USAID/OTI Colombia Field Report
June 2000
Country Situation
The largest Colombian guerilla group, the
Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (or FARC), continues to
improve its enhanced position in the peace negotiations through a
series of public relations victories. At the beginning of the month,
the FARC made public its proposal for a "prisoner
exchange" with the Government of Colombia (GOC). The FARC is
estimated to hold as many as 500 police and soldiers, and the GOC is
under great public pressure to accept a deal return these prisoners
to the safety of their families. The GOC responded coolly to the
proposal presented by the FARC, in part because accepting a deal
could give the FARC the status of a legitimate belligerent force
with rights under international law (currently they are considered a
terrorist organization). Moreover, the FARC prisoners held by the
GOC have been convicted of crimes, including terrorism, kidnapping
and extortion. Releasing them would be viewed as undermining the
justice system's ability to stand up to the armed factions
currently operating with increasing impunity throughout the
country.
The GOC and FARC are scheduled to exchange
cease-fire proposals on July 3. Seeking to garner public support,
the FARC has publicized theirs in advance. The FARC proposal states
the guerrillas are willing to end attacks on police stations and
military quarters, end kidnapping and extortion, and stay within
certain areas of the country in exchange for significant changes to
Plan Colombia, an end to military actions against them, and for
$1,000,000 per month -- among other demands. Not surprisingly,
the GOC is reluctant to subsidize the FARC or expand the area under
its uncontested control. Until the GOC releases its proposal,
however, the public is left with the impression that the FARC is
moving ahead with new ideas (however unlikely it is that the FARC
will implement them), while the GOC is at a loss over how to respond
to the FARC propaganda.
Other initiatives made public and promoted by the
FARC include: recommending its own coca-eradication program, which
while still undefined, specifically does not involve the unpopular
aerial spraying; promulgating Law 003 that declares a "war on
corruption"; and meeting with women, minorities, leaders from
the European Union and NGOs in its DMZ. Publicly, observers are
saying GOC President Pastrana looks weak and inactive in comparison
to seemingly active agenda of the FARC.
A number of recent developments have served to
further damage President Pastrana's credibility in Colombia.
Plan Colombia, which was the basis of Pastrana's campaign
platform, is increasingly unpopular, particularly on the left. The
Pastrana Administration's allegations that the FARC was
involved in the necklace bombing that killed a poor rural woman last
month, are now reportedly incorrect (see OTI Colombia's May 2000
report). In addition, a new scandal has surfaced. While running
for President, Pastrana is said to have received large donations
from a private firm Dragacol, which has recently been awarded a
number of very large contracts by his administration --
contracts that investigators are alleging were not competed fairly
and over-funded. This present scandal echos the corruption
accusations that brought down then-President Ernesto Samper for
allegedly accepting campaign funding from drug lords just four years
ago. What impact this will have on the GOC's peace mission is
unclear, but it will not help the process.
OTI Highlights
A. Narrative Summary
The OTI Team Leader for the Americas and the OTI
Resident Manager met with stakeholders in Cali and in Valledupar to
discuss future OTI and USAID programs, and to evaluate local
initiatives already in place. The Resident Manager also visited
Florencia, in the south, where there is a strong potential for
additional USAID activity to assist people displaced by GOC
coca-eradicating fumigations. OTI is continuing to assist the USAID
mission develop the USAID response to the crisis of internal
displacement, and is also working to establish its small grants for
peace program with an eye to launching that initiative soon.
The USAID/Colombia Strategic Plan was approved in
Washington on June 29, including the IDP portion, which OTI drafted
for the Mission.
An implementation meeting was organized by USAID/OTI with UNHCR,
ICRC and the GOC Red de Solidaridad Social (RSS), which is
responsible for coordinating GOC assistance to IDPs. As the primary
institutions supporting assistance to IDPs in Colombia, the agencies
agreed to share information and coordinate implementation plans as
these evolve, in order to increase synergies and decrease
opportunities for redundancies. Additional meetings on specific
topics will be scheduled, and new participants will be invited as
appropriate.
B. Grants Activity Summary
OTI now has three grants being implemented in
Colombia:
- OTI is working with the Salesian
Missions ($250,756) to provide scholarships for children from
war zones who are at-risk of being recruited by armed actors; to
make small productive loans to vulnerable populations; and to
create small community projects for disadvantaged populations in
Meta province. Eighteen new micro-credit loans were approved in
June.
- OTI has a grant with the International
Committee of the Red Cross ($750,185) to implement
community-building activities in contested areas and to help
communities recover and rebuild after they are victims of the
conflict. Forty-two small infrastructure grants have been
approved to date. OTI is working out the administrative details
with ICRC prior to extending this activity. The extension will
include adding another year of operation, an additional $1.5
million in funding, and expanding the scope of operation to
include urban projects.
- OTI also supports the Javeriana
University and Georgetown University ($195,625) as they work
with the GOC to develop negotiating points for the peace talks
with the FARC. OTI and the Javeriana are in close communication
with regard to these points, which are being formulated to meet
the needs of the GOC.
OTI has also obligated $800,000 for additional
projects in Colombia, including $200,000 for small grants to NGOs or
communities to support peace-building efforts. OTI is meeting with
numerous local organizations with which it might partner in this
effort and is working with IOM to develop an implementing mechanism
for this activity.
NEXT STEPS/IMMEDIATE PRIORITIES
As the Plan Colombia money approaches, OTI will
phase out direct operations while continuing to provide assistance
to USAID/Colombia's IDP program, which will be funded through
Plan Colombia.
In early July a meeting will be held in Madrid,
Spain to plan an international response to Plan Colombia. It is
expected that officials from interested countries attending the
planning conference will no doubt rally support for various aspects
of Plan Colombia and offer important new contributions to the many
problems of Colombia.
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