The peace corps worked in Colombia in educational programmes, teaching English in remote communities and developing social programmes in the poor areas of the cities and rural areas. But they also taught the indigenous and ‘campesinos' (peasants) the chemical process of extracting cocaine from the ancestral coca leaf, in a productive manner", says an editorial ‘Al Día' main Hispanic newspaper in the US. "Their presence in the country coincided with the generalisation of marijuana plantations", adds the editorial, which cites an article in the Colombian Semana magazine. "The knowledge and knowhow of some of them established the infrastructure for the production and trafficking of drugs that still continues today. The growing demand for cocaine in the US in the 70's made Colombia and other South American countries the forbidden garden that satisfies the voracious North American anxieties. According to some, the Peace Corps were the intermediaries… some were accused in the past of belonging to intelligence agencies such as the CIA", claims the editorial.
‘Al Día,' the main Hispanic newspaper in the US, criticizes return of Peace Corps to Colombia
Colombia: 30 Years Later 'Controversial' US Peace Corps Return
Thursday, May 13, 2010
After around three decades, the American Peace corps will return to Colombia between September and December to work on cooperation and social assistance projects, based on an accord signed in Washington between the director of the Peace corps, Aaron S. William, and Colombian Foreign minister Jaime Bermudez.
The minister specified that their return is not linked to any military matters, but is a "sign of interest, cooperation and friendship between the two countries", which from the end of 2009 signed a deal that consents US soldiers to use seven Colombian army bases, drawing strong criticism also from some governments of the UNASUR (Union of South American Nations).
According to observers, the return of the Peace Corps, that instituted in 1961 during the administration of John F. Kennedy arrived in Colombia in the same year and left in 1981 amid security problems after abductions and being declared a military target by the guerrilla, will also be strongly criticised by neighbours such as Venezuela.
"The peace corps worked in Colombia in educational programmes, teaching English in remote communities and developing social programmes in the poor areas of the cities and rural areas. But they also taught the indigenous and ‘campesinos' (peasants) the chemical process of extracting cocaine from the ancestral coca leaf, in a productive manner", says an editorial ‘Al Día' main Hispanic newspaper in the US.
"Their presence in the country coincided with the generalisation of marijuana plantations", adds the editorial, which cites an article in the Colombian Semana magazine. "The knowledge and knowhow of some of them established the infrastructure for the production and trafficking of drugs that still continues today. The growing demand for cocaine in the US in the 70's made Colombia and other South American countries the forbidden garden that satisfies the voracious North American anxieties. According to some, the Peace Corps were the intermediaries… some were accused in the past of belonging to intelligence agencies such as the CIA", claims the editorial.
The US is Colombia's main trade partner and main ally in the fight against drug-trafficking and illegal armed groups.
Source: Original reporting by MISNA
