Clinton Waives Human Rights Clause, Approves Colombia Drug War Money

by Yadira Ferrer

The non-governmental organizations (NGOs) said that Clinton's decision to grant Colombia approval for reasons of "national interest," even with some conditions, was patently wrong, noting that human rights violations continue to occur as the decades-long civil war drives on, claiming more and more civilian victims.

The president's certification, communicated to the State Department, is required for the release of the first part of the $1.3 billion aid package -- already approved by Congress -- for the "Plan Colombia."

Colombian President Andres Pastrana is the driving force behind the plan, ostensibly to fund the peace process and foment social development, and he has launched an appeal to the international financial community for support. But NGOs say the project will only lead to an escalation of the civil war.

The law passed by Congress to authorize assistance for Plan Colombia stipulates that military personnel suspected of committing human rights violations or of collaborating with right-wing paramilitary squads must be dismissed.

The memorandum Clinton sent to Secretary of State Madeleine Albright states that this requirement has been waived "in the national security interest of the United States."

In addition, he waived the stipulation for the Pastrana government to "vigorously prosecute in civilian courts the leaders and members of the paramilitary groups and Columbian Armed Forces personnel who are aiding or abetting those groups."

The fundamental purposes of Plan Colombia are to support peace negotiations between the Pastrana government and guerrilla organizations and to fight the drug trade and the cultivation of illegal crops, including coca (for cocaine), marijuana and poppies (for heroin or opium).

Jorge Rojas, spokesman for the Permanent Assembly of Civil Society for Peace -- made up of approximately 40 NGOs -- told IPS they will demand that the government invest part of the U.S. aid in human rights protection measures.

Rojas, also director of the non-governmental Consultancy for Human Rights and Displacement, said Clinton's support for Plan Colombia is centered on the war against the drug trade and ignores the country's dismal human rights situation.

In explaining his decision, Clinton said that Pastrana is committed to confronting human rights problems, which are of great concern to everyone, and has presented a bill before the Colombian Parliament for civilian trials of members of the military who are implicated in such crimes.

One of the conditions the U.S. Congress imposed for release of the funding was that Pastrana would have to declare in writing that the military personnel accused of human rights violations would be tried in civilian courts, a requirement the Colombian president met on Aug. 16.

The decision to certify Colombia comes one week before Clinton is scheduled to visit Cartagena, on the country's northern coast, where he is to reaffirm his commitment to Pastrana's anti-drug policy.

Jose Vivanco, Latin American director of the international organization Human Rights Watch, based in Washington DC, said even though Pastrana had complied with the condition to rule out military courts for trying cases of human rights violations, there is still much left to do to resolve the issue.

One of the most difficult challenges included in the legislation will be to achieve the complete eradication of coca and poppy fields (more than 300,000 acres) by 2005.

Clinton's certification of Colombia coincided with the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) announcement that six minors die each day due to violence in this country.

An estimated 6,000 children are direct participants in the armed conflict, either with the leftist guerrilla groups or with the rightist paramilitaries, says UNICEF.

The human rights watchdog group Amnesty International reported that in Colombia last year, more than 3,500 people were victims of violent acts committed for political motives, several dozen "disappeared" and more than 250,000 were forced to flee their homes.

The warring groups "intensified their actions and expanded to new areas," but this escalation provoked little or no reaction from government authorities, Amnesty added.

The organization criticizes the Colombian government for not complying with its promise to create an elite government military force to combat the right-wing paramilitary squads, which are blamed for 80 percent of the peasant massacres (defined as the killing of more than four people in the same place at the same time) over the last several years.