III 

114TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION S. RES. 368 

Supporting efforts by the Government of Colombia to pursue peace and 

the end of the country’s enduring internal armed conflict and recognizing 

United States support for Colombia at the 15th anniversary of Plan 

Colombia. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

FEBRUARY 9, 2016 

Mr. CARDIN (for himself, Mr. CORKER, and Mr. KAINE) submitted the following resolution; which was referred to the Committee on Foreign Relations 

RESOLUTION 

Supporting efforts by the Government of Colombia to pursue 

peace and the end of the country’s enduring internal 

armed conflict and recognizing United States support 

for Colombia at the 15th anniversary of Plan Colombia. 

Whereas, on October 1, 2000, President William Clinton, 

having worked with the support of Republican majorities 

in the United States Senate and the United States House 

of Representatives, commenced implementation of the 

first United States foreign assistance package in support 

of Plan Colombia; 

Whereas Plan Colombia has received steadfast commitments 

from the administrations of Presidents William Clinton, 

George W. Bush, and Barack Obama, and continuously 

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•SRES 368 IS 

has been strengthened by broad bipartisan support in the 

United States Congress; 

Whereas the United States Congress, through Plan Colombia, 

has appropriated more than $9,000,000,000 in foreign 

assistance to support initiatives of the Government of Colombia to combat the illicit narcotics trade and terrorism, 

confront irregular armed actors, advance democratic governance, promote economic growth, defend human rights, 

and pursue a strategy towards sustainable peace; 

Whereas the Government of Colombia, throughout the administrations of Presidents Andre ́s Pastrana, A ́lvaro Uribe, 

and Juan Manuel Santos, has made investments in Plan 

Colombia and carried out transformational efforts to consolidate domestic security, socioeconomic development, 

and the rule of law that far exceed those contributions 

made by the United States; 

Whereas the United States and Colombia have forged a resolute bond through the implementation of Plan Colombia, 

which has been bolstered by the support of hundreds of 

thousands of Colombian-Americans and their contribution 

to American life; 

Whereas, over the past 15 years, levels of crime and violence 

have subsided sharply in Colombia, with annual per capita homicide rates declining from 62 per 100,000 people 

in 1999 to 27 per 100,000 people in 2014, and the annual number of kidnappings decreasing from more than 

3,000 in 1999 to less than 300 in 2014; 

Whereas the alignment of improved security and sound economic policies has translated into steady growth in Colombia’s Gross Domestic Product, which increased from 

$86,000,000,000 in 1999 to more than 

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•SRES 368 IS 

$377,000,000,000 in 2014, and led to greater Foreign 

Direct Investment, which grew from $1,500,000,000 in 

1999 to one of the highest in Latin America at 

$16,000,000,000 in 2014; 

Whereas the Government of Colombia has made impressive 

strides in reducing poverty during the last 15 years, with 

the poverty rate decreasing from 64 percent in 1999 to 

28.5 percent in 2014, according to the World Bank; 

Whereas, since 1999, the Government of Colombia has expanded the presence of the state across all 32 territorial 

departments, has contributed to the professionalism of 

the Colombian judiciary, and has improved the capacity 

of the Colombian Army, Navy, Air Force, and National 

Police; 

Whereas, in November 2012, the Government of Colombia 

entered into talks to negotiate an end to the country’s enduring conflict with the Revolutionary Armed Forces of 

Colombia (FARC), a guerilla movement that has ties to 

the illicit narcotics trade, has kidnapped Colombian and 

United States civilians, and has been designated by the 

United States Department of State as a Foreign Terrorist Organization; 

Whereas a half-century of conflict has taken a devastating 

toll on Colombia’s civilian population, has claimed the 

lives of more than 220,000 people, and has left more 

than 6,500,000 people internally displaced, according to 

the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees; 

Whereas the internal armed conflict has victimized all Colombians, including women, children, and Afro-descendant 

and indigenous peoples, and has led to the repeated targeting of leading representatives of civil society, including 

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trade unionists, journalists, human rights defenders, and 

other community activists; 

Whereas efforts to achieve lasting peace in Colombia must 

address the hardships faced by victims of the armed conflict, as exemplified by the Government of Colombia’s 

Law on Victims and Restitution of Land of 2011; 

Whereas the prospects for national reconciliation and sustainable peace in Colombia rely on the effective delivery of 

justice for victims of the conflict and the ability to hold 

accountable and appropriately punish perpetrators of serious violations of human rights and international humanitarian law; and 

Whereas a potential accord between the Government of Colombia and the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia 

(FARC) represents an opportunity to end the enduring 

conflict in Colombia and bring peace to the Americas: 

Now, therefore, be it 

1 Resolved, That the Senate— 

2 (1) reaffirms the unwavering support of the 

3 Government and people of the United States for the 

4 people of Colombia in their pursuit of peace and 

5 their aspiration to live in a country free of violent 

6 conflict; 

7 (2) commends efforts to bring an end to Colom8 bia’s enduring internal armed conflict; 

9 (3) maintains its commitment to the victims of 

10 Colombia’s armed conflict and urges the negotiating 

11 parties to forge an agreement that holds accountable 

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1 perpetrators of serious violations of human rights 

2 and international humanitarian law and ensures that 

3 they are appropriately punished; 

4 (4) encourages the Government of Colombia to 

5 promote informed public debate about the details of 

6 a potential peace accord in advance of voter ratifica7 tion; 

8 (5) encourages the Secretary of State to develop 

9 a comprehensive, multiyear strategy to ensure the 

10 successful implementation and sustainability of a po11 tential peace accord in Colombia, if such an accord 

12 is endorsed by the Colombian people, and further 

13 strengthen the close bilateral partnership shared by 

14 the Governments of the United States and Colombia; 

15 and 

16 (6) reaffirms its commitment to continued part17 nership between the United States and Colombia on 

18 issues of mutual security, including counternarcotics 

19 cooperation, combating transnational organized 

20 crime, and ensuring justice for those who have 

21 caused indelible harm to our populations. 

Æ 

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