U.S. DRUG REPORT LIKE SALT ON NATIONS' WOUNDS

WASHINGTON -- The annual rite of certification, a yearly U.S. report that
grades Latin American nations and other countries' attempts to limit drug
production and trafficking, is salt on a festering wound south of the
United States.

To protect their pride, some countries try to pre-empt the report, usually
released at the end of February, by announcing victories in the drug war.
But the process raises hackles. A 1986 law setting up the process gives the
president three choices: to certify a country as a full ally in the drug
war, to grant a national security waiver, or to deny certification. A
decertified country could lose most U.S. aid and support for international
loans. A country given a waiver can receive aid, but its drug-fighting
efforts are considered substandard by the United States.

This year, the Clinton administration evaluated 30 countries considered
important to producing or transporting drugs, and on Feb. 26 President
Clinton decertified four: Afghanistan, Burma, Iran and Nigeria. Four
received waivers: Colombia, Cambodia, Pakistan and Paraguay.

Congress has 30 days to overturn the certification rulings. Proposals have
been introduced in the House and Senate to withdraw Mexico's certification.

In years past, the House and Senate floors have erupted with red-hot
criticism after the administration announced its report. The blame stings
countries like Mexico, which warn Congress that public thrashings hobble
future relations. Some ambassadors go on the offensive, arguing that U.S.
citizens smoke the most marijuana, snort the most cocaine and shoot up the
most heroin.

Many narcotics experts agree with the criticism, giving the U.S. policy low
marks. Some want certification to be scrapped because it contains double
standards, treating nations unequally. More importantly, they say, the real
problem is drug demand at home.

Others, though, say that until the United States and other countries forge
a new strategy, certification is the best choice available.

Richard Craig, a narcotics expert at Kent State in Ohio, points to
Colombia's efforts as proof that certification is a powerful tool.

For the past two years, Clinton has decertified Colombia. During that time,
the Colombian police jailed leaders of major drug cartels, eradicated
thousands of acres of cocoa crops and instituted strong money laundering
laws. This year, Clinton upgraded Colombia, giving the South American
country a waiver.

"In that time, Columbia did more than any other country in the history of
certification," Craig said. "Colombia's herbicide campaign destroyed more
cocoa acres than anyone else's."

In fact, Colombia did more during those two years than Mexico, which has
never been decertified.

"There is a moderate, but not a severe, double standard," Craig said. "But
it's understandable. We share a 2,000-mile-long border, Mexico is a major
trading partner, and the situation in Mexico is improving, the cooperation
is better than ever."

The U.S. drug czar, Barry McCaffrey, repeatedly stresses what he calls the
growing cooperation between the two countries. When Mexico's
recertification was announced Feb. 26, he described the government's
efforts as "absolutely superlative."

McCaffrey frequently cites two examples: a binational drug strategy
introduced last month that, he says, should increase law enforcement
cooperation between the countries, and a drug reduction summit to be held
in El Paso later this month.

But its praise of Mexico sometimes haunts the Clinton administration.

Last year, Congress seemed ready to strip Mexico's certification after its
drug czar, Gen. Jesus Gutierrez Rebollo, was arrested on charges that
included collaborating with a major drug trafficker. The disclosure of the
general's arrest came just days after Clinton certified Mexico and 10 days
after Guiterrez Rebollo's trip to Washington, where he received drug
intelligence from officials.

The general was sentenced to 13 years and nine months in prison last week.

This year, days before the administration announced Mexico's
recertification, The Washington Times said a CIA report alleged that
Mexico's interior minister, Francisco Labastida Ochoa, once was involved
with Mexican drug traffickers. Mexico and Labastida denied the accusation,
and McCaffrey said he had no intention of asking the Mexican government
about the report.

The Drug Enforcement Administration is said to be less enthusiastic about
Mexico's progress. A confidential DEA assessment has reportedly said
Mexican drug trafficking has increased and that Mexico's drug enforcement
measures have not produced significant results.

There are other signs of a U.S. double standard, said Rensselaer W. Lee II,
a narcotics expert at the Virginia-based Global Advisory Services. The
Treasury Department's Office of Foreign Assets Control keeps a list of 110
Colombian companies linked to drug cartels, but no list for Mexico exists,
he said.

If Mexico continues to get favorable treatment, Lee said, Latin American
countries will not merely despise certification, "they will lose all
respect for us."

Clinton is looking to eventually replace the certification process. A drug
policy official, who insisted on anonymity, said the White House is
considering a Western Hemisphere alliance to fight the drug trade. The
alliance would appoint a secretariat to ensure compliance. This and other
proposals will be discussed in April at the Summit of the Americas in
Santiago, Chile.

Whatever changes occur, convincing Congress will be a tough sell, said John
Bailey, a professor of Latin American affairs at Georgetown University
here. Congress created the certification requirement in 1986 after Mexican
drug traffickers killed DEA agent Enrique Camarena.

Copyright 1998 Houston Chronicle Washington Bureau