AP Article Gives Correa the Full "Chavez" Treatment

[magbana]

No End in Sight to Andean Conflict

By JEANNETH VALDIVIESO – 6 hours ago

QUITO, Ecuador (AP) — President Rafael Correa's outrage over Colombia's cross-border raid on a rebel camp in Ecuador has improved his popularity, strengthening his chances of gaining approval for constitutional reforms later this year.

Correa declared the incident over after rightist Colombian President Alvaro Uribe apologized and promised not to repeat such an attack at a summit of Latin American leaders.

But that detente has proven to be short-lived, and with the discovery that an Ecuadorean man was killed in the raid along with Colombian rebels and several Mexican leftist students, Correa is now threatening a new diplomatic offensive against Colombia.

"This government will not allow this case to go unpunished," Correa said as the family of Franklin Aisalla prepared for his funeral on Friday.

Even if "Aisalla is a criminal, a guerrilla as they want to categorize him, it does not justify killing an Ecuadorean on Ecuadorean soil by foreign forces," he said.

Aisalla's family was finally able to bury him after his body was returned from Bogota, where commandos initially mistook it for a wanted Colombian rebel. Ecuador's Foreign Ministry called his killing a violation of international law and promised to support the family in seeking reparations.

Bogota's defense minister said he does not understand why Ecuador would be upset about the death of someone involved with the rebels, setting off another harsh exchange between Quito, Bogota and Caracas — where Correa's key Andean ally, leftist Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez, had encouraged a military and diplomatic showdown over the raid.

Correa's nationalistic response has gained him critical support domestically, just as support was flagging for both his presidency and a constitutional assembly that is the centerpiece of his first year in office.

The president is pushing all-out for a new constitution to curb the power of Ecuador's discredited political parties, which he blames for severe political instability that has resulted in nine different presidents since 1996, three of them driven prematurely from office.

According to a Cedatos-Gallup poll, only 38 percent of Ecuadoreans approved of the assembly on Feb. 10, a 24-point drop since the body first convened in November. But surveys after the March raid showed 80 percent of Ecuadoreans backing Correa's stance toward Colombia, and some analysts think he's using the dispute for political gain.

"There is a great temptation to take full advantage of this," said Michael Shifter, an analyst at the Washington-based Inter American Dialogue. "It would be convenient to have such broad national support" as the assembly finishes its work and sends its reforms to a national referendum.

Correa is well known for his determination to get his way.

Since taking office in January 2007, he has trampled the opposition and international press freedom organizations have criticized his attacks on Ecuador's media. Last year, he resorted to constitutionally questionable tactics to call an election for the special assembly.

Meanwhile, his nationalist stance has alienated important sectors of Ecuador's business class as he seeks greater state control over industries such as oil, mining and telecommunications.

Despite the criticism, many Ecuadoreans say it was time that Ecuador stood up to its bigger neighbor, whose armed conflict has spilled over their border, bringing violence and hundreds of thousands of refugees.

Correa "defined a very clear position against Colombia, telling it: 'Enough, Ecuador won't accept this anymore,'" said political analyst Jorge Leon. "It's a conflict that is not ours, and we are not going to fight in the place of the Colombian armed forces."

Outside Ecuador, observers are watching and worrying about what Correa might do next.

Violations of territorial sovereignty are rarely treated lightly in Latin America, and the region's leaders supported Correa's vehement response to Uribe's justifications for the March 1 attack on the camp of the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia, or FARC.

Eager for calm to be restored to the volatile Andean region, they also erupted in thunderous applause at the summit when Correa and Uribe exchanged stiff handshakes.

But just because Correa said the crisis was over "does not mean that it is over," said Adrian Bonilla, director of a Quito think tank.

http://ap.google.com/article/ALeqM5jOTzaavorQLO5eovQ2JJN34MLgeQD8VMURA00

http://snipurl.com/22wvi

[Judi Lynn]

1. You bet he got the "full Chavez!" This is the first all out slash & hack piece I've seen on him.

In the ones I've seen already, they've seemed to realize most Americans aren't even aware of who this guy is because Ecuador doesn't get much press time here.

Now that he has been forced into the headlines due to the invasion and bombing from Colombia, he has gained enough attention for them to start their program of ripping and shredding his image before Americans get a chance to form a favorable opinion of him.

The article simply reeks. How about this one?

"Outside Ecuador, observers are watching and worrying about what Correa might do next."

-OR- "Correa is well known for his determination to get his way."

-OR- (shudder) "his nationalist stance has alienated important sectors of Ecuador's business class." Whoooooo! Omigod! What the hell! We're not safe. :scared: :scared: :scared:

I got the number of the truck that tried to run him over. It's "JEANNETH VALDIVIESO." Asshole! If it weren't her, it would be Simon Romero, Christopher Toothaker, Juan Forero, or one of the other AP and Reuters and NY Times and Washington Post clowns hot on the trail of leftist Presidents.

Also, leaving no stone unturned, it, in true form, attempted to show that Correa really isn't as popular with Ecuadoreans as he wants to be, and he has, like a true fiend, has exploited this attack on his country to advance himself politically. Oh, my God. Corporate scum hacks are ALL the same, aren't they? They use the same backstabbing formulas against them all.

You may recall they gave character assassination on Lula every effort they could muster in the last couple of years, even attempting to throw in the "alcoholic" charge, as well as getting as close as possible to direct "corruption" charges, and they've had to put all those failed efforts where the sun "don't" shine as Lula's reputation with his voters has only improved.

Now they're also off to the races after Christina de Fernandez, someone who's a seasoned veteran, who really knows her way around, who's not even about to make any "rookie" mistakes.

.......Not to mention an all out effort, along with heavy investment of US government money to destabilize Evo Morales' Presidency.

Looks as if Correa has officially graduated into the _Bush "enemies" circle. Thanks for being the one who warned us. He has the finest leaders in South America to keep him company.

How do you like the ominous tone the clown writer uses to sign off?

But just because Correa said the crisis was over "does not mean that it is over," said Adrian Bonilla, director of a Quito think tank.

[Judi Lynn]

2. AH ha ha ha ha.Here's the same story, but look at this headline the IHT gave it:

Despite calm, Ecuador's iron-willed president still at odds with Colombia
The Associated Press
Published: March 29, 2008

QUITO, Ecuador: Leftist President Rafael Correa's outrage over Colombia's cross-border raid on a rebel camp in Ecuador has improved his popularity at a critical time, strengthening his chances of gaining approval for constitutional reforms later this year.

Correa declared the incident over after rightist Colombian President Alvaro Uribe apologized and promised not to repeat such an attack at a summit of Latin American leaders.

But that detente has proven to be short-lived, and with the discovery that an Ecuadorean man was killed in the raid along with Colombian rebels and several Mexican leftist students, Correa is now threatening a new diplomatic offensive against Colombia.

..... yadda yadda yadda ......

But just because Correa said the crisis was over "does not mean that it is over," said Adrian Bonilla, director of a Quito think tank.

http://www.iht.com/articles/ap/2008/03/29/america/LA-GEN-Ecuador-Colombia-Crisis.php

Looks as if the International Herald Tribune sees your first found headline and has RAISED it!

[Peace Patriot]

3. Here's an outright lie from the Associated Pukes!

"...Correa's key Andean ally, leftist Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez, had encouraged a military and diplomatic showdown over the raid." (emphasis added) --AP (Associated Pukes)

But Lula da Silva praised Chavez as "a great peacemaker" last week--and it was perfectly obvious at the Rio Group summit that Chavez was the one who had averted the war between Colombia and Ecuador.

This is just shit reporting. It really is. Lies and disinformation.

And get this: "Since taking office in January 2007, he has trampled the opposition and international press freedom organizations have criticized his attacks on Ecuador's media." Notice how they glide the word "trampled" over "international press freedom" in the same subject-confused sentence! This is scumbag journalism of the first order. Correa has no right to speak freely about the scumbag fascist/corporate media that infests not just Ecuador but all of Latin America? Oh, dear, "international press freedom organizations" have "criticized" him. And they are...who? Names, please. This is identical to the "his critics say" they kept using in their hit pieces on Chavez.

Read it again (as if you were a lazy or casual reader):

"Since taking office in January 2007, he has trampled the opposition and international press freedom organizations..." Stop. Then comes the verb--"have criticized" him. Ah, you are forced to re-read and think (if you are alert): He didn't "trample international press freedom organizations. "International press freedom organizations" is the subject of the second part of the sentence!

And, anyway, what does "trample the opposition" mean? What really happened is: he out-debated them, he won a lot of votes and support. "Trampled"? They're working up to calling him "a dictator," I swear (--or Cardinal Lara's cute "increasingly authoritarian" re Chavez).

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Editorial usage note: This is the first time I've seen a phrase such as this--"Correa declared the incident over after rightist Colombian President Alvaro Uribe apologized...". Rightest president!

Usually, the corporate press reserve that usage for leftists, with the word "leftist" becoming a modifier of "president" whenever they mention Hugo Chavez. See above: "leftist Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez." They never say the "rightist U.S. President George Bush," or, more accurately, "the fascist U.S. President George Bush." "Friend of Fidel Castro" often follows. Get the picture? Rifle-toting leftist guerrilla. Stalinist dictator. Not....the truth. Official, elected, empowered-by-the-people, rightful, lawful, legitimate president of a nation. No, he's the "leftist" president. As if he were limited to being the president of leftists. Those communist weirdos.

I'm happy to see Uribe get a modifier--not a strong enough one, but at least "rightist." But I doubt the practice will continue. And we're never going to see it here, where, at best, Bush gets "Republican" as a modifier--and a weirder Republican you never saw (Barry Goldwater must be turning over in his grave!), with a ten trillion dollar deficit and nazi curtailment of U.S. freedoms. And they seldom use Republican. They play Bush as the president of all the people--and him with an 18% approval rating. Only the nazis support him now.