Speech by Rep. Jerry Weller (R-Illinois), July 8, 2003

Speech by Rep. Jerry Weller (R-Illinois), July 8, 2003

Mr. WELLER. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman from Indiana (Mr. Souder) and commend the gentleman for his leadership and efforts to eradicate the threat of narcotics coming onto American soil. I commend and am thrilled to participate tonight in this Special Order.

Imagine this here in the United States, if our judges were assassinated, our candidates for Congress, our candidates for President were threatened with kidnapping and assassination. Imagine if our elected officials were threatened and ordered to resign their positions at gunpoint, and this threat emerged from narcotraffickers here in the United States. Imagine how the American people would feel about the need to deal with this threat to our democracy and such a threat to our Nation's security.

Well, the people of Colombia have been threatened with these types of threats for decades where you have narcoterrorists organize military groups, in fact three groups, two left wing, one right wing, who are funded through the trafficking of narcotics, cocaine and other drugs. And, of course, they threaten something we hold very dear, which is freedom and democracy.

Mr. Speaker, Colombia is a wonderful country. It is a country of great history, great heritage; and today its democracy is threatened at gunpoint by

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those who make their means through the trafficking and production of narcotics.
I support Plan Colombia. I support President Bush's Andean Regional Initiative. Colombia is important to the United States. Not only does Colombia share our values of freedom and opportunity and free enterprise, but Colombia is an important partner in the western hemisphere for the United States. It is a trading and economic partner. We share a culture and heritage. Latin America is important to us, and Colombia is an important part of Latin America. Colombia continues and has always been a strong ally and friend of the United States. It is a significant U.S. trading partner and supplier of oil.

In fact, Colombia, as I noted, is today the longest-standing democracy in Latin America, and it is currently under siege by a number of guerrilla and paramilitary groups that we in the United States have designated as terrorist organizations, designated terrorist organizations by the United States Government. These terrorist groups today obtain their primary means and monetary support by the destructive drug trade.

Unfortunately, our friends in Colombia suffer from this; and today Colombia serves as a source of 90 percent of the cocaine and a majority of the heroin found on the streets of America, significantly contributing to the 19,000 drug-induced deaths in the United States each year. And many of those 19,000 drug-induced deaths here in the United States are children, kids in our home communities back in Illinois and Indiana and Arkansas and all 50 of our great States.

Today, Congress needs to support Plan Colombia. We also need to support President Bush's Andean Regional Initiative, legislation that recognizes the importance of Colombia. Today, as we approach the 3-year anniversary of Plan Colombia, it is important tonight to review the progress being made by the United States' support for the freely elected government of Colombia.

I am proud to say and pleased to say that our support of Plan Colombia has given us positive results that we can point to. In fact, there are many strong indicators that Plan Colombia and the Andean Regional Initiative programs are beginning to bear fruit.

Eradication of coca plants has led to major decreases in cocaine production, and purity of the drug has dropped as well. Law enforcement efforts have led to increased seizures on land and sea. Extraditions of drug traffickers to the United States is at an all-time high, and I note something that is so important for us, and that is the professionalism and the performance and the human rights record of Colombia's armed forces, and in particular that the counterdrug battalions and the Colombian National Police have shown tremendous improvement, as well as getting results.

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I would also note that alternative economic development programs are also beginning to show great promise, and utilization of expanded authorities are being fully leveraged by our friends in Colombia to more effectively attack both drugs and terrorism. These are positive things that we can report happening right now today in Colombia, and there are many others. But the job is not done yet, and that is why we stand here tonight to continue our support for Plan Colombia as well as the Andean Regional Initiative. Plan Colombia and the Andean Regional Initiative has put Colombia on the road to success, but as I noted, the road is long, and we must continue to support Plan Colombia.

I would note that Colombia today is in much better position to win this fight against narcoterrorism than they were 3 years ago, not only because of U.S. support, but also because of Colombia's freely elected, democratically elected President Uribe. Since taking office in August of 2002, President Uribe has shown an unwavering commitment to achieving democratic security and has brought new hope to Colombia. He has acted quickly and decisively to address terrorism and narcotics trafficking while also promoting human rights. His national security strategy shows his determination to deny terrorists the drug-related resources they use to finance their operations against the people of Colombia. And President Uribe has made tough decisions necessary to improve Colombia's economic prospects, moving forward and ahead on tax, pension and labor reforms.

Overall President Uribe has energized Colombia, receiving high praise and high job-approval ratings from his own people, the Colombian people. No doubt with President Uribe's leadership, Colombia is on the right track to restoring security and prosperity, and we in Congress applaud Colombia's efforts of late and recognize the sacrifices that Colombian people have made over the last few decades.

Again, Colombia matters, Latin America matters, and I know there are meetings that will soon be held in Europe, and my hope is our friends in Europe will join the United States in supporting the people of Colombia and supporting the freely elected democratic Government of Colombia. And again, I note that no Latin American country has a longer history of democracy and freedom than Colombia. They are our friends. They are our allies. They stand with us in the values that we as Americans stand for, freedom and democracy and free enterprise. We in this Congress want to ensure that the people of Colombia continue to have freedom and opportunity, and that democracy grows and flowers and blooms, and that the people of Colombia have the opportunity to enjoy economic freedoms and free enterprise. So I would urge our European friends to join with the United States in supporting Colombia in its war against terrorism and to support Colombia's war against narcoterrorism which is threatening democracy right in our own neighborhood.

I again thank the gentleman from Indiana for his leadership in the war against drugs which finances, and let us remember the primary source of terrorism in the Western Hemisphere is narcotrafficking. That is why his leadership is so important, my good friend from Indiana.

As of July 9, 2003, this document was also available online at http://thomas.loc.gov/cgi-bin/query/B?r108:@FIELD(FLD003+h)+@FIELD(DDATE+20030708)