[Congressional Record Volume 145, Number 82 (Thursday, June 10, 1999)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1208]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]


                          WAGING THE DRUG WAR

                                 ______
                                 

                     HON. RANDY ``DUKE'' CUNNINGHAM

                             of california

                    in the house of representatives

                        Thursday, June 10, 1999

  Mr. CUNNINGHAM. Mr. Speaker, last week a Narcotics Eradication Task 
Force from the Republic of Colombia visited Washington. The Task Force 
included three retired Colombian Generals, a former Minister of 
Defense, the ex-Chief of Staff of the Armed Forces, the Army's former 
Inspector General, journalists, academics and a Magistrate from the 
International War Crimes Tribunal in The Hague. They came to Washington 
at the request of the bipartisan National Security Caucus with an 
important and powerful message for all of us.
  I hope all of my colleagues will pay careful attention to the 
alarming statistics they provided:
  Eighty percent of the world supply of cocaine is produced or transits 
through Colombia, and over 75 percent of the heroin seized on the U.S. 
East Coast is from that nation.
  Over 20,000 Americans die every year from abusing illegal narcotics. 
Drug abuse is also the main reason America's prison population has 
doubled between 1988 and 1998 and our nation has to spend over $35 
billion on its correctional system.
  There has been a 27 percent increase in drug use among 12-17 year 
olds, and 78 percent of American students report that drugs are bought, 
sold or used in their high schools.
  According to the most recent reports issued by the Clinton 
Administration, there has been an incredible 378 percent annual 
increase in the use of pure Colombian heroin. Heroin use has become an 
epidemic in almost every town, big or small, in our country. It is 
cheaper, purer and easier to obtain than ever before.
  A recent report released by the Colombian Army demonstrates that the 
FARC rebels have earned more than $5.3 billion over the last eight 
years through drug trafficking, kidnapping and extortion.
  Colombia has one of the highest rates of murder and kidnapping in the 
world. Attacks by rebel forces displaced over 300,000 people last year 
and 95 percent of all crimes go unpunished. The number of outstanding 
arrest warrants is over 150,000 and the judiciary has a backlog of over 
3.5 million cases.
  Mr. Speaker, I believe we can win the war on drugs but it will take a 
real commitment. We cannot just wish it away, and education alone is 
not going to stop drugs. Furthermore, interdiction alone will not stop 
the drug lords.
  Almost every American family has been affected negatively by drugs, 
including my own, not only from usage but from the sale of drugs. I 
want to tell you how disappointing, how hurtful it is and how damaging 
it is to a family. The Narcotics Eradication Task Force from Colombia 
expressed sincere gratitude for the economic assistance of the United 
States, but they also demonstrated that we need a real and 
comprehensive war on drugs.
  The Task Force members reminded us that many brave Colombian 
soldiers, policemen, judges and statesmen have lost their lives in the 
War on Drugs. They reminded our colleagues of heroes such as Enrique 
Camerino, a Border Patrol agent from just east of my district. He was 
buried alive after being tortured by Mexican drug loads.
  The Narcotics Eradication Task Force met with Senator Jeff Sessions 
(R-AL) and our colleagues Cass Ballenger (R-NC); Ciro Rodriguez (D-TX), 
Joe Crowley (D-NY), Kevin Brady (R-TX), Cliff Stearns (R-FL) and Mark 
Sanford (R-SC). According to the Task Force, the Colombian cartels 
processed coca paste flown from Peru and Bolivia for over a decade.
  It was not until the 1990s that the cartels promoted the planting of 
coca in the remote and sparsely populated eastern plains and jungles of 
Colombia, where the guerrillas had strong influence. Initially the 
guerrillas were content to protect laboratories and ``tax'' the 
different phases of the production process. They have since moved into 
direct involvement in the whole production process. They provide a good 
share of the cocaine produced in Colombia and collect protection money 
for the rest. The same holds true for the more recent production of 
heroine.
  However, as their income from drugs increased the guerrillas` 
kidnaping activity did not diminish. Around 1,600 people were reported 
kidnaped in 1997 and over 2000 were abducted in 1998. The true figure 
is unknown but probably much higher, since families are routinely 
ordered not to inform the authorities and many heed this warning. 
Guerrillas are believed to be responsible for 60% of the kidnapping in 
Colombia and collect more than 200 million dollars annually from these 
activities.
  The Colombian guerrillas are thought to be the world`s richest and 
most powerful criminal organization. But guerrillas combatants do not 
operate in a vacuum. Although the various legal Marxist parties have 
had little success at the polls, their unarmed supporters have 
infiltrated many government organizations. They also have permanent 
representatives abroad that run, with the collaboration of the extreme 
left in the United States and Europe, a powerful propaganda and 
disinformation operation.
  The visit of the Narcotics Eradication Task Force was made possible 
by the Colombian non-profit organization, Forum Interamericano. The 
Task Force also expressed its concern over the excessive concessions 
made by President Pastrana to the FARC rebels in a well intentioned but 
badly planned peace initiative. As an inducement to the FARC to sit at 
a negotiating table Pastrana ordered the withdrawal of the Armed Forces 
from a coca producing region the size of Switzerland, 16,000 square 
miles. This has given the terrorist guerrillas a safe sanctuary where 
the rebel group is recruiting combatants, keeping kidnap victims and 
has continued to produce drugs.

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