Peace Corps to Open a New Program in Colombia

[Judi Lynn]

Source: TransWorldNews

Peace Corps to Open a New Program in Colombia
Washington, D.C. 5/12/2010 02:55 PM GMT (TransWorldNews)

Colombian Minister of Foreign Affairs Jaime Bermúdez and Peace Corps Director Aaron S. Williams met Tuesday morning to sign an Understanding to establish a Peace Corps program in Colombia. The Colombian Ambassador to the United States Carolina Barco hosted Bermúdez and Williams at the Colombian Embassy in Washington, D.C. for the signing.

"We are honored that the government of Colombia has invited Peace Corps to establish a program in Colombia,” said Williams. “It has been nearly 50 years since President Kennedy established the Peace Corps, and although times have changed, our mission to promote world peace and friendship has not. This Peace Corps program will encourage Americans and Colombians to work side by side on Colombia’s education initiatives, with a focus on youth development in local communities.”

In 2009, following the invitation from the Government of Colombia, Peace Corps conducted an assessment of programming possibilities, compelling educational needs, security conditions, local initiatives, and a potential time frame for implementation.

“The return of the Peace Corps to Colombia marks a sign of our deep, long-standing bonds and Colombia’s continued progress in delivering security to its people, said U.S. Ambassador to Colombia William Brownfield. “From the time that Peace Corps volunteers stood beside Gabriel Garcia Marquez and the literary circle of The Cava in Barranquilla to today the presence of Americans teaching English to Colombians promotes a better understanding of each other’s cultures and the democratic values we share. Improved English skills will, in turn, better Colombians economic and educational opportunities allowing them to compete in a globalized world.”



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From earlier postings in the D.U. Latin America forum:

Colombian Militia Boss: We Burned Hundreds of Bodies
Edited on Fri May-01-09 02:10 AM by rabs

Another horror story out of Colombia; the first mention I have seen of crematoria set up by rightwing paramilitaries (who have been linked to President Uribe) to burn the bodies of their victims. The irony is that today Uribe met with the pope, the former Hitler Youth pontiff, in Rome.


Mancuso said the burning of the bodies “was a favor that (now-deceased AUC founder) Carlos Castaño was doing for the authorities.”

He said the decision came after a meeting where politicians, senior military officers and other notables asked the AUC to dispose of victims’ bodies as a way of holding down the number of deaths that could be attributed to the militias.

That discussion took place at a time when evidence of militia massacres was coming to light, according to Mancuso, who said the militias dug up their buried victims and cremated them in ovens set up near the Venezuelan border.

Another former AUC member, Jorge Ivan Laverde, testified last October that the first of the ovens was built in 2001 in Norte de Santander province to incinerate 98 bodies.

More:
http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=102x3858050#3858083

[YOY]

1. and will be off after the first kidnapping.

Thank god we can refuse to serve in certain countries.

Starry eyed idealist we still may be...but I know few truly stupid (R)PCVs.

[madmax]

2. Serve here, serve now.

:evilgrin: going to get my ass handed to me ;)

[pattmarty]

3. I would not serve in the "peace corp" in 2010. I believe it would be......................

.......really naive of anyone to serve today. And, in Columbia? Shit, I wouldn't want to serve anywhere in the world in the Peace corp today except maybe in Manhattan or Beverly hills. You will be definitely putting your life in danger for what, MAYBE doing a few good things in Columbia but probably being used as "eyes/ears" for the US with the "information" being passed onto columbian military officials. THANKS, BUT NO FUCKING THANKS!!!!

[Judi Lynn]

4. A couple of years ago a new Peace Corps recruit, a Fulbright Scholar, arrived in Bolivia,

and was asked by the American embassy if he would please get names and any pertinent information he coul gather on Cuban or Venezuelan people he saw working in Bolivia, and bring them to the Embassy.

He spoke out, said he had no intention of becoming a spy for the U.S. The Bolivian government heard about it and became furious, the Embassy denied, of course, there was a lot of noise generated, Bolivia demanded that the Ambassador leave Bolivia, etc.

Phillip Goldberg had to publicly apologize, promise they wouldn't do it again, although he stoutly insisted it was just a mistake made by one employee of the embassy. Other Peace Corps workers came forward and gave statements that the same thing had been expected of them, as well.

At some point, Goldberg was sent packing, after additional vicious, ill-advised actions on his part, as well as dirty insults lobbed at Bolivia's President. (Bush liked his ambassadors to be aggressive toward their host presidents if they are leftists.)