RETHINK PLAN COLOMBIA

However, The Bush Administration Ought Not Commit Any More Money To Mr.
Pastrana Before He Has Come Up With A Better Plan As To How To Spend The
$1.3 Billion The United States Has Already Allotted His Country

Colombian President Andres Pastrana came to the United States recently with
his hat in his hand, asking for more U.S. funds to help combat the drug
trade through economic development. However, the Bush administration ought
not commit any more money to Mr. Pastrana before he has come up with a
better plan as to how to spend the $1.3 billion the United States has
already allotted his country. Better yet, Mr. Pastrana ought to reform his
whole strategy for dealing with Colombia's civil war and burgeoning drug trade.

Most of the counter-narcotics funds that Congress and the Clinton White
House set aside for Plan Colombia are destined for the military, although
drug interdiction is a task better left to the police. The military is
better suited to deal with Colombia's rebel insurgencies, for which some
funding will be needed. The lion's share of the Plan Colombia funds,
however, ought to go to the police, as Republican Reps. Dan Burton, from
Indiana, and Benjamin Gilman, from New York, have been tirelessly advocating.

Colombia's primary efforts ought to be directed toward bolstering the rule
of law. Funding for judicial reform is critical, including U.S.-Colombian
exchange programs and training for judges and other court employees. The
counter-narcotics police unit has proven to be highly effective and
dedicated. Furthermore, unlike the military, there hasn't been a single
credible human rights violation leveled against this police unit.

What Colombia needs overall is a new strategy for dealing with
narco-terrorists - both of the rebel and paramilitary sort. Mr. Pastrana is
getting ready to give the ELN, the second most powerful rebel group in the
country, a zone that would fall under their own control. But the surrender
of another "demilitarized" zone to Colombia's strongest and most brutal
rebel group, known as the FARC, has already proven to be a horrible failure.

Furthermore, the secession of territory to a lawless terrorist group
constitutes a gross violation of the democratic rights of law-abiding
Colombians. Clearly, the Colombians themselves are convinced of this. Days
before Mr. Pastrana left for the United States, thousands of peasants
defied his stern warnings and blocked one of the main highways in the
country to protest the creation of the demilitarized zone in their area.

One thing Mr. Pastrana got right was his request for the United States to
liberalize trade with Colombia. "Convincing guerrillas to lay down their
arms, and getting peasants to move from coca cultivation into the
legitimate economy means we have to create jobs for tens of thousands of
Colombians," Mr. Pastrana said.

Although it certainly would be difficult to convince most guerrillas to
desist from murder and torture in the spirit of free enterprise, Mr.
Pastrana is on the right track. Economic development is, in the end,
central to the country's long-term stability. Bill Clinton had pledged to
liberalize trade with Colombia, but never followed through. This is one
plea the Bush administration and Congress could grant right away.