$43M REPORT TO COLOMBIA QUESTIONED

BOGOTA, Colombia ---- With years of guerrilla warfare under their belts,
Colombia's generals might be excused if they didn't snap to attention when
a pricey group of Pentagon contractors told them timely mail delivery might
improve the war on drugs. Working out of the defense ministry in Bogota, a
team of 14 retired U.S. military officers held seminars and delivered a
thick binder purporting to be "the Colombian military forces' keystone war
fighting document" and "the foundation for all commanders." Colombian
defense officials have belittled the work, carried out for the Pentagon by
Military Professional Resources Inc., of Alexandria, Va., at a cost of $4.3
million to U.S. taxpayers.

One official said the advisers "reinvented the wheel." Among the advice in
the MPRI report:
- -- "Accurate and timely delivery of mail enhances the quality of life for
the men and women in the field."
- -- "Apply appropriate military capability prudently."
- -- "Hit the enemy with a closed fist, not poke at him with fingers of an
open hand."

Entitled "Colombian Counter-Drug Doctrine," the report also refers to drug
traffickers and Colombia's unique challenge of battling guerrillas and
paramilitaries who protect cocaine crops and jungle laboratories. It urges
respect for human rights. But is largely an overview of U.S. military
doctrine, planning and tactics, including lessons gleaned by military
historians from the Gulf War to Gettysburg to Hannibal's battles with the
Romans. Colombian officials have suggested the MPRI's contributions were of
little practical use. Defense Minister Luis Ramirez told Semana
newsmagazine that no "empathy" developed between his staff and the U.S.
team, adding that his generals were too busy fighting a war to attend many
of the meetings called by the consultants. In a subsequent e-mail, Ramirez
was more diplomatic. While many of its suggestions were ignored, the report
prompted "analysis and discussion," the minister told The Associated
Press. MPRI spokesman Ed Soyster, a retired U.S. general, said the
Colombians should have been more receptive. "We are not miracle workers,"
Soyster said of the 800-employee firm, which has also worked in the
Balkans. "It takes two to tango." The MPRI team did not contain Spanish
speakers, but included experts in personnel, logistics, operations and
intelligence, Soyster added. Questions about the contract come amid growing
criticism in Washington of the use of U.S. private contractors in the war
on drugs in South America. Opponents say "outsourcing" -- from
consultancies to flying eradication missions over guerrilla-infested coca
fields -- has reduced public accountability just as U.S. involvement grows.

The United States provided Colombia $1.3 billion in aid last year, mostly
in combat helicopters and other military assistance. Responding to charges
that Washington is taking sides in Colombia's 37-year civil war, U.S.
officials have promised that Colombian army battalions trained by Americans
would be used exclusively on drug-fighting missions. Nonetheless, the
report blurs the lines between the drug war and the civil war: its
operational guidelines would have all Colombian infantry units switching
back and forth between counter-drug and counter-guerrilla operations. The
Pentagon stands by the consultant's work, while acknowledging day-to-day
guerrilla conflict left little time for Colombia's military to focus on
broad reforms. MPRI's one-year contract expired in March and was not renewed.

A Pentagon spokesman, Lt. Col. George Rhynedance, said there was no "bad
blood" behind the decision. "It was a business opportunity that had run its
course," he said.