| Senate Debate Next Week on Colombia Aid! |
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| Written by Administrator | |||
| Saturday, 06 September 2003 00:00 | |||
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Please contact your Senators about the Aid to Colombia Package. The military aid money being sent to Colombia is being provided to the Colombian armed forces who still collaborate with brutal paramilitary groups, who murder civilians, are involved in drug trafficking, and are on the US terrorist list. There are positive ways for the United States to help Colombia, but not through fumigation or more military aid. See the link to find out more and to find out how you can help. Senate debate on the issue could start as early as September 8th, so your help is needed quickly.
The following is from the Latin American Working Group
Two Colombia-related actions that are coming up soon: the Week for Peace events, and the Senate debate on the 2004 foreign aid bill. Week for Peace Next week from the 7th to the 14th, groups and individuals around the US are organizing events for Semana por la Paz, or Week for Peace, an annual celebration in Colombia that promotes peace and respect for human rights. We already know of events taking place in 17 states to coincide with the celebration in Colombia! We encourage you to participate or organize your own event for this week. Check our on-line local event listing to see if an event is already being planned in your area, and download some of the materials available on the website to bring to the event (see below for the link). If you are planning an event that is not already on the local event listing, please e-mail me to let me know about it. See this link for more information As part of the Week for Peace, many groups and individuals are planning a lunchtime or candlelight vigil for Monday, September 8th in front of the office of their senator or representative, or are planning Colombia fax or call-in days to Congress. Senate Debate on Military Aid to Colombia These actions are particularly important right now because it looks like the Senate could debate the 2004 foreign aid bill, which contains over $500 million in mostly-military and police aid for Colombia, as early as next week (the week of September 8th). Sadly, right now we don't expect that the Senate will debate the Colombia portion of the bill at all-- they may just pass it without ever discussing the policy. Without debate, Senators don't get educated on the issues and it is harder to build momentum to change policy-- so we need your help to make this debate happen! Please call or write your senators as soon as possible and ask them to speak on the floor in favor of a change in US-Colombia policy during the debate over the 2004 foreign aid bill. Even if there is not an amendment offered, senators can still speak out and express their concerns over current US policy. Below is more information on the Senate debate, plus a sample letter for you to use or modify and fax to your senators over the next week. To find your senators' phone or fax numbers, please see www.senate.gov http://www.senate.gov. Background on the US Senate Colombia Debate The US Senate could debate the 2004 foreign aid bill, which contains over $500 million in aid for Colombia, as early as the week of September 8th. However, they do not plan on debating the Colombia part of the bill. In fact, the US Senate hasn't debated Colombia policy for two years-they have approved the money with no discussion. This is despite the fact that the goals for Colombia policy that Congress set out three years ago have not been met-- and in many cases, things have gotten worse. We need your help immediately to ask the Senate why it is not talking about this policy, and then ask them to debate and change it. The US House has had very strong debates on Colombia, and the votes get closer each year to cut military aid to Colombia's brutal armed forces. With so much at stake, we need to tell the Senate to follow their lead, and debate and change this policy! Action Needed! The Senate could debate the 2004 foreign aid bill as early as the week of September 8th, so action is needed immediately! Stop in to your senator's state office and meet with a staff member, or organize a letter-writing or call-in campaign, asking you senators to debate and change US policy toward Colombia when the foreign aid bill comes to the Senate floor. To find the phone number or fax number of your senators' state or DC offices, please see www.senate.gov Sample Letter to Your Senators on Colombia Policy Date The Honorable__________ US Senate Washington, DC 20510 Dear Senator _______________, I am writing as a constituent concerned about the impact of US military aid and fumigation in Colombia. I am also greatly troubled by the lack of debate taking place in the Senate over this issue. Please examine the impact of our massive military assistance package, and debate and change this policy when the 2004 foreign aid bill reaches the Senate floor. When the Senate passed Plan Colombia in 2000, the stated goal was to curb drug production. Last year, the US mission in Colombia expanded to include counter-insurgency efforts. Senator _________, I am very concerned that US policy is spiraling out of control, and that US goals in Colombia are so broad and vague that it will be difficult to know when to stop. We have already given more than $2.5 billion in taxpayer dollars to Colombia, with few tangible results; where are we going in Colombia, and how much more money is needed? These questions deserve serious debate. We also need to ask why our approach is not yielding results. Drugs are just as available on our streets as they were three years ago, and our fumigation policy has moved drug production around, now back into Bolivia and Peru. According to the US State Department, the Colombian armed forces still collaborate with brutal paramilitary groups, who murder civilians, are involved in drug trafficking, and are on the US terrorist list. I believe that there are positive ways for the United States to help Colombia, but not through fumigation or more military aid. I urge you to support drug treatment and prevention programs at home, and alternative development programs in Colombia, so that farmers can switch to growing legal crops. Given all that is at risk in Colombia, the lack of debate over this policy in the US Senate is alarming. I ask that you speak out strongly when the foreign aid bill reaches the Senate floor in favor of a new US policy toward Colombia. I look forward to your response, and to following the debate onthe 2004 foreign aid bill. Sincerely, Name Address Add your comment
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