Our government wants to displace the indigenous peoples & eliminate the FARC so Occidental Petroleum will have a clear shot at their OIL!!! They are tired of rebuilding the pipeline. Also, they want to drive up the price of toot a little so our CIA's smuggled goods will be a little more valuable. Just ask Ken Bucchi!
http://www.alternet.org/story.html?StoryID=11185
[ Post Comment ]


Comment #1 posted by Jose Melendez on March 01, 2002 at 17:02:15 PT:
tear down this wall
Study 
        Shows Pot's Therapeutic Benefits, Few Adverse Effects in Long-Term, 
        Daily Marijuana Smokers
        Results Support Expanding Feds' Medical Pot Program
         Missoula, MT: Long-term 
        use of standardized doses of cannabis demonstrated clinical effectiveness 
        in a cohort of legal medical marijuana patients and failed to 
        produce significant physical or cognitive impairment, according 
        to results of a study published in the current issue of The Journal 
        of Cannabis Therapeutics. The study is the first to examine the 
        effects of marijuana on patients who have used a standardized, 
        quality-controlled supply of marijuana for more than ten years.
         "This study's findings add to the substantial 
        body of evidence that medicinal cannabis is both safe and effective, 
        even when consumed regularly to treat chronic illnesses," said 
        Allen St. Pierre, Executive Director of the NORML Foundation. 
        "The results also serve to further undercut the government's allegation 
        that marijuana is a highly dangerous drug without any scientifically 
        demonstrated medical value."
Study Shows Pot's Therapeutic Benefits
[ Post Comment ]


Post Comment