[Congressional Bills 105th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H. Res. 289 Introduced in House (IH)]







105th CONGRESS
  1st Session
H. RES. 289

 Expressing the sense of the Congress that a renewed effort be made to 
end the violent guerrilla war in Colombia, which poses a serious threat 
to democracy in regions of Colombia as evidenced by the results of the 
                  recent October 26, 1997, elections.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                            October 29, 1997

  Mr. Gallegly (for himself and Mr. Ackerman) submitted the following 
   resolution; which was referred to the Committee on International 
                               Relations

_______________________________________________________________________

                               RESOLUTION


 
 Expressing the sense of the Congress that a renewed effort be made to 
end the violent guerrilla war in Colombia, which poses a serious threat 
to democracy in regions of Colombia as evidenced by the results of the 
                  recent October 26, 1997, elections.

Whereas on October 26, 1997, nationwide municipal elections in Colombia were 
        marred by a brutal campaign of violence, kidnapping, and extortion 
        carried out by the guerrilla movements of the Revolutionary Armed Forces 
        of Colombia (FARC) and the National Liberation Army (ELN);
Whereas, during the week before the elections, FARC and ELN terrorist activities 
        escalated into a national crisis with kidnapping of international 
        election observers from the Organization of American States (OAS) and a 
        declaration of an armed strike in order to impede public transportation 
        during the crucial time of the elections;
Whereas, through the deadly efforts of FARC and ELN, over 40 political 
        candidates were murdered, over 1,900 candidates were forced to abandon 
        their campaigns, nearly 120 municipalities had candidates reluctantly 
        running for political office, and 11 municipalities had no candidates at 
        all;
Whereas the political agendas of FARC and ELN appear to be heavily financed by 
        narcotics, which has aided both guerrilla elements to effectively 
        quadruple their power base over the past 7 years to a position where it 
        is estimated that they now control up to 30 percent of the territory of 
        Colombia;
Whereas it is estimated that 70,000 people have died as a direct result of the 
        internal fighting over the last decade;
Whereas the leaders of FARC and ELN have resisted all overtures by the 
        Government of Colombia to end the violence and establish peace; and
Whereas the campaign of FARC and ELN could ultimately pose a major threat to the 
        democratic form of government of Colombia and the stability of the 
        region: Now, therefore, be it
    Resolved, That the House of Representatives--
            (1) recognizes the importance of the threat of the 
        guerrilla movement to Colombia's democracy and that the acts of 
        violence to disrupt the electoral process in the municipal 
        elections could spill over to the congressional and 
        presidential elections to be held in 1998;
            (2) urges the guerrilla leaders of the Revolutionary Armed 
        Forces of Colombia (FARC) and the National Liberation Army 
        (ELN) to end the violence and sever their relationship with 
        narcotics traffickers, negotiate a peace accord with the 
        Government of Colombia, and take their agenda into the 
        political arena for debate;
            (3) calls upon the international community, particularly 
        the Organization of American States, to continue to play a more 
        proactive role in trying to resolve the conflict; and
            (4) urges the Administration to reevaluate United States 
        policies toward Colombia, taking into account the threat of the 
        guerrilla movement to Colombia's democracy, and to encourage a 
        peaceful resolution of the conflict.
                                 <all>