cannabisnews.com: Colombia To Continue Anti-Drug Sprays 





Colombia To Continue Anti-Drug Sprays 
Posted by FoM on February 18, 2001 at 07:50:16 PT
By The Associated Press
Source: CNN.com
A U.S.-backed effort to eradicate Colombian drug crops by aerial spraying will continue despite a petition from the nation's top human rights official to halt it because of reports that farmers are getting sick and going hungry, a government official said Saturday. "It would be unreasonable to suspend the fumigation campaign," Gonzalo de Francisco, the government's point man for the drug war in the southern state of Putumayo, told the Associated Press on Saturday. "The fumigation is fundamental for eradicating cocaine in Colombia." 
Federal human rights ombudsman Eduardo Cifuentes sent a scathing letter to the government this week calling for a nationwide halt to the spraying of coca crops, the raw material for cocaine. Cifuentes alleged the massive spraying program was sickening farmers and killing food crops they rely on to survive. Low-flying airplanes escorted by U.S.-provided helicopter gunships began spraying the herbicide glyphosate on coca crops in Putumayo, the nation's cocaine-growing heartland, last December. Some 72,000 acres of coca have been destroyed since, according to U.S. and Colombian officials. Before the sprayings began, the army estimated there were 300,000 acres (120,000 hectares) of coca farms in the entire country. Officials say the spraying campaign has far exceeded expectations and has been met with surprisingly little resistance from leftist guerrillas and right-wing paramilitary militias who earn huge profits by "taxing" the coca trade. The United States is funding the aerial eradication campaign as part of a $1.3 billion aid package that includes troop training and dozens of combat helicopters for the Colombian military. The February 12 petition from the human rights office, which was sent to several government agencies heading up the drug war, demanded a nationwide halt to the fumigation campaign until farmers living in the areas under siege can be protected. U.S. and Colombian officials contend the spraying campaign targets only "industrial" sized plantations run by drug traffickers. But small-time coca farmers have complained their plots are being hit. They grow food alongside the coca. According to Cifuentes, miscommunication between government agencies has caused airplanes to douse crops owned by farmers who had agreed to manually eradicate their coca in exchange for government aid. "Now, these people and the communities face the destruction of their local economy and severe nutritional problems," the ombudsman's petition said. "If it continues, it is done at the cost of violating their human rights." Cifuentes did not specify how many people have gotten sick, the nature of the illnesses, or how many farmers have had their food crops destroyed in the sprayings. No one could be reached for comment from his office in Bogota, which was closed Saturday. The governors of six southern drug producing states including Putumayo have formed an alliance to pressure the government to scale back the military-style anti-drug offensive and make social investments in the region instead. Spraying in Putumayo has been temporarily suspended since February 3, but Gonzalo de Francisco, a presidential human rights adviser, maintains the stop is unrelated to the growing criticism. He said that after an initial strong fumigation push, the government is now focusing on getting farmers to join the voluntary manual eradication program. Some 2,000 families have already signed up, and de Francisco hopes to enroll 24,000 other families before the end of the year. While spraying was not likely to resume soon in Putumayo, the largest coca-producing province, de Francisco said it could resume soon in neighboring coca-growing states of Narino and Caqueta. Complete Title: Colombia To Continue Anti-Drug Sprays Despite Health FearsSource: CNN (US)Published: February 17, 2001Copyright: 2001 Cable News Network, Inc.Contact: cnn.feedback cnn.comFeedback: http://cnn.com/feedback/Website: http://www.cnn.com/Forum: http://community.cnn.com/CannabisNews Articles - Plan Colombiahttp://cannabisnews.com/thcgi/search.pl?K=colombia 
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Comment #2 posted by Sudaca on February 19, 2001 at 14:30:29 PT
So..
they'll spray colombia into a desert taking the amazon with it and the business will move to Brazil Ecuador Venezuela Panama, Guatemala, Honduras, Bolivia , Peru, Paraguay, Argentina, Chile.. the Guianas.. but it'all be worth it to say, Colombia was "there" with the war on drugs.
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Comment #1 posted by J.R. Bob Dobbs on February 18, 2001 at 08:06:58 PT
Stupidity - the universal constant
>>"It would be unreasonable to suspend the fumigation campaign," ... "The fumigation is fundamental for eradicating cocaine in Colombia."  "Hey, we're taking our cue from you guys. You'd rather jail cancer patients than possibly be forced to re-think the drug war. We'd rather starve and cripple our population than question the drug war. We're good soldiers just like you.">>Officials say the spraying campaign has far exceeded expectations and has been met with surprisingly little resistance from leftist guerrillas and right-wing paramilitary militias who earn huge profits by "taxing" the coca trade.  I "like" how these "officials" can imply "shadiness" to things just by putting them in "quotes". Where else would you see "taxing" put in quotes? For example: The US Government makes billions by "taxing" other habits like gambling, tobacco, alcohol, and driving.>>"Now, these people and the communities face the destruction of their local economy and severe nutritional problems," the ombudsman's petition said. "If it continues, it is done at the cost of violating their human rights."  Yeah, that's stopped 'em before. "Hey, Frank Keating! You're violating that cancer patients civil rights!!" "Oh, sorry! I guess I'll back off now!!" Yeah, right. Too bad the Columbians can't force a recall election on these narco-bozos.
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