Colombia's Uribe says rebel leader will be killed if emerges from hiding for talks

[Judi Lynn]

Source: International Herald Tribune/Associated Press

Colombia's Uribe says rebel leader will be killed if emerges from hiding for talks
The Associated Press
Published: November 13, 2007


BOGOTA, Colombia: President Alvaro Uribe said Tuesday his armed forces will kill the commander of Colombia's largest rebel group if the octogenarian leader emerges from the jungles to negotiate a swap of rebel-held hostages for jailed guerrillas.

Uribe, in a fiery speech to graduating police cadets, said Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia commander Manuel Marulanda "sends messages that he can't attend meetings because if he comes out of hiding he'll be killed. Well, he guesses correctly."

The president's speech was the clearest indication to date that he believes attempts by Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez to broker a deal to release 45 high-profile rebel-held hostages, including three Americans, are doomed to failure.

He vowed to intensify military operations against the 14,000-member guerrilla army, better known as the FARC.



Read more: http://www.iht.com/articles/ap/2007/11/13/america/LA-GEN-Colombia-Rebels.php

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Colombian President Uribe and his American friend.

[Judi Lynn]

1. Restrepo hails Chávez's mediation in Colombia

Caracas, Monday November 12 , 2007
Restrepo hails Chávez's mediation in Colombia

Colombian High Commissioner for Peace Luis Carlos Restrepo said on Monday that the mediation by Venezuelan President Hugo Chávez in the humanitarian swap in Colombia is "the best step" ever taken by his government towards peace.

"We run no risk with Chávez," said Restrepo in Madrid, where he would join Colombian Vice-President Francisco Santos and Colombian Minister of the Interior and Justice Carlos Holguín in an international seminar on the enforcement of the law on justice and peace.

The law succeeded in demobilizing more than 30,000 paramilitary officers in Colombia after a peace process from 2003 to 2006, Efe reported.

President Chávez is acting as middleman between the Colombian government and the Colombian Revolutionary Armed Forces (FARC) to reach a humanitarian agreement set to release 45 hostages in exchange for 500 imprisoned guerrilla members.

http://english.eluniversal.com/2007/11/12/en_pol_art_restrepo-hails-chave_12A1189961.shtml
El Universal is one of the huge opposition newspapers

[Peace Patriot]

2. Well, that seems to be bad news, but I suspect that Uribe is taking a different tone

with Chavez privately. Chavez wouldn't--and couldn't--initiate talks with FARC on his own, without some cooperation and tacit consent of the Colombian government. It was my understanding, from news reports, that Uribe had given tacit consent, and wanted to free the hostages. But Uribe's in a tough spot. FARC is the linchpin for the billions he's getting from the Bush Junta, which recently rewrote the goals of "war on drugs" military aid to Colombia to include war on the armed leftists. And the Junta--which has suffered so many setbacks in its torture, murder, mayhem, and drugs and weapons trafficking program for South America--many of those setbacks at Chavez's hand--are likely kneecapping Uribe to stop all this lovey-dovey with their arch-enemy. Sounds like Uribe is either reneging on the talks, or he's gotta talk tough and murderous for his military audience (and John Negroponte).

A sad spectacle.

I wonder why the DUers who bash Chavez never say a word about Uribe, Bush's pal, whose closest associates--the head of the military, the former head of intelligence, and many Uribe office holders (including family members), have been accused by prosecutors of horrendous atrocities, often against innocent people--union organizers, peasant farmers--who have no connection to FARC. Does that sit well with them--while Chavez building schools and hospitals, and spending Venezuela's oil wealth on progressive projects, really gets under their skins? THAT is "dictatorship," in their view, but Uribe's pals chainsawing union organizers and throwing their body parts into mass graves doesn't raise an eyebrow.

And even if it were FARC being chainsawed, it's a horrible crime. No charges, no trial, no defense--just peremptory torture and execution of helpless prisoners.

In fact, that's what Uribe seems to be advocating now--lawless murder.

The rightwing paramilitaries that have been tied to close Uribe friends and associates, and the military itself, are responsible for 95% of the carnage in the Colombian civil war, according to studies I've read by humanitarian groups. And now they want MORE heads on spikes. The last thing in the world they want is peace, and they will likely assassinate Uribe if tries to achieve it. Maybe that's what happened. They threatened him.

[Bacchus39]

5. 95%??? provide evidence

n/t

[Peace Patriot]

8. Can't find the most recent reports. Still looking. But found...

various reports on the 2001-2002 period, which put the AUC level of the carnage at 70%, 75% and 85% (RAND). In the more recent years, AUC violence escalates to 95% of the carnage. I know what I have read. I can see the charts in my mind's eye. Have to go to work. Will get back to you.

75% AUC

article date 2002 probably

http://www.hippolytic.com/printable/2004/10/deconstructing_terror_farc.html

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70% AUC

5/15/02

http://www.colombiajournal.org/colombia113.htm

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85% AUC (19,500 AUC murders, out of 23,000 total in civil war)

8/15/01

RAND report described in Alex Cockburn article

http://www.freepress.org/columns.php?strFunc=display&strID=547&strYear=2001&strAuthor=2

[Bacchus39]

9. you may want to focus on issues in Colombia since the demobilization process

to get a more accurate picture of what has happened in Colombia over the past 5 or 6 years.

I think you will find a decrease in paramilitary murders and a corresponding increase in rebel killings. the rebels, of course, have not agreed to the peace plan.

[Judi Lynn]

11. I can focus on that "demobilization process" for you. Here's what Amnesty International has to say:

Justice & Peace Law and Decree 128
Since 2003, paramilitary groups, responsible for the vast majority of human rights violations in Colombia for over a decade, have been involved in a government-sponsored "demobilization" process. More than 25,000 paramilitaries have supposedly demobilized under a process which has been criticized by AI and other Colombian and international human rights groups, as well as by the OHCHR and the IACHR. The process is lacking in effective mechanisms for justice and in its inability to ensure that paramilitary members actually cease violent activities.

In fact, paramilitarism has not been dismantled, it has simply been "re-engineered." Many demobilized combatants are being encouraged to join "civilian informer networks," to provide military intelligence to the security forces, and to become "civic guards". Since many areas of Colombia have now been wrested from guerrilla control, and paramilitary control established in many of these areas, they no longer see a need to have large numbers of heavily-armed uniformed paramilitaries.

However, evidence suggests that many paramilitary structures remain virtually intact and that paramilitaries continue to kill. Amnesty International continues to document human rights violations committed by paramilitary groups, sometimes operating under new names, and often in collusion with the security forces.

AI would welcome a demobilization process which would lead to the effective dismantling of paramilitarism and end the links between the security forces and paramilitaries. But the current demobilization process is unlikely to guarantee the effective dismantling of such structures. In fact, it is facilitating the re-emergence of paramilitarism and undermining the right of victims to truth, justice and reparation.

Amnesty International is deeply concerned that the law governing the demobilization of armed groups in Colombia is wholly inadequate. It threatens to guarantee the impunity of those responsible for heinous and widespread human rights atrocities, not only paramilitaries, but also those who have backed the paramilitary such as wealthy landowners, and government and military officials. Furthermore, the demobilization law may not rid the country of the scourge of illegal armed activity and human rights abuses against the civilian population. In fact, it may make the situation worse by:

• Providing de facto amnesties for paramilitaries and guerrillas responsible for serious human rights abuses and violations;
  
• Perpetuating impunity for human rights abusers and violators thereby undermining the rule of law in Colombia;
  
• Failing to guarantee the effective dismantling of paramilitary structures by focusing solely on individual combatants;
  
• Failing to expose those Colombian security forces, government officials, and private citizens who have supported and benefited from the activities of the paramilitary;
  
• Failing to establish a full and independent judicial process to oversee the demobilization process;
  
• Neglecting to respect the rights of victims of human rights violations and abuses to truth, justice and reparation.
  

ETC.
http://www.amnestyusa.org/Colombia/Justice_and_Peace_Law_and_Decree_128/page.do?id=1101862&n1=3&n2=30&n3=885

[Bacchus39]

12. and so your solution is to what now? re-mobilization??

the rebels haven't even agreed to participate in the process at all.

Amnesty International isn't going to lead Colombia to a lasting peace.

[Judi Lynn]

10. There's a TON of articles detailing the connection between politicians, the Army, and paramilitaries

Somehow they haven't been able to control ALL the information which has gotten out of that country about what's going on, although they've by god tried.

For years, human rights organizations have reported that the Colombian military and the death squads it controls are responsible for the overwhelming majority of human rights abuses in the country, as was the case with the US-sponsored dirty wars in Central America in the 1980s.
(snip)

http://upsidedownworld.org/main/content/view/965/68/

On edit: Funny how "yeah, but FARC kills just as many" folds, once refutations are produce, and is replaced by "yeah, but the paramilitaries have sought amnesty and don't do that now," to WHAT? Amnesty International says that's just not the way it is.

They are still killing union members. Today. Now. That's not going to change until they get a clean government.

You've provided evidence, and I most certainly have a load, too, I'll be happy to provide, if the need arises.

[Make7]

3. Slightly off-topic... have you seen the National Security Archive's Colombia Project?

They have collected many interesting documents about Columbia. One that I found of particular interest is titled, U.S. Listed Colombian President Uribe Among "Important Colombian Narco-Traffickers in 1991".

Who would have guessed?

If you haven't seen 'The Columbia Project', you can check it out here.

- Make7

[dipsydoodle]

4. It confirms that Uribe

is just another of The Boy Blunder's gangster pals.

Urine might be a better name for him.

[Judi Lynn]

6. First time I heard this was from an excellent person who moved here from Colombia.

He was absolutely certain of what he knew about the slimey little guy and his father, too.

Took the first look at your link: amazing. Have already stashed in in my files, will be studying it again, and looking up the articles listed at the bottom of the page: they should be easy to run down, with any luck. This is very important news.

Have heard the gummint had info.: this is the first time to really see a report, or what's left of the report after the redactions!

The material linked in the left column of the first page looks very important, as well, as the Uribe information, especially:

March 29, 2007
Documents Implicate Colombian Government in Chiquita Terror Scandal
Company's Paramilitary Payoffs made throught Military's 'Convivir'

October 16, 2005
Paramilitaries as Proxies
Declassified evidence on the Colombian army's anti-guerrilla "allies"



Colombian painter Fernando Botero's
"The Death of Pablo Escobar"

[Judi Lynn]

7. colombia: reality defies the colombian government’s public statements

colombia: reality defies the colombian government’s public statements

Posted: 14-11-2007 , 12:57 GMT

In a letter to President Álvaro Uribe, ITUC General Secretary Guy Ryder today accused the Colombian president of deceitfulness when boasting of improvements in the situation of trade unionists in Colombia.
The murders of three education sector trade unionists in September and November firmly contradict the government’s claims. The sad reality is that some 30 trade unionists, including six union leaders, have been assassinated in Colombia so far this year, bringing to almost 560 the total number of trade unionists murdered since President Uribe came to office in 2002. Only a tiny fraction of these murder cases has been cleared up, and even fewer of the perpetrators have been brought to justice. During 2006, 78 trade unionists were assassinated in Colombia, as reported in the ITUC’s Annual Survey of Violations of Trade Union Rights http://survey07.ituc-csi.org/getcountry.php?IDCountry=COL&IDLang=ES <http://survey07.ituc-csi.org/getcountry.php?IDCountry=COL&IDLang=ES> .

The ITUC, in a letter sent today to President Uribe (http://www.ituc-csi.org/IMG/pdf/asesinatos_de_CabulayesMelo_de_RArcila_Parra_y_Melan_Cardona-2.pdf <http://www.ituc-csi.org/IMG/pdf/asesinatos_de_CabulayesMelo_de_RArcila_Parra_y_Melan_Cardona-2.pdf> ) expressed indignation at the incessant murder of union members and leaders and strongly condemned the persecution still being suffered by the union movement.

Leonidas Silva Castro, a teaching union leader and president of the sub-directorate of the teachers’ trade union association of Villacaro, in Norte de Santander, was murdered on 2 November.

On 3 November, Giraldo Rey, the president of the sub-directorate of the national fruit industry union, Sinaltraifrut, was murdered in Toro, in the department of Valle. Giraldo Rey was a known defender of the free trade agreement with the U.S. and had travelled to the United Stated in June to reaffirm his support for the FTA even though the bulk of the Colombian and regional trade union movement is opposed to it. He was set to return to the United States on the 11 of this month to reiterate his support. According to the Colombian press, Vice President Santos ordered the Public Prosecutor to open an investigation into the murder without delay, whilst President Uribe condemned the killing and offered 100 million pesos to anyone providing information regarding the perpetrators – a reaction never before seen in the case of the hundreds of other trade unionist murders, which remain unpunished.

Mercedes Restrepo Campo, a teacher at the “Hernando Botero O’Byrne” school and a member of the sub-directorate of the Valle teachers’ union, SUTEV, was murdered on 7 November.

As Guy Ryder says in his letter to President Uribe, the government has for some time been implementing a policy to destroy the trade union movement, placing ever-greater restrictions on the rights of trade unions to operate freely. Attempts to register new trade unions are, for example, being denied, and union members continue to face employers’ threats to restructure - clearly prompted by the desire to disband the unions in their companies rather than any real financial constraints.

More:
http://www.albawaba.com/en/countries/UAE/218906
(Jordan)