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Updated:8/1/01 |
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excerpts from House Appropriations Committee Report 107-142 on H.R. 2506,
the Foreign Operations Appropriations bill, July 17, 2001 73 687 107 th Congress Report HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 1st Session 107 142 FOREIGN OPERATIONS,
EXPORT FINANCING, AND RELATED PROGRAMS APPROPRIATIONS BILL, 2002 Fiscal year 2001 level $325,000,000 Fiscal year 2002 request 217,000,000 Committee recommendation 217,000,000 The Committee recommends $217,000,000 for ``International Narcotics Control and Law Enforcement''. This is equivalent to the budget request and $108,000,000 less than the fiscal year 2001 level. The 2001 enacted level included $154,000,000 for Andean nations, which is requested in the Andean Counterdrug initiative account for fiscal year 2002. A limitation of $16,660,000 is recommended for administrative expenses. The Committee has included bill language requiring that all funds in this account for anti-crime activities be notified in advance to the Committees on Appropriations, including those which make use of ``notwithstanding'' authority. The Committee supports the use of up to $10,000,000 in funds for the Africa Regional Anticrime Program. The Committee continues
to support a strong U.S. counternarcotics assistance program in order
to protect U.S. communities from the ravages of drugs, and believes INL
has considerable resources, made available through annual and supplemental
appropriations, to meet these challenges. The Committee is concerned about
proposals by the Department of State to use INL program funds for an increasing
number of non-program costs, therefore the Committee has recommended a
limitation on administrative expenses. The limitation is equivalent to
the non-Andean administrative expenses as justified in the 2002 INL budget.
ANDEAN COUNTERDRUG INITIATIVE Fiscal year 2001
level The Committee recommends $676,000,000 for the ``Andean Counterdrug Initiative''. The Andean Counterdrug Initiative is the first step in the Administration's multi-year counterdrug assistance effort designed to sustain and expand programs initially funded by Plan Colombia in the fiscal year 2000 emergency supplemental. The recommended level is $55,000,000 less than the request. The Committee recommends that the reduction of $55,000,000 should be evenly distributed among all programs, projects, and activities referred to in the Administration's request for the Andean Counterdrug Initiative. A limitation of $14,240,000 is recommended for administrative expenses. The 2001 level enacted for ``International Narcotics Control and Law Enforcement'' included $154,000,000 for Andean nations. The fiscal year 2000 supplemental provided for $1,018,500,000 in emergency funds to the Department of State for Plan Colombia and other regional anti-narcotics activities. The Committee notes that section 520 of the bill applies to the use of Narcotics Control and Law Enforcement and Andean Counterdrug Initiative funds for Colombia. Andean Nations The Committee calls on the Department of State to ensure that all U.S. laws regarding human rights, including section 556 of this Act, are strictly applied in Colombia and each of the Andean nations. In addition, the Committee requests that the Secretary of State submit to the Appropriations Committees a semi-annual report beginning not later than March 1, 2002, with respect to the Andean Counterdrug Initiative. Each report shall include an accounting of all aircraft, vehicles, boats and lethal equipment (other than ammunition) transferred to the militaries or police of any nation with funds made available under this heading. Further, the report shall contain an accounting of the number of U.S. Armed Forces personnel deployed or assigned to duty in the Andean Region or other nation at any time during the preceding 180 days with funds made available under this heading, the length and purpose of the deployment or assignment, and the associated costs and force protection risks. Colombia The Committee believes that a negotiated settlement offers the only viable resolution to the complex conflict in Colombia. Until Colombia's warring parties reach a peace accord, efforts to reduce coca and heroin-poppy production in that country will continue to face enormous challenges. The Committee commends the State Department for declarations of support for President Pastrana's attempts to negotiate with guerrilla groups. Though a final accord may be several years away, the Committee strongly urges the Secretary of State to work with all parties in the talks to encourage rapid progress toward a firm and lasting peace. Implementation of Plan Colombia The Committee is concerned about the pace of implementation of alternative development in the southern regions of Colombia. While the Committee is pleased that the eradication and aerial spraying is proceeding according to schedule, the Committee believes that successful alternative development programs are an essential component to Plan Colombia's success in Putamayo and Caqueta. Eradication efforts can only be sustained in the long-term if small farmers have an alternative to growing coca, therefore the Committee urges AID and the State Department to work with the Government of Colombia to resolve the logistical problems preventing the delivery of non-cash assistance to the communities that have signed pacts to voluntarily eradicate their coca crops. The Committee requests that the Secretary of State submit to the Appropriations Committees a semi-annual report beginning not later than March 1, 2002, with respect to the specific efforts being made by AID, the State Department and the Colombian Government to expedite the delivery of non-cash assistance to communities in Colombia that have signed pacts to voluntarily eradicate their coca crops. This report shall include complete data on the percentage of available alternative development funds that have been disbursed to communities in Colombia that have signed pacts to voluntarily eradicate their crops. The Committee notes that the people of Colombia have shown a long-term resilience and tolerance for difficult and violent conditions, but the Committee is concerned about the urgency of the current situation facing Colombia. In addition to heightened violence, worsening economic conditions encourage the narco-industry and deteriorating fiscal conditions could threaten the Government of Colombia's commitment to Plan Colombia. Stronger trade between Colombia and the United States in licit industries is crucial to managing the vulnerabilities of the Colombian economy, therefore the Committee urges the President of the United States to seek renewal and expansion of the Andean Trade Preferences Act (ATPA). The Committee is concerned about the possible human and environmental impact of materials used in aerial eradication of coca and opium poppy in Colombia carried out under chapter 8 of part I of the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961, as amended. The Committee directs the Secretary of State to provide a report to the Committees on Appropriations of the House of Representatives and the Senate, on January 1, 2002, on the human and environmental impact of all materials used in such aerial coca and opium poppy eradication in Colombia. The report shall include guidelines for the application of aerially sprayed materials, scientific and other justifications for such guidelines, as well as a description of a verification system to ensure compliance with those guidelines. The Committee further directs that the Secretary of State provide quarterly reports, to be first issued January 1, 2002, concerning all aerial eradication efforts of the previous quarter. Such reports shall include a description of all areas sprayed, materials and methods used, compliance with the spray guidelines, and the human and environmental impacts of such spraying. Bolivia The Committee takes special note of the progress that Bolivia has made in the war against drugs. The enormous success of the Bolivian Government's Dignity Plan has been due, in large part, to the support of the U.S. Government. The Committee urges the Administration to continue its strong support of Bolivia's efforts when deciding its allocation of aid. European contributions The Committee notes that demand for Colombian coca is rising in Europe and approaching United States consumption levels of approximately 300 tonnes a year. European nations and the European Union have contributed very little to Plan Colombia or an expanded Andean Initiative. The Committee urges the Secretary of State to negotiate with our European allies in order to persuade them to contribute additional funds to the counter-narcotics efforts, alternative development, or judicial reform in the Andean region. ... ADDITIONAL VIEWS ... Another area of concern is the continued imbalance in the implementation of Plan Colombia. During the debate on the initial funding of Plan Colombia last year, members were assured that the ``push into southern Colombia'' would include economic and alternative development programs in conjunction with the military assistance and training and aerial fumigation. There were also assurances that the bulk of funding for ``Plan Colombia'' would come in the form of economic assistance and that our European allies would participate. Neither of these assurances has come to pass. A massive fumigation campaign commenced last December in southern Colombia before any alternative development programs were in place. By March, 2001, not one grain of rice, nor one seed, had been delivered to communities that had agreed to voluntary eradication. As of today, fully a year after funds were made available, only two of the 29 communities that have signed alternative development pacts have received any assistance. Meanwhile, military training and the provision of equipment have proceeded rapidly, and all three of the counter-narcotics battalions have been trained. The impact of our ``push into southern Colombia'' thus far has been further disruption and disillusionment of the population on the prospects for an end to the conflict. Aerial fumigation should cease until programs designed to give communities the opportunity to voluntarily eradicate coca are operating effectively. Unfortunately, the billions in additional economic assistance for Colombia have not materialized. Our European allies have chosen not to participate in a significant way in Plan Colombia. It is therefore time to slow the pace of the military assistance while a workable economic assistance plan is developed with the support of our allies and people in Colombia most affected by the drug war. As of August 1, 2001, this document was also available online at ftp://ftp.loc.gov/pub/thomas/cp107/hr142.txt |
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