AID TO COLOMBIA: UNLEARNED LESSONS

To the Editor:

Re "Neighbors Fear Fallout of Aid to Colombians" (front page, Aug. 25):

The United States has apparently learned nothing from the horrors of
El Salvador and Nicaragua, where vast amounts of military aid only
served to intensify conflicts that neither side was going to win. Now,
Congress and President Clinton have confirmed that they will make the
same error in Colombia by sending $1.3 billion, almost all in military
aid.

Haven't the last 20 years shown us that as long as there is a market
for drugs in the United States, somebody will find a way to get them
there? Cutting down on the demand side in the United States would do
much more to curtail drug production than a bloody military campaign.
By providing military aid rather than substantial social and economic
assistance, the United States is missing an opportunity to address the
real roots of insurgency and drug production in Colombia.

OSCAR ARIAS