Colombia May Restore Extradition Legislation

Colombian lawmakers have approved a measure that would restore extradition, allowing authorities to send drug suspects to the United States for trial.

The House of Representatives voted overwhelmingly late Thursday for the proposal to re-establish extradition with retroactivity, a measure that is high on the U.S. agenda in the war on drugs.

Because the 1991 Constitution bans extradition, the legislation must be debated and approved twice by both houses of Congress. The Senate has passed the measure once. It must now be passed by each chamber one more time and signed by President Ernesto Samper.

Samper, who supports the measure, was cleared by lawmakers a year ago of charges he solicited $6 million in contributions from the Cali drug cartel during his 1994 presidential election.

The measure approved Thursday would bar the extradition of Colombians who voluntarily surrender to authorities, but would apparently permit the extradition of Gilberto and Miguel Rodriguez Orejuela, jailed leaders of the Cali cartel.

The United States requested the extradition of the Rodriguez brothers last year.