Colombia: The Uribe Administration and Congressional Concerns

Publication Date: June 2002

Publisher: Library of Congress. Congressional Research Service

Author(s):

Research Area: Government

Type:

Coverage: Colombia

Abstract:

On August 7, 2002, President-elect, Alvaro Uribe Velez, age 49, is scheduled to take office amid an intensifying conflict. Uribe's election has been widely attributed to his law-and-order campaign promises to pursue the guerrillas vigorously by increasing Colombia's military budget, doubling the size of the military to 100,000, and creating a one-million man civilian militia to aid the Colombian military, as well as to the worsening security situation in Colombia.

Nevertheless, Uribe's campaign slogan, "Firm Hand, Big Heart," also reflected the social concerns that have marked his 20-plus year career in local, regional, and national government. In the United States, the election of a president with a reputation as a "hardliner"poses new questions for Members of the Congress, especially as Congress considers whether to broaden the scope of U.S. aid to Colombia to provide funding for actions against Colombia's leftist guerrilla and rightist paramilitary forces.