Speech by Rep. James McGovern (D-Massachusetts), March 6, 2002

Speech by Rep. James McGovern (D-Massachusetts), March 6, 2002

Mr. McGOVERN. I thank the gentleman for yielding me this time and appreciate all his work on behalf of human rights.

Mr. Speaker, I rise to oppose this resolution. I want to be very clear about my concerns regarding this bill and the critical crossroads confronting U.S. policy in Colombia.

Like every Member of this House, I support the democratically elected government of Colombia. I have met with President Pastrana, including in Colombia, and I am a strong supporter of his efforts for social and economic reform. Having traveled to Colombia, I know how very complex the society and the conflict are. I have seen the harm done to the Colombian people by the guerillas, by paramilitary groups and by the Colombian army. I believe very strongly that Congress should not rush to signal support that would increase our involvement in Colombia's escalating civil war.

The Colombian civil war has been going on for nearly 40 years. The armed actors remain nearly unchanged. Leftist guerilla groups battle the Colombian army for control of the territory, while right-wing paramilitaries increase their own involvement in the war and violence against civilians. All of these armed actors, including the Colombian military, have been involved in drug trafficking. All have a history of human rights abuses. Human rights groups continue to document the close ties between the Colombian army and the paramilitaries who commit the majority of human rights abuses in Colombia.

Colombia is hardly a new front in the war on terrorism. Terrible acts of terror, assassinations, kidnappings, bombings and disappearances, are part and parcel of their 40-year civil war. But Colombia is not part of the internationally supported campaign to dismantle and destroy al Qaeda and other international terrorist networks.

So let us not hide behind euphemisms. A so-called war on terrorism in Colombia is simply a set of code words to become even more deeply engaged in a counterinsurgency war that has been going on for nearly 40 years.

Mr. Speaker, I have been a strong supporter of President Pastrana, but the message we send today will be heard and acted upon more by his successor when elections take place in the coming months. The leading presidential candidate has long rejected any type of negotiations process, and he has the support of the right-wing paramilitary groups, the very groups we rightly are condemning today.

In my opinion, Mr. Speaker, our current policy in Colombia has been a failure. It has not stemmed the production of coca. It has not provided peasant farmers with alternatives to growing coca. It has not lessened the number of internally displaced people. It has not broken the ties between the Colombian army and the paramilitaries. It has not decreased the number of civilians who are victims of human rights abuses and violence. And it has not promoted the administration of justice.

The current attorney general, unlike his predecessors, is not an advocate for human rights. He has dismissed or stopped investigations on many of the cases involving high-level military and government officials. As a result, most of the key officers and prosecutors in the Justice Ministry responsible for investigating and prosecuting human rights and corruption cases have resigned or been forced out of office.

For our part, Mr. Speaker, and I say this sadly, the United States demonstrates its commitment to human rights by consistently waiving the conditions on our aid every 6 months because the Colombian military continues to fail to comply.

[Time: 14:00]
Now, in my view, Mr. Speaker, this resolution wants to give a green light to involve the U.S. more deeply and directly in Colombia's escalating civil war, and I simply cannot support this.

I have high regard for the gentleman from Illinois (Chairman HYDE); the ranking member, the gentleman from California (Mr. LANTOS); and the gentleman from North Carolina (Chairman BALLENGER). These Members have done a great deal to focus attention on human rights challenges in Latin America. But I must dissent, and I urge my colleagues to join with me in opposing this resolution.

As of March 7, 2002, this document was also available online at http://thomas.loc.gov/cgi-bin/query/B?r107:@FIELD(FLD003+h)+@FIELD(DDATE+20020306)