Uribe cousin quits Senate amid accusations

[Judi Lynn]

Source: Miami Herald

Uribe cousin quits Senate amid accusations
Posted on Thu, Oct. 04, 2007

BY JOSHUA GOODMAN
Associated Press

BOGOTA -- Sen. Mario Uribe, the second cousin and key congressional ally of Colombia's president, resigned Thursday to prepare his defense against accusations he collaborated with right-wing paramilitary groups.
(snip)

Colombia's Supreme Court last week formally launched an investigation against Uribe, making him the latest in a list of nearly 40 lawmakers -- the vast majority allies of President Alvaro Uribe -- to have been implicated in the snowballing ''para-politics'' scandal.

To date, 14 congressmen have been jailed for receiving electoral support, siphoning off state funds and even plotting the murder of political rivals with the militias, which are classified as foreign terrorist organizations by the United States.
(snip)

The president and his second cousin together founded the Colombia Democrática party in 1985 in their home state of Antioquia and the party has since expanded nationally, lifted by the popularity of the country's conservative leader.

Colombia Democrática has five seats in Congress -- the party will name a replacement to take Uribe's Senate seat -- although all three of the party's senators voted into office in 2006 have now been linked to the scandal and two are in jail. One of its lower house members is also in jail.





Read more: http://www.miamiherald.com/news/americas/story/260603.html

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Senator Mario Uribe

Colombia: President’s cousin investigated for paramilitary links
Colombia's Supreme Court stared an investigation against a cousin of President Alvaro Uribe over alleged links to right-wing paramilitary groups. Senator Mario Uribe (image)- who is also head of a political party loyal to the president- was signaled as having met and allied with the paramilitaries according to former leaders.

The “para-politics" scandal has been a massive thorn in the side of president Uribe and his allies. Approximately a month ago, the president was caught on video meeting with a former paramilitary leader, while the government recently admitted that thousands of demobilized paramilitary members have formed new criminal groups.

http://ourlatinamerica.blogspot.com/2007/07/colombia-presidents-cousin-investigated.html



Alvaro Uribe and friend

[DRoseDARs]

1. For those that inevitably WON'T read the article, this is a Columbian senator, not US'ian. nt

[ProudDad]

2. Hmm, I'd say the picture is "Uribe and fellow puppet" (n/t)

[Judi Lynn]

3. Uribe's cousin quits Colombian Senate amid scandal

Uribe's cousin quits Colombian Senate amid scandal
Thu Oct 4, 2007 9:34pm EDT

By Hugh Bronstein

BOGOTA, Oct 4 (Reuters) - President Alvaro Uribe's cousin and 30-year political ally Mario Uribe quit Colombia's Senate on Thursday to avoid a judicial investigation into whether he colluded with right-wing paramilitary death squads.

The move deepens a scandal in which 14 members of Congress, most of them in the president's coalition, are jailed awaiting trial for suspected links to the drug-running militias formed in the 1980s to help beat back leftist rebels.

And it could complicate Colombia's effort at clinching a free-trade pact with the United States, where Democrats on Capitol Hill are examining the conservative president's human rights record.

By stepping down from the Senate, Mario Uribe is protecting himself from an investigation by the Supreme Court, which probes public officials and does not allow appeals of its decisions.

He still faces questions from Colombia's attorney general about his relationship with ex-paramilitary warlord Salvatore Mancuso and real estate deals in which he is facing accusations of buying properties at below-market prices after the previous owners were forced to sell by paramilitary thugs.

Mancuso, now in prison, says Mario Uribe asked him to support his 2002 Senate campaign.

"This is a heavy blow for the Uribe clan," said Mauricio Romero, political science professor at Bogota's Javeriana University. "It is looking more and more like President Uribe and allies such as cousin Mario won office in 2002 with paramilitary support."

More:
http://www.reuters.com/article/americasCrisis/idUSN04441401