September 17, 2001

Bishops Oppose Neoliberal and Drug War Policies

by Luis Angel Saavedra

Catholic bishops of dioceses on the Colombian-Ecuadorian border, meeting in Esmeraldas, Ecuador, declared their opposition to Plan Colombia, the Free Trade Area of the Americas (FTAA) and U.S. President George W. Bush's Andean plan to fight drug trafficking, calling them part of an unjust system that fails to address the problems of poverty and violence. Bishops Eugenio Arellano of Esmeraldas and Gonzalo López of Sucumbíos, in Ecuador, and their Colombian counterparts, Bishops Gustavo Girón of Tumaco and Arturo Correa of Ipiales, met June 18-21 to discuss ways of improving ministry with poor people, immigrants, indigenous people, those of African descent, displaced people and refugees in their dioceses, where violence has exacerbated existing problems.

The bishops called poverty the "primary evil" in the region, as well as the "principal cause of violence along the border." In this encounter, as in annual meetings during the past nine years, the bishops issued a statement about the problems affecting the area. Correa said their comments reflected "church pastors' responsibility to denounce, clearly and with courage, governments that promote economic and military systems that jeopardize the survival of those who are most excluded."

At the meeting, priests, religious and lay church workers, and representatives of nongovernmental organizations working along the border, asked the bishops to speak out on the effects of Plan Colombia, the U.S.-designed anti-drug program, in their dioceses. "The violence in Colombia is the fruit of poverty, and poverty is the fruit of the systems imposed by our own and foreign governments," Correa said. "What is happening now in Colombia will happen in Ecuador, Peru, Venezuela, Brazil and all of poor America. We must not only speak out; we must also support our dioceses in their struggles against these systems of evil."

The bishops called on the governments of Ecuador and Colombia to fight poverty and refuse to take part in Plan Colombia, the FTAA and Bush's Andean plan. The FTAA, which was the main issue at a hemispheric summit in April, is scheduled to take effect in 2005, lowering trade barriers throughout the region.

The "Andean Initiative," announced by Bush in April, would earmark about $882 million to fight drug trafficking and eliminate drug crops in Peru, Bolivia, Ecuador and "neighboring countries," as well as Colombia. Bush has called for the funds to be included in next year's U.S. budget. The proposal calls for nearly half the funds to go to Colombia, while $143.5 million would go to Bolivia, $26.2 million to Brazil, $76.5 million to Ecuador, $20.5 million to Panama, $206 million to Peru, and $10.5 million to Venezuela.

In their final document, the bishops said, "far from resolving the problems, (Plan Colombia, the FTAA and the Andean initiative) exacerbate the situation of injustice and violence, deepening and regionalizing Colombia's internal conflict."

The bishops also rejected "the imposition of an unjust economic system that fails to respect human dignity and attacks the most elemental human rights." They said Plan Colombia, the FTAA and Bush's Andean plan are part of the dominant neoliberal economic model and respond to a "redistribution of areas of influence sought by wealthy countries."

"One is a military attempt to control the region, while the others will be used to ensure open markets and access to our countries' resources," López said. While the bishops said they favor eradication of illicit crops, they demanded "procedures that respect the ecosystem, biodiversity and especially human life," and called for "an alternative economic plan based on sustainability and economic solidarity."

The bishops of Ipiales and Tumaco, as well as the Reverend Alfonso Palacios, apostolic vicar of Putumayo, Colombia, said cocaine production has been increasing despite the spraying of coca crops with a herbicide as part of Plan Colombia. According to a recent study by the Colombian government and the United Nations, Colombia could produce 800 to 900 metric tons of cocaine a year, far more than the 580 metric tons estimated by the U.S. Drug Enforcement Agency.

Palacios said the spraying, which began in Putumayo late last year, has mainly damaged non-drug crops, because coca plants "were well protected with plastic tents, or by sprinkling molasses on the leaves or cutting the roots before the chemicals could be absorbed." He added, "Now you can see coca plants along the roadsides, and they're greener and more beautiful than ever."

The versions of church workers in the area contradict official reports that spraying with glyphosate has destroyed about 30,000 hectares of coca since December. "They've sprayed 30,000 hectares, but no more than 10 percent of that area was planted in coca," Palacios said. The bishops' position "encourages pastoral teams to organize communities to address the effects of Plan Colombia and the globalization of poverty," said lawyer Patricio Benalcázar, president of the Quito-based Regional Foundation for Human Rights Assistance (INREDH).

The bishops are aware, however, that they face an uphill battle to convince their governments to change their policies. "Trusting in the strength of God and the power of the Spirit, we will fight tirelessly to turn our borders into a place from which we can globalize solidarity and friendship among peoples," they wrote in their final statement.

This article previously appeared in Latinamerica Press. It can also be found in Spanish at Noticias Aliadas.

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