Undermining Chavez (as an argument for Colombian FTA)

[struggle4progress]

.. George Bush .... may well present legislation to Congress immediately after the Easter recess. The House of Representatives would then have 60 days to consider a bill, and the Senate a further 30 days.

Until earlier this month, the FTA was believed to be dead in the water ....
However, the FTA was given a new lease of life following a recent Colombian military incursion into neighbouring Ecuador ...

Although diplomatic tension, particularly between Colombia and Venezuela, has dissipated, the Bush administration has sought to make the FTA into a national security issue, arguing that its ratification would help undermine Chavez's regional influence, while shoring up Washington's key regional ally ...

.... Democratic leaders in Congress have already voiced concerns about parliamentary protocol being breached in an attempt to fast track the FTA ... Concerns over human rights, labour relations and environmental protect persist ... Democratic presidential contenders have taken a relatively protectionist line on trade ...

http://www.oxan.com/worldnextweek/2008-03-27/UnderminingChavez.aspx

[magbana]

1. Amb. Brownfield's Comments Monday Echo this Article

This article is right on target and consistent of the the "pitch" given by US Amb. to Colombia at a meeting in DC on Monday. FTA is billed as a way to help Colombia to finance Plan Colombia which includes dealing with Colombia's threatening neighbors. Re-posting here my notes from Amb. Brownfield's presentation.


On Monday, I attended Ambassador Brownfield’s presentation. Sorry, my notes are a bit rough, but I hope you are able to get a sense of what he is saying. A few things are of particular note:


-the Free Trade Agreement is being billed as the way to help Colombia finance Plan Colombia. With the gazillion $ the US has poured into Colombia, this is likely to be viewed as an attractive deal by many members of Congress.

-Brownfield said that the review of the laptop data will be done in a manner consistent with preparation for a criminal prosecution or judicial proceeding. Hmmm.

-As you will see Brownfield is a snot about human rights advocates.


NOTES ON:

US Ambassador to Colombia – William Brownfield
Presentation at World Affairs Council of DC
March 24, 2008

Contained his remarks to two topics: Plan Colombia and the Free Trade Agreement


Plan Colombia

-Before the establishment of Plan Colombia back in 1999, things were grim and Colombia was involving into a state with the following characteristics: FARC-rule, Narco-state, US hostages in the custody of FARC, droves of Colombians leaving the country.

-Between 2000-2008, the US spent $5.5 billion in Plan Colombia, but it is decreasing as the US is shifting implementation and funding to the Colombians. The 2007 US budget allotted $500 million for Plan Colombia.

-Plan Colombia is a success!

Free Trade Agreement

-In order to help Colombia finance Plan Colombia, build support for the FTA in order to increase trade. Increased trade will create jobs in Colombia that will in turn generate tax income to fund Plan Colombia.

-FTA will stimulate economic growth and open new markets. FTA will help coca growers transition to other types of farming.

Conclusion

-Only two choices in Latin America – a market economy or “Socialism for the 21st century.”



Question and Answer Session

Q: Do you think that Ecuador and Venezuela are harboring the FARC?

A: There was overwhelming evidence that FARC was in Ecuador. OAS dealt with this issue properly. Problem is that there are two fundamental principles at stake here: sovereignty of a state and the responsibility of a sovereign state to be responsible for all that is in its territory.


Q: What about the FARC computers? Have you seen any of the data?

A. We will be looking at the computers. All we want out of this is transparency by all parties.

Q: Question about Reyes and Marulanda meeting with someone on Wall Street and making a financial pact of some sort. (Don’t have any more info.)

A. Brownfield punted on this, but took a moment to dis the FARC by saying he couldn’t imagine that the FARC would have the financial skills to deal in high-roller finance.

Q: What’s the forecast on congressional passage of the FTA.

A: Well, you know that we penciled in our initials on an agreement with Colombia on an FTA. The strategy to pass it in Congress has been adjusted for the fact that there is a Democratic Congress and a presidential election on the horizon. There are two issues that we need to resolve with Congress: trade adjustment assistance and labor and human rights issues. Given that the party conventions are in August, I expect that the FTA will be passed by July 2008 before Congress goes into its August recess. We have been bringing members of Congress down to Colombia to show them the success of Plan Colombia. I think we have hosted 15% of the members of the House in Colombia.

Q: (Question from Pablo Bachelet, Miami Herald) How are things going with designating Venezuela as a terrorist state? And, have you had a good chance to look at the documents in the FARC computers?

A. Brownfield punted on the terrorist designation and said they are awaiting more information about the information in the FARC computers and will need a while to consider everything they need to. Regarding the documents, our approach is to view them as though we were pursuing the matter as a criminal prosecution or a formal judicial proceeding involving criminal prosecution.

Q. (from Refugees International) Given all the displaced people, is Colombian security a success, are they protecting the people?

A: Maybe not, but we need to find out why are they being driven from their communities.

Q: What about the fact that drug trafficking is just as bad now and it was before Plan Colombia? Don’t you think the human rights concern about the FTA are legitimate? What about the marchers who were shot after the March 6 demonstration against the paramilitary?

A: You can’t hold Colombia responsible for the rest of the region that have different parts in the drug process – packaging, transit, etc. Problem with the human rights issue in FTA is that human rights adocates are okay when they deal with the government in a political manner, but we can’t deal with them when they are adversarial or involved in active intimidation.

Q: What about arms trafficking?

A.Guns are obtained through the black market or the concurrence of “other” governments” Arms trafficking is tied into the drug business.

Q: When will things get better between Colombia-Ecuador-Venezuela?

A. If we work with Colombia, surrounding countries and the Europeans, we can resolve all problems associated with the conflict. I think the conflict will be resolved in the next several months.

[struggle4progress]

3. Many thanks for attending and sharing the info

[Judi Lynn]

2. Sure hope the author of the article can be trusted to know about this.

It's wonderful knowing there are some staunch Democrats in Congress who won't simply roll over and die on this issue, and that, according to the article:

.... if either of the two Democratic candidates becomes the next president, prospects for an FTA would be even bleaker than they are now, given that Democrats are likely to increase their presence in Congress.

WONDERFUL! Justice may prevail.

[Peace Patriot]

4. So Bush is in accord with Donald Rumsfeld on stage #1 of Oil War II: economic warfare

against Venezuela and others, using the Colombia "free trade" deal (free fire zone against union leaders); also, we learned over the last few months, Exxon Mobil is in accord with it as well, trying to freeze $12 billion in Venezuela's assets. Stage #2, as laid out by Rumsfeld, is "swift action" by the U.S. in support of "friends and allies" in South America. Whatever does he mean? My best guess: U.S. boots on the ground in support of the white separatists in Bolivia, who intend to declare their "independence" from Evo Moralies' central government this May, and split off the gas/oil rich provinces. That will cause a major fracas, and possibly a war--what Rumsfeld has been angling for.

See
"The Smart Way to Beat Tyrants Like Chávez," by Donald Rumsfeld, 12/1/07
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/11/30/AR2007113001800.html

He doesn't mention Bolivia. But I think that's the backup plan--for if the war trap they'd set up with Colombia failed, which it did.

And the "smart way" to beat real tyrants like Bush and Rumsfeld is not to have a war--which is why Chavez so deftly avoided one with Colombia last month, and whey he and the presidents of France, Ecuador, Argentina and others have been trying to bring Colombia's 40+ year civil war to an end (starting with the hostage negotiations that the Bushites sabotaged). War is bad. Peace is good. Lula da Silva called Chavez "the peacemaker" last week. Chavez is smart. Bush and Rumsfeld are stupid and what is worse, arrogantly stupid. Chavez and allies are going to win this one. But Bolivia is a very tricky business--a major test of everyone's peacemaking skills.

Great article I just ran across recently from ZNet, at Venezuela Analysis, on how Chavez and Correa are outmaneuvering the Bush Junta and its global corporate predators in numerous ways.

Varieties of Imperial Decline: Rearguard Success, Strategic Defeat
January 3rd 2008, by toni solo - ZNet
http://www.venezuelanalysis.com/analysis/3031

Viva la revolución!