Source: Seattle Times (WA) Contact: http://www.seattletimes.com/ Copyright: 1999 The Seattle Times Company Pubdate: 7 Jan 1999 Author: David LaGesse, The Dallas Morning News DROP IN COCA PRODUCTION HAILED, BUT COCAINE PLANT THRIVES ELSEWHERE WASHINGTON - U.S. officials yesterday hailed an "astonishing" drop in coca cultivation in Peru and Bolivia, although they conceded that plantings of the illicit crop were skyrocketing in Colombia. Over the past three years, Peru has seen a 56 percent drop in cultivation of coca, the raw material used to make cocaine, according to U.S. data. Coca cultivation has dropped 22 percent in Bolivia over the same period, with most coming in the past year. The progress speaks to the importance of strong political leadership in the drug fight, said drug czar Barry McCaffrey. Peruvian and Bolivian leaders made the drug fight a priority and deserve credit for the "absolutely astonishing" fall in coca fields, he said. "They believe it serves their own national interest." The unusual press conference also served as a coming-out of sorts for the CIA, whose analysts have long monitored aspects of the drug trade but generally remained behind the scenes. A top CIA official was available to answer reporters' questions about the counter-drug data in what he said was a change in agency attitude. "Why not come out and explain that the agency is involved in constructively supporting this effort?" said Gerry Komisar, director of the CIA's Crime and Narcotics Center. McCaffrey held the press conference without data from the entire Andean region, which produces most of the cocaine and perhaps most of the heroin consumed in the United States. Officials said data for Colombia, which analysts say is growing more coca and opium poppies, will be available sometime next month. Critics of the administration's counter-drug efforts say drug cartels simply have moved production to Colombia, where civil strife and official corruption stymie counter-drug efforts. "Clearly, coca production in Colombia is skyrocketing," McCaffrey said. Colombian President Andres Pastrana took office Aug. 7, also pledging to cut cocaine production. "There's a lot to be learned by Colombia's government from Peru and Bolivia," McCaffrey said. He particularly cited Bolivia, where the U.S. government had spent more than $1 billion in a decade with no drop in cultivation. Then-President Hugo Banzer took office in early 1997 and launched a new campaign against coca production in Bolivia, long a top producer of the illicit crop. - --- MAP posted-by: Mike Gogulski