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US making FARC grow stronger

The report below describes how crop spraying in Afghanistan is fueling growth of the Taliban, and since the same US-backed strategy is being used in Colombia the US may be strengthening the FARC as well.

"eradicating opium production disproportionately harms impoverished farmers, who lack legal livelihoods. Depriving these rural communities of their livelihoods before secure alternatives are available drives them to align with the Taliban. The eradication policy also fails to target traffickers and processors at the high end of the value chain, whose gross profits make up 70-80 percent of the drug economy. It is their profits, not those of farmers, that are passed on Taliban, other illegal armed groups, and Afghan government officials who protect the drug trade."

“Proponents of ‘forced eradication’ believe they are integrating counter-narcotics with counter-insurgency, but instead are making badly conceived counter-narcotics a recruiter for the insurgency"

http://www.cic.nyu.edu/afghanistan/docs/counternarcoticsfinal.pdf

"Despite little evidence that a massive program of aerial coca crop fumigation has worked in Colombia, and despite serious reservations by the Pentagon and by Afghan president Hamid Karzai, the U.S. State Department, backed by the White House, is quietly pushing the expansion of aerial poppy eradication into Afghanistan as a way to fight the Taliban."

http://www.worldpoliticsreview.com/article.aspx?id=1576

By vladimiro on Feb 10, 2008, 22:22 in Politics & the war.

juancegomez says on Feb 11, 2008, 07:54:

The question is whether it's an absolute or only a relative effect, keeping in mind that there are other factors here, including the existence of other armed groups or organizations, not simply FARC alone, as well as the effects of other efforts against them.

So it's not exactly a simple equation.

That aside, I don't think there's a need to go into how much I disagree with current anti-drug policies.

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slguy says on Feb 11, 2008, 08:10:

except for your misguided political leanings, vlad, I think you're a pretty bright guy.

why is it impossible for you to post even a quasi-objective comment, occasionally?

Before you throw me out, make sure I pay my bar tab

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MitchAlvarez says on Feb 11, 2008, 08:21:

everyone is entitled to their own opinion. but as far as this post...its a bunch of mierda.

"Ingrid callate la jeta!! Stay in France"

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Gator says on Feb 11, 2008, 09:06:

Hope springs eternal in the breast of a liberal.

"Brevior Sltare Cum Deformibus Mulieribus Est Vita!" .

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vladimiro says on Feb 13, 2008, 15:37:

I guess its a relic of the Cold War propaganda, but its hilarious how Americans assume anyone that opposes US policies is liberal or leftist. I have to stifle a laugh when Americans I work with in the US assume I'm - god forbid - a democrat because I oppose some US policies.

As far as I'm concerned *both* liberal and conservative Americans are pursuing the same goals they just use different methods to achieve them. In fact, I consider liberal and democratic American politicians far more dangerous than Republican politicans because they use more sophisticated means of advancing US interest than the simplistic rambo-like republicans.

To put it another way, Gator, Russia's Putin is against US policies but does that make him a leftist or liberal? No he simply supports *Russian* interests instead of US interests. Supporting Colombian interests over US interests does not make one a liberal either.

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Sr Tertius says on Feb 13, 2008, 15:48:

I thought crop spraying was discontinued in Colombia. The fact that counter-narcotic operations have fed the ranks of FARC (and others) has been well established for decades.

"When the finger points to the moon, the fool looks at the finger" (Chinese proverb)

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juancegomez says on Feb 13, 2008, 15:54:

SrTertius: From what I understand, it has been discontinued in certain areas (where it has been replaced with manual eradication) and there have been government announcements indicating a willingness to reduce/eliminate it at some point...but as a whole, the fumigation program still survives.

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poco says on Feb 13, 2008, 17:02:

Quote: (where it has been replaced with manual eradication)

Several weeks ago about 150 people had their applications approved to joing the ranks of Coca Plant burners/destroyers.

Good pay, about 800,000 pesos per month PLUS food and lodging. The lodging is not all that great, a big open tarp with beds for about 200 per tarp. Similar to farm workers along the coast.

There were so many applications that it was said there would be more next month.

As I understand it, the price last year was about 1,000,000 per month. Hummm, budget cuts? or maybe less hazardous?

Anyway,, better pay than farm labor.

"When you men get home and face an anti-war protester, look him in the eyes and shake his hand. Then, wink at his girlfriend, because she knows she's dating a pussy." Quote - General Tommy Franks

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billyb says on Feb 13, 2008, 18:17:

I thought spraying was suspended within 10 Kms from the Ecuadorian border, but not totally stopped?

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juancegomez says on Feb 13, 2008, 20:04:

That was part of it, yes...

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azunoman says on Feb 14, 2008, 09:18:

I would think that people that oppose US policy would include a large majority of, yes, Americans. It is a pretty well known that what Americans want done by their government is almost the complete opposite of what in fact is done. After reading the interview/book of Noam Chomsky's "What We Say Goes".

Afghan poppy destroyed? Just for TV. Those that get their crops destroyed, certainly didn't pay off someone.

Colombian eradication, got to use the budget, else it's lost next year. Makes for great press, all the US government agencies get to keep their budgets etc.

Being married to a Colombian, I am grow weary in general here in the US about the idea that Afghan and Colombia are in the wrong, when it is in fact we American's who create the market.

Ready, Fire, Aim

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aztec says on Feb 16, 2008, 05:55:

After reading the interview/book of Noam Chomsky's "What We Say Goes".azunoman

God protect us from another of Noam Chomsky's students!

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