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To: JHP who wrote (225803)	3/6/2003 10:19:28 AM
From: Earlie	Respond to of 436258

JHP: Until Uribe was elected, the "rebels" (read drug producers) successfully "bought" most politicians and enjoyed a peaceful co-existance with the government. Uribe appears to be a non-purchasable commodity and enjoys vastly increased (since April of last year) U.S. financial and military assistance. To make a long story short, Uribe is taking the fight to the "rebels" and this latest round of urban terrorism, while not pretty, sure provides evidence of a degree of desperation on the part of the "rebels". The strategy of the government is to concentrate on tracking the leaders of the "rebels" and going after them. This strategy has worked well in other parts of Latin America (Peru for example) and has provided decent results todate. The key recent event for Columbia was the reversal of the US congress with respect to its stance on Columbia. Until April of last year, only aid relating directly to fighting the drug trade was allowed. Now, military aid is not only allowed, but encouraged as the "rebels" have now been labelled as "terrorists". The "rebels" are experiencing dramatically increased desertions and the estimates of their numbers are moving down. For the first time in decades, the government is moving into previously held "rebel territories and not just shooting up the trees. Best, Earlie