Speech by Rep. Benjamin Gilman (R-New York), March 29, 2000

Speech by Rep. Benjamin Gilman (R-New York), March 29, 2000
Mr. YOUNG of Florida. Mr. Chairman, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from New York (Mr. Gilman), the chairman of the Committee on International Relations.

(Mr. GILMAN asked and was given permission to revise and extend his remarks.)

Mr. GILMAN. Mr. Chairman, I rise in opposition to the Obey amendment which cuts out all of the military aid to Colombia.

There is an explosion of coca cultivation taking place in southern Colombia, a region where the Colombian National Police does not have the ability to conduct eradication and interdiction operations without the support of the Colombian military. The Colombian National Narcotics Police requires Colombian military support to establish an acceptable level of security around their counterdrug objectives, prior to initiating eradication and interdiction operations. Colombian military participation is essential, essential for successful counterdrug efforts in Colombia; and Defense Department programs are the primary means to ensure the successful integration into ongoing counterdrug efforts.

The counterdrug support that our government supplies to the Colombian military is part of a balanced and a comprehensive plan to provide security, stability, and ongoing government control over southern Colombia. Without effective government control or stability in that part of the country, social programs such as alternative development have no chance of any long-term success. The support of the Colombian armed forces is needed to provide the kind of security for law enforcement operations of the Colombian National Police and to allow the Colombian government to provide basic services to the Colombian people in southern Colombia.

The counternarcotics police, the CNP, does the eradication, but they need military support to eradicate the drug crops in guerrilla-controlled territories. Accordingly, I urge my colleagues to oppose the Obey amendment which guts the antidrug strategy that we have in Colombia.

As of March 30, 2000, this document was also available online at http://thomas.loc.gov/cgi-bin/query/z?r106:H29MR0-173: