The U.S. should treat Colombia’s terrorists as harshly as it treats Russia | Opinion

Vladimir Putin’s unprovoked invasion of Ukraine has thrust the conflict between authoritarianism and democracy into the international conversation. It’s a narrative about values: despotic coercion vs. a sovereign democratic country’s right to freedom.

The United States has spent $60 billion to date defending Ukraine. Americans’ continued willingness to support Ukraine indicates tacit agreement that justice precedes peace.

Like Ukraine, Colombia is an important U.S. ally. Or, rather, was — until its president, Gustavo Petro, was elected last year, backed by Venezuela, Russia and major Colombian narcotrafficking gangs.

Therefore, it’s inconsistent for a U.S. diplomat to congratulate a Colombian president backed by the same terrorists the United States is trying to punish — Putin, Nicolas Maduro, and the mafia.

Last week, Beth Van Schaack, appointed by President Biden ambassador-at-large for global criminal justice, applauded Petro for his “Total Peace” deal, finalized on June 9 in Havana, between Colombia and the ELN, (National Liberation Army), a narco-backed Colombian terrorist group. The deal promises a cessation of violence in exchange for immunity for ELN’s past transgressions.

But real peace cannot exist with impunity. Post-conflict amnesty deals rarely work, especially when the terrorists have no intention of laying down their arms, as has been discovered with currently active FARC members who, after the 2016 peace accord, reinvented themselves under new leadership.

In Colombia, magical realism is not restricted to its award-winning literature. Here, language evokes different meanings that often inspire international confusion. For example, the “right” means legitimate political parties that have run the nation for decades, representing both socially and economically liberal and more conservative ideologies.

The left in Colombia is associated with Marxism that initially inspired guerrilla movements like the narco-funded FARC (Colombian Armed Revolutionary Forces) — the oldest and most violent terrorist group in the Western Hemisphere, responsible for at least 450,000 deaths.

Petro won the presidency in August 2022 by running as Colombia’s first leftist president, with the backing of a Russian propaganda campaign. Petro’s disapproval rating has risen to 62% as Colombians fear their new narco-backed president will transform Colombia into a dictatorship like Venezuela.

The international community was moved by Petro’s slogan, “Colombia’s first leftist president,” who promised to eradicate inequality. Internationally, the “left” evokes prestige and liberalism, not propaganda.

Like all effective propaganda, Petro’s contains a kernel of truth — inequality exists in Colombia. But according to the former Defense Minister Diego Molano, “Petro’s disinformation campaign exacerbated Colombia’s social wounds and discomforts to create chaos”, he told me.

The right U.S. response should not include applauding Petro’s Total Peace deal, for at least three reasons.

“Paz Total” will reverse decades of progress under Plan Colombia, in which the United States spent more than $10 billion combating illegal drug operations.

“Paz Total is total delinquency and impunity,” Ingrid Betancourt, former Colombian senator candidate told the magazine, La Semana. Betancourt understands the dangers of granting impunity to guerrillas; she was held hostage in the jungle for seven years by the FARC. According to Betancourt, kidnappings have increased by 90% under Petro’s presidency.

Second, the geopolitical threat of Russia’s expanding empire in Latin America is real, with Colombia becoming an unwitting Venezuela ally. Venezuela is a dictatorship of institutionalized crime.

Russia has bolstered Venezuela’s military for decades, militarizing the Venezuela border, according to former Defense Minister Diego Molano, “They represent a threat to the region because their people have infiltrated our institutions”, he told me

Third, the ELN have no intention of laying down arms. One month after the deal was signed, they killed seven national police.

Much attention has been focused on Ukraine. But if justice is a moral issue, it should be sought in the Americas as well. The United States must not have a magical-realist friendship with an openly corrupt regime in our geographical back yard. Only justice can bring peace.

Kristina Foltz is a Rotary Ambassadorial Scholar based in Bogotá, Colombia. Follow her at @kristinafoltz1.