Statement from Sen. Paul Wellstone (D-Minnesota), September 12, 2000

Statement from Sen. Paul Wellstone (D-Minnesota), September 12, 2000

For Immediate Release
September 12, 2000
Contact: Jim Farrell or Allison Dobson
(202) 224-8440

Wellstone Blasts House GOP Request for Additional $99 Million for Colombian Military Aid Package
Calls for President Clinton to Reject Republican Proposal

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(Washington, D.C.) – U.S. Senator Paul Wellstone (D-MN) was strongly critical of a reported request today by House Republican leaders for an additional $99.5 million to purchase more aircraft, ammunition and other equipment for the Colombian police. A group of 17 GOP legislators, headed by Reps. Dan Burton and International Relations Committee Chairman Benjamin Gilman, are seeking new funding beyond the $1.3 billion already delivered largely to the Colombian military earlier this month. White House officials meet today with congressional leaders to negotiate a final compromise on annual spending measures.

"I am disturbed to hear of a request for an additional $99.5 million to purchase more aircraft, ammunition and other equipment for the Colombian police. No one disagrees that Colombia faces a difficult challenge in its fight to combat illegal drug trafficking but we have responded to President Pastrana's call for help in that fight; the $1.3 billion dollar aid package to fight drugs in Colombia already provides $115 million for the Colombian police, including 14 new helicopters. Is it too much to ask that we see the impact of the initial assistance package before we throw more money into the military strategy?" Wellstone asked.

During the debate in Congress over military aid to Colombia, Wellstone strongly opposed the package because the Clinton Administration's call for a massive increase in military counter narcotics assistance for Colombia would put the U.S. at a crossroads. With this assistance plan the U.S. is backing a major escalation in aid to a military with a terrible human rights record, and which could worsen a civil war that has already raged for almost 40 years, rather than pursue a more effective policy focused on stabilizing Colombia and attacking the drug market by investing in prevention and treatment at home.

"I am hopeful that the President and Congressional leaders will think long and hard about the need for additional military aid to Colombia now. If we have another $99.5 million to spend in the war on drugs, that's good news. Let's attack the drug market by investing in prevention and treatment at home. Let's put that money in drug treatment programs we know work. A report released just two weeks ago by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration reported that only about one-fourth of Americans who are dependent on drugs or alcohol are receiving treatment. That means 7.6 million Americans seriously and medically dependent on drugs, many of them adolescents, are not receiving treatment."

Funding for addiction treatment is cost-effective. A landmark Rand study of cocaine markets showed that, dollar for dollar, providing treatment to cocaine users is 10 times more effective than drug interdiction schemes, and 23 times more cost effective than eradicating coca at its source.

As of May 24, 2001, this document was available online at http://wellstone.senate.gov/colombia4.htm