By Margaret Thompson & María Suárez Toro

Although drugs and drug cartels are blamed publicly for much of the violence in Colombia, oil is providing the hidden fuel for armed struggle in many countries including Colombia.  As a result, US transnational oil companies have been one of the main supporters and lobbyists for Plan Colombia, which provides $1.3 billion in U.S. military aid to fight the "drug war" in Colombia.

Harken Energy Company, which signed concessions to develop oil in Costa Rica, also has oil exploitation projects on indigenous lands in Colombia, and has met violent resistance, particularly after media reports in that country identified the company's ties to US President Bush.

Emily Yozell, an attorney and activist wth ADELA in Costa Rica talked about the violence triggered by Harken's projects in Colombia which involve oil drilling on indigenous lands:

Last year Harken's daily net production in Colombia averaged about 1,200 barrels of oil, a small fraction of the country's 687,000 barrels of daily output, according to the Associated Press.   The company plans to increase this daily average in the future.  But an announcement on March 16, 2001 by the company about its "increased security risks" as a result of the resistance to its oil exploitation projects in Colombia led to a drop in its stock value with shares trading at $3.25, compared with an opening $4.05 the day before the announcement on security fears. Occidental Petroleum, which has ties to the family of defeated US presidential candidate Al Gore, has also suffered security woes in Colombia, according to the Associated Press.
 

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