LET'S BE A GOOD NEIGHBOR TO LATIN AMERICA

Much of the international news we have seen in the past five months has
focused on events in the Middle East and Afghanistan, and rightly so. A
recent story has broken through this news screen, however, to remind us
that our neighbors to the south should not be forgotten. This is the crisis
in Argentina.

If you are a banker, an exporter, or an employee of a multinational
company, it is easy to see how Argentina's crisis will impact the United
States, especially if things get worse there. But other nations are
watching Argentina closely, and the outcome of events there could affect
many issues.

If we take a broader look at our relations with Latin America as a whole,
there are many reasons why we need to pay attention. First, the scary ones.

1. Security. We need collaboration in our hemisphere to combat terrorism.
It has recently come to light, for example, that the Chavez government in
Venezuela may be harboring terrorists, and almost certainly is funding
guerrilla movements in other Latin countries.

2. The drug trade. Latin America desperately needs our help to combat drug
trafficking, ranging from law enforcement collaboration and intelligence
sharing to cracking down on money laundering. The benefits to us are
evident, as 58 percent of our federal prison population is composed of
those who have committed drug-related offenses, and an estimated $294
billion is lost to the U.S. economy every year because of drug use and drug
enforcement.

3. The environment. The bio-diversity of the Latin rainforests is an
incredible medical resource, as many North Carolina pharmaceutical
companies know, not to mention the impact that cutting and burning of trees
has on oxygen production and global warming. In the country of Colombia
alone, 2.5 million acres of rainforest have disappeared in the last 15 years.

Now, the positive reasons to stay engaged.

1. Democracy. Twenty-five years ago, eight Latin countries were
dictatorships under repressive military rule. Today, presidents are elected
in all but one country, Cuba. Democracy is still young, fragile, and being
tested in many parts of Latin America. It is no time to abandon our
neighbors, who need our active support to ensure that democracy does not
fall to the demands of economic despair. As President Bush said in a Jan.
16 speech at the World Affairs Councils of America National Conference in
Washington, "Together -- and I mean together -- we will defend this
hemisphere of liberty."

2. Business. Latin America had a growth rate in 2001 that equaled its
growth over the entire decade of the 1980s. A Free Trade Area of the
Americas is being actively negotiated by Congress and the current
administration. Mexico, our second largest trading partner, is the
destination for 14 percent of our exports (more than France, Germany,
England and Spain combined) and the source of 11 percent of our imports.
Though times are tough for everyone right now, there is still a good deal
of business going on.

3. Migration and family ties. We in North Carolina know well how the
composition of our society is changing and diversifying. Mexicans and other
Latinos have been coming here over the past decades to assist in everything
from tobacco farming to the hospitality industry, and our phenomenal
construction boom has been made possible with the hard work of thousands of
Mexican laborers. Recent figures released by the Mayor's International
Cabinet indicate that 95 percent of construction workers in Charlotte are
Latino. Latino purchasing power in our region is more than $544 million
annually.

Clearly immigration needs to be regulated to make sure that it does not
overburden our infrastructure or bring undue job competition. But there is
no doubt that the benefits to our cultural richness, cuisine and nightlife
have been numerous. And our economy has also benefited. Nationwide,
immigrants account for $90 billion in taxes every year (and only $5 billion
in welfare payments).

President Bush had no problem with the "vision thing" in his Jan. 16
speech. "This hemisphere is on the path of reform, and our nations travel
it together. We share a vision, a partnership of strong and equal and
prosperous nations living and trading in freedom." But I like even better
what renowned Chilean author Isabel Allende said at the same conference.
Allende had to flee her native Chile on another Sept. 11, when her uncle
Salvador Allende was deposed in a military coup. A recent immigrant to
California, she reflected on her feelings of straddling two cultures: "On
Sept. 11, 1973, I lost a country. On Sept. 11, 2001, I gained a country. My
heart has not been divided, it has just grown bigger."

No, Latin America, we will not forget you.

Jennifer Watson Roberts

Community columnist Jennifer Watson Roberts is executive director of the
Charlotte World Affairs Council.