People around the United States protest the Inauguration of Colombian president Alvaro Uri

On Wednesday August 7th, Alvaro Uribe Velez was inaugurated as the new president of Colombia. He was elected on a right wing platform of expanded war by only 24% of the eligible voting population. He plans to double the size of the security forces to 100,000 soldiers in the Army and 50,000 in the National Police, and increase military spending to a billion dollars a year (out of a 27 billion dollar budget). He also plans to create a million civilian network to combat the guerrillas. To pay for his plans for expanded war, Uribe Velez needs funds, which he intends to get from new taxes, more IMF/World Bank loans and increased US aid. Considering the state of the Colombian economy, which is in a severe recession, increasing the military budget will have disastrous effects for people who are already suffering from high unemployment and widespread poverty.

Uribe’s close ties to Washington also means an even greater increase in US involvement in Colombia’s conflict. The United States has already given 2 billion dollars in mostly military aid to Colombia. This aid has only served to expand the civil war and destroy possibilities for a political solution to the war. For instance before US aid increased dramatically, 10 people were being killed a day. Now, 38 people are killed every day. Uribe met with Bush in June to discuss increasing this aid, and further endangering the people of Colombia.
Activists in a number of different cities (Minneapolis, New York City, Chicago, Los Angeles, Portland, and San Diego are a few of them) gathered on August 7th to protest the inauguration of the warmonger Uribe Velez and to say no to US intervention in Colombia! Here in San Francisco, 150 people rallied at Powell and Market where speakers discussed the effects of US aid to Colombia and Uribe’s inauguration. For more information or to get involved in the movement to get the US OUT of COLOMBIA please contact the Committee for a New Colombia at 415 821 6545 or cnc_sf [at] yahoo.com.