BOLSTER DEMOCRACY AGAINST TRAFFICKERS

The House recently passed an emergency supplemental appropriations
request that included funding to support the administration's Colombia
initiative.

The 263-146 vote on March 30 was a welcome endorsement of a policy
designed to get illegal drugs off America's streets and to strengthen
democracy and human rights in Colombia. As the Senate considers the
proposal, we want to point out why this package is critical.

There is a drug emergency going on in Colombia that has serious
implications for the safety and well-being of our communities. Ninety
percent of the cocaine on our streets and two-thirds of the heroin
seized in the United States either originates in, or transits, Colombia.

Each year, drugs kill 52,000 Americans, almost as many as died in
Vietnam or in Korea, and cost more than $100 billion in accidents,
lost productivity and property damage.

At the same time, Colombia's democracy, human rights situation and
economy have deteriorated as illegal armed groups on the left and
right finance their military campaigns with proceeds from the drug
trade.

Democracy in Latin America needs to be strengthened, not undermined,
even as we protect our own citizens from drugs. Prompt action is imperative.

Peru and Bolivia have achieved dramatic reductions of 66 and 55
percent respectively or more in their coca cultivation in the last
five years, and overall cocaine production in the region has fallen 18
percent.

But this progress is threatened because cocaine production in Colombia
has risen 126 percent.

We have a strategic opportunity to change that. Leaders in all three
countries are strongly committed to attacking the drug trade on all
fronts. Offering our help now could lead to lasting progress against
the supply of drugs.

This plan is not "another Vietnam" as some critics allege. Vietnam was
a full-blown civil war. In Colombia, public support for the guerrillas
and the paramilitary forces is running at about 5 percent for each.

The fighting drags on despite pubic opposition because the drug trade
is fueling these illegal armed groups.

Nor is this just a military program. Indeed, the Colombian
government's plan addresses the full range of challenges facing that
country: the peace process, the drug trade, democracy and human
rights, the judiciary and the economy.

Colombia's plan also draws on the contributions, advice and
experiences of many other countries. Most of the plan's $7.5 billion
outlay will be for non-military programs.

Colombia will supply $4 billion, International Financial Institutions
already have provided more than $1 billion, the U.S. is proposing $1.6
billion, and Colombia is approaching Europeans and others for further
help.

U.S. assistance will be used in other ways, too, such as improving
Colombia's human rights performance and strengthening judicial
institutions, helping displaced people, providing economic
alternatives for small farmers, and improving environmental management
of protected areas.

We are at a rare moment. Although problems in Colombia have escalated,
a government is in office that has a comprehensive plan to address the
situation in a process that enjoys serious support from its citizens.

This is the best chance we have had to inflict major damage on the
drug supply flowing to our shores.

It is also our best chance to help Colombia strengthen its democracy,
find peace, and repair its economy.

Our proposed package will be an important complement to the $6 billion
the U.S. government will spend on demand reduction in the United
States and the $1.9 billion we spend on interdicting drugs.

As longstanding friends and neighbors of a democratic Colombia, we owe
it to our children and theirs to invest in Colombia's future.

It's an investment in our own.

Barry R. McCaffrey is the director of the White House Office of
National Drug Control Policy; and Thomas R. Pickering is
undersecretary of state for political affairs. Readers may write them
at The White House, Washington, D.C. 20503. This piece was distributed
by Knight Ridder/Tribune Information Services.