'PLAN COLOMBIA' NOT GOING AS PLANNED?

Your July 21 editorial "Winning in one terrorist war" misstates the success
of President Uribe and Plan Colombia. According to State Department figures,
although Colombian coca production fell slightly in 2002, it is still above
the level of 2000, when Plan Colombia was introduced. Coca production in the
Andes has remained virtually steady at 200,000 hectares since 1988 despite
repeated fumigation efforts. Furthermore, there has been no substantial
impact on availability of cocaine in the United States, with prevalence of
cocaine among 12th-graders slightly increasing in 2002, according to the
White House drug czar.

In March of this year, the State Department reported continued collaboration
between the Colombian military and the AUC "right-wing militia," classified
as a terrorist organization and in control of about 40 percent of the
Colombian drug trade. Just last week, Colombia's leading weekly news
magazine documented how the AUC paramilitary terrorists are strengthening
their presence in regions regained by the military. Many fear that the peace
process will simply allow AUC members to formalize their status within the
security forces by entering the newly created "peasant soldier" division. If
the AUC peace process is to provide greater protection for Colombian
civilians, then it must do more than just disarm these illegal fighters. It
must help create an accountable, transparent, and professional Colombian
military, and must demonstrate that those who commit mass murder and
torture, or who profit from drug trafficking, will be brought to justice.

Neil Jeffery

Washington Executive Director, US Office on Colombia,

Colombia Human Rights Committee