Build the Movement to Stop U.S. Intervention in Colombia!
The Colombian people are fighting for liberation against a government that only serves the interests of the rich. The South American country has been involved in this civil war for decades, but, until recently, it has gone on unnoticed by the American public. In summer 2000, the U.S. Congress approved a $1.3 billion aid package, part of Colombian President Andres Pastrana's “Plan Colombia.” Its purpose is to fight the civil war in the name of a war on drugs. This aid will send military weapons and equipment, as well as U.S. Army personnel, to train Colombian soldiers.
Plan Colombia involves the U.S. in another country's civil war for the profit of corporations and the benefit of politicians. Why? Because Colombia is rich in mineral and oil resources, and has an important strategic location. Bordered by five other countries and two oceans, it is the doorway between South America and the rest of the world. The U.S. has lost control of the Panama Canal, and proposes building a new canal in nearby northern Colombia. Colombia's current government is a willing puppet of the United States. If Marxist guerrillas were to gain power, or if the people's movements won the reforms they seek, the U.S. would lose its influence over this important nation.
Because U.S. warmongers spend $2 million a day to maintain control in Colombia, people here must hold the U.S. government accountable for every penny that contributes to the deaths and environmental destruction. We will not be silent while Colombia becomes the next Viet Nam. This special edition of Fight Back! is written by and for activists in the struggle against Yankee Imperialism in Colombia.