Secretary Rice's Meeting with Colombian

UNCLAS PARTO 020505 (Note: the unique message record number (MRN) has been modified. The original MRN was 08 PARTO 000005, which duplicates a previous PARTO telegram number.) SENSITIVE SIPDIS DEPT. PLEASE PASS TO USTR, AARON ROSENBERG, AND BENNETT HARMAN E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: OVIP RICE CONDOLEEZZA ETRD ECIN EINV ELAB PGOV, PHUM, PREL, PTER, SMIG, VE, CO SUBJECT: Secretary Rice's Meeting with Colombian President Alvaro Uribe ¶1. (U) January 25, 2008; 3:30 p.m.; Medellin, Colombia. ¶2. (U) Participants: United States The Secretary Ambassador William Brownfield Representative Melissa Bean Representative Eliot Engel Representative Jane Harman Representative Alcee Hastings Representative Ron Klein Representative Rick Larsen Representative Solomon Ortiz Representative Ed Perlmutter Representative David Scott A/S Jeffrey Bergner, H A/S Sean McCormack, PA A/S Tom Shannon, WHA A/S Daniel Sullivan, EEB S Chief of Staff Brian Gunderson Director of House Affairs Scott Kamins Deputy Executive Secretary Kevin Whitaker Carolyn Cooley, Embassy Notetaker COLOMBIA President Alvaro Uribe Ambassador Carolina Barco Defense Minister Juan Manuel Santos Minister of Interior and Justice Carlos Holguin Sardi Minister of Culture Paula Moreno Zapata Social Protection Minister Diego Palacio Acting Minister of Commerce, Industry, and Tourism Eduardo Munoz National Planning Director Carolina Renteria Director of Social Action Diego Molano Aponte Director of Presidential Program for Human Rights Carlos Franco High Commissioner for Reintegration Frank Pearl Vice Minister of Labor Relations Andres Palacio Chaverra Governor of Antioquia Luis Alfredo Ramos Medellin Mayor Alonso Salazar Jaramillo MFA U.S. and Canada Coordinator Patricia Cortes Presidential Press Secretary Cesar Velasquez Ossa Presidential Advisor Jose Obdulio Gaviria Velez Presidential Advisor Jorge Mario Eastman Robleado Presidential Advisor Carlina Restrepo Ruiz Presidential Private Secretary Alicia Arango ¶3. (SBU) SUMMARY. President Uribe outlined his administration's progress on security and social issues. He noted that Colombian government support for labor rights began prior to ratification efforts, and he reviewed recent government actions to address U.S. concerns, including the addition of new prosecutors and investigators, increased funding for protection programs and the judicial system, and labor reform legislation. Uribe underscored Colombian government efforts to prosecute human rights violators and promote respect for human rights in the military. He said the Trade Promotion Agreement (TPA) remains key to attracting foreign investment and reducing poverty, and encouraged a Congressional vote prior to the presidential elections. The Secretary emphasized the importance of recognizing Colombia's progress. END SUMMARY. -------------- COLOMBIA: ADVANCING SECURITY AND DEMOCRACY -------------- ¶4. (SBU) In a January 25 meeting with the Secretary and nine Members of Congress, President Uribe thanked the delegation for its interest in Colombia and stressed the importance of the bipartisan support under Presidents Clinton and Bush. He reviewed Colombia's progress during his administration, including regaining territory controlled by illegal groups, reducing unemployment by two-thirds, increasing the real minimum wage by 10 percent, providing an additional 13 million Colombians with health coverage, strengthening democratic institutions, combating impunity, and recovering public optimism. Despite these improvements, Uribe acknowledged more needs to be done and emphasized the TPA's role in accomplishing the Colombian government's long-term security, economic, and social goals. -------------- TPA: THE TIME IS NOW -------------- ¶5. (SBU) Uribe said the TPA will encourage foreign investment, create jobs, and strengthen his "democratic security" policy. He said that to create better paying jobs, Colombia needs the high level of investment the TPA would bring. Contrasting Colombia to Chavez's authoritarian government and state-run economy, Uribe pointed out that TPA approval would signal support for shared democratic and economic values in the region. He urged the Congressional delegation to vote quickly on the TPA before the distraction of the U.S. presidential race made Congressional debate impossible. ¶6. (SBU) Acknowledging that some of the delegation might not agree on the urgency of the TPA, the Secretary said no problem in Colombia will get better if the USG does not ratify the TPA. It would be a mistake not to recognize Colombia's progress. She observed that Colombia provides an inspiration throughout the world for those attempting to overcome civil conflict. -------------- LABOR RIGHTS: ONGOING IMPROVEMENTS -------------- ¶7. (SBU) Uribe said his administration's determination to protect trade unionists began his first day in office and plays an integral role in his "democratic security" policy. He underscored the link between a strong and independent judiciary and combating impunity, noting he had doubled the justice administration budget. Uribe added that he had recently approved a 12 percent staffing increase in the Prosecutor General's office for new investigators and prosecutors. Since 2001, the Prosecutor General has convicted 134 individuals guilty of violence against unionists. The Colombian government recently increased Ministry of Labor staffing to monitor employer compliance with labor laws. ¶8. (SBU) Uribe noted that 1, 959 of the 9,444 Colombians receiving protection under the Colombian government's USD 40 million protection program are trade union leaders, and 128 are journalists He reported the murder rate for trade unionists is now lower than that of the general population. Before he entered office, there were over 250 trade union murders annually. In 2007, this dropped to 26 cases. ¶9. (SBU) Uribe summarized the three labor reform bills submitted to Congress to bring Colombian laws in line with International Labor Organization (ILO) standards. The first would ensure benefits (e.g., minimum wage and social security) to cooperative workers. The second would shift the power to determine the legality of public sector strikes from the executive branch to independent labor judges. The third bill would mandate an increased period of employer-union negotiation prior to requiring arbitration. Representative Klein said approval of the ILO-compliance bills would be essential to demonstrating GOC commitment to labor rights. ¶10. (SBU) Uribe attributed much of Colombian trade unions' opposition to the TPA to ideology rather than policy concerns or labor violence. He said many public sector unions oppose the TPA because of disagreements with the Colombian government over its recent restructuring of the state-owned oil company Ecopetrol. Still, he said the majority of private sector unions believe the TPA would prove beneficial to labor. -------------- SECURITY: JOINT OPERATIONS -------------- ¶11. (SBU) Uribe said that when he took office, 30 percent of the country was under Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia control and 40 percent under paramilitary control. The Colombian government now has a security presence in every municipality. Minister of Defense Santos outlined the military's measure of success { the amount of territory reclaimed from illegal organizations. Asked by Representative Larsen about inter-service cooperation, Uribe described joint operations across military branches and across government ministries. He said the military works with other government agencies to bring social assistance, including doctors, teachers, and judicial administrators, to rural areas. He likened the Colombian government's efforts to defeat terrorist and narco-groups to a diet where the first pounds are easy to shed but the last prove more difficult. Uribe stressed the importance of ongoing USG support until the task reaches completion. -------------- EXTRAJUDICIAL KILLINGS: RARE AND PROSECUTED -------------- ¶12. (SBU) Uribe said his administration did not tolerate human rights violations when Representative Harman asked about extrajudicial killings. He said the government supports judicial investigation and sentencing in the isolated instances where the military did commit a crime. Defense Minister Santos added that earlier in the week, the military had introduced a comprehensive policy for human rights in armed forces operations, noting that almost every military operation would require the consent of a human rights legal advisor. Citing a recent poll, Santos said the armed forces had an 80 percent approval rating { higher than either the church or media { and that such high approval ratings could not exist if the military regularly violated human rights. RICE