[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 146 (2000), Part 9]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page 12206]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]


[[Page 12206]]

                          EXTENSIONS OF REMARKS

RETIREMENT OF GENERAL ROSSO JOSE SERRANO AS THE DIRECTOR GENERAL OF THE 
                       COLOMBIAN NATIONAL POLICE

                                 ______
                                 

                             HON. BOB BARR

                               of georgia

                    in the house of representatives

                        Thursday, June 22, 2000

  Mr. BARR of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, the resignation this week of 
General Rosso Jose Serrano, as Director General of the Colombian 
National Police, has been met with sadness by those of us who have 
known him and assisted his efforts in the War on Drugs. He was a bright 
light to the United States during a dark period of U.S.-Colombian 
relations. His 40 years in law enforcement and his accomplishments 
stand as a testimony to the adage that ``one man can make a 
difference.''
  General Serrano is a true hero in the War on Drugs, just as Drug 
Enforcement Administration (D.E.A.) Administrator Donnie Marshall 
termed him earlier this week. F.B.I. Director Louis Freeh accurately 
described General Serrano as a ``Cop's Cop.'' I speak for many of my 
colleagues in this House who have been to war-torn Colombia, when I 
call him a ``true inspiration to those who cherish the rule of law.'' 
Few men have equaled what this quiet policeman from the farmlands of 
northeastern Colombia has accomplished.
  I know of no other lawman who has faced down the type of ruthless 
druglords that General Serrano has, and lived to tell about it. At a 
time when Colombia was synonymous with corruption and drug crime, 
General Serrano stood tall to enforce the rule of law, when others hid.
  In the early 1990's, General Serrano commanded the anti-narcotics 
agents of the world-famous D.A.N.T.I. These men and women worked hand-
in-hand with our D.E.A. in fighting the drug lords in Colombia. As a 
result of General Serrano's leadership, and with the D.E.A.'s 
assistance, they dismantled the infamous Medelllin Cartel and brought 
its vicious leader, Pablo Escobar, to final justice on the rooftop of 
his hiding place, in December 1993.
  He then led the destruction of the Calia Cartel by arresting the 
leadership of this deadly drug mafia. Today, these drug lords sit in 
prison, awaiting extradition to courts in the United States. In 
Colombia, five years ago, these victories were thought to be 
impossible. These astounding efforts came at great cost, however, with 
the Colombian National Police losing over 5,000 officers to drug cartel 
violence.
  In 1996, General Serrano was invited to testify before the United 
States Congress, to tell his own story of how the arrogant drug lords 
were brought to justice, at a time when justice was laughed at in 
Colombia. General Serrano accomplished this huge task despite 
overwhelming odds and great danger to his forces. By his plain-spoken 
words and his reputation for honesty, he enlisted many Congressmen, 
from both sides of the aisle, in supporting his anti-narcotics efforts, 
when the Clinton Administration withheld support.
  Today, I stand in the halls of the U.S. Congress to hail the 
extraordinary efforts of a man who has always claimed he was just an 
ordinary citizen of Colombia. I take great pride in saying that Rosso 
Jose Serrano, the very extraordinary man from the farmlands of 
northeastern Colombia, is my friend. I would like to remind the people 
of America that ``one man can make a difference,'' and that in our 
joint war against narco-terrorism, General Serrano made that 
difference. The American people owe his a huge debt of gratitude.

                          ____________________