COURT HALTS DRUG CROP SPRAYING

BOGOTA, Colombia - A Colombian court on Friday ordered a suspension of
aerial eradication of drug crops using the chemical glyphosate, the
main prong of a U.S.-backed counterdrug offensive in the South
American country.

The ruling by a Bogota district court came in response to a petition
by an organization representing Colombia's native Indian
communities.

President Andres Pastrana said his legal experts were studying the
ruling. He did not indicate whether he was ordering an immediate stop
to the spraying against the plants used to make cocaine and heroin.

Addressing a news conference, Pastrana reiterated his government's
official policy of spraying herbicides only against large-scale drug
plantations and of inviting poor peasant farmers to join voluntary
manual eradication programs.

Indian groups, small farmers and environmentalists say poor farmers'
crops also are being wiped out by planes dumping herbicides and that
spraying is poisoning rivers and making people sick.

"As a provisional measure, all aerial fumigation with glyphosate is
ordered suspended," the ruling said.

The court decision comes amid growing opposition in Colombia to
herbicide use against drug crops and as Congress considers additional
drug-fighting aid for the country. Last year U.S. lawmakers approved a
$1.3 billion package.

Washington is bankrolling the offensive against coca and poppy fields
in Colombia. The aid program provides crop-dusting aircraft and escort
helicopters that carry out spraying missions using glyphosate - the
main ingredient in the commonly used backyard fertilizers.

A court official emphasized that Friday's ruling was preliminary. He
said a more definitive verdict would be issued within 10 days.