U.S. Mustn’t Be the Trigger for Death Squads

Terrorism is extraordinarily effective. With every attack, it propels its most implacable enemies to power. Just as Islamic Jihad, Hamas and the Al Aqsa Martyrs Brigade elected Ariel Sharon in Israel, leftist guerrillas in Colombia have managed to bring to power a man who had vowed to do whatever it took to crush that country’s insurgency.

The voters have spoken in a clear voice, leaving no room for ambiguity: The independent rightist candidate Alvaro Uribe won. Uribe’s victory means that American tax dollars will flow south, arming government forces as they machete their way through Colombia’s jungles in search of guerrillas. U.S. taxpayer dollars will flow as well to defense contractors in the United States, buying more weapons for Colombia’s soldiers.

But will American dollars play a key role in energizing the battalions of paramilitary death squads that “help” the government’s war against guerrillas by terrorizing Colombian villagers? Will U.S. tax dollars help fund the proposed million-man army of vigilantes of Colombia’s new government?

Uribe benefited from the embarrassing failure of his predecessor’s peace efforts. After three years of concessions to the largest leftist militia--the 17,000-member Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia, or FARC--President Andres Pastrana ended all talks, saying FARC had never been serious about peace.

Uribe never believed peace was possible. His own father died in a botched kidnapping attempt by FARC operatives. His plan now is to double the size of the army and build a citizens brigade with as many as 1million civilians, perhaps armed only with radios, working on the government’s side.

As it stands now, U.S. law allows money only for anti-narcotics operations, and it requires that the Colombian army show it is not engaged in human rights violations, particularly by supporting the work of paramilitary groups. But those laws, especially the one limiting aid to the war on drugs, came from a long-ago era, before Sept. 11, before terrorism was all that mattered.

The wishes of Colombia’s voters are clear. They have no interest in supporting a violent leftist insurgency dressed up in populist idealism. With a tiny population of wealthy people and an enormous population of the very poor, Colombia has plenty of reasons to worry about social and economic problems. But the poor in Colombia have no faith in the power of armed guerrillas to help. With four armies--two leftist militias, one right-wing paramilitary and the government--fighting, the war has become about winning, not about reforming the economy or society. American money has armed all sides in the conflict; drug users in the U.S., as well as the rest of the world, pour millions that go into arming the leftist guerrillas and the right-wing militias.

Voters in Colombia know what they want, and they know there will be a price to pay. They know the war will now get worse, but they hope this will help bring an end to this four-decade-long conflict. Uribe, however, may yet surprise those who expect only more bloodshed. He already has suggested international mediation to help solve the conflict, though his talk has mostly focused on tough action. In the end, he will probably prevail in changing the balance of power so that peace talks can later be successful.

The U.S. also has a voice in this conflict. As a major source of funds for the government, it must insist that rights be respected and that the government target not only the guerrillas but also the paramilitaries that supported Uribe’s candidacy. The latest U.S. certification of Colombia as making progress on human rights was a sham, denounced by respected human rights organizations.

The incoming president will fight terror with determination, as Washington likes. If the U.S. wants respect for its values, it should do all it can to keep the new Colombian government from turning the country into a land of revenge and vigilantism. Otherwise, terrorism will indeed have won.

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Frida Ghitis’ latest book is “The End of Revolution: A Changing World in the Age of Live Television” (Algora Publishing, 2001).