CIA LINKS MEXICO'S INTERIOR MINISTER TO DRUG LORDS

Mexico's new interior minister, the second-most-powerful official in the
country and a likely candidate for the presidency, has been linked by the
CIA to international narcotics traffickers.     
Francisco Labastida Ochoa has "long-standing ties" to drug dealers since
serving as governor of the state of Sinaloa for six years, according to a
report labeled "top secret" that was obtained by The Washington Times from
agency sources.        

The report says Mr. Labastida collaborated with drug dealers and ignored
their trafficking activities, but denied taking payoffs.

Disclosure of Mr. Labastida's drug-trafficking connections could undermine
his chances of becoming president of Mexico. He is one of two Cabinet-level
Mexican officials who meets the qualifications of the ruling Institutional
Revolutionary Party, known as the PRI, to run for the presidency in 2000,
the report said.   

Drug-related corruption in Mexico's regional and federal governments is a
long-standing problem. Mexico is a major supply route for illegal heroin
and cocaine entering the United States.    

Mr. Labastida was appointed last month as Mexico's government secretary, a
post equivalent to interior minister, by President Ernesto Zedillo after
the massacre of 45 civilians in Chiapas province.  

"Labastida's appointment could prove costly to the Zedillo administration
should reports become public that he has maintained ties to
narco-traffickers since his stint as governor of Sinaloa," the CIA report
stated.    

According to the report, "Labastida has denied receiving payoffs but has
acknowledged privately that he had to reach unspecified agreements with
traffickers and turn a blind eye to some of their activities."    

He was governor of the northwestern coastal province of Sinaloa, a reputed
bastion of illegal drug-trafficking activities, from 1987 to 1993, the
report noted.     

Fernando Lopez, a spokesman for Mr. Labastida in Mexico City, declined to
comment on the report. He said Mr. Labastida was too busy dealing with the
Zapatista insurgency and aftermath of the Chiapas massacre to be
interviewed on the matter.   

Drug Enforcement Administration spokesman James McGivny declined to comment
on the CIA report. As to accusations Mr. Labastida is tied to drug
traffickers, "normally we do not discuss who is under investigation or
subject of a DEA intelligence report," he said.  

But a U.S. government official who specializes in Latin American affairs
and who is familiar with the report said, "It's a matter of great concern.

"It remains to be seen whether this will be factored into the annual
certification process," said the official, who spoke on the condition of
anonymity.     

Susan Snyder, a spokeswoman for the State Department's bureau of
international narcotics and law enforcement affairs, had no immediate
comment.   

As government secretary, Mr. Labastida has been trying to deal with an
insurgency by Zapatista rebels and "is considered the second-most-powerful
official in Mexico," the CIA said.     

According to the CIA report, Mr. Labastida was selected by the Mexican
president for the post to promote public security and help Mr. Zedillo cope
with an opposition-controlled lower house of congress.    

The Clinton administration certified that Mexico was cooperating in the
battle against drugs last year despite the disclosures a year ago that
Mexico's top anti-drug official, Gen. Jesus Gutierrez Robollow, was linked
to drug lords. Certification must be carried out again this year.

Gen. Gutierrez, director of the Institute of Combat Against Drugs, was
fired and arrested on suspicion of taking payments from a top Mexican drug
lord.    

Administration officials at the time said they had no intelligence
information linking the general to drug trafficking.    

As interior minister, Mr. Labastida is not directly in charge of the
country's anti-drug efforts but is responsible for internal security, a
position that gives him access to Mexican government intelligence
information on drug activities.       

John Bailey, a Georgetown University specialist on Mexican government
corruption, said he is not surprised by the report of Mr. Labastida's ties
to drug traffickers.     

  "The interior minister is not in the direct line of law enforcement
authority, but he deals with political intelligence," Mr. Bailey said.
"Even though that is not his charge, he would run across these types of
drug-trafficking problems from his position."      

Mr. Bailey said Sinaloa is one of several regions in Mexico that is
notorious for large-scale drug activities.     

"I just don't see how anybody could be governor of a state like Sinaloa and
not be affected by corruption," he said.       

Mr. Bailey said that the governor of Sinaloa before Mr. Labastida was
linked to drug traffickers and that Mr. Labastida "seemed to be better" in
that regard.