[Congressional Record Volume 146, Number 73 (Tuesday, June 13, 2000)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E986]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




 HAILING GENERAL SERRANO, VALIANT DRUG FIGHTER AND GREAT FRIEND OF THE 
                             UNITED STATES

                                 ______
                                 

                        HON. BENJAMIN A. GILMAN

                              of new york

                    in the house of representatives

                         Tuesday, June 13, 2000

  Mr. GILMAN. Mr. Speaker, today I praise General Rosso Jose Serrano on 
his retirement as head of the Colombian National Police (CNP) as a 
valiant drug fighter and great friend of the United States. He will be 
hard to replace.
  General Serrano saved countless American families from the nightmare 
of drug addiction. For this, we owe him a debt of gratitude.
  In his nearly 40 years as a policeman in Colombia, General Serrano 
has fought corruption and drug traffickers and made the CNP the model 
of Latin American police agencies. Through his tireless and selfless 
leadership, General Serrano won the support of the Colombian people and 
the world for his valiant police officers, more than 5,000 of whom have 
died in the last 10 years in Colombia's drug-financed civil war.
  General Serrano destroyed the powerful Medellin and Cali drug 
cartels. When finally provided with the Black Hawk utility helicopters, 
Serrano's CNP officers began inflicting massive damage on narco-
terrorists, producing significant results in destroying cocaine labs 
and reducing opium and coca leaf crops.
  I invite our colleagues to join in wishing General Serrano and his 
family our sincerest best wishes for a long, happy, and healthy 
retirement. We hope that he will continue to serve the international 
community by sharing his years of expertise through such institutions 
as the planned International Law Enforcement Academy (ILEA) for the 
Americas.

                          ____________________