House Dems push for big shift in Colombia aid

Source: San Francisco Chronicle/Houston Chronicle

House Dems push for big shift in Colombia aid
Concern grows over drug war failures, links to death squads
Patty Reinert, John Otis, Houston Chronicle

Thursday, June 7, 2007

(06-07) 04:00 PDT Washington -- President Alvaro Uribe of Colombia, in Washington today on one of his frequent trips to lobby Congress for trade and aid, will be greeted by Democrats planning a dramatic change in U.S. support for his South American nation.

This week, a House Appropriations subcommittee drafting the U.S. foreign aid budget cut Colombia's overall aid package by 10 percent, to about $530 million.

The country is expected to get an additional $150 million in purely military and police assistance through a separate appropriation in the defense budget bill.

The biggest change, however, is that the Democrats intend to alter the ratio between military and humanitarian foreign aid to Colombia.
(snip)

The shift is due in part to mounting evidence that Colombia is losing its war on drugs, and in part to growing concern on Capitol Hill that Uribe's government might be tainted by ties to paramilitary death squads.

Read more: http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/chronicle/archive/2007/06/07/MNGURQACP01.DTL&type=politics

We've spent $5 billion since 1999 to try to eradicate it in Colombia, and there's more now than when we started. On the other hand, we have managed to beef up those nice guys the Colombian military and helped generate one of the biggest internal refugee problems on the planet. Oh, and spraying more than 2 million acres with nasty herbicides.

And the price of cocaine is lower than ever and the purity is rising.

I don't think so. the US is losing (and will continue) to lose on this failed policy.

Summary Box: Colombia's army investigated for civilian killings
© AP

2007-06-06 05:08:50 -

INVESTIGATION: Colombia's public prosecutor has reopened 131 investigations into army killings from 2002-2007. The military said it only killed leftist rebels in combat, and quickly closed the cases. These reopened investigations could result in firings of soldiers. Separate criminal prosecutions are also under way.

VICTIMS: Prosecutors allege the military tampered with evidence to make civilian
victims appear to be combatants. The dead ranged from teenagers to a woman in high heels to a 75-year-old peasant, most killed far from jungle battle zones.

U.N. REPORT: The United Nations warned in March that «murders with characteristics of extrajudicial executions ... are tending to become increasingly common» in Colombia.

U.S. TRAINING: Colombia's army gets the largest share of more than US$700 million (¤519 million) in annual anti-narcotics and counterinsurgent aid from the United States.

More:
http://www.pr-inside.com/summary-box-colombia-s-army-investigated-for-r145124.htm