Message to the Congress on Sanctions Against Narcotics Traffickers Centered in Colombia

To the Congress of the United States:

Pursuant to section 240(b) of the International Emergency Economic Powers Act, 50 U.S.C. 1703(b) and section 301 of the National Emergencies Act, 50 U.S.C. 1631, I hereby report that I have exercised my statutory authority to declare a national emergency in response to the unusual and extraordinary threat posed to the national security, foreign policy, and economy of the United States by the actions of significant foreign narcotics traffickers centered in Colombia and to issue an Executive order that:

blocks all property and interests in property in the United States or within the possession or control of United States persons of significant foreign narcotics traffickers centered in Colombia designated in the Executive order or other persons designated pursuant thereto;

and prohibits any transaction or dealing by United States persons or within the United States in property of the persons designated in the Executive order or other persons designated pursuant thereto.

In the Executive order (copy attached) I have designated four significant foreign narcotics traffickers who are principals in the so-called Cali cartel in Colombia. I have also authorized the Secretary of the Treasury, in consultation with the Attorney General and the Secretary of State, to designate additional foreign persons who play a significant role in international narcotics trafficking centered in Colombia or who materially support such trafficking, and other persons determined to be owned or controlled by or to act for or on behalf of designated persons, whose property or transactions or dealings in property in the United States or with United States persons shall be subject to the prohibitions contained in the order.

I have authorized these measures in response to the relentless threat posed by significant foreign narcotics traffickers centered in Colombia to the national security, foreign policy, and economy of the United States.

Narcotics production has grown substantially in recent years. Potential cocaine production— a majority of which is bound for the United States—is approximately 850 metric tons per year. Narcotics traffickers centered in Colombia have exercised control over more than 80 percent of the cocaine entering the United States.

Narcotics trafficking centered in Colombia undermines dramatically the health and well-being of United States citizens as well as the domestic economy. Such trafficking also harms trade and commercial relations between our countries. The penetration of legitimate sectors of the Colombian economy by the so-called Cali cartel has frequently permitted it to corrupt various institutions of Colombian government and society and to disrupt Colombian commerce and economic development.

The economic impact and corrupting financial influence of such narcotics trafficking is not limited to Colombia but affects commerce and finance in the United States and beyond. United States law enforcement authorities estimate that the traffickers are responsible for the repatriation of $4.7 to $7 billion in illicit drug profits from the United States to Colombia annually, some of which is invested in ostensibly legitimate businesses. Financial resources of that magnitude, which have been illicitly generated and injected into the legitimate channels of international commerce, threaten the integrity of the domestic and international financial systems on which the economies of many nations now rely.

For all of these reasons, I have determined that the actions of significant narcotics traffickers centered in Colombia, and the unparalleled violence, corruption, and harm that they cause in the United States and abroad, constitute an unusual and extraordinary threat to the national security, foreign policy, and economy of the United States. I have, accordingly, declared a national emergency in response to this threat.

The measures I am taking are designed to deny these traffickers the benefit of any assets subject to the jurisdiction of the United States and to prevent United States persons from engaging in any commercial dealings with them, their front companies, and their agents. These measures demonstrate firmly and decisively the commitment of the United States to end the scourge that such traffickers have wrought upon society in the United States and beyond. The magnitude and dimension of the current problem warrant utilizing all available tools to wrest the destructive hold that these traffickers have on society and governments.

WILLIAM J. CLINTON

The White House, October 21, 1995.