BAD EXAMPLE FOR DEMOCRACY

On Aug. 14 Undersecretary of State for Political Affairs Marc Grossman
requested that U.S. military personnel in Colombia be given immunity from
prosecution by the International Criminal Court for any human rights abuses
that may occur in connection with their work [news story, Aug. 15]. This is
devastating news to Colombians who want their government to observe basic
human rights standards.

Colombian human rights commissioners and judges who investigate
assassinations and massacres are regularly killed, and leaders of peace
groups and labor unions are equally at risk. About 3,500 people were killed
last year, and the Colombian government is itself implicated by its
inaction. In Bojaya, 119 civilians were massacred in May after the military
ignored many warnings of the danger and allowed paramilitary groups to move
freely into that region.

The only hope for Colombian democracy is the establishment of a rule of
law, and the Colombian citizens who work at great risk to themselves to
establish a civil society deserve our support. Announcement that the U.S.
military will join the Colombian groups that ignore human rights is not the
way to establish democracy.

ALICE FOLTZ

Centreville