Pubdate: Mon, 15 Dec 2008 Source: Advertiser-Tribune, The (Tiffin, OH) Copyright: 2008 The Advertiser-Tribune Contact: http://www.advertiser-tribune.com/ Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/3224 Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/topics/mexico U.S. MUST KEEP AN EYE ON AID PROGRAMS More than 4,200 Americans have been killed in Iraq since that country was invaded in 2003. More than 4,000 people have died this year alone in another war, this one much closer to home. Drug-related murders in Mexico - at more than 4,000 for the year - are a concern north of the border. They involve a bloody trade in illegal drugs flowing into the United States. Some killings by Mexican drug lords have involved Americans, and some have occurred on our soil. This month, the U.S. government released $197 million in funds intended to help Mexico fight the drug lords. Another $203 million is earmarked for use by the Mexicans. U.S. taxpayers have spent billions of dollars - $6 billion to Colombia alone - in efforts to keep illegal drugs from reaching our shores. Though successes in the campaign are not uncommon, the drugs keep coming. A variety of concerns have made members of Congress leery of simply writing blank checks to foreign governments for drug control programs. One is potential human rights violations. Another is whether the money will be swallowed up by corrupt officials and law enforcement officials. The latter may be one reason why the most recent round of aid will be in the form of equipment, such as helicopters, not cash. Still, the possibilities for corruption are endless. Cash not spent on police equipment because it is being provided by the United States can go into the pockets of corrupt officials, for example. That makes it imperative that U.S. officials monitor such aid programs closely. If our help is being used to crack down on drug lords, more of it should be provided. But if it is simply feeding the machinery of corruption, funding should be suspended. - --- MAP posted-by: Larry Seguin