Plan Colombia

From WolfWikis

1 Plan Colombia
2 U.S. Involvement in Plan Colombia
3 Proponents of the Plan
4 Criticisms of Plan Colombia
5 Video Clips
6 References
7 Back To

Plan Colombia

Plan Colombia is a "7.5 billion dollar aid" program conceived by the United States and Colombian officials. ^[1] It was implemented 2000 and aims to deal with Colombia's deterioration into a "lawless state fueled by drug trafficking." ^[2] The Colombian government expects 3.5 billion to be donated from foreign countries and the rest from Colombian sources. But so far the donations have been disappointing with the exception of the 1.3 billion dollars from the United States government. Other countries are now starting to look at Plan Colombia as a "United States package" with some governments in Latin America and Europe looking at it as "being a convenient target, a rallying cry of anti-Americanism." ^[3] While Plan Colombia intends to do several things its' focus is to curb drug smuggling by supporting different Drug War activities in Colombia. The main goal of plan Colombia is to “eradicate Colombia's coca plants before they are processed into cocaine”. ^[4] While the United States aid package is aimed at fighting drugs, "three-quarters of that aid is in the form of military assistance." ^[5]

Bag of Coca leaves

While Colombia is South America's "oldest democracy and second largest country." ^[6] and has a constitutional government it is threatened from guerrillas on the left, paramilitary forces on the right and criminal groups, all largely fueled by illegal drugs." ^[7]. The plan intends to gain control of Colombia by launching a military campaign against the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC).

Image of a town destroyed by FARC

Bridge destroyed by FARC

The preface of Plan Colombia claims that the violence related to drug trafficking has "leached the resources that the country would need in order to complete the construction of a modern state" ^[8] The preface of the plan also includes that, "the success of our strategy depends, also, on our efforts to reform and modernize our military forces in order to guarantee the application of the law and to return the sense of security to all Colombians, in the totality of the national territory" ^[9] Economically, the Plan's preface proposes neoliberal policies as the solution to Colombia's social and economic problems. In its appeal for international aid, the Plan states, "We are convinced that the first step to reach successful world wide 'globalization' is the 'globalization of solidarity'" ^[10]

U.S. Involvement in Plan Colombia

The United States has provided Colombia with “1.3 billion dollars” as an “interagency assistance package” ^[11] to improve upon five different areas in the country. These five areas include:

1. Support for Human Rights and Judicial Reform- the United States has given “122 million” to support human rights, judicial reform, and other programs designed to support the peace process. Special attention has been given to the protection of NGO’s concerned with protecting human rights as well as the establishment of human rights units within the Colombian police. ^[12]

2. Expansion of Counter-Narcotics Operations into Southern Colombia- The United States has given 390.5 million to support the Colombian government in gaining control of drug producing regions. The money goes towards “equipping and training counternarcotic battalions” in the Colombian army to fight the production of illegal drugs. ^[13]

3. Alternative Economic Development- The United States gives 81 million to support “alternative and economic development programs” in Colombia to assist small farmers make the transition from growing illegal crops such as coca and opium poppies to growing legal crops. ^[14]

4. Increased Interdiction- The United States provides 129.4 million to “enhance U.S. and Colombian narcotics interdiction efforts” The majority of these funds are used to update radar systems for early detection and monitoring suspects who are growing cocaine. ^[15]

5. Assistance for the Colombian National Police- 115.6 million United States dollars goes to support the CNP for “procurement, training, and support for Blackhawk helicopters. ^[16]

Proponents of the Plan

Proponents of the plan have put forth 10 elements for implementing the various components of Plan Colombia. The ten elements include: ^[17]

1. Economic Strategy

2. Fiscal Strategy

3. Military Strategy

4. Judicial and Human Rights Strategy

5. Counternarcotics Strategy

6. Alternative Development Strategy

7. Social Participation Strategy

8. Human Development Strategy

9. Peace Strategy

10. International Strategy

Proponents of Plan Colombia claim its "successful implementation will end Colombia's civil war, revive the nation's economy and put the narco-traffickers out of business" ^[18] Proponents also state that the overall security efforts in Colombia have improved despite evidence stating otherwise. Proponents of Plan Colombia also believe it has the ability for economic revitalization as well as the ability to build democracy while also decreasing terrorism/drug trafficking. "Plan Colombia," says Michael Shifter of the Inter-American Dialogue, a think tank in Washington, "....has manifestly helped the government restore some measure of authority in a country that was on the verge of being a failed state six years ago." ^[19] Despite this fact the proponents of the plan admit that impressive gains do to mean victory. "We're making first downs," US Ambassador to Colombia, William Wood is fond of saying, "...but we're not sure how long the football field is." ^[20]

Criticisms of Plan Colombia

Critics of Plan Colombia believe it is not working. Despite the unprecedented eradication efforts, "coca cultivation actually increased last year by 8 percent," according to a study released in June by the UN Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC). Also, the amount of cocaine being produced from coca leaves is also increasing." ^[21] According to the study, Colombia produced 776 metric tons of cocaine last year, "231 more than previous US estimates, and enough to supply almost 80 percent of the world market." ^[22] There are also critics who believe that if Plan Colombia does in fact succeed the drug traffickers will simply move to a different country which does not eradicate the problem but simply relocates it to a different area.

Critics of the plan also site that the aerial fumigation to eradicate coca damages legal crops. It also has the potential to have adverse health effects on individuals exposed to the herbicides Glyphosate. Dr. Theo Colborn of the World Wildlife Fund has studied the effects of the herbicides used to spray cocoa crops in Colombia and found that it interferes with enzyme systems in the thyroid and can also cause tumors.

Plan Colombia is also detrimental to small farmers who grow cocoa crops for a living. Their crops can be destroyed and may end up going to jail or killed. While the Colombia government is willing to give farmers 2 million pesos if they sign a pact, the amount of money is not enough for a family to live on. United States policy encourages these farmers to grow "legal crops." However, the farmers are having to haul these items to the market to sell but they do not have access to vehicles, many roads to do not even exist, and they are going up against an international global economy.

Image of a Child's Painting of Plan Colombia

There are several critics who believe Plan Colombia is nothing more than a program of counternarcotics and military aid to the Colombian government. Doug Stokes and Francisco Ramirez Cuellar, authors of America's Other War: Terrorizing Colombia, believe the main goal of Plan Colombia is “not drug eradication but to fight leftist guerrilla’s supporter by part of the lower rural class in Colombia” ^[23] These individuals are targets because they are “calling for social reform and hindering international plans to exploit Colombia’s valuable resources, mainly oil. As of 2004, Colombia was the "fifteenth largest supplier of oil to the United States" ^[24] ”

Many individuals point out the differences between the earliest versions of Plan Colombia and the later drafts. The original intent for Plan Colombia to achieve peace and end violence however the final version of the plan emphasized drug trafficking and increasing military strength. Ambassador Robert White stated “If you read the original Plan Colombia, not the one that was written in Washington but the original Plan Colombia, there’s no mention of military drives against the FARC rebels” ^[25]

In 2005 RAND, a conservative think tank, was comissioned by the army called "Controlling Cocaine." They studied different methods of dealing with the drug problem. Prevention and treatment was the most cost effective method. Police force at home was the second most effective. The next was border interdiction, and the last was out of country operations like fumigation in Colombia. According to this study Plan Colombia is the least effective way to deal with the cocaine problem. ^[26]

Protesting Plan Colombia

There are also human rights issued being brought up by critics of Plan Colombia. In 2000 Amnesty International stated: "Plan Colombia is based on a drug-focused analysis of the roots of the conflict and ignores deep-rooted causes of the conflict and the human rights crisis. The Plan proposes a principally military strategy (in the US component of Plan Colombia) to tackle illicit drug cultivation and trafficking through substantial military assistance to the Colombian armed forces and police. Social development and humanitarian assistance programs included in the Plan cannot disguise its essentially military character. Furthermore, it is apparent that Plan Colombia is not the result of a genuine process of consultation either with the national and international non-governmental organizations which are expected to implement the projects nor with the beneficiaries of the humanitarian, human rights or social development projects. As a consequence, the human rights component of Plan Colombia is seriously flawed." ^[27]

Noam Chomsky, a historian/philosopher at MIT stated "What right does the United States have to do anything in Colombia? The answer is as much right as China has to do anything in the United States. Zero. For example does Colombia have a right to bomb Kentucky or North Carolina, that's where they produce the most legal drugs in the world. The number of people that die from tobacco is 25 times as high as from all other drugs combined. But no one believes that other countries have the right to carry out fumigation on North Carolina and Kentucky. That would be outrageous. Even if it did work"