Civil Unrest between Venezuela, Columbia, and Ecuador

Editorial Rant: Civil Unrest between Venezuela, Columbia, and Ecuador

A couple of days ago, I read a headline that distracted me from my schoolwork, I noticed a ticker come across the screen, declaring the situation between Ecuador, Columbia, and Venezuela is worsening.

I shook my head in frustration. I tried to return to my work, but I became distracted by my thoughts about the roots of this conflict. I began to surf the articles from the last four days on the developing crisis between the three nations. Earlier this week, Raul Reyes, a Columbian rebel leader was assassinated by paramilitary causing a domino effect of finger pointing and militarization of the region. To my disappointment, but not to my surprise, there is no mention of the United States government, funding, or military in the reports. Some readers may finds themselves asking why I find this problematic, I explain below:

The US is in some way connected with these events. Having studied these relationships in university courses, I know that it is possible for blood to be shed in Columbia without staining the hand’s of any US solider. To be more specific, the US may not have troops deployed in any of these nations, but they do contribute a hefty amount of military aid to Columbia. (Columbia is second only to Israel in US military aid). This monetary contribution, supposedly to fight the war on drugs, actually supports a strong paramilitary in the region.

The murder of Raul Reyes and other rebel leaders by paramilitary has caused political, social, and military unrest between Ecuador, Columbia, and Venezuela. All the delegates have been removed from their neighboring positions and battalions and tanks sent to the border. Chaos is quickly developing.

So I ask myself, what is the motivation for the US supporting this paramilitary action abroad that would cause such chaos in countries where they claim to be supporting the development of democratic values? In my opinion, the answer is quite simple. Like other foreign polices, this case is a perfect example of military funding that seeks to secure resources and also play on the fear of the American public. The US has openly opposed Chavez and his policies in the past, and I don’t believe the roots of this conflict are any different. In the last Venezuelan election, Chavez was elected by the democratic majority and the US paramilitary tried to bring him out of power. He has put an embargo on oil going to the US, when Venezuela used to be the 7^th biggest importer of oil to the US. He contradicts everything the neo-liberal politics emphasize; he wants his country's resource to benefit its own people, not a foreign investor. Not only has Chavez allowed his country to take control of its own resources, but there was recently talk of having other neighboring nations join the embargo as well. For this, Chavez’s politics are seen as a threat to the US handling the “free” oil market.

It is difficult to see these countries banning together now, considering the recent developments. It is really unfortunate, especially considering that Chavez attempted to negotiate peace talks between the conflicting militants groups in Columbia. If the nations had been able to join together in an embargo, they would inevitably become more economically independent, no longer requiring the financial crutch of the US military aid.

Considering all this information, I am implying that the military funding for the war on drugs is indeed the central source of the recent conflict between Venezuela, Ecuador, and Columbia. This is of course, my own speculation. However, I do think in democracy we have the responsibility as citizens to constantly question our country's foreign policy, know where our tax dollars go, and question the amount of involvement we have in developing international issues.

The bottom line is that the situations and conflicts are complicated and they become even more complicated with money and pressure streaming in from the US and US corporations. Wake up America: the US in not just at war in Iraq, but in fact funding conflicts to have part in controlling resources abroad.