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Beyond the drug war.

Article Excerpt
When Bolivian President Evo Morales recently made his first visit ever to Washington, he gave a rousing speech before hundreds at American University, addressed the Organization of American States (OAS), and met with leaders of both political parties on Capitol Hill. Strikingly absent from his itinerary, however, was any interaction with the Bush administration.

Relations between the United States and Bolivia have grown particularly tense since September 10, when the Bolivian government expelled U.S. Ambassador Philip Goldberg. La Paz accused him of supporting the political opposition at a time of escalating and racist violence by right-wing vigilante groups. Yet while the Morales administration declared Goldberg persona non grata, for all practical purposes, the Bush administration responded by declaring Bolivia a country non grata. In retaliation, the Bush administration "decertified" the country for allegedly failing to live up to Washington's expectations for counternarcotics efforts and shortly thereafter announced that Bolivia would be suspended from the Andean Trade Promotion and Drug Eradication Act (APTDEA). According to the Bolivian government, an estimated 25,000 jobs could be lost when the suspension goes into effect.

But it's the Bush administration--not Bolivia--that's out of step with the region when it comes to drug policy. Across Latin America, frustration with the failed and protracted "war on drugs" is leading countries to experiment with new policies, from Bolivia's "coca yes, cocaine no" strategy, to the pardoning of small-time offenders in Ecuador, to efforts to decriminalize consumption in countries as diverse as Argentina and Mexico. The incoming Obama administration should take advantage of these new trends in Latin America to seek more effective and more humane drug control policies, at home and abroad.

Coca vs. Cocaine

In his OAS speech on November 19, Morales declared that the counternarcotics "certification process of the U.S. government has to end." Just two months earlier, on September 16, the Bush administration announced its determination that Bolivia had "failed demonstrably" to meet its obligations under international narcotics agreements over the last year. The U.S. government waived the penalty of cuts in U.S. economic assistance, yet nonetheless it was a clear diplomatic slap in the face. Although the Bush administration insisted that this decision and the announced...