COLOMBIA NEEDS THE WAIVER

If it's not one problem, it's another. The recently approved U.S. aid
package for fighting drugs in Colombia has clashed with efforts to force
that nation's government to take human rights more seriously.

The $1.3 billion aid package is designed to help train Colombians to battle
narcotics traffickers and finance equipment needed in the effort.

But the Associated Press reports that the Clinton administration will have
to waive a legal provision that ties foreign aid to a recipient's human
rights record.

Human rights groups opposed the aid package, according to the wire service,
because of Colombia's poor human rights record and concerns that the
military assistance would lead to more violations.

But fighting the out-of-control drug traffickers is of utmost importance.
Cocaine smugglers present a threat to the Colombian government, foster an
atmosphere of unbridled lawlessness and flood the United States with deadly
drugs. Fighting this danger must not be delayed.