U.S. ambassador to Colombia lauds Uribe government on security [View All]

[Say_What]

*Solid and democratic*--LOL. That last paragraph is a joke. Those paras who *surrendered* are now at a recreation location for three weeks of vacation. When they surrendered, reporters were NOT allowed to speak to interview them at all. After R&R they are supposed to be *retrained* and integrated back into society--but the city government of Medellin is saying "not with our tax dollars". Also, these thugs are being protected at this recreation spot with THREE rings of security manned by the Colombian Army.

85% of funding (our tax dollars) to Colombia goes to the military (many trained at the SOA) who in turn trains and advises the paramilitaries. Paramilitaries are responsible for 70% of the atrocities commited in Colombia, most in the area that produces most of Colombia's OIL. Colombia is the US' 8th largest supplier of OIL. It ain't about drugs folks--see the documentary Plan Colombia: Cashing in on the Drug War Failure (Paul Wellstone is among those interviewed.)

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Bogota, Dec 2 (EFE). - U.S. Ambassador to Colombia William Wood has lauded President Alvaro Uribe's government as "solid and democratic" and praised his administration's committment to ending violent political unrest.

In comments late Monday at an economic forum, Wood said that Uribe's steps to end insurgencies from the left and right "has created a sense of confidence and trust" among Colombians and foreign investors.

Since taking office 18 months ago, the president has worked to either crush or work out peace deals with the leftist guerrillas and right-wing paramilitary groups fighting the country's armed forces.

Last month, the government reached an agreement for the surrender of more than 800 members of the largest paramilitary organization and their reinsertion into society.


http://www.efenews.com/includesasp/noticias.asp?opcion=0&id=5725660

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In addition to Occidental Petroleum other companies that are part of the U.S.-Colombia Business Partnership include:

Dole Foods
Coca-Cola
Drummond Coal Company
Exxon Mobil
Colgate-Palmolive Co.
Enron Corporation

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...Occidental Petroleum Corporation’s background
Occidental Petroleum Corporation is one of the largest U.S.-based oil and gas companies. Occidental “discovered” Caño-Limón, Colombia’s second largest oil field. Occidental’s investment in Caño-Limón has yielded hundreds of million dollars annually although the pipeline has been a target of guerrilla forces.

Occidental’s Vice President for Public Affairs has made it clear that drug trafficking and attacks by guerrilla forces have disrupted the company’s normal operations. But according to the North American Congress on Latin America (NACLA), Occidental has also fueled the violence by employing drug-funded paramilitary groups to forcibly remove Colombia’s indigenous populations from potentially oil-rich lands. Paramilitary forces, which benefit from the drug trade and commit 70 percent of the human rights violations, have been utilized to combat the guerrillas who want the oil production in Colombia to be nationalized.

Occidental lobbying in Washington, D.C.
Between 1996 and 2000, Occidental spent more than $8.6 million (U.S.) lobbying the U.S. government for military aid to Colombia and aid to protect the Caño-Limón pipeline. Recently, the Bush administration allotted $98 million to protect the pipeline.

The real costs of pipeline protection
According to a report from Witness for Peace, the potential outcomes of the Bush administration’s proposal to spend $98 million on protecting the pipeline are alarming:

http://www.afsc.org/latinamerica/peace/military-aid-oil.htm

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Article from 2002 describing our tax dollars at work funding murder, torture and *security* for the pipeline (gotta keep those gas guzzling SUVs on the road) </sarcasm>.

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...Role of Paramilitaries

The Colombian army has long been accused of cooperating with the paramilitaries because both sides share a common enemy in the guerrillas. The paramilitaries, financed by drugs and large landowners, use massacres and torture to fight the rebels in areas that have been neglected by Colombia's thinly stretched armed forces.

U.S. and Colombian officials defend the training plan, saying it will protect oil flow along the pipeline, which provides an important source of revenue for the Colombian government. The additional income from the protected pipeline will allow the Colombian government to step up efforts to combat the rebels and paramilitaries, the officials argue, as well as the drugs that flow to U.S. streets.

http://www.commondreams.org/headlines02/0915-07.htm

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On edit: Funding for the Oil pipeline

...U.S. funds appropriated since August 2002 to help Colombia’s military protect the Caño Limón-Coveñas oil pipeline<9>: $99 million

Share of oil in this pipeline belonging to U.S.-based Occidental Petroleum<10>: 43.75%

http://colhrnet.igc.org/newitems/nov03/uscol.numbers..htm