-Caveat Lector- Again, why are these people down there? Surely NO one believes any gov't really wants to win the drug war. If they really wanted it fixed it could have been fixed by now. But I don't believe that is the plan. Like the Vietnam war: we didn't win because it was never intended that we should win. The troops were not allowed to win. It was a farce. On Tue, 29 May 2001 16:25:11 -0700 radman <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> writes: > -Caveat Lector- > > CORPWATCH > www.corpwatch.org > > May 23, 2001 > > DynCorp In Colombia: Outsourcing the Drug War > > By Jeremy Bigwood > > A U.S.-made Huey II military helicopter manned by foreigners wearing > U.S. > Army fatigues crash lands after being pockmarked by sustained > guerrilla > fire from the jungle below. Its crew members, one of them wounded, > are > surrounded by enemy guerrillas. > > Another three helicopters, this time carrying American crews, cut > through > the hot muggy sky. While two of them circle, firing machine-guns at > hidden > enemy, one swoops down alongside the downed Huey, and the Americans > jump > through the wash of the blades into the firefight on the ground, > successfully rescuing the downed crew members. It could be a scene > from a > soon-to-be-released Hollywood blockbuster based on the war in > Vietnam or > El Salvador. But, it happened in Colombia last February, as part of > the > U.S. $1.3 billion intervention called "Plan Colombia." The Americans > who > braved the bullets were members of an armed "airmobile" Search and > Rescue > Team. However, they were not part of the U.S. Armed Forces, but > civilian > employees of a private company called DynCorp, the new "privateer > mercenaries" of a U.S. policy that now "outsources" its wars. > > Like the old English "privateer" pirates of the Caribbean five > hundred > years ago, sailing under no national flag - robbing and plundering > Latin > America's riches for the English Crown, Washington now employs > hundreds of > contract employees through U.S. corporations to carry out its > policies in > Colombia and other countries. In the old days, the British > maintained that > because the pirate ships did not fly the English flag, the Crown was > not > responsible for their actions. While the new privateers are > underwritten > through U.S. taxes, they are technically "contract employees." Like > the > sixteenth century pirates, if they get caught in an embarrassing > crime, or > are killed, the U.S. government can deny responsibility for their > actions. > What's more only a select few in Congress know of their activities > and > their operations are not subject to public scrutiny, despite the > fact that > they are on the government payroll. > > "It's very handy to have an outfit not part of the U.S. armed > forces, > obviously. If somebody gets killed or whatever, you can say it's not > a > member of the armed forces," former U.S. Ambassador to Colombia, > Myles > Frechette told reporters. Meanwhile, Former Drug Czar Barry > McCaffrey > recently described himself as an "unabashed admirer of outsourcing." > And > there is an economic consideration too. Deploying high ranking > active duty > military officers to staff Colombian operations is far more costly > than > hiring retired officers working privately. A U.S. government > official, who > asked not to be named, said that there were several reasons that the > U.S. > government outsources projects: "[Outsourcing] can be a flexible, > cost-effective means of providing specific labor-intensive services > on a > short-term basis. Once we hire government workers, they are here > forever. > Some of these jobs are only short-term." > > Outsourcing belligerent activities on the part of the U.S. > government is > not new. It goes back to the Revolutionary War. Many such companies > were > involved in the Vietnam war, but they were only a minuscule presence > compared to the major military effort by the U.S. there. What is new > is > that now contract employees are in the forefront of operations. In > the > Colombian war, private outsourced military men are out on the > frontlines, > while the real U.S. troops are hidden on bases as trainers. The > exact > number of contract employees in Colombia is not known. A recent > State > Department report states that there are only 200 U.S. military > soldiers > and about 170 American contractors working in Colombia. > Historically, > official counts of U.S. personnel and contractors tend to be > underestimated in counter-insurgency operations. > > DynCorp and Plan Colombia > > By far the largest U.S. contractor company in Latin America is > DynCorp, > headquartered in Reston, Virginia near the CIA, and Pentagon. It > hires and > places many ex-military personnel, but is actually much more diverse > and > more high-tech than that. The company's website promotes it as an > Internet > Technologies corporation. DynCorp describes its areas of expertise > as > "Information Systems, Information Technology/Outsourcing and > Technical > Services." Once you dig a little deeper, it becomes clear that this > is no > ordinary high-tech start up. > > According to its own literature, "DynCorp's expertise spans more > than five > decades - encompassing events from the computer revolution, the > Space Age, > the Cold War and conflicts from Korea, Vietnam and Desert Storm. > Through > these times, we have dedicated ourselves to providing customers with > the > best and most educated solutions. Our IT experience has evolved with > this > ever-changing industry, and we continue to offer our clients solid > solutions based on this evolution." DynCorp has "worked with > domestic and > foreign government agencies to provide successful information, > engineering > and aerospace technology solutions. As a result, few companies > understand > the public sector like DynCorp, or can boast a government client > base with > the depth and breadth of ours." > > Indeed, government contracts account for 98% of DynCorp's business. > It > contracts with more than 30 U.S. government agencies, including the > Department of Defense, State Department, FBI, Drug Enforcement > Agency, > Bureau of Prisons, and the Office of National Drug Policy. About > half of > DynCorp's revenue comes from the Pentagon and many of its employees > are > retired military men. The rest of the contracts are mostly with > civilian > government agencies. According to its website, last year it > generated more > than $1.8 billion in annual revenues, a $4.4 billion-dollar contract > backlog and more than 20,000 employees in more than 550 locations. > CEO > Paul Lombardi recently boasted to the Washington Technology website > that > he projects 2001 revenue will top $2 billion. > > Like many transnational giants DynCorp has gobbled up some of the > competition. In 1999 it acquired GTE Information Systems which has > helped > the company pursue government mega-contracts. > > Since 1997, DynCorp has operated under a $600 million-dollar State > Department contract in Latin America. But, according to its contract > with > the State Department, recently acquired by CorpWatch, "mission > deployments > may be made to any worldwide location, including, potentially, > outside of > Central and South America." The company mainly "participates in > eradication missions, training, and drug interdiction, but also > participates in air transport, reconnaissance, search and rescue, > airborne > medical evacuation, ferrying equipment and personnel from one > country to > another, as well as aircraft maintenance," according to the > contract. > DynCorp operates several State Department aircraft, including armed > UH-1H > Iroquois and Bell-212 Huey-type helicopters and T-65 Thrush crop > dusters. > > DynCorp provides the pilots, technicians, and just about any kind of > personnel required to carry out the war in Colombia, including > administrative personnel. Some of its personnel in Colombia, such as > its > helicopter pilots are Colombians, Peruvians, and Guatemalans, but > most are > from the U.S. All must speak passable Spanish and English, and all > must > possess U.S. government "Secret" personnel security clearances, > except in > the cases of foreign contractors, where this requirement may be > waived. > > DynCorp is tight lipped when it comes to its clients. Company > spokesperson > Janet Wineriter refused to comment on the company's overseas > operations. > Nor will the State Department make on-the-record statements about > DynCorp's operations. Company paramedic Michael Demons apparently > recently > died of a heart attack on a Colombian military base and the U.S. > Embassy > in Bogota attempted to keep his death secret. Because Demons was not > a > military officer and didn't work directly for the U.S. government, > there > was no official report and his death was treated as if he were a > tourist. > > DynCorp has also lost three pilots in action. None of these deaths > were > reported in the news media. > > DynCorp also operates in Bolivia and Peru, in conflict zones where > indigenous coca growers feel U.S. drug operations encroach on their > cultural use of coca and their economic livelihood. In Peru these > areas > also face renewed activity of Shining Path guerillas. But by far the > largest DynCorp operations are in Colombia, and according to its > contract > with the State Department, it has a "command and control" function > in the > field, apparently outside any government oversight. > > DynCorp is openly labeled "mercenary" by a hostile Colombian press, > a > charge they vigorously deny. A State Department official told > CorpWatch > that "mercenaries are used in war. This is counter-narcotics." But > in > Colombia, the line between the counter-insurgency and > counter-narcotics > has been blurred for many years. While it is true that Colombia now > produces much of the cocaine used in the United States making it a > target > for the "war on drugs," Washington's policy objectives may go beyond > drugs. The U.S. is also concerned about Colombia's more than 30-year > long > guerilla insurgency. Critics say that Plan Colombia is an expansion > of > Washington's involvement in counter-insurgency. > > A hint of other U.S. policy aims is visible to anyone taking a > commercial > flight from Houston to Bogota. Amongst the U.S. passengers, the > embassy > types, the businessmen and older ex-military types are easily > recognizable. But those who stand out most are the young gringos > with > cocker-spaniel hairdos wearing blue jeans and sweatshirts with oil > company > logos inscribed on them. Increasing oil supplies is at the heart of > Bush > administration energy policy. And both U.S. presidential candidates > during > the 2000 elections had ties to major oil investments in Colombia. Al > Gore's family owns shares in Occidental Petroleum and now-President > George > Bush has ties to Harken Energy Inc., of Houston, Texas. > > According to Fernando Caicedo, a middle-aged, mustached, but > sprightly > guerilla commander interviewed in southern Colombia: "the gringos > want to > exploit the whole upper Amazon region, an area that includes parts > of > Colombia, Brazil, Ecuador, Peru and Venezuela, known for its > richness in > black gold -- oil." > > DynCorp's day to day operations are overseen by a secretive clique > of > officials in the State Department's Narcotic Affairs Section (NAS) > and the > State Department's Air Wing, a group that includes unreformed cold > warriors and leftovers from the Central American wars of the 1980's. > Working hand-in-hand with U.S. military officials, Narcotic Affairs > is > supposed to be part of the drug war only, running the fumigation > operations against drug crops. But there are indications that it is > also > involved in the counter-insurgency. In areas that are targeted for > fumigation by Narcotic Affairs, Colombian right-wing paramilitaries > arrive, sometimes by military helicopter, according to a human > rights > worker living in the Putumayo who asked for anonymity. Members of > these > paramilitaries "clear the ground" so that the planes spraying > herbicides, > often piloted by Americans, are not shot at by angry farmers or > insurgents. > > "If we did not take control of zones ahead of the army, the > guerrillas > would shoot down their planes" said southern Colombia paramilitary > leader, > "Comando Wilson" last April. Many of these paramilitary forces have > benefited from U.S.-financed military training in the Colombian > Army. > Their frequent apparent coordination with the Narcotic Affairs > Section and > their DynCorp employees, as well as with the Colombian Armed forces, > raises the question of U.S. collaboration with "outsourced" death > squads, > a charge vehemently denied by U.S. officials. > > Questions on Capitol Hill > > The growing death toll around the use of contractors like DynCorp > has > caught the attention of U.S. lawmakers. In April, private forces > under a > CIA contract in Peru identified U.S. missionaries flying in a plane > as > suspected drug dealers. They notified the Peruvian Air Force which > shot > them down, killing a woman and her seven month old daughter. While > there > was speculation that DynCorp might be involved, the company > vehemently > denied the allegations. "DynCorp does not provide surveillance > services > under this program and was not involved in any manner in the > incident that > occurred in Peru," according to spokesperson Charlene A. Wheeless. > The New > York Times reports another company, Aviation Development, was > responsible > for the downing of the plane. > > Aviation Development works in the same areas of Colombia as DynCorp, > mainly as an airborne intelligence gatherer under contract to the > Central > Intelligence Agency. > > Moved to action by the incident, Rep. Janice Schakowsky, D-Ill, > submitted > the Andean Region Contractor Accountability Act H.R. 1591, > "legislation > that would prohibit U.S. funds from being used to contract with > private > military companies in the Andean region." > > "U.S. taxpayers are unwittingly funding a private war with private > soldiers," Schakowsky recently testified in Congress. "American > taxpayers > already pay $300 billion per year to fund the world's most powerful > military. Why should they have to pay a second time in order to > privatize > our operations? How is the public to know what their tax dollars are > being > used for? If there is a potential for a privatized Gulf of Tonkin > incident, then the American people deserve to have a full and open > debate > before this policy goes any farther." > > "Are we outsourcing in order to avoid public scrutiny, controversy > or > embarrassment? Is it to hide body bags from the media and thus > shield them > from public opinion?" she asked. "Or is it to provide deniability > because > these private contractors are not covered by the same rules as > active duty > U.S. service persons." > > As Schakowsky's bill winds its way through the bureaucracy on > Capitol > Hill, DynCorp continues to operate in Latin America free from public > scrutiny or accountability. > > <A HREF="http://www.ctrl.org/";>www.ctrl.org</A> > DECLARATION & DISCLAIMER > ========== > CTRL is a discussion & informational exchange list. 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