Statement of Rep. Cass Ballenger (R-North Carolina), hearing of the House Western Hemisphere Subcommittee, April 11, 2002

Statement of Rep. Cass Ballenger (R-North Carolina), hearing of the House Western Hemisphere Subcommittee, April 11, 2002
Statement of Congressman Cass Ballenger (R-NC)

Hearing of the Subcommittee on the Western Hemisphere

"U.S. Policy Toward Colombia"

April 11, 2002

My connection with Latin America started over 35 years ago, when my wife, Donna, and I got involved in humanitarian work in Central America. Since then we have traveled throughout the region and have grown to love the people. During our years of working in Latin America, Donna and I have witnessed bloody civil wars, natural disasters, brutal dictatorships and other detriments to democracy and economic prosperity in our hemisphere. But thanks to the truly visionary leadership and the hard work of our Latin American neighbors, democracy is starting to flourish in the region. In Colombia, that democracy and economic progress are being held hostage by drug trafficking and terrorism. Latin America’s oldest democracy is in trouble and we must not fail to help.

For years, U.S. foreign policy towards Colombia has solely focused on counter narcotics activities. Drugs, indeed, are the tap root that feeds terrorism in Colombia and elsewhere in the world today. The three main terrorist groups now operating in Colombia no longer hold to the political philosophies they once espoused, instead they have evolved into sophisticated drug traffickers and terrorists whose only philosophy is money and violence. They are nothing more than criminals. But they should be called what they are... narco terrorists.

Up until now, Congress has been reluctant to even address the 38-year old conflict in Colombia directly. Instead, it has chosen to limit our efforts to a counter drug strategy in an attempt to avoid getting tangled in what seemed to be an endless internal struggle. The $1.3 billion aid package to Colombia approved by Congress in 2000 limited U.S. assets to counter narcotics operations only. While Congress has strongly supported the peace process in Colombia, it continued to take on a drug war only approach. The recent failure of peace talks with the FARC coupled with a sharp increase in terrorist attacks in Colombia is leading us to seek alternative solutions. It only makes sense to apply the polices which now guide our worldwide war on terror to the scourge of terrorism in Colombia.

Since September 11, the war on drugs has been put on the back burner. U.S. attention is primarily focused on the war against terror in Afghanistan and the Middle East, but not in Colombia. Recent news reports indicate, however, that terrorists are operating right here in our own hemisphere, in our own backyard. In fact, over the last week, several bombs have been detonated in and near Bogota killing at least 10 people and injuring many others. Recent military actions have killed and wounded hundreds more. If we are fighting terror half-way around the globe, surely we should help our ally, the democratically elected government of Colombia, defend itself from drug-financed terrorism only three hours from Miami by plane.

I just returned from Colombia, and can tell you that the threat posed by drug financed terrorism there is all too real. Colombia has three organizations named by the Department of State as Foreign Terrorist Organizations: The Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia, or FARC, the National Liberation Army or ELN and the paramilitaries or AUC. All three are extremely violent and all are known to finance their operations through drug trafficking. The FARC and AUC particularly are heavily engaged in the trafficking of narcotics. The ELN is attempting to negotiate peace with the government.

On Monday, March 18, Attorney General John Ashcroft announced the indictment of three FARC leaders on charges of drug trafficking and conspiracy to export cocaine to the U.S. This is the first time a member of the FARC has been charged with drug trafficking in the U.S. and it is the first official link between drug trafficking and this terrorist group.

Since the end of the peace talks on February 20, the FARC have targeted for destruction Colombian infrastructure to include dams, bridges, electric pylons, oil pipelines and other vital structures. The FARC kidknapping of Presidential Candidate Ingrid Bentancourt last month is testimony to the severity of the problem in Colombia. This week’s bombings have targeted Colombian police and military personnel, especially those who are known to be explosive ordinance disposal experts.

Let’s face it, the FARC, ELN and AUC are terrorists who support their activities with drug money. Although they do not have the reach of Al Qaeda or Hamas, they do have international reach, which includes smuggling drugs out of Colombia and into the United States and Europe. They have also been caught importing guns from neighboring nations, including Venezuela. Studies of recent FARC bombings indicate an increased sophistication in bomb making, almost certainly linked to the recent capture of IRA operatives in Colombia last year.

The International Relations Committee has nearly completed a very substantial investigation into IRA activities in Colombia. The IRA has been in Colombia providing the FARC narco-terrorists with urban terrorist expertise and training. The presence of IRA terrorists illustrates clearly the potential for a broader international terrorist threat to the U.S. financed by illicit drug in that Andean nation.

We cannot forget that fighting the drugs that poison our young people and finance terrorism is our fundamental priority. However, increased terrorist activities, by the FARC, ELN and AUC are threatening the legitimate, democratically elected government of Colombia.

The terrorist groups operating in Colombia are all capable of large scale military operations that threaten the stability of Colombia and the region. The trafficking of cocaine and heroin is just a symptom of a greater ill in Colombia. The root cause is the terrorist groups themselves. Drugs fund these groups. Colombia has asked us for our assistance, but not the use of our troops. In my considered opinion, the U.S. should respond positively to that request.

On March 6, Chairman Henry Hyde and I worked with other leaders of the International Relations Committee, including our ranking member Mr. Lantos, Mr. Menendez and Mr. Delahunt, to pass House Resolution 358 which encourages the President to submit specific legislation which would help the Colombian Government protect its democracy from narco-traffickers and all U.S. designated terrorist organizations now operating in Colombia. It also instructs the Secretary of State to designate a high-ranking official to coordinate all U.S. assistance to the Government of Colombia. The adoption of this measure sends a direct and clear message that Congress wants to reexamine U.S. policy in Colombia which is why we are here. Allowing U.S. assistance to be used to fight terrorism and drug trafficking simultaneously is critical to protecting the peace and democracy in the Andes as well as to ensuring our own national security.

Sometime next month, the House will consider the supplemental appropriations bill which is expected to include funds to train an additional counter narcotics brigade and to provide the Colombian military with infrastructure protection training. It is my hope that the final package will provide the Colombians the necessary tools to fight both terror and drug trafficking at the same time.

I yield time to the Ranking Member of the Subcommittee, the gentleman from New Jersey, Mr. Menendez.....

As of April 12, 2002, this document was also available online at http://www.house.gov/international_relations/ball0411.htm