Colombia's Uribe Is a Man of Action

Alvaro Uribe, president of the Republic of Colombia, inherited a country in disarray when he came to office in 2002. Violence was on the rise. Three illegal, armed groups - two of them leftist guerrilla organizations and one a right-wing paramilitary - were growing at an unprecedented rate, feeding on trafficking in drugs and contributing to the overall chaos.

At the time, "Plan Colombia" - the U.S.-sponsored initiative to fight drugs in the South American nation - seemed to be going nowhere and perhaps doomed to failure. President Andres Pastrana, Uribe's predecessor, was trying to reach a peace agreement with the guerrillas (which never materialized), and he limited the U.S. aerial spraying of coca fields. At that pace it seemed an impossible task, and Colombians were fed up with violence.

Uribe was elected to put an end to all that, and most Colombians believe he has delivered. This Colombian president has overseen a widespread fumigation of the narcotics fields and has expanded "Plan Colombia" to include combatting insurgency. Among the results is a 2002 decrease in drug production by 30 percent, according to U.N. figures, and a 32 percent reduction in the first seven months of this year. Guerrillas are on the run, paramilitary factions are willing to negotiate peace and the economy is on the upturn.

Most important, Uribe has restored hope to Colombians across the country after decades of disappointment and frustration with their leaders. A pragmatist who puts in famously long hours, he enjoys approval ratings of 70 percent and is the most popular Colombian president in more than three decades.

There are problems, of course. Human-rights groups think his government should do more to defend the civil liberties of Colombian citizens. Others want him to do more to reduce the fiscal deficit and the country's rising unemployment.

As for "Plan Colombia," the hardest task is ahead, and Uribe wants a second phase to follow the program now under way, certainly by the end of fiscal year 2005. "We have the snake almost defeated," he tells Insight. "We need the second phase to finish up the snake for good."

Insight: The United States has invested $2.5 billion in "Plan Colombia." Should it be satisfied with the results?

President Alvaro Uribe: With "Plan Colombia" we went from the rhetorical path against drugs to the practical path. Colombia has reduced its drug production significantly and the results are undisputed.

So I would like to send a message to the American people and to the U.S. Congress. In light of the fact that we are on the right track and that we can win the war against drugs, "Plan Colombia" must continue on its way. Let us not commit the mistake of leaving this path halfway to the goal.

A: Teams of experts are evaluating that now. I don't think it's up to me, but this great effort cannot be left orphan. We need the second phase to make certain it is a success.

Look, we have the snake almost defeated. If we let go now and allow it time to breathe, the snake not only will survive but will grow again.

Q: Some members of the U.S. Congress and human-rights groups already have voiced their opposition to phase one. How will they receive this new proposal for a second phase?

A: They can be assured that we are making great efforts in terms of human rights. Our concept of security is a democratic one. We are going out of our way to protect both peasants and trade unionists. Our press has absolutely all the freedoms.

I have personally assumed responsibility for making sure that the police protect members of the opposition in an effective way. Our law enforcement becomes more professional every day. It is not politicized; it does not work along party lines. There is a fundamental commitment and that commitment is to protect and defend our democracy.

Q: You have considerably more support on Capitol Hill among Republicans than among Democrats. Do you have preferences when it comes to U.S. elections?

A: Of course, I cannot express an opinion on the domestic politics of another country. I have to be prudent and I'm obliged to view U.S. policy toward Colombia as bipartisan. We receive and accept it as such. That is why I make my appeal for help to all the people of the United States and to the entire Congress.

The people of Colombia, like the American people, value their liberties very much. And you can be sure that when we in Colombia make the kind of all-out effort we are making to defeat drugs and terrorism, it is because we consider those to be the main threats to our liberties.

Q: Drug production has been significantly reduced in Colombia since you took office, but when will the effects of that reduction be felt on U.S. streets?

A: We are relaunching the aerial interdiction program and have been working all year preparing for that. The aircraft are ready in Colombia and the crews trained.

On his recent visit, Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld brought President [George W.] Bush's encouragement to proceed, and I think that's going to help us to take control of drug trafficking one step further.

As we proceed, I don't like paying attention only to the good things we are doing. I want rather to point out what we are not doing well so that we can correct it. If I had my way not one gram of cocaine, not one gram of heroin, would come out of Colombia. But we have to defeat consumption here as well because we have a grave problem with more than 1 million users in our country.

And we need to stop production for another very important reason: Drugs have been the worst enemy of our environment. Colombia is second in the world in water availability and one of the world's richest countries when it comes to biodiversity. Yet, because of illicit-drug production, 1.7 million hectares [4.2 million acres] of tropical forest have been destroyed.

A: This year we have included an excellent program to engage forest-ranger families. Already we have 5,000 families who were coca producers and now are forest rangers. We expect that figure to be 15,000 by the end of the year as we advance this dual effort.

Those families are now committed to watch over their areas so that no one can grow narcotics crops there again, and to encourage and allow for the recovery of the forest. Each of these families receives 5 million pesos a year [$1,800]. And this forest-ranger families program is a very successful version of crop substitution since a lot of land in Colombia is suited only for sowing narcotics.

For example, here in the Putumayo [Uribe points to the southern Colombian wild-forest region on a map], they used to sow narcotics. They destroyed the forest to do so. What we did was clean the area and recruit 3,000 forest-ranger families there.

So are they going to watch over it and not let anyone grow drugs there again? You bet, and they will do this job better than anybody else.

Q: You're known as a hardworking chief executive, but there are those in the international press who have called you a "one-man show," someone who wants to control everything.

A: I respect the opinion of the press and confess that I am a very nosy president.

A: [Laughter.] The ministers are right. They should be very upset about me. I pay a lot of attention to the details. I am not a president who stops after the big theoretical proposal, but I like to be on top of things, paying attention to the details, making sure my programs are being moved ahead.

I well remember one of my professors at Harvard who used to say, "In business, you have two schools. In one school, you'll find a CEO [chief executive officer] who arrives at the company in a very expensive luxury car with a can of beer in his hand. He looks at things very rapidly and says, 'Goodbye.' The other CEO goes place to place. He walks carefully around all the corners of the building and pays attention to every single detail." Of course the latter is my role model.

But the critics are right when they say I am too meddlesome, too nosy. All that is true.

A: I have always spoken very sincerely with him, with respect, in good faith, and seeking solutions to the problems. Because we have a very extensive border with Venezuela, we have to find solutions to common problems.

Q: Are you concerned in any way by some reports that allegedly link him, or his government, to the Colombian guerrillas?

A: He has told me repeatedly, in all our meetings, that he has no connection with the Colombian guerrillas, that he simply took some steps when the previous Colombian administration so requested it from him.

That's why I've chosen to maintain a periodic dialogue with Venezuela. And coming from one fundamental premise: We are the guilty party in all this, for we were the ones who allowed the expansion here of violent groups and drugs. So I tell our neighbors, all our neighbors: "Colombia is the great culprit, but help us."

It's like when you contract a disease by your own fault. Those around you try to help to cure you, not only for your good, but also so they don't get the disease. So I've told them: "We are guilty, but you run the risk of contagion."

Q: Does it concern you that the peace agreement your government is trying to bring forward with Colombia's paramilitary groups may cloud your image abroad?

A: Everything must be done with absolute transparency. Absolute transparency. Otherwise, it does not work.

Q: Meanwhile, your government is seeking a bilateral free-trade agreement with the United States. How will you convince the Colombian Congress and the U.S. Congress that this is a good idea?

A: By demonstrating that it is mutually beneficial and well-balanced. Negotiating a trade agreement is like closing a business deal: If it's not balanced it doesn't last. This bilateral agreement is necessary for Colombia and will be good for the United States. It also may be an important step to the Free Trade Area of the Americas.

Q: You have said you will ask for the resignation of generals who don't produce results in the war against drugs and guerrilla insurgency. But you also state that you won't remove ministers in your Cabinet during your presidency. Isn't that a double standard?

A: Let me separate those issues so we can look closely at them. I have a very good relationship with the army, to the point where critics say I am an army man in civilian clothes. I demand a great deal from them. In Colombia our entire future depends on advancing the security agenda.

As for the civilian ministers, I said during my presidential campaign that Colombia needs stability in its ministries. It takes a minister eight months to a year to master the knowledge necessary to run his ministry. If you remove them then, they never get the job done.

I demand a great deal from them. I intervene on everything. But they have the confidence of stability. That is important so that they don't have to live with the concern that they will be removed and can put their focus on producing results.

***Q: How do you get along with Venezuelan President Hugo Chávez?

Q: Are you concerned in any way by some reports that allegedly link him, or his government, to the Colombian guerrillas?

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Colombia sends message to rebels via Venezuela [Full Text] BOGOTA, Colombia, Aug 20 (Reuters) - Colombia's President Alvaro Uribe said on Wednesday he had asked Venezuelan leader Hugo Chavez to pass a message to leftist guerrillas that he is willing to start peace talks. Uribe's comments are the first time the Colombian president has publicly suggested a link between the left-leaning Chavez and the Marxist-inspired Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia, known by its Spanish initials FARC.

Relations between Bogota and Caracas have been strained periodically over accusations by the Colombian military that Chavez is letting FARC rebels use Venezuela as a staging ground for attacks. In February, Colombia's interior minister accused Chavez of meeting "frequently" with FARC rebels, but was publicly reprimanded by Uribe after Venezuela threatened to break off diplomatic relations. Chavez, who has criticized Colombia's U.S.-backed "Plan Colombia" offensive against drug-traffickers and guerrillas, denies he is collaborating with the guerrillas, who are described as "terrorists" by Washington.

"Last week I told Chavez: 'President, stop worrying so much about Colombia's security policies. Tell the FARC that if they are bored with our policies, they can negotiate with me in five minutes'," Uribe told a university audience in Bogota. Colombian media have alleged that Manuel "Sureshot" Marulanda, the top FARC commander, has been hiding in neighboring Venezuela since the Colombian government broke off peace talks with the rebel group in February 2002.

Uribe, a close U.S. ally in the war on drugs who took office in August 2002, has launched an offensive against the 17,000-strong FARC, which originated 39 years ago in a peasant uprising. He has said he will only negotiate peace with rebels if they agree to a cease-fire. On Sunday, FARC guerrillas fired assault rifles as Uribe's helicopter flew into a village in northern Colombia. [End]

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Uribe is paddling upstream if he believes (who thinks he does?) that Chavez is going to turn his back on terrorism.

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