HUMAN RIGHTS SHOULD BE PRIORITY IN COLOMBIA DEALINGS

Political violence in Colombia appears to be worsening, as your Dec. 17
editorial, "Colombia crumbles," notes. But efforts to achieve control are
not fortified by The Washington Times, which appears more determined to
prod a reckless involvement in that dirty war than understand its
complexities and advise wise action.

Human Rights Watch fully supports efforts to find a just peace in Colombia,
even if those efforts include establishing a neutral area where
negotiations can take place. What we oppose is ceding total control to a
force known for executing civilians and captured members of the security
forces, kidnapping and the recruitment of children as soldiers, among other
things.

We criticized the Colombian government's decision to extend the December
deadline, as your editorial noted. But we added, as your editorial did not,
a crucial caveat: Such an area can be used for this purpose, but only if
the human rights of the people living within are guaranteed. President
Andres Pastrana's mistake was not to hold talks with guerrillas, but to
fail to ensure the human rights of Colombians who live in the area
designated for talks.

Unfortunately, Mr. Pastrana makes the same mistake in areas controlled by
paramilitaries, which commit their atrocities with the tolerance and, at
times, open support of the military. Most civilians in Colombia live under
the threat of violence. Which side it comes from is more a matter of luck
and location than anything else.

The United States undermines democracy when it ignores the failure of
allies such as Colombia to protect basic rights. What the incoming Bush
administration must do is both simple and challenging: strengthen civil
society, not the rule of the gun; promote human rights standards, not an
abusive military; and solve America's addiction to illegal narcotics at
home, not by throwing more billions at the failed strategy of stopping the
supply.

Robin Kirk, Researcher, Human Rights Watch, Washington