The Columbian Drug War

Paper Summary:

In 1999, Columbia negotiated a three-year stabilization agreement named "Plan Columbia" with the International Monetary Fund, which established certain policy targets that it had to achieve in order to borrow money. The paper examines that although this money was given to resolve the civil conflict, curb drug trafficking, modernize legal and military institutions and strengthen the economy, in fact most of the money goes to the military in order to fight the FARC rebels who control vast areas of the coca fields. The paper examines the reasons behind the United States' eagerness to aid the Columbian government, despite the fact that most of the money is obviously not being used for "anti-drug" programs.

From the Paper:

"However, statistics show that Colombian police and military are not fighting a drug war but rather a civil war against leftwing rebels that are rapidly gaining strength. However, the U.S. is completely aware that the money is not going to drugs and actually has an interest in the civil war because Colombia is strategically located, bordering both the Caribbean Sea and the Pacific Ocean. In addition, it has plentiful oil and mineral reserves that multinational corporations have been exploiting for years, often under the armed guard of the Colombian military. Therefore, the U.S. is supplying aid in the name of drugs but the money is used to keep control of the territory of Colombia."

More papers on The Columbian Drug War:

• Case Study # 83603 : "The Columbian Drug Trade (1994-2004)"
• Essay # 72050 : "Pablo Escobar and the War on Drugs"
• Analytical Essay # 49512 : "The Second World War"

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