SUPPORT IN COLOMBIA CONNECTS DEMOCRACY, DRUGS, HUMAN RIGHTS

WASHINGTON -- The death of five American and two Colombian soldiers in
a plane crash during a counternarcotics mission in Colombia last month
put the spotlight on our stake in South America's most troubled country.

Colombian drug traffickers produce more than 80 percent of the world's
cocaine and a rising proportion of the heroin that reaches our shores.
Two guerrilla organizations -- the Revolutionary Armed Forces of
Columbia, known as FARC, and National Liberation Army, or ELN -- are
at war with the government and control a significant amount of territory.

The guerrillas are opposed by right-wing paramilitary groups that,
like the guerrillas, regularly abuse human rights. Both the guerrillas
and the paramilitaries use the drug trade to finance their operations.
Efforts by Colombia's president, Andres Pastrana, to negotiate peace
have stalled. Crime is rampant. And the nation's economy, long a
regional star, is in the midst of its worst recession since the 1930s.

Colombia's problems extend beyond its borders and have implications
for regional security and stability. To turn the tide, Pastrana must
wage a comprehensive effort. And he needs -- and deserves --
international support that focuses on more than drug interdiction and
eradication.

As Pastrana understands, the goals of peace, law, prosperity and
respect for human rights are not separate from one another, but rather
reinforcing of one another. Progress toward one will make the others
easier to achieve.

There are, for example, many dimensions to the pursuit of peace. After
38 years of struggle, it should be clear that a decisive military
outcome is unlikely. Pastrana was right to initiate talks; the
question is whether he can muster a combination of pressure and
incentives that will cause the guerrillas to respond.

The peace efforts must be guided by Colombians themselves. Pastrana
has taken courageous risks in this quest, and it is up to him to
decide what carrots and sticks are needed. But the United States and
other friends of Colombia must be ready to help. President Clinton has
already pledged our support in a letter to Pastrana on July 20.

Efforts to stop the drug trade are linked to the quest for peace
because of rebel and paramilitary involvement in drug trafficking.
And, as we have seen in Bolivia and Peru, success in battling drugs
requires a medley of strategies, including eradication, interdiction,
crop substitution, economic development and criminal justice reform.

Here, too, the Colombian government must take the lead, but others
must do their share. The United States has been a strong supporter of
Colombia's anti-narcotics effort, which is appropriate because our
demand for drugs is a major cause of the problem.

The Colombian National Police are spraying and seizing impressive
amounts of cocaine and heroin. But coca production is soaring, drug
organizations are well armed and financed, and Colombia's judicial
system is plagued by corruption, inadequate resources and a backlog of
3.5 million cases. Success will not come quickly, but progress is
possible if the government has international support.

The protection of human rights is similarly intertwined with the other
goals. Most victims of Colombia's conflict have been civilians. In its
most recent offensive, the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia
indiscriminately attacked villagers and deployed child soldiers as
young as 9.

The guerrilla group still refuses to account for three American
missionaries kidnapped from Panama in 1993, and in March its forces
murdered three Americans who were working with local indigenous
groups. In addition, paramilitary groups have recently stepped up
attacks on human-rights workers and political activists.

In the past, the Colombian military has squandered support by failing
to prevent human-rights abuses, by both its own forces and
paramilitary groups. The United States has strict procedures in place
in Colombia, as elsewhere, to verify that individuals and units
receiving American assistance and training have not been involved in
human-rights abuses, and that those responsible for past abuses are
brought to justice.

Under Pastrana, the military has dramatically improved its record, but
we continue to press for further progress, especially to ensure that
any remaining ties between military commanders and paramilitaries are
broken.

Colombia's economic problems are linked to low commodity prices and
high deficits, but they are also the result of crime and conflict.
Conversely, economic development and the creation of legitimate jobs
are the best ways to keep citizens from flouting the law and
supporting radical movements.

So any nation interested in helping Colombia fight drugs or achieve
peace will have an interest in helping it recover economically. The
United States has been working with the International Monetary Fund,
the World Bank and other partners to ensure that needed assistance is
available.

Undersecretary of State Thomas Pickering is in Bogota to meet with
Pastrana and convey U.S. support for Colombia's efforts to move
forward on all of these fronts. He will go to Caracas, Venezuela, as
well, as part of our effort to secure strong regional backing for
policies to achieve peace, establish law and build prosperity.

Colombia's people are engaged in a vital test of democracy, a test
they must pass for themselves. But they should know that we understand
the many dimensions and long-term nature of the problems they face,
and that we will do all we can to help them.