Supporting An Ally
Barry R. McCaffrey, a retired general and former US "drug czar" makes a very strong case for supporting the free trade agreement with Colombia, now stalled in Congress. Colombia has made real progress in the past seven years and the free trade deal would reinforce those gains and support a solid ally in Latin America.
Colombia's transformation from a failing state in 2000 to a progressive democracy today is a U.S. foreign policy triumph. In less than a decade, Colombia's national leaders have made significant achievements reducing violence and the number of illegal groups, as well as improving the country's human rights situation. The murder rate is at its lowest in 20 years, and kidnappings have decreased by 80 percent. Among the illegal armed groups that have plagued Colombia, 45,000 fighters have been demobilized. The three principal narco-guerrilla groups (AUC, FARC, ELN) have lost nearly all of their political credibility and have suffered more than 13,000 desertions. In addition, the economy has grown robustly, unemployment has declined significantly, and foreign investment has increased dramatically. Colombia's human rights record also continues to improve. The level of violence against union members and the number of politically motivated homicides are still unacceptable, but the rates of such incidents are down significantly.
The illegal production of cocaine and heroin remains a major challenge for Colombia. However, more than 525 drug traffickers have been extradited during the Uribe administration — by far the most extraditions ever from any country to the United States. The effectiveness of the counter-drug campaign is clear: 66 percent of Colombia's opium production has been eliminated.
¿lvaro Uribe is an extremely popular leader. This Harvard- and Oxford-educated lawyer has accomplished near political miracles in successfully negotiating with criminal groups. Acts of terrorism have decreased 63 percent during his tenure. All of Colombia's major roads are open for civilian travel for the first time in the country's modern history. Uribe has also left his mark on the legal system. He has moved jurisdiction for human rights abuses from military to civil courts and appointed the first civilian (and woman) to head the military justice system.
At a time when Hugo Chavez is actively boasting that he will join with Iran in attempting to challenge America, we cannot afford to spurn a solid ally with longstanding positive ties to the United States. To refuse to approve the free trade agreement would send a horrible signal to all of Latin America and could set progress back in Colombia. It is an agreement that should be enacted. Colombia is a free market democracy and can act as a role model to other Latin American countries to counterbalance the dictatorship that is rising in Venezuela.
World news | Gaius Tuesday, 20 November , 2007
By martian, Tuesday, 20 November , 2007 @ 12:40 pm
Gaius makes an excellent case for passage of the free trade agreement. It is for those very reasons that the Democrats in Congress will do everything in their power to kill the agreement. The agreement would be a foreign policy success for the Bush Administration and a success for American foreign policy in Latin America. Both are anathema to the Liberals and Democrats currently in the majority.
By Anthony (Los Angeles), Tuesday, 20 November , 2007 @ 12:54 pm
The shabby way the Democrats (and their Big Labor allies) have treated both Colombia and Peru has been disgraceful.