In S. America, Albright Urges On Democracy

Visiting a continent where democracy is faltering after a decade of progress, Secretary of State Madeleine Albright sought Argentine support Wednesday for a U.S. anti-drug initiative in Colombia that has caused concern in South America.

Albright met with Argentine President Fernando de la Rua on the second stop of a high-speed trip that can be seen in two stages, reflecting the bifurcated fortunes of this continent. Albright, who visited Brazil on Tuesday, will leave here for Chile today. All three nations are regional leaders with stable democracies and relatively strong economies.

She will then travel to Bolivia, one of the hemisphere’s poorest nations, where privatization and aggressive eradication of coca plants spurred national protests and martial law in April. Her last stop will be Ecuador, which has been mired in crisis since a military coup in January, the continent’s first in 20 years.

Peru and Venezuela also face rising authoritarianism, instability and economic woes, an explosive mix in nations that are dangerously close to Colombia’s anarchic 36-year civil conflict.

Albright’s appeal for a regional defense of democracy got a warm reception in Argentina, the most prosperous nation and the closest U.S. ally in South America. Foreign Minister Adalberto Rodriguez also offered words of support for Plan Colombia, the $1.3-billion, U.S.-funded initiative aimed at the illegal drug industry that is the financial base of Colombia’s formidable guerrilla movements.

The foreign minister said Argentina is willing to aid refugees displaced by the fighting and to provide technical assistance to substitute other crops for Colombian coca, used to produce cocaine.

Colombia’s neighbors, however, are wary. They fear intensified combat will worsen the lawlessness and violence that have already spilled across its borders.

After meeting with Albright on Tuesday, Brazil’s foreign minister reiterated his nation’s opposition to any Brazilian military role unless it is requested by Colombian leaders.

“We are concerned about the possible effects of Plan Colombia on Brazil in military terms and related to drug trafficking,” said Foreign Minister Luiz Felipe Lampreia. Brazil supports “the consolidation of democracy” in Colombia, he said.

Recent news reports in Brazil, whose aspirations to regional leadership periodically clash with U.S. policy, have quoted officials criticizing the crackdown in Colombia, which relies on U.S. trainers, funds and military equipment.

“Brazil is quite opposed to foreign troops in South America,” said David Fleischer, a professor at the University of Brasilia, in an interview Wednesday. “The U.S. wants Brazil to take a more active role in Colombia, but Brazil does not.”

U.S. diplomats downplayed any disagreements with Brazil. Albright said Wednesday that she did not ask Brazilian leaders for financial support for the Colombian initiative. The U.S. hopes for “moral and where possible technical support” from the nations threatened by the drug-fueled crisis, she said.

“The problems of Colombia are not just of Colombia but for the region,” Albright said, adding that the plan has economic, social and human rights objectives as well as military ones. “What shouldn’t be missed as part of Plan Colombia is its comprehensiveness. . . . It’s very important to see it as a complete plan constructed by Colombians for Colombians.”

To guard against a spillover of the Colombian conflict, the U.S. aid package includes funding for security forces in neighboring nations.

The deteriorating state of democracy in the Andes, especially Ecuador and Peru, is another U.S. priority. Albright’s stop in Ecuador is a gesture of much-needed support for President Gustavo Noboa and a society in turmoil.

In contrast, Albright’s trip does not include a stop in Peru, where President Alberto Fujimori defied the United States and other nations in May and won a third term in an election racked by violent protests and allegations of foul play.

Albright has urged Fujimori to enact democratic reforms sought by the Organization of American States, or OAS, which is trying to set up talks between the president and the political opposition.

A senior State Department official Wednesday reiterated the tough line toward Peru.

“I don’t think that it is a democracy at this particular point, [although] certainly there are democratic elements of it,” said the official, who requested anonymity. “That is why we have this unprecedented effort on the part of the OAS member states to produce this national dialogue, democratic reforms and separation of powers that are long overdue in Peru.”