ONE-UPMANSHIP IN COLOMBIA

WHILE calling off the peace process with the country's largest rebel group
last week, Colombian President Andres Pastrana took care not to slam the
door shut on negotiations. As a leader who came to office four years ago on
a pledge to end Latin America's longest-running guerrilla war, Pastrana
clearly did not want to be seen as the person who abandoned an initiative
that had begun with much promise.

Pastrana cannot be faulted for the collapse of the peace process, since he
was responding to the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia's abduction of
presidential candidate Ingrid Betancourt. Pastrana tried hard to fulfil his
election pledge and pursued the peace process against heavy odds.
Supporters of the president often joined the opposition in criticising him
for granting too many concessions to the rebels.

After the peace process began more than three years ago, Pastrana handed
FARC control of an area the size of Switzerland in southern Colombia as a
gesture of his government's commitment to ending decades of murder and mayhem.

For a group believed to be holding about 800 people hostage, Betancourt was
another high-profile number on the list. But Pastrana, wearied by a peace
process that yielded few tangible gains, saw the act as an assault on
democracy.

Although Colombians widely blame FARC for the collapse of the peace
process, they are looking to the state to forestall a return to full-scale
civil war.

Admittedly, a resumption of killings and destruction of vital
infrastructure would overshadow such issues as unemployment, health,
education and poverty that lie at the heart of the conflict. Furthermore,
there are concerns that right-wing paramilitaries might move into the zone
vacated by FARC and kill people suspected of collaborating with the rebels.

The breakdown of the peace process puts the United States in a difficult
position.

Washington has provided Bogota more than $1 billion in military assistance
over the past two years to combat drug trafficking. President George W.
Bush has asked Congress for additional assistance to combat terrorism in
Colombia and to protect the country's oil pipelines from rebel attacks.

There is growing anxiety in the region over reports that remnants of Peru's
Shining Path guerrillas are building an alliance with Colombian drug
traffickers and FARC. This development is likely to complicate Washington's
anti-drug and anti-terrorism operations in Latin America. There is
reluctance, however, within the US government and among lawmakers to expand
Washington's involvement in an extremely volatile region. The desirable
course for all sides would be a resumption of the peace talks.

However, with presidential elections barely three months away, overseeing
that task in earnest is likely to begin only after Pastrana's successor
takes office.