OAS PUSHES OWN DRUG WAR APPROACH

The Organization of American States yesterday released a country-by-country
report card on the war against drugs, arguing to an increasingly receptive
U.S. government that the multilateral approach is better than the U.S.
system in which countries must be certified as allies in the drug war.

"This is a totally different process than certification. We are certain
that this method of evaluation will have more legitimacy," said OAS
Secretary-General Cesar Gaviria.

"Almost every country in the hemisphere thinks the unilateral process is
inconvenient. This is a method of cooperation."

The White House, reflecting a growing willingness within government circles
to re-examine the certification process, welcomed the report.

"It will become increasingly apparent to policy people in the hemisphere
that our national interests are better served by this evaluation mechanism
than by a system based on confrontation," said Edward H. Jurith, acting
director of the Office of National Drug Control Policy.

In this year's report, Colombia, Mexico, Bolivia and Venezuela all reported
increased seizures of coca leaf, marijuana or opium poppies. But only 15
percent of those charged with drug trafficking in Venezuela were convicted,
it said.

The OAS hopes its Multilateral Evaluation Mechanism (MEM) will replace a
U.S. system that most Latin American nations find humiliating. Many
countries also call it hypocritical, noting that the United States is the
world's largest consumer of Latin American drugs.

Secretary of State Colin Powell expressed skepticism about the existing
process in his confirmation hearings before the Senate Foreign Relations
Committee, and some members of Congress are more willing to reconsider the
policy under the Bush administration.

President Bush, who travels to Mexico City this month, enjoys a good
relationship with Mexican President Vicente Fox, who has started a
nationwide crusade against corruption, drug smuggling and organized crime.

His government announced yesterday it was firing 43 of the 47 top managers
in Mexico's Customs administration because of corruption, inefficiency and
apathy.

"I think with the new administration [in Washington], a lot of aspects of
drug policy will be reviewed," said Sen. Mike DeWine, Ohio Republican, a
longtime supporter of the existing policy. "I am open to taking another
look at the issue. It is a new era, a new day."

Sen. Christopher J. Dodd, Connecticut Democrat, sent legislation to the
Senate on Tuesday that would suspend the certification process for two
years while governments work to devise a more effective and less divisive
way of controlling the drug trade in the hemisphere.

The measure was co-sponsored by Republican Sens. John McCain of Arizona and
Chuck Hagel of Nebraska.

Yesterday's report evaluated the drug situation in the 34 democratic
nations of the Western Hemisphere. Cuba, which the United States lists as a
drug-trafficking nation, is excluded from examination because it is neither
democratic nor a member of the OAS.

MEM was set up by the OAS in 1998 in reaction to the U.S. process in which
the president must "certify" to Congress by March 1 every year whether a
country is fully cooperating in the war on drugs.

A country deemed uncooperative is barred from certain kinds of U.S. aid and
support in the multilateral lending institutions. The president can
decertify, but also can waive penalties in the interests of national security.

Last year, both Mexico and Colombia were certified as fully cooperating
despite protests from members of Congress, including Rep. Benjamin A.
Gilman, New York Republican and chairman of the House International
Relations Committee, and Sen. Jesse Helms, North Carolina Republican and
chairman of Senate Foreign Relations Committee.

Cambodia, Haiti, Nigeria and Paraguay were not certified, but the penalties
were waived for reasons of national security. Afghanistan and Burma were
not certified as cooperative.

The MEM simply recommends the implementation of voluntary measures. There
are no penalties for failure to implement anti-narcotics recommendations.