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DE RUEHBO #4615/01 1771735
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
P 261735Z JUN 07
FM AMEMBASSY BOGOTA
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 6590
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RUEAIIA/CIA WASHDC
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RHEFDIA/DIA WASHDC
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RUEKJCS/SECDEF WASHDC

UNCLAS BOGOTA 004615 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: KJUS PGOV PINR PREL PTER CO
SUBJECT: CODEL MEEKS MEETS WITH OPPOSITION LEADERS 
 
¶1.  (U) June 4, 2007; 300PM, U.S. Embassy 
 
¶2.  (U) Participants: 
 
U.S. 
 
Rep. Gregory Meeks (D-NY) 
Rep. Mike Honda (D-CA) 
Rep. Jean Schmidt (R-OH) 
Rep. Linda Sanchez (D-CA) 
Polcouns John Creamer 
Pol officer (notetaker) 
 
COLOMBIA 
 
Former President and Liberal Party leader Cesar Gaviria 
Polo Democratico leader Gustavo Petro 
Polo Democratico Secretary General Daniel Garcia Pena 
Polo Democratico Representative River Franklin Legro 
 
------- 
Summary 
------- 
 
¶3.  (SBU) A bipartisan Congressional delegation led by 
Representative Gregory Meeks meeting with opposition leaders 
on June 4 led to a fruitful exchange of opinions on the 
U.S.-Colombian Trade Promotion Act (CTPA), Plan Colombia, the 
Justice and Peace Law, and the need for greater social 
investment.  End summary. 
 
---- 
CTPA 
---- 
 
¶4.  (SBU) Former Colombian President and Liberal Party leader 
Cesar Gaviria said the U.S. Congress should not 
"discriminate" against Colombia by failing to pass the 
U.S.-Colombian Trade Promotion Act (CTPA).  Gaviria said the 
United States has free trade agreements with Mexico, Central 
America, and Chile and is soon to approve agreements with 
Panama and Peru; it must not punish its strongest ally in the 
region.  Rep. Meeks agreed with Gaviria and said he supported 
a free trade agreement with Colombia.  Rep. Sanchez 
disagreed, stating it was not about discrimination, it was 
about making a stronger agreement that addressed gaps in the 
current accord.  Polo Democratico Senator Gustavo Petro said 
the Agreement needed greater emphasis on protecting 
Colombia's agricultural sector.  He contended 
narcotraffickers would be the biggest beneficiaries of the 
agreement, because they would be able to buy or steal 
productive land to the detriment of vulnerable populations. 
 
------------- 
Plan Colombia 
------------- 
 
¶5.  (SBU) Petro said the U.S. anti-drug policy needed to be 
more effective, asserting that Plan Colombia needed to 
de-emphasize its military component and instead focus more on 
underlying social causes of the drug trade and narco 
corruption.  He said more U.S. aid should be directed to the 
Prosecutor General's Office, arguing that the key to ending 
narcotrafficking in Colombia was to break the ties between 
some politicians and narcotraffickers.  Codel members agreed 
Plan Colombia should have a greater "soft-side" emphasis. 
 
--------------------- 
Justice and Peace Law 
--------------------- 
 
¶6.  (SBU) Gaviria criticized the Justice and Peace Law (JPL) 
process and the GoC handling of the para-political scandal, 
but said Colombian institutions would have to work with it. 
Petro said the Justice and Peace Law provided an adequate 
framework for dismantling paramilitary ties with politicians, 
but reiterated that the Prosecutor General's Office and the 
judiciary needed more resources to do their jobs.  Polo 
Secretary General Daniel Garcia Pena noted the Uribe 
 
SIPDIS 
administration takes credit for the truth emerging from the 
JPL process, but said that without opposition pressure and 
court-mandated changes the GOC's originally proposed JPL bill 
would have maintained impunity.  Rep. Schmidt agreed that the 
solution to the problem was to increase resources for the 
Prosecutor General's Office so it could do a more effective 
job investigating and convicting suspected paramilitaries and 
their supporters. 
 
----------------- 
Social Investment 
----------------- 
 
¶7.  (SBU) Codel members also discussed the need for more 
support for the Afro-Colombian community, land issues, and 
social investment.  Opposition leaders recognized the need 
for greater attention to the Afro-Colombian and other 
marginalized communities which suffer high rates of poverty. 
Polo Democratico Representative River Franklin Legro praised 
the recent appointment of an Afro-Colombian Minister, but 
said discrimination against Afro-Colombians remains a serious 
obstacle to progress.  He said all Colombians needed to 
become more aware of this humanitarian situation. 
 
¶8.  (U) House Western Hemisphere Subcommittee Staff cleared 
this cable. 
Drucker