COLOMBIA FACING CRISIS

Dear Editor: The South American country of Colombia is facing a crisis that
threatens its very survival. For decades, it has been plagued by a war
funded through kidnapping, extortion, hijacking, and the drug trade. Three
thousand Colombians have been killed and nearly as many kidnapped as a
result of terrorist violence in the last year alone. Over this same period,
12 mayors and two legislators have been murdered, and another 12
legislators abducted. Last February, presidential candidate Ingrid
Betancourt was also kidnapped, and, just days ago, leading presidential
candidate Alvaro Uribe narrowly escaped an assassination attempt that
claimed the lives of three innocent bystanders.

Terrible devastation is being wrought in Colombia, and the effects are
being felt in the U.S. as well. Colombia is the source of 90 percent of the
cocaine and a significant portion of the hero is consumed in the United
States. Terror groups have kidnapped and killed U.S. citizens and regularly
attack U.S. investments in Colombia. As part of the global battle to defeat
terrorism, the Colombian crisis must be addressed.

The three Colombian insurgency groups most responsible for this cycle of
violence already appear on the State Department's list of terrorist
organizations - the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC), the
National Liberation Army (ELN), and the united Self-Defense Forces of
Colombia (AUC). These groups are involved in all areas of narcotics
trafficking, from cultivation and processing to transportation and support
their terrorist activities through these and other violent means.

Traditionally, the FARC has sought to control the rural countryside and
strike at government infrastructure. Now, it appears that they are seeking
to expand their operations against urban targets as well. In recent weeks,
bombs have been set off in cities including Bogota, the capital city of
eight million people. More than 110 towns, nearly ten percent of Colombia's
urban centers, have lost electricity. Until recently, most of Colombia's
population had not felt the effects of the war, but with 75 percent of the
population living in cities, the human and economic toll could rise in the
next several months.

Following three years of failed attempts at peaceful negotiations with the
FARC and the ELN, Colombian President Andres Pastrana is seeking to expand
his country's military operations against the rebel groups. A current
restriction prohibits the Colombian government from using U.S. supplied
military equipment to combat the insurgents. The Bush Administration's
effort to extend the scope of U.S. military aid to Colombia is an important
acknowledgment of the fact that the fight against the rebels is intertwined
with the war on drugs. Clearly, our past attempts to draw a distinction
between the two no longer reflect the current situation in Colombia.

While I support the Administration's initiative, I also believe that the
Colombian government should commit more of its own resources to protecting
its people. Though the Colombian military has made progress over the last
few years, particularly with regard to human rights, it continues to be
poorly structured and ill-equipped to adequately combat the guerrillas.
Heightened violence in recent months has stretched these capabilities even
further. Colombia must follow up U.S. aid with a sustained effort to
adequately provide for the safety and security of Colombians.

As guerrilla attacks continue to increase, more and more people are
beginning to believe that the paramilitaries are the answer to the war.
Perhaps sensing this trend, the presidential candidate most likely to win
in next month's election, Alvaro Uribe, has promised to arm one million
Colombians to fight the guerrillas. There is a growing fear that the nation
could descend into an even more violent and prolonged civil war, the
effects of which will be felt throughout our hemisphere.

To avoid this, we should work to defend Colombia's stability and democracy.
In addition to fortifying its law enforcement capabilities, we should
direct equal attention to promoting social and economic programs to replace
the income provided by the production and distribution of illegal drugs.
Plan Colombia and the Andean Regional Initiative have devoted significant
funding for human rights education and social aid programs that benefit
Colombian society. President Bush has committed the United States to
fortifying Colombia's democratic institutions, promoting sustainable
development, and fighting the supply of drugs at its source.

If these structures and initiatives are not firmly established at this
critical juncture, anarchy will prevail. And the consequences of
democracy's failure in Colombia will not be confined to that nation alone.
It is in the interest of our national security that we address the
Colombian crisis before it spirals out of control, destabilizing the entire
region and potentially forcing U.S. entry into a prolonged and bloody
conflict. We cannot afford to ignore this alarming destruction and human
suffering I our own backyard.

Fred Thompson U.S. Senator Washington, D.C.