A New “School for Oppressors” in Central America?
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September 22, 2003
The United States and Costa Rica have signed an accord which will establish the International Law Enforcement Academy (ILEA), a school to be built on Costa Rican soil and commanded by the US State Department. This treaty awaits ratification, while objections from citizens and civil rights organizations continue to grow. In June 2002 both governments signed an agreement that would establish a school in Costa Rica to "improve the enforcement of criminal justice in Latin America." This school would be oriented to educate "police directors of medium levels, attorneys, judges, and other staff in charge of the enforcement of criminal justice." The idea of the ILEA is not new. In 1995 a similar academy was inaugurated in Budapest, Hungary, and after that in Bangkok, Thailand, in Botswana and in New Mexico. In 1997 Bill Clinton, along with Central American and Dominican Republic leaders, agreed to establish an ILEA in Latin America.
According to the country's US Ambassador, Costa Rica was chosen because the nation has been a model “in terms of democratic development, rule of law, respect for human rights, and the judiciary process.” Costa Rican people are asking themselves if the establishment of the ILEA would damage this reputation and their country’s traditional image of neutrality and peace. Human rights concerns It is difficult to believe that the objective of the agreement for the establishment of the ILEA in Costa Rica is to "emphasize rule of law, human rights, [and the] democratic process," when the direction and programs of the academy will be commanded by the US authorities without any contribution from Costa Rica. This from a superpower that has not subscribed to several international treaties and agreements on human rights. During the Cold War the USA trained more than 60,000 Latin Americans - including Presidents, ministers of the armed forces, and police directors – at the notorious School of the Americas. It is publicly known that this school kept manuals on how to kidnap and torture insurgents, such as the one found in Paraguay with the title How to Keep Torture Victims Alive. If this has no relevance to the ILEA, why would the US Ambassador to Costa Rica need to publish a document called The Truth on the International Law Enforcement Academy in which he sustains that those who are opposed to the establishment of this academy have a "chronic aversion against the United States"? Who could have a chronic aversion against a country so respectful of human rights, peace and justice? Privileges and immunity for US school officials One of the strongest reasons for Costa Rican public opposition is the fact that the directors of the proposed ILEA - positions destined for US officials - would enjoy “privileges and immunity” equivalent to those given to diplomats. The accord clearly states that this will not apply to any individual with Costa Rican nationality. Article 11 establishes that: "Costa Rica will give to the instructors, advisors, consultants, and other members of the staff of the Academy that are not Costa Rican citizens, privileges and immunity equivalent to those given to the members of the technical and administrative staff of a diplomatic mission." Many Costa Rican Deputies believe that Costa Rica is not able to take on the burden of covering maintenance fees, operation, and security installations of the Academy – in total about US $200,000. US hemispheric dominance Placing the proposed establishment of the ILEA in its wider context, we can observe how the training of police and judicial personnel is a component of a US hemispheric plan that will increase militarization and the reach of US economic strategies on a continental level in Latin America.
We are dealing in this case with police, military forces and intelligence systems that are prepared to identify, stop, and repress social insurrections that could threaten the supposed stability of our countries. This strategy goes hand in hand with the economic politics of the region reflected in the Free Trade Area of the Americas (FTAA) and the Plan Puebla-Panama, which will cause greater harm - leading to increased control by foreign corporations, devastating medium- and small-sized production sectors, and taking over human resources (in the form of cheap labor) and natural resources (with bio-piracy, genetically modified organisms, patents, and land property). Faced with the delay by the Costa Rican legislature to approve the ILEA, the political advisor to the US Embassy told the media that they will analyze the possibility of establishing an ILEA in other countries. Understanding this situation will help to foster the collective work of organizations in the resistance effort. The Demilitarization Campaign for the Americas is promoting, during Demilitarization of Latin America Week in November, a series of activities in Mesoamerican countries, and some activities will emphasize opposition to the establishment of the ILEA in Costa Rica. Organizing regional, continental, and worldwide action will help us to battle against economic politics and military strategies that look set to further oppress our populations for the sake of greater US hemispheric dominance. Florencia Copley works with Fundacion Pacificar, a regional organization working to build more equitable approaches to Latin American integration. --- OneWorld Guest Editorials represent the viewpoint of the authors and not necessarily that of the OneWorld Network. Read and comment on previous Guest Editorials. If you would like to contribute or suggest a future OneWorld Guest Editorial, please contact Miles Litvinoff. |
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