Replacement for General Montoya

By John Lindsay Poland

President Uribe announced this afternoon that the replacement for Army chief General Montoya will be General Oscar Enrique González Peña http://www.elespectador.com/noticias/judicial/articulo88095-oscar-gonzalez-nuevo-comandante-del-ejercito.General

González Peña was commander of the Fourth Brigade, based in Medellín, from December 2003 to July 2005, when the army reportedly committed 45 extrajudicial executions in eastern Antioquia, according to a report last year by a coalition of human rights organizations known as Human Rights and Humanitarian Law Observatory. (http://www.dhcolombia.info/spip.php?article362)

González Peña also commanded the 11th Brigaade in Cordoba in 2002-03, when the paramilitaries were operating freely in the area and the Army. In 2005, he commanded the Seventh Division, with jurisdiction over the brigades with among the worst human rights records in the Army: the 11th, 17th, 4th and 14th Brigades.

He attended the School of the Americas in Panama in 1980.That General González Peña also brings to the army leadership a history of extrajudicial executions under his command reinforces the observation we made earlier in the day – it is hard to identify Colombian army commanders who have not commanded units committing gross human rights violations. And most of them have received US training or assistance.

"Widespread and systematic" army killings: Who replaces General Montoya?

By John Lindsay Poland

Colombian Army commander Mario Montoya resigned today http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/7709073.stm, in the wake of a scandal over army killings of civilians that a United Nations official on Saturday called “widespread and systematic.” http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/127a5a66-a92f-11dd-a19a-000077b07658.html?nclick_check=1 A protégé of the United States, Montoya was an architect of the “body count” counterinsurgency strategy that many analysts believe led to the systematic civilian killings. His record is full of reports of collaboration with paramilitary units, from the 1970s into the 2000s. http://www.gwu.edu/~nsarchiv/NSAEBB/NSAEBB223/index.htm

The Fellowship of Reconciliation believes General Montoya’s departure because of criticism of his human rights record reflects an important step in the effort to make human rights a central measure for military officers’ performance. We urge Colombian authorities to pursue all relevant investigations of crimes committed under General Montoya’s command. “The Colombian government presumably sought to replace General Montoya with an officer with a spotless record,” said John Lindsay-Poland, of the Fellowship of Reconciliation. “But the reported executions of civilians under General González Peña’s command suggests that such high-ranking officers in the Colombian army are far and few between.” The United States continues to fund the training and operations of these officers. The Fellowship urges activists, journalists, and legislators to ask when the United States will stop the unconditional flow of lethal assistance to the Colombian Army. And we call on the incoming administration in Washington to cease such assistance as criminal and ineffective in its aims.

Media Representations of Popular Mobilizations Ignore the Movement'sMessage

Another Front: Government's Propaganda vs. Indigenous Media Perspectives
By Mario A. Murillo

Six days into the Indigenous and Popular Mobilizations in Cauca (and the rest of Colombia), and it is fair to say that the propaganda war is well underway. And so far, it looks like the government of Alvaro Uribe is winning.Check it out here:http://mamaradio.blogspot.com/2008/10/media-representations-of-popular.html

The Voices of Indigenous People Felt Throughout the Americas

By Natalia Cardona

This past week was a big week for Indigenous peoples in the Americas as a whole. They along with thousands of social activists mobilized during the III Social Forum of the Americas which took place in Iximulew (known in the mainstream as Guatemala) to share their experiences of resistance and struggle, their demands and proposals, to meet and get to know one another and to advance collectively in the building of Another American Continent which is possible and necessary. Meanwhile, in Colombia thousands of Indigenous people also took to the streets to bring attention to their plight and the humanitarian crisis they face. On October 12, the 516th anniversary of Columbus’ arrival in the Americas, Indigenous people in Colombia gathered to mourn all those who have been lost in the struggle to better their situation and to call attention to their proposals for change.

Protesting U.S. Policies
Colombian Indigenous Peoples are protesting the pursuit of militaristic and economic policies that have placed 18 of 84 indigenous groups at the brink of physical and cultural extinction and created a humanitarian crisis for the entire population. Among these policies are Plan Colombia and the U.S. Colombia Free Trade Agreement (FTA). These policies were promoted by the U.S. in tandem with the current Colombian administration. Their effects are systematic and harsh for the indigenous movement and indigenous peoples as a whole.

The Effects of U.S. Policy on the Humanitarian Crisis
Plan Colombia has led to the militarization of the rural areas and displacement of thousands of indigenous people. The fumigation that accompanies this militarization caused hunger in many communities as planes do not distinguish between food crops and coca crops. Also, many innocent civilians were killed over the past years and passed off by the Colombian military as guerrillas in an effort to show success in battles against guerrillas. The U.S.-Colombia FTA, which has not been passed in the U.S., already had negative effects for the Indigenous of Colombia. Laws which govern their rights and protect their culture and ties to the land are being dismantled in preparation for the implementation of the FTA.

They Will Not Be Silenced
The marches occurred despite violence perpetrated by the “demobilized” paramilitary groups. In South Western Colombia an indigenous man was killed by paramilitary groups known as the Black Eagles in an attempt widely seen by the communities as a way to discourage their march from happening. The man was killed in front of his family as he travelled between communities. The Black Eagles were unsuccessful 7,000 indigenous peoples remain in the march today. Additionally, 800 people from the Bari Indigenous group arrived recently in Cucuta to protest the effects of multinational corporations on their land and the ecosystem. In the Colombian-Venezuelan border the U’Wa peoples, who are also trying to prevent the exploitation of oil in their territory, were told the march was cancelled by members of the U.S. funded Colombian military. The U’Wa travelled through inner river channels to reach a local oil field 1,111 of them arrived there to cleanse the area and ask for forgiveness from mother earth. The U’Wa believe oil is the blood of mother earth and have threaten collective suicide should the process continue.

Proposals
Indigenous peoples in Colombia this week released a set of demands and proposals. They are asking the Colombian government to:
· Create and implement a set of measures to deal with the humanitarian crisis facing the Indigenous groups and their leaders,
· Reestablish and come into compliance with agreements the government made with Indigenous peoples,
· To ratify the UN Declaration on Indigenous Peoples,
· To repeal laws that erode the rights of Indigenous peoples, and
· For truth, justice and reparations for the victims of paramilitary crimes.

For more about the marches you can visit: http://www.onic.org.co/

John McCanin Visits Colombia

John McCain has provided more details about his planned visit to Colombia next week. He will be in Cartagena on Tuesday and Wednesday.

Colombia's Supreme Court: A guilty Verdict

In Colombia, President Uribe called a press conference at 11:15 PM last night. He was reacting to a decision by Colombia's Supreme Court: a guilty verdict against Yidis Medina, a former congresswoman who had cast the decisive vote on constitutional reform legislation that made it possible for Uribe to run for a second term in 2006. It turns out that Medina cast her vote in exchange for promises of political favors, and will now spend 3 1/2 years under house arrest for accepting bribes. In the text of its decision, the Court seriously called into question the legitimacy of the process that led to Uribe's re-election. Uribe's reaction last night was extreme.
I have wanted to fight for a safe, prosperous and equitable country. The trap of the power of terrorism in its death agony - to which justices of the Penal Chamber of the Supreme Court of Justice have lent themselves - does not appear to have a judicial solution.
After saying on national television that the justices who questioned the re-election amendment process are doing the bidding of terrorists, Uribe called on Colombia's Congress to schedule a national referendum to repeat the 2006 elections.

Another Trade and War Connection in the Americas

The Americas Policy Program has put together and excellent Primer on Plan Mexico. The report written by Laura Carlsen puts forward detailed analysis regarding the policy, its background and what needs to change. This policy as part of the expansion of NAFTA is a clear connection to what we have been talking about for the past few years on this site, mainly that trade and war are companion policies. Just as Plan Colombia is a failed policy which is now accompanied by an unjust trade agreement so are Plan Mexico and the expansion of NAFTA. Following is a summary of the Primer and a link to the entire document.

Plan Mexico
The Bush Administration has put its proposal to militarize Mexico into the upcoming Iraq supplemental bill. On Oct. 22, 2007 President Bush announced the $1.4 billion dollar “Merida Initiative” (nicknamed Plan Mexico)--a security aid package to Mexico and Central America. The initiative has fatal flaws in its strategy; instead of leading to a stable bi-national relationship and peaceful border communities, its military approach will escalate drug-related violence and human rights abuses.

The NAFTA Connection
The Bush administration’s concept of a joint security strategy for North America came to the forefront under the Security and Prosperity Partnership (SPP) as an extension of the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA). When the three North American leaders met in Waco, Texas in March of 2005, they put into motion a secretive process of negotiations between members of the executive branches and representatives of large corporations to facilitate cross-border business and create a shared security perimeter. Subsequent meetings including the April 2008 trilateral summit in New Orleans extended these goals in total secrecy amid mounting criticism.

Secrecy
In this context, instead of reviewing polices and opening them up to public debate, the Bush administration has launched its boldest advance yet within the SPP context—Plan Mexico. Speculation was that the Plan would be announced at the Montebello SPP meeting in August of 2007, but perhaps because of the presence of SPP protestors at that meeting President Bush delayed the official unveiling of the “Merida Initiative” several months. However, the last two SPP meetings have included discussions of Plan Mexico and the State Department has been clear about the link.

Plan Colombia All Over Again
The experience of Plan Colombia reveals the pitfalls of Plan Mexico. Plan Colombia is a similar U.S. military aid package designed to fight the drug war. Since its inception in 2000, it has contributed to entrenched violence and corruption in that South American country while failing to reduce drug flows to the United States.

To read the rest of the Primer please click here.

Community Forum on Free Trade in Colombia

This summer I spent a good amount of time travelling across the US and speaking about the impact of US military and trade policy on Colombia. It’s been exciting to see how communities in the US are responding to the critical human rights situation in Colombia and the pending free trade agreement. U.S. community members understand that there are winners and losers in these trade agreements and communities are on the losing end both here and in Colombia. Next week I will be speaking at one of these forums in San Antonio, Texas. The forum entitled: “Murder, Plunder and Corporate Profit: The Trojan Horse of Free Trade in Colombia” will take place on Thursday, September 27th at 6:30PM – 8:30PM AT&T Center at St. Mary’s University, Room 108. If you would like more information contact: Marc Jacobson at marc@texasfairtrade.org

Pending Vote on Peru FTA Paves way for Colombia

On September 11th the Senate Finance Committee held their hearing on the Peru Free Trade Agreement (FTA) signaling their intention to vote on the trade pact in early October—the first trade vote since CAFTA in July 2006. The Peru FTA is part of the same “one-size-fits-all” model applied to the US-Colombia FTA and its passage could severely weaken our efforts to stop it.

The May 10th deal struck between Pelosi, Rangel and the Bush administration paved the way for Democrats to support the US-Peru and Panama FTAs (see my Aug. 20 blog entry). These fixes also apply to the Colombia FTA but leadership has made it clear more will need to be done before they support the deals. With minor fixes to the labor and environmental chapters and some easing of restrictions on medicine patents, Democrat leadership is now supporting the model they rejected with CAFTA. Many have argued that these changes will do nothing to address the enforcement problems rampant in Peru who lack the resources and political will to improve labor and environmental standards. But beyond enforcement issues, what is still missing in the public discourse is the fact that these fixes do nothing to address the broader human rights and moral concerns around the other 20 agreement chapters – especially in the areas of agriculture, indigenous knowledge, services and investment.

Not one Senator at the Peru FTA hearing mentioned the words development, human rights or concerns about the possible negative impacts in Peru. Instead the focus was on market access for US goods and, of course, security—invoking the threats of Presidents Chavez of Venezuela and Correa of Ecuador. Clearly the interfaith community’s attempt to expand the debate on trade is not yet gained traction in Congress. It also didn’t help to have the AFL-CIO witness go on record as not being for the FTA but also unwilling to say they are firmly opposed to it. This has caused a split within the unions (the Change to Win Coalition is firmly opposed) and has sent mixed messages to Congress—especially freshman members.

Despite this disappointment, the Colombia FTA remains extremely controversial—and US unions are unified in the opposition. This is primarily because of the Colombian record of union organizer assassinations, but also because of the growing scandal connecting the Uribe government with paramilitary death squads. The AFSC Trade and War in Colombia campaign is seeking to expand this debate. It is clear from the impacts of this model elsewhere that the FTA will exacerbate the existing humanitarian crisis faced by the Afro-Colombian, Indigenous and peasant communities in Colombia. A country approaching its fiftieth year of conflict cannot withstand the costs that will surely outweigh the benefits for those living in the rural and communal territories of Colombia.

It remains unclear when a vote could happen on the Colombia FTA. Yet this has not stopped the Uribe government from engaging in an aggressive campaign that includes creating awards and gala events for Bill Clinton, hiring Clinton’s PR firm, constantly lobbying Congress, and hosting endless delegations to Colombia for members of Congress. It boggles my mind to see how Congresspeople can visit a country on a government sponsored delegation and let what is so clearly a carefully constructed tour influence their idea of the daily realities in Colombia. The only way to ensure the delay and defeat of the US-Colombia FTA is to keep the pressure on Congress—this is most effective when coming from their own constituents.

Why would delaying the Panama FTA vote pressure Dems to vote on Colombia?

Friday we learned that the Bush administration is going to push for the Colombia FTA to be voted on in-between the Peru and Panama FTA votes. An insider daily journal reported, “Some very senior officials at the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative seem to be convinced that they can force the consideration of the Colombia FTA by withholding support for consideration of Panama, according to an informed source.” (Inside US Trade 8/17/07)

Moving the vote in-between the Peru and Panama FTAs is an interesting tactic given the deal struck between the Bush Administration and Representatives Charlie Rangel and Nancy Pelosi. In exchange for small fixes to the labor and environmental chapters, Democratic leadership promised ratification of the Peru and Panama FTAs when they came up for a vote. There was some speculation that the deal would also apply to Colombia and Korea, but controversy around these trade pacts put them solidly on the shelf—for now.

So why does the Bush Administration think making Democrats wait for a vote on Panama is a good pressure point to move the Colombia FTA forward? Could it be that there is little to no civil-society and union resistance to the Panama deal and the Democrats need a few trade agreements under their belt to prove to donors that they are pro-trade? The party’s money must come from somewhere. In a meeting with a key Congresswoman, a few of my colleagues on the Interfaith Working Group on Trade and Investment learned that the Democratic party is demanding each member representative pay $450,000 in dues—almost four times what they paid last year. This is in part why we are so committed to expanding the debate on trade beyond labor and environmental standards. We need to find ways to ensure there is real change to the flawed model and that political leaders can’t hide behind narrow interpretations and fixes.

As Representatives Rangel, Levin, Schwartz and Meeks return from their recess delegation to Peru convinced that the Garcia government will fix its labor law problems, I was struck by a quote from Luis Zuniga, president of CONVEAGRO (an agricultural consortium critical of the deal) in the Congress Daily today. He said, “The problem is, those who want an FTA in Peru are the same ones who do not want labor laws to be reformed in Peru”. He reiterated that more needs to be done to protect Peruvian farmers against the impact of imported subsidized crops from the U.S. This critical issue was not addressed in the trade “deal” and now unlikely to be dealt with in the U.S. Farm Bill as it heads down a predictable path of status quo.

Real reform for a more people-centered trade agreement will not come through incremental side deals. It will take more transparent processes and bold Presidential leadership that we hope to see from a new administration. Sounds like a good question to take to the campaign trail if you get a chance to do some bird-dogging.

Blood on the Palms: Afro-Colombians fight new plantations.

Written by David Bacon
David joined an AFSC delegation to Colombia last year to research for this article.

This article is from the July/August 2007 issue of Dollars & Sense magazine.

On Sept. 7, 2006, paramilitary gunmen invaded the home of Juan de Dios García, a community leader in the Colombian city of Buenaventura. García escaped, but the gunmen shot and killed seven members of his family.

The paramilitaries, linked to the government of President Alvaro Uribe and to the country's wealthy landholding elite, wanted to stop García and other activists from the Proceso de Comunidades Negras (Process of Black Communities, or PCN), who have been trying to recover land on which Afro-Colombians have lived for five centuries. The PCN is a network of over 140 organizations among Black Colombian communities.

García later told Radio Bemba, "when the paras [paramilitary soldiers] came looking for me, I could see they were using police and army vehicles. They operate with the direct and indirect participation of high government functionaries. So denouncing their crimes to the authorities actually puts you at an even greater risk."

South of Buenaventura along the Pacific, in the coastal lowlands of the department of Nariño, oil palm plantations are spreading through historically Afro-Colombian lands. The plantation owners' association, Fedepalma, plans to expand production to a million hectares (about 3,861 square miles), and the government has proposed that by 2020 seven million hectares will be used for export crops, including oil palms.

Helping planters reach their goal is the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID). In what the agency describes as an effort to resettle rightwing paramilitary members who agree to be disarmed, USAID funds projects in which they are given land to cultivate. The land, however, is often located in historically Afro-Colombian areas.

On paper these resettlement projects may appear to be effective components of a national peace process. On the ground, however, what typically happens is that the paramilitaries take on the task of protecting the plantation owners' (and the government's) investment. And Afro-Colombian activists who get in the way pay a price in blood.

Afro-Colombian families displaced by development projects, especially the expansion of oil palm plantations, and by Colombia’s paramilitary and military groups who protect the projects, have created a squatter community, the November 11 barrio, at the edge of Tumaco, a coastal city in Nariño department. The city authorities have used trash, garbage, and even medical waste to create raised pathways between the houses. Water for dozens of families comes from a single tap. [Photo credit: David Bacon.]

See full article in the July/August 2007 issue of Dollars & Sense magazine.

Colombian Women to Visit Congress to Speak on Human Rights, Poverty and Trade

A delegation of six Colombian women will visit Washington on July 23-27 to meet with members of Congress and key partner organizations and discuss trade and war in Colombia from a women’s perspective. After Washington two of the women will travel with AFSC to New York City through August 1 to meet with grassroots groups, women- and human rights-focused NGOs as well as members of Congress in their home district.

All grassroots leaders of Colombian civil society, this extraordinary delegation includes trade unionists, lawyers, indigenous and Afro-Colombian leaders, and women representing communities displaced by the civil conflict.

The delegation will present up-to-date perspectives on violence and threats against trade unionists, the growing numbers of internally displaced people, and continuing abuses of human rights. They will also present their point of view on how Colombia’s rural poverty will likely be worsened by the trade agreement with the United States now before Congress.

The delegation is a result of collaboration between AFSC, Oxfam America, the Alliance for Responsible Trade and the Washington Office on Latin America.

The members of the delegation are:

• Beatríz Fuentes, president of the flower-cutters union Sintrasplendor at the company Splendor, which is owned by the U.S. corporation Dole and exports cut flowers.
• Martha Díaz, president of the civil servants’ union in Santander state, who has received numerous threats.
• Emerenciana Chicunque, leader of the Katmenza indigenous community in Putumayo, southern Colombia, an area of recent attacks by paramilitary squads on indigenous and other people.
• Pilar Rueda Jiménez, anthropologist and professor at La Salle University, Bogotá and leader of the alliance “Make Trade Fair”, a coalition of more than 30 unions and human rights and development groups across Colombia promoting the rights of women workers.
• Maura Nasly Mosquera Mosquera, lawyer and assistant to the National Conference of Afro-Colombian Organizations.
• Alba Lucia Giraldo, head of household and leader of the grassroots group Peace Community of San José de Apartadó, which has been nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize by the American Friends Service Committee, and one of the millions of Colombians forcibly displaced from their homes due to threats from paramilitary groups.

Hello from Atlanta

I have just arrived in Atlanta for the first ever US Social Forum! I can feel that another world is possible and certainly get that another U.S. is necessary.

My focus at the USSF is to explore new ways of collaborating on trade both inside and outside the DC beltway as well as working to bring the linkages between trade and war to all the forums I participate in. With tens of thousands of activists converging in Atlanta, it is a prime moment in US movement building history. I am thrilled to be a part of it.

I will send daily thoughts and updates so check it out. My first task is to promote our workshop on trade and war in Colombia (see below description). If you can imagine there are 120 consecutive workshops taking place. That is some fierce competition.

Making Colombia Safe…for Investors

Thursday, June 28 from 10:30 – 12:30

Days Inn Downtown - Dogwood conference room
300 Spring St NW (between Simpson and Baker St.)

Plan Colombia has fueled the fires of the conflict in Colombia and aggravated what the UN calls the worst humanitarian crisis in the western hemisphere. In light of this disaster, the US government's daily $1.6 million outlay for the drug war in Colombia is unjustifiable.

Despite these violations and the failure of U.S. policies to reduce coca production and end the now 50 year-old conflict, the U.S. is preparing to fund Plan Colombia II and has negotiated a new free trade agreement (FTA) with Colombia.

This workshop will feature three speakers from Colombia, including
- Carlos Rosero, PCN (Colombia)
- Hector Giraldo, SINTRAOFAN (Colombia)
- German Bedoya - Coordinador Nacional Agrario (Colombia - not confirmed)

They will help us explore root causes of the conflict, economic and exploitation aspects that sustain the conflict, and how the new free trade agreement is connected to this.

Organized with Witness for Peace