tasco66 has written 183 posts
Libya halting fuel supplies to Switzerland
Maybe Colombia should send an “independent" envoy to negotiate with the two parties. Anyone knows a Colombian Kadhafi apologist that could do the job??? Jajajaja TRIPOLI (AFP) — OPEC member Libya said on Thursday it will halt fuel supplies to key oil client Switzerland in the latest reprisal for last week's brief detention in Geneva of a son of Libyan leader Moamer Kadhafi. The General National Maritime Transport Company and the Port Authority said in a joint statement they had "d ...
Colombia bishop: guerillas should pay attention to massive protests
Bogotá, Jul 23, 2008 / 03:13 pm (CNA).- Bishop Fabian Marulanda, secretary general of the Bishops’ Conference of Colombia, has called on the rebel group FARC to free all of its hostages because of the “universal clamor expressed in the massive protests" that took place last Sunday in Colombia and other parts of the world. This past weekend millions of colombians and hundreds of thousands of people in other Latin American cities held protests calling for the release of all those who have ...
Colombia kills 20 FARC rebels in air raid
Wed Jul 23, 2008 BOGOTA, July 23 (Reuters) - The Colombian air force bombed a rebel camp, killing at least 20 left-wing guerrillas in the latest blow to the insurgency this year, the government said on Wednesday. It was the deadliest military strike against the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia, or FARC, since the March bombing of a jungle base on Ecuador's side of the border in which key rebel commander Raul Reyes was killed. The latest raid, on Sunday, allowed the police to coll ...
Colombia's May exports up 25.7 pct year-on-year
Thu Jul 24, 2008 BOGOTA, July 23 (Reuters) - Colombian exports grew 25.7 percent to $3.4 billion in May compared with the same month a year ago, the government said on Wednesday. Colombian exports grew 36.3 percent in the January-May period to $15.4 billion compared with the first five months of last year, the government's statistics department said in the statement. The Andean country's economy has picked up momentum under President Alvaro Uribe, who was reelected in 2006 after cuttin ...
"Militarist" Colombia celebrates independence without military parade
Neocommunist commentators and pundits live their lives trying to convince Venezuelans and the world of two factoids about Venezuelan-Colombian relations: 1. Colombia and �lvaro Uribe are militarist and, therefore a menace to regional peace. 2. Venezuela and Hugo Chávez are peaceful and loving revolutionaries. Isn't it curious then that Colombia celebrates her independence day with a concert with Shakira as main star, while Hugo Chávez celebrates Venezuela's independence with a military ...
NYT: Colombia’s Gains Are America’s, Too
By ROBERT M. GATES and JUAN MANUEL SANTOS Published: July 23, 2008 THE dramatic rescue of 15 hostages this month by Colombia’s special forces underscored how far Colombia has progressed — with the strong support of the United States — from a nation under siege by narcoterrorists and paramilitary vigilantes to one poised to become a linchpin of security and prosperity in South America. http://www.nytimes.com/2008/07/23/opinion/23gates.html?_r=1&ref=opinion&oref=slogin ...
Farc murdered two wounded soldiers in a red cross ambulance
Colombia, NGO’s And How The Media Gives Terrorists A Pass
Posted on July 17th, 2008 by Nancy Reyes I’m watching CNN International gleefully report a “gotcha� against the Colombian government. Apparantly, one of the soldiers who rescuedIngrid Betancourt and other innocent hostages from FARC in Colombia had a tiny Red Cross on his jacket. Hmm…aren’t there stories of “insurgents� in Iraq and Gaza and Lebanon using Red Crescent ambulances to move arms? I don’t remember CNNI having ten minute segments condemning those actions. Nope, n ...
A series of innovative campaigns reawakening community responsibility in Bogota could help fight UK knife crime
Fifty-five people have died from knife wounds in London this year. According to Paul McKeever, the new chairman of the Police Federation, interviewed in the Observer, the government has little idea how to stop the carnage. When there's little left to lose except more lives, perhaps this is the time to put out a call for Antanas Mockus, the former mayor of Bogota. A mathematician and philosopher, he resigned as rector of the National University of Colombia and served two terms as mayor of Bogo ...
Ingrid Betancourt has dumped her second husband for Luis Eladio Perez
July 14, 2008 12:51 PM Action, they say, speaks louder than words. And on the day that, Ingrid Betancourt descended from the aircraft that brought her from her 6 years of captivity, the world saw how she embraced her mother, Yolanda Pulecio affectionately, but with her second husband, Juan Carlos Lecompte, it was a distant, I-know-you-kind of embrace. The embrace was devoid of any ounce of affection. Now that Mrs Betancourt has assumes semi-sainthood status and is always invoking divine inter ...
Colombia/France: Mrs Betancourt remains a subject of controversy
Ingrid Betancourt is now free and in France and also in Colombia, polemics have started. In Colombia, her homeland, people want to know whether she is still Colombian or she has decided to adopt France as her former husband’s homeland as hers. Colombians also wants to know whether, she is now a member of the party of President Alvaro Uribe or she is eager to join the opposition. The time has come for Ingrid Betancourt to make her choices and positions clear. But in France, the focus is elsewhe ...
Historia Secreta Del Facilitador Suizo Jean-Pierre Gontard
Hasta hace 35 dÃas, Jean Pierre Henri Gontard, el emisario que los gobiernos de Suiza y Francia enviaron a Colombia para mediar en el conflicto con las Farc, era bienvenido en Casa de Nariño. El bonachón suizo, de 57 años y de español fluido, entraba con facilidad al paÃs y conocÃa no solo la agenda con esa guerrilla sino, además, los pormenores de los pÃrricos avances con el Eln. Por eso, a ninguna autoridad le llamó la atención que registrara cuatro ingresos a Colombia entre a ...
Asà Fue El Regaño De Uribe A Gontard Y Saez
La facilitación de los tres ‘paÃses amigos’ (Francia, Suiza y España), autorizados para buscar un acuerdo humanitario con las Farc, acabó mal. Asà quedó evidenciado desde el encuentro casual que el presidente Ã?lvaro Uribe tuvo en un pasillo de la Casa de Nariño, el pasado viernes 27 de junio, con el francés Noel Saez y el suizo Jean-Pierre Gontard, los emisarios encargados de contactar a las Farc. Ellos, y sus embajadores, salÃan de la oficina del comisionado de Paz, Luis Carlos ...
Jean Pierre Gontard Fue Profesor Del Hijo De ‘Cano’
Jean-Pierre Gontard se hizo conocer en el mundo académico suizo como profesor del Instituto Universitario de Estudios para el Desarrollo, un órgano especializado en problemas del Tercer Mundo vinculado a la Universidad de Ginebra. Especializado en problemas de mal desarrollo y sus relaciones con la violencia, Gontard cumplió misiones para el Comité Internacional de la Cruz Roja (Cicr) en Africa, Medio Oriente y Asia. Afable,amante de la pesca, Gontard es un polÃglota que habla un castell ...
Swiss envoy Jean-Pierre Gontard to Farc: Please Let Us Know What We Should Do
Newly revealed documents implicate the Swiss envoy Jean-Pierre Gontard in FARC machinations. E-Mails suggest that the professor from Geneva served as a money courier for the terrorists. His superiors in the Swiss foreign ministry continue to play down the matter. What did Foreign Minister Micheline Calmy-Rey know? Full coverage (in German, partly translated into English).Switzerland’s Colombia policy is suffering one blow after another. A few days after the liberation of Ingrid Betancourt, ...
The Swiss mediator Jean-Pierre Gontard Part II
There is no doubt now that he was the Swiss media “reliable source" that made up the $20 million ransom story http://www.weltwoche.ch/artikel/?AssetID=20369&CategoryID=100
The anti-Chávez axis Uribe-Lula-Calderón
The emerging Uribe-Lula-Calderón troika has geo-strategic influence because things have started to change in Cuba ever since Fidel Castro formally handed over the presidency to his brother, Raúl. Latin America is obsessed with this transition, and Uribe, Calderón, and Lula have no intention of letting Chávez lead the way The rescue of Ingrid Betancourt and 14 other hostages who had been held for years by FARC guerrillas marks more than a turning point in Colombia’s long war against its ...
Brazil, Colombia Plan Accord to Fortify Military Ties
By Joshua Goodman July 17 (Bloomberg) -- Brazil and Colombia plan to sign a defense accord to share military information, promote the sale of weapons and conduct more joint training exercises, a Colombian diplomat taking part in the negotiations said. http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601086&sid=aN3LyMHYyuJU&refer=latin_america ...
The Swiss mediator Jean-Pierre Gontard
Calmy-Rey’s Willing Helper (English translation) Von Alex Baur The Swiss mediator Jean-Pierre Gontard played a role in the hostage rescue in Colombia, albeit unknowingly and involuntarily. The false report concerning a supposed ransom payment originated from his milieu. With it, Swiss diplomacy has lost its last trace of credibility. http://www.weltwoche.ch/artikel/?AssetID=20370&CategoryID=100 ...
Ingrid French Legion of Honor Speech
Discours d'Ingrid Bétancourt [news] LCI 14 07 08Uploaded by fhdr ...
Ingrid freed by Sarkozy (French movie version)
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Jaime Bayly Habla del Rescate de Ingrid Betancourt
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rSusOGteEu8 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QYkJZznUJqM http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6C0hZ7OzE-A http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U75neD4lvV8 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FQIlvrRwx8w ...
Ingrid Betancourt: Delaciones y acusaciones
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Ingrid Betancourt On Today Show
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Entrevista de Clara Rojas
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An Inconvenient Truth
I enjoy a good summer movie. Last week’s breaking news from Colombia could have been a spell-binding scene: Deep in the jungles of South America, military spies tricked a band of guerillas into forfeiting a group of prized hostages, who were then hustled to their freedom in a helicopter. The next day, a mother hugged her children for the first time in six years. “It was an ending happier than any Hollywood director would dare to dream up," commented The Economist. But this one was real: A ...
Drinking latte with tyrants never works
Drinking latte with tyrants never works By | Friday, July 11, 2008, 07:23 AM The Atlanta Journal-Constitution Washington Post columnist Charles Krauthammer cites the recent rescue of Ingrid Betancourt and 14 other hostages in Colombia as an example of how “hard power�- much maligned by critics of President Bush- is often the only effective way to ensure freedom. He writes, “On the day the Colombian military freed Ingrid Betancourt and 14 other long-held hostages, the Italian Pa ...
Hostages cite intolerable conditions
Published: July 11, 2008 at 7:43 AM The three American contractors rescued from the Colombian jungle cited gruesome living conditions but found missing their families hardest to take. Keith Stansell, Marc Gonsalves and Thomas Howes kept small items as reminders of the 5 1/2 years they spent away from their families, cut off from the world outside of the jungle, seeing only fellow hostages and their captors, the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia, CNN reported. Stansell described his capto ...
Colombia: The ramifications of a split in the Polo Democrático
By: Garry Leech Date: 23 Jun 2008 By the end of a meeting held last week by members of Colombia’s Polo Democrático Alternativo, it had become increasingly likely that the party was going to split into two separate entities at some point in the not too distant future, according to one party member. Many of the more moderate members, led by former Bogotá mayor Luis Eduardo ‘Lucho’ Garzón, appear to be leaning towards abandoning the Polo and establishing a new party. The remaining ...
The Impending Death of the FARC
By Nathaniel Foote, Latin America Contributor 9 July 2008: Colombian President Alvaro Uribe is boasting a string of victories over the FARC the past year. The deaths of Raul Reyes, FARC’s second in command, and Ivan Rios, another powerful guerilla leader, coupled with the surrender of FARC commander Nelly Avila Moreno, have already left the organization in shambles, exposing its growing weakness and increasing inability to operate effectively within Colombia. Many have predicted the organiz ...
Now even Correa is going after Ingrid Betancourt
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Francia HacÃa Tratos con las FARC a Espaldas de Colombia
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Five Reasons Why Liberals May Dislike the Betancourt Rescue
July 10, 2008 Exclusive: Five Reasons Why Liberals May Dislike the Betancourt Rescue Gabriel Garnica, Esq. As a proud native of Colombia, I am aware of both that nation's inherent beauty and its tough times over the past 50 years. Although I am an American citizen now, I still smile whenever I hear any good news from the land of my birth, and the recent Betancourt rescue was no exception. Unfortunately, I must temper my pride with cynicism when I consider the five reasons why liberals w ...
Bogota, Colombia: My kind of town
The people, nightlife, art and spectacular mountain setting are just a few of the myriad charms of the Colombian city of Bogota. Why Bogota? After 20 years of visiting the city, the attraction (and my marriage to a Colombian) remains intact. Perhaps in defiance of the history of violence and economic hardship, Bogotanos seem to know a thing or two about celebrating life. I’ve yet to come across a traveller who hasn’t been bowled over by the people, nightlife, and art. Expect to come aw ...
Ecuador's Correa out-of-step in Colombia dispute
By Alonso Soto QUITO, July 7 (Reuters) - Ecuadorean President Rafael Correa's unwillingness to restore ties with Colombia leaves him on the sidelines in a region that cheers his neighbor's bloodless rescue of high-profile hostages. Correa's intransigence also reflects his inexperience and stubbornness, adding to political uncertainty in the volatile nation because the leftist leader may be putting a personal feud above Ecuador's interests, pollsters and political analysts say. http://ww ...
Ingrid Betancourt que piensa de Hugo Chavez y Correa
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JAIME BAYLY ON THE RESCUE
JEFFREY SIMPSON July 5, 2008 The day clock has thankfully stopped in front of city hall in Paris. It used to show how many days Ingrid Betancourt had been held captive by Colombian guerrillas. Now she and 14 other hostages are free, thanks to a brilliant Colombian rescue mission backed by U.S. intelligence. No longer are they in the hands of the murderous guerrillas who abducted them and others whom they still hold hostage. The news is obviously wonderful for the hostages, including Ms ...
Las FARC liberan a un matemático de origen noruego
One more is free (this one was cheap, the reward was only UD$ 5 million according to my very reliable Turkish source)… ...
"Este es el golpe más duro que ha recibido la guerrilla"
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"Las Farc son terrorristas " Ingrid Betancourt
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Ingrid and Colombian officials dismiss Swiss media report as false and lies
The Colombian Foreign Ministry furiously denied the allegations, with a spokesman calling them "completely false." He added: "They are lies". General Freddy Padilla, head of the Colombian military, categorically denied they had paid "a single peso" to Farc. "As the General Commander of the Armed Forces and on my military honour, I deny that the Colombian Government has paid a single peso, a single cent," he said. Ms Betancourt also cast doubt on the claims. "Based on what I was able to ...
Betancourt describes sadistic treatment at hands of captors
http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2008/jul/04/colombia.usa
Colombia hostage rescue sidelines Chavez
By IAN JAMES – 3 hours ago BOGOTA, Colombia (AP) — Hugo Chavez, once a key mediator in securing hostage releases from Colombian rebels, could do little more than phone congratulations to President Alvaro Uribe after this week's bold rescue. But even freed captive Ingrid Betancourt says the Venezuelan president and his leftist allies still have important roles in pushing the rebels toward peace. The stunning rescue of the rebels' highest-value hostages without a single shot being fir ...
Captured soldier saved Betancourt's life
FREED Colombian hostage Ingrid Betancourt has told how a Colombian soldier saved her life by nursing her when she fell ill in captivity. Corporal William Perez, 36, was captured by leftist rebels in March 1998 in the jungle of Caqueta in southern Colombia where he was stationed at the time. He had a basic knowledge of nursing because he had worked at Bogota's military hospital. "He was my nurse in moments when I was in very bad health. I want to recognise him specially, because if it were ...
Rescue a devastating blow to FARC, may strengthen Uribe's re-election bid
Analysis: Rescue a devastating blow to FARC, may strengthen Uribe's re-election bid BY SIBYLLA BRODZINSKY AND JUAN O. TAMAYO Colombia's FARC guerrillas suffered a devastating but likely not fatal blow, and President Alvaro Uribe may have strengthened his bid to win a third term in office, when security forces rescued 15 hostages from a rebel jungle camp, analysts said Wednesday. Uribe, who faces a constitutional crisis over his reelection in 2006, and Colombia's security forces emerged as c ...
Uribe savours his greatest victory
http://www.euronews.net/en/article/03/07/2008/uribe-savours-his-greatest-victory/
TIME: Colombia's Stunning Hostage Rescue
http://www.time.com/time/world/article/0,8599,1819862,00.html?imw=Y
Uribe Poised to Crush Colombian Rebels as Hostages Are Freed
Uribe Poised to Crush Colombian Rebels as Hostages Are Freed By Helen Murphy and Andrea Jaramillo July 3 (Bloomberg) -- The bloodless rescue of former Colombian presidential candidate Ingrid Betancourt and 14 other hostages puts President Alvaro Uribe within sight of his most cherished goal: crushing the guerrillas who have spent 44 years trying to overthrow the government. The hostage rescue deprived the Revolutionary the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia of its last major ba ...
Rebels Desert as Colombia Army Advances
Rebels Desert as Colombia Army Advances Colombian Military Advances Spur Rebel Desertions By FRANK BAJAK The Associated Press VILLAVICENCIO, Colombia Not long after two top commanders of Latin America's last major rebel army were killed — one in a raid, the other by a turncoat bodyguard — Diego Canizares decided to call it quits. The 39-year-old veteran guerrilla made indirect contact with the Colombian army. Then he strapped on his 9mm Taurus pistol and portable radio, slipped 1 ...
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