The Colombia Scenario

Robert Kaplan does an interesting Current on Colombia noting that "Colombia is what Iraq should eventually look like, in our best dreams. Colombian President Alvaro Uribe has fought -- and is winning -- a counterinsurgency war even as he has liberalized the economy, strengthened institutions, and improved human rights. Nuri al Maliki and Hamid Karzai could learn from him." I think the first two sentences here are persuasive, the final one less so. I'd say rather that we could learn a lot about Iraq based on how fitful and difficult progress has been in Colombia.

Suppose Spanish-language skill were as widespread in the United States as Arabic-language skill is. And suppose there were a large religious difference between Americans and Colombians. And suppose that Colombia contained a large, linguistically and ethnically distinct minority group that had been waging an armed struggle on-and-off for decades for its independence. Map a sectarian division among Colombia's Spanish-speaking Catholics onto the situation. And have it be that U.S. policy is widely blamed for first 12 years of severe economic deprivation and then for creating the current situation of chaos.

Well, that'd be a lot tougher. And yet for all the advantages we have in Colombia (to say nothing of the fact that the relatively small burden on the U.S. economy and military makes it much more reasonable to consider a long-term engagement) the situation has hardly been unproblematic over the years and it's not truly clear that it'll work. Rather than giving us confidence, in short, that we can make Iraq succeed, I think a consideration of Colombia should give us pause.

Comments

Colombian President Alvaro Uribe has fought -- and is winning -- a counterinsurgency war even as he has liberalized the economy, strengthened institutions, and improved human rights.

Improved human rights for whom? Not labor leaders. Uribe is a right winger. Why do you think the Boy King loves him so?

Posted by Joe Klein's conscience | May 1, 2008 11:52 AM

Gosh, you'd think that a discussion of Colombia's politics, development, and stability might at least mention that 1/3 of the Uribe-allied Congress is either under investigation or already arrested for operative ties with the nation's gigantic and far-from-demobilized right wing narco-paramilitary death squads, and there are still between 2 and 4 million internally displaced refugees, mostly small-holding farmers who have lost their lands either to guerrillas or many more to the paras and their large-landholding backers.

But since Kaplan's main intent is cheerleading for a particular "free trade" agreement, its' simply a simple story of policy success and expanding democracy and beating the guerrillas and there's no need to muddy it up with the sorts of complexities that are daily headlines in the Colombian and Latin American press.

Complexity would have to deal with the fact that tons of (primarily urban) Colombians both support their President while simultaneously wondering about the degree to which the state -- and maybe even Uribe himself, if he hasn't been smart enough -- has come under the sway of the drug-trade ruling narcoparamilitaries.

Colombian society, jurists, journalists, and politicians seem greatly interested in these sorts of questions, and are highly divided over their meaning and implications and their future -- even about the legitimacy of previous elections, many of which (particularly in rural areas where those who suffer most greatly live) apparently were often extorted or bribed or manipulated by illegal forces.

How much simpler their lives could be if only they would shrink their perspectives down to U.S. pundits barking about "free trade" and democracy!

Posted by El Cid | May 1, 2008 11:59 AM

Who the hell cares? It was time to leave 5 years ago, and we should never have been there in the first place.

Posted by kafka | May 1, 2008 12:00 PM

Yes, the headline "Extrajudicial slayings on rise in Colombia" doesn't exactly betoken a human rights improvement. Or, as a great man once said, "Death squads, dude."

Posted by Matt Weiner | May 1, 2008 12:02 PM

Colombia is also right next door, culturally part of the West -- well, the list could go on and on. A list of the differencs between Iraq and Colombia would be about a thousand times longer than the list of similarities. The fact that Kaplan would make such an argument is proof that he's out of good arguments to make.

Oh, and Matt -- if things are pretty good in Colombia, wouldn't it be a nice idea for the U.S. to pass that trade agreement, which would, you know, help the Colombians, who are among the poorest people in the hemisphere? Or is it more important to tell U.S. workers that we're "protecting" them from foreigners? Yeah, it would be nice to take care of that "farm stuff," but in the meantime it would be nice to help the Colombians too.

Posted by Alan Vanneman | May 1, 2008 12:03 PM

More on the murders of union leaders in Colombia.

Posted by Matt Weiner | May 1, 2008 12:05 PM

Columbia also has the second highest number of internally displaced persons of any country after Sudan. That's our best case aspiration for Iraq?!?!? Good Lord (yes, I mean that as a prayer).

Posted by flippantangel | May 1, 2008 12:39 PM

Isn't Shakira from Colombia?

Posted by Joe Klein's conscience | May 1, 2008 12:51 PM

Christ on a crutch,President Uribe's cousin is under arrest for ties to the paramilitaries.

Kaplan doesn't know what he's talking about.

Posted by Randy Paul | May 1, 2008 12:55 PM

Kaplan seems to have zero understanding of Colombia, Uribe and Latin American politics/history and US involvement there.

To put it simple: Uribe is EXACTLY like Fujimori (circa 10 years ago in Peru). Popular because of Law And Order but corrupt, dictatorial and embracing economic policies that will result in a terrible backlash. The fact that he wishes Colombia as Iraq makes me shudder. File this under the same brilliant plan to use death squads in Iraq as the US helped create in El Salvador. We see how that turned out.

Posted by lfo | May 1, 2008 1:17 PM

Kaplan seems to have zero understanding of Colombia, Uribe and Latin American politics/history and US involvement there.

To put it simply: Uribe is EXACTLY like Fujimori (circa 10 years ago in Peru). Popular because of Law And Order but corrupt, dictatorial and embracing economic policies that will result in a terrible backlash. We have NO idea of the degree of opression and human rights violations taking place at the moment. The place could implode and thanks to the military build up in the country courtesy of Plan Colombia it could be explosive in ways we have not seen in decades.

The fact that he wishes Colombia as Iraq makes me shudder. File this under the same brilliant plan to use death squads in Iraq as the US helped create in El Salvador. We see how that turned out.

Posted by lfo | May 1, 2008 1:18 PM

Mr. Kaplan seems to be unaware that Colombia's civil war has been going on for, in one form or another, fifty years (and is as yet far from over). Many civil wars that go on for long enough will eventually fizzle out because 1) the people who are willing to fight have killed each other off and 2) the rest of the population is so sick of war that they will take peace at just about any price. This is one of the lessons of the wars of religion in Europe.

Do we really want a 50-year civil war in Iraq? Of course it doesn't really matter what we want, that looks to be what we are going to get.

I wouldn't call Colombia part of 'the West', or for that matter any of Latin America (nor would I apply that term to much of Eastern and southeastern Europe). Part of Christendom certainly (which has never been conterminous with the West). But 'the West' in the modern understanding connotes belief in the value of post-Enlightenment liberalism, more than in Christianity. Those values, thank God, are far from universally accepted in Latin America- one needs only to look at Bolivia to see that.

Posted by Hector | May 1, 2008 2:17 PM

Suggesting that Uribe has "strengthened institutions and improved human rights" is really outrageous. We're talking about the Uribe that wants the Constitution (an "institution") changed so he can be president forever, 'elected' by death squad politics at the ballot box. Peasants are chased from their land by poisons sprayed from the air and death squads financed by drug smuggling and by the large landowners who will make the land into cattle ranches- to export beef to the US. Union leaders are killed faster in Colombia than anywhere else in the world, giving Colombian businesses low labor costs that US companies can never compete with. Journalists are another special target of the Uribe death squads, a fact which should, I believe, give MattY a little food for thought.

Unlike MattY, I do not think "the first two sentences are persuasive".

Posted by serial catowner | May 1, 2008 2:43 PM

wow...whoever wrote this piece just had their reputation handed to them on a platter

for more info on how corrupt the Colombian government is check out this blog belonging to American investors who got ripped off 25 years ago by the government of Colombia and now owe them billions

http://maritimasjustice.blogspot.com/

they even have a bounced government check

Posted by maremoto | May 1, 2008 3:20 PM

This post is a more balanced analysis of the recent developments in Colombia than what most of the previous commenters seems to have read.

In short, guerrilla and paramilitary violence in Colombia has declined markedly from the situation in 2002, when Uribe came into office. There are still a high level of violence, and increased government enforcement activity has probably had bad effects as well as positive ones. In any case, this is a long-standing crisis that Uribe has unquestionably improved, but the job is far from done.

We're talking about the Uribe that wants the Constitution (an "institution") changed so he can be president forever, 'elected' by death squad politics at the ballot box.

Link please? I don't believe Uribe has ever indicated any such desire.

Union leaders are killed faster in Colombia than anywhere else in the world

So is, you know, everyone.

Peasants are chased from their land...by drug smuggling and by the large landowners who will make the land into cattle ranches- to export beef to the US.

This is a ridiculous claim. Colombia is not a major beef exporter, particularly not to the US.

Posted by right | May 1, 2008 3:37 PM

wow...whoever wrote this piece just had their reputation handed to them on a platter

for more info on how corrupt the Colombian government is check out this blog belonging to American investors who got ripped off 25 years ago by the government of Colombia and now owe them billions

http://maritimasjustice.blogspot.com/

they even have a bounced government check

Posted by maremoto | May 1, 2008 3:52 PM

And who knows: if Maliki didn't also have a substantial foreign army occupying his country -- with no plans to leave --he might well achieve Columbian-levels of stability too!

Posted by DukeJ | May 1, 2008 3:52 PM

Uribe did not aim to change the Constitution so that he could be elected forever. He changed the Constitution once so that he could run for re-election, and up until recently had been consistently hinting that he would do it again so as to run for a 3rd term.

(However, current news is the testimony of Congresswoman Ydris Medina before the investigations of the federal Court to the effect that she claims Uribe systematically suborned Congressmembers to support the prior Constitutional amendment.)

Presumably if the very popular (in urban areas) Uribe changes the Constitution to allow a run for a 3rd term, he will do so without relying on his last campaign chief, Jorge Noguera, who was also the chief of the nation's intelligence agencies and secret police -- given that Noguera has been arrested for directly working with paramilitaries while working directly under Uribe.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/6388347.stm

This right wing nonsense about comparing general murder rates to rates of targeted assassinations of union leaders is darkly amusing -- and not just because it directly insults the idea of knowing what your sample population is. (I.e., your general risk of contracting tropical diseases may be generally at one level, unless you are a person who spends inordinate time in tropical areas, which of course raises your risk of exposure.) You compare rates of assassination of union leaders to the population of union leaders, not to the general population.

Union leaders' rates of assassinations had been going down, until this year, when so far 24 union leaders have been killed, more than in all of 2007, with such publicly accompanying prior death threats as to attract a warning yesterday from the UN.

And "right" is correct that the paramilitaries do not specifically target peasants for displacement from lands related to beef production; groups such as the Aguilas Negras simply target whichever small landholders prove an irritation to the latifundistas backing them.

"End violence against defenders in Colombia", the call of UN experts
United Nations Human Rights Council
via ReliefWeb

The United Nations Special Procedures mandate holders, whose names appear below, issued the following statement, today, 30 April, 2008.

GENEVA - 'We are deeply concerned by recent developments in Colombia indicating the deteriorating situation of human rights defenders in recent months, in particular the killings, harassment and intimidation of civil society activists, trade-union leaders and lawyers representing victims.

We recognize and appreciate the adoption of some measures by the Government of Colombia in an attempt to improve the security of those who find themselves at risk as a result of their activities in defense of human rights. We do, however, call upon the Government to provide more effective and consistent protection measures for defenders at risk as a matter of urgency.

In the first months of 2008, there have been 21 killings of trade unionists and civil society leaders and dozens of reports of death threats against activists and defenders from all backgrounds allegedly perpetrated by new illegal armed groups. The recent threats and attacks have principally been directed at organizers of, and participants in, the rally of 6 March, a demonstration intended to honor victims of paramilitary groups and to protest against crimes committed by State actors.

We firmly believe that a political response to the current situation of human rights defenders in Colombia is of the utmost importance. We urge the Government to take concrete steps to give public recognition and legitimacy to human rights defenders and their work, including to those who participated in the demonstration of 6 March. This public support can be demonstrated by way of firm condemnation of crimes, threats and attacks against defenders and by acknowledging the importance of their work.

Concrete and concerted action is needed to stop the endemic impunity for the crimes and violations committed against human rights defenders. We call on the Government to complement more effective protection measures with a functioning framework of investigations.

This escalation in violence against human rights defenders confirms the need for a vigorous and immediate reaction from the Government for the protection of defenders in Colombia. We, therefore, strongly recommend that urgent action be taken for effective protection of defenders at risk, more efficient investigations and conclusive prosecutions of perpetrators, and more open and firm cross-party political support and recognition to defenders and their work.'

This statement is issued by the Special Representative of the Secretary-General on the situation of human rights defenders, Ms Hina Jilani; the Special Rapporteur on extrajudicial, summary or arbitrary executions, Mr Philip Alston and the Special Rapporteur on the independence of judges and lawyers, Mr Leandro Despouy.

Further, it's kind of difficult to pile credit onto President Uribe for helping to quell paramilitary violence, since the height of modern paramilitary violence stems from the groups he excitedly supported as Governor of Antioquia (Medellin), the Convivir groups which even brought the attention of the U.S. state department to this governor advocating the arming of what were originally sold as civilian intelligence gathering groups.

From the National Security Archive's PDF of an October 9, 1996 U.S. State Department report (declassified on 22 May 2001) of a meeting called by then-President Samper on the "Convivir" program.

[The program basically launched the modern phase of the paramilitaries.]

"Alvaro Uribe Velez, Governor of Antioquia Department, used this forum [a meeting called by then-President Ernesto Samper] to advocate the proliferation of the controversial civilian rural security cooperatives known collectively as 'Convivir'.

Uribe argued that Antioquia's 56 Security Cooperatives, conceived to provide counter-guerrilla intelligence to local military and police authorities, have led to the capture of guerrilla leaders in the region.

Uribe has also called for the arming of some of these groups, which the government originally insisted would consist of unarmed, civic-minded citizens.

Some mayors in Antioquia, however, including Mayor Gloria Cuartas of Apartado in Antioquia's Uraba region, have rejected the Convivir concept...

Most human rights observers believe the Convivir groups pose a serious danger of becoming little more than vigilante organizations. An Embassy contat at the Defensoria del Pueblo (Office of the Government Human Rights Ombudsman) confirmed regional offices of the Defensoria have begun to receive complaints against these groups for exceeding their mandate.

One such complaint received at the national Defensoria cited a document distributed by the Rural Security Cooperatives of Norte del Cauca who declared their intention to 'physically eliminate' 100 individuals on an attached list."

http://www.gwu.edu/~nsarchiv/NSAEBB/NSAEBB217/index.htm

It should be noted that then-Mayor Cuartas -- no coward she, who took office at a time when guerrillas threatened to assassinate any candidate -- was right. She hopes to someday be able to return to her native region from her current UNESCO position in Venezuela if ever a peace process begins.

Posted by El Cid | May 1, 2008 4:05 PM

We Colombians, even those living abroad love Uribe for what he has done for our country! 80% approval ratings within the country. You cannot beat that you bunch of left leaning union thugs

Posted by Carlos | May 1, 2008 4:14 PM

Yet another collection of commentary from those who portray themselves as the well-informed experts on the subject at hand while displaying a colossal amount of ignorance & glaring political bias.

Yes, El Cid, a number of members of Alvaro Uribe's party are under investigation for suspected (by the way, that means not yet proven) wrongdoing. Isn't it a good thing that the Uribe administration is not attempting to cover these allegations up, but respecting the Colombian judicial system to look into these matters, bring charges & prosecute the accused if warranted? That's the kind of transparency you will not find under regime's such as Hugo Chavez & The Brothers Castro lead.

The facts on the ground (yes I have lived & worked in Colombia) also belie the implied claims of imminent failure of Plan Colombia & what a horrible ogre President Uribe is. Places that as little as ten years ago would likely have lead to the death or disappearance of any gringo foolish enough to venture there have become thriving tourist destinations & places that at least offer the opportunity to Colombians for a better life. Perhaps a visit to a city like Cartegena would help you put things in perspective.

Are there still horrible problems in Colombia? Absolutely! This is a country that has been in the grip of a civil war for over four decades, with armed groups on both sides that have degenerated into nothing more than murderous criminal gangs regardless of what their original political aspirations were. And the Colombian military & police have not exactly been shining examples of respect for human rights in the past. And yes most of the improvements have been in the urban areas with painfully slow progress being made in the rural areas of the country.

Even so, President Uribe is the first leader in Colombia in nearly half a century who has managed to make any significant progress in improving conditions in Colombia. Hate the man if you must, but at least be big enough (even if grudgingly so) to be honest in your assessment of his accomplishments, & to not be so willing to succumb to the temptation of guilt by association. Mr Uribe has been investigated repeatedly by various journalists & the judiciary in Colombia, & to date no evidence has been found linking him to any paramilitary group. (Evidence, that pesky little thing that is needed to prove allegations beyond a reasonable doubt).

Posted by Jeffrey Broman | May 1, 2008 4:15 PM

We Colombians, even those living abroad love Uribe for what he has done for our country! 80% approval ratings within the country. You cannot beat that you bunch of left leaning union thugs

Posted by Carlos | May 1, 2008 4:15 PM

We Colombians, even those living abroad love Uribe for what he has done for our country! 80% approval ratings within the country. You cannot beat that you bunch of left leaning union thugs

Posted by Carlos Ramirez | May 1, 2008 4:18 PM

We Colombians, even those living abroad love Uribe for what he has done for our country! 80% approval ratings within the country. You cannot beat that you bunch of left leaning union thugs

Posted by Carlos Ramirez | May 1, 2008 4:19 PM

We Colombians, even those living abroad love Uribe for what he has done for our country! 80% approval ratings within the country. You cannot beat that you bunch of left leaning union thugs

Posted by Carlos Ramirez | May 1, 2008 4:29 PM

Carlos Ramirez,

Something doesn't gain truth through mere repetition.

As for questions regarding Uribe's desire for a third term, he hasn't said yes, but he also hasn't said no either.

Posted by Randy Paul | May 1, 2008 4:54 PM

As for questions regarding Uribe's desire for a third term, he hasn't said yes, but he also hasn't said no either.

I agree it would be a horrible, horrible idea for him to seek a third term. In the entire history of Latin America, perhaps the single constant is: Presidents with more than two terms lead to disaster.

That said I am probably more willing than most people to give President Uribe the benefit of the doubt for the time being, and assume he is demurring for political reasons -- to keep his supporters from looking for successors. I think he understands what a bad idea a third term is and will designate a successor candidate as the election approaches.

Posted by right | May 1, 2008 5:04 PM

That said I am probably more willing than most people to give President Uribe the benefit of the doubt for the time being, and assume he is demurring for political reasons -- to keep his supporters from looking for successors

?!?!?!

Why would he be doing that? At some point won't someone have to replace him. With all due respect that doesn't make sense.

Posted by Randy Paul | May 1, 2008 5:19 PM

Why would he be doing that? At some point won't someone have to replace him.

Because he has 2.5 years left and doesn't want people to start thinking about who's next. For now, he's got all the political capital; why would he change that before he needs to?

Posted by right | May 1, 2008 5:31 PM

Ha ha, Uribe didn't change the law so he could be president forever, he just changed it so he could be president now, and he'll change it again if he wants to.

I guess we're lucky Bush has the attention span of a fruit fly, or he'd want to do the same thing.

Posted by serial catowner | May 1, 2008 6:24 PM

Right. It's just a problem of arrogant foreigners presuming to meddle in Colombian politics.

That's why Colombia's President Uribe has had to back a policy to the Congress of "silla vacia" which would deny seats to any party with a member guilty of paramilitary / illegal armed group links.

That's why Colombia's independent court system has been investigating not only Colombia's own Congress but the possible extortion and bribery of regional elections.

That's why the "parapolitica" scandal is on the front pages of each and every Colombian newspaper each and every day.

That's why the actual victims of paramilitary violence journeyed to Costa Rica to stop the President's cousin Mario Uribe seeking "asylum", and why the UN High Commission for Refugees has affiliated programs for the internally dispossessed.

That's why Colombian intellectuals genuinely puzzle over the Faustian bargain which was made over the past two decades -- does it in fact put your government in a deadly embrace to hire an army of right wing terrorist drug lords to fight your left wing terrorist drug lord foes?

Yeah. It's just the presumed "experts" and foreign critics who don't understand who just make all this up.

Sombrero de mago

Mucho olor a podrido

Por: Reinaldo Spitaletta | El Espectador

Son atrayentes las noticias de estas fechas. Con senadores -en rigor uribistas- que acuden a una embajada a pedir asilo político porque –dicen- se sienten perseguidos en Colombia. Esto sí rebasa las imaginaciones garciamarquianas. Y con el reverdecer de declaraciones de la señorita Yidis, aquella cuyo voto “comprado” reformó la Constitución y dio luz verde a la reelección presidencial.

Lo habíamos escrito por aquellas calendas (2004) en un diario de Medellín que, por lo demás, censuró la columna: “Fue muy lindo (¿Teodolindo?) aquello. Los heraldos del Presidente, ahí el supernotariado, allí el director del DAS, acullá el Minprotección, allá el justiciero Mininterior, ofreciendo leches y mieles por un voto”. Y aquel hecho (cohecho) ahora vuelve a estar en la palestra para mostrar la corruptela oficial. Gajes de la memoria recuperada.

Tal suceso no fue un episodio nauseabundo, ni vergonzoso, ni de prostitución política, sino lo de siempre: una orquestación del poder para seguir en el poder. Suele pasar en Colombia. No hay “compra de conciencias”, sino persuasión, según reciente eufemismo presidencial.

Digo que ya las noticias no son solamente de pobres que se vuelven más pobres porque se les cayó la casa, ni de colegialas lesbianas, ni acerca de liposucciones mortales. No. También, a fuerza de los hechos, se filtran en noticiarios y periódicos la parapolítica, la intentona de asilarse en la embajada de Costa Rica del primo del presidente de la república, las declaraciones de una testigo de cargo, en fin. El espectáculo sube en emociones.

Parece que ahora, el unanimismo y el pensamiento único, que quisieron imponer los plutócratas en el país, se han ido desmoronando. Van destapándose las componendas y maridajes, los turbios matrimonios entre políticos y paracos, las cuotas de las “autodefensas” en el Congreso. Y hasta los “falsos positivos”, tan comunes desde hace rato en este reino de la mentira, el clientelismo y la corrupción.

No sé si a usted le motiva la risa aquella consigna presidencial “contra la politiquería y la corrupción”, y precisamente la realidad, tan tozuda, ha evidenciado que este régimen se ha sustentado en esos dos avatares. Cuando el caso de cohecho, que implicó entonces a altos dignatarios del gobierno, se decía que a cambio del voto para la reelección se realizaría en las comarcas de los seducidos por la política (politiquería) oficial, inversiones sociales. Curioso trueque aquel. Las “vergonzosas” dádivas de don Sabas y compañía eran un recorte de camino para la reelección.

Ah, y lo peor para los vendedores de votos: no les cumplieron la promesa. Se quedaron con el pecado y sin el género. Ah, y lo de la inversión social ha sido lo de menos. ¿Cuál? La de cerrar hospitales, acabar con el Seguro Social, aumentar la pobreza y el desempleo y el número de desplazados, la de privatizar boyantes empresas estatales, al tiempo que hay empresas privadas de salud están bajo el control de parapolíticos.

Ahora sí las noticias –incluso las de los canales y periódicos oficiosos- hablan del fracaso del cabildeo colombiano en la metrópoli para la suscripción del TLC, y de la protesta de más de sesenta congresistas gringos que protestan ante el gobierno colombiano (¿otro acto de injerencia en los asuntos internos?) por las declaraciones temerarias del asesor presidencial José Obdulio Gaviria sobre la marcha del pasado 6 de marzo.

Y también se habla de la catástrofe de la agricultura colombiana, de la conversión del país de exportador a importador de alimentos, del maltrato del minagricultura a los desplazados por la violencia. ¿Qué estará pasando que hasta los medios de información más oficialistas están incluyendo en sus agendas noticiosas los casos de parapolítica y otras truhanerías? La política (politiquería) colombiana se ha movido siempre por el clientelismo, el tráfico de influencias, los contratos, las comisiones, las “dádivas” como aquellas con las cuales compraron votos para la reelección, y tal situación de inmoralidades y corrupciones ha aumentado en los últimos tiempos.

Ah, y el caso de la parapolítica es impresionante. El ochenta por ciento de los vinculados a las investigaciones por ese rubro son uribistas. ¿Será mera coincidencia? Y qué tal los asesinatos de sindicalistas. Por estos días, el senador Jorge Robledo lo recordó en un debate al ministro de Protección (?) Social: “Desde el 2002, en el gobierno de Álvaro Uribe Vélez, 85% de los sindicalistas asesinados en el mundo son colombianos. En el año 2003, el 73% de los sindicalistas asesinados en el mundo son colombianos. En el 2004 el 66% y en el 2005 el 61%”.

Alguna vez el escritor Jorge Luis Borges dijo que ya no leía periódicos porque desde el descubrimiento de América no se producía ninguna noticia importante. Bueno, por estos días en Colombia las noticias son atrayentes, no porque estén bien escritas o bien dichas, sino porque ante la fuerza de los acontecimientos tienen que darles cabida a las que muestran a un régimen de putrefacciones. Como decía un viejo pensador: las sociedades, a diferencia de los hombres, primero se pudren y después se mueren.

http://tinyurl.com/6em6jd

Or, another outside arrogant leftist unionist thug agitator outlining the seriousness of the matter.

Revocar el Congreso vía referendo propone Ernesto Samper
El Tiempo

Esa es la única manera de devolverle transparencia al Legislativo, afectado por el escándalo de la parapolítica, y salir de la crisis por la que cruza el país, aseguró el ex presidente.

El ex Jefe de Estado consideró que la reforma política "ayuda a cerrar la herida, pero no cura la infección. La infección solamente se va a curar cuando se le devuelva la credibilidad al Congreso a través de ese referendo Constituyente, que está totalmente permitido en la Constitución".

Las declaraciones de Samper se dieron durante el Foro sobre la Vida y Obra de Alfonso López Michelsen, en el Festival de la Leyenda Vallenata que se celebra en Valledupar.

En declaraciones a EL TIEMPO, al terminar su disertación en el foro, Samper dijo: "Pienso que la reforma política que se está tramitando, paradójicamente, si funciona, va a acabar con el Congreso. Porque si cada parlamentario que se lleve la Corte va a terminar dejando una silla vacía y si todavía faltan algunos parlamentarios, prácticamente el Congreso llegará a ser inoperante.

El ex mandatario subrayó que este mecanismo está previsto en la Constitución Nacional y consideró que ahora la política no la estaban haciendo los políticos, sino los medios de comunicación, las ONG y otras instituciones.

Y agregó: "Por eso digo que esta es una reforma temporal y que solamente habrá una reforma de fondo cuando se le devuelva la credibilidad al Congreso, que la ha perdido como órgano legislativo, lo cual tiene que hacerse utilizando el artículo 398 de la Constitución, o el 378, quizás, sobre el Referendo Constituyente, una ley que convoque un referendo para revocar y renovar el Congreso por cinco años".

Para Samper, "con un Congreso así es difícil pensar que se pueda seguir una estrategia legislativa o que podamos mantener el equilibrio de poderes que tiene que existir entre Congreso, poder judicial y poder ejecutivo".

De acuerdo con Samper, la iniciativa de este referendo sería del propio Gobierno. "Esto no es un acuerdo nacional, donde hay que presentar una propuesta de ley. Está establecida en la Constitución. Pero, repito, de común acuerdo con las fuerzas de la oposición. Los pactos nacionales no se hacen consigo mismos, se hacen precisamente con las otras fuerzas", aseveró.

"En la base está la pérdida de legitimidad del Congreso y eso me preocupa porque lo que hace la diferencia entre una democracia y una dictadura es el Congreso, y con el que tenemos lo que debería caminar sobre tres patas esta caminando en dos", concluyó Samper.

Insistió en buscar el acerdo humanitario

"Llevamos más de cinco o seis años trabajando y luchando por un acuerdo humanitario que permita la liberación de esos denominados secuestrados intercambiales, algunos que llevan más de diez años (...). Por supuesto hay dos vías, ambas constitucionales", dijo Samper

Según Samper, la primera es la vía del rescate militar "que ha demostrado no ser la mejor, como lo fueron los hechos lamentables que llevaron al asesinato de Gilberto Echeverri, Guillermo Gaviria o el fallecimiento de los 11 diputados del Valle".

La otra vía, que fue su propuesta, "igualmente consagrada en la Constitución, es la de la aplicación del Derecho Internacional humanitario".

Y en algún momento de su intervención dijo que, en ese sentido, Colombia se encontraba entre dos opciones: "El despeje o Chávez. Un despeje con una solución a la colombiana o la intervención de Chávez con países amigos".

Así explicó su tesis: "El Gobierno no puede seguir dando vueltas alrededor del tema del acuerdo humanitario. Hay dos salidas: o acepta el despeje de Florida y Pradera o un despeje que pueda acordar con las Farc, o busca al Presidente Hugo Chávez, que es la única persona que ha mostrado en estos cinco años que tiene capacidad de producir resultados. Liberó a seis personas, consiguió pruebas de supervivencia, tiene unos contactos con las Farc que no hemos logrado. Ni siquiera el 'comisionado para la guerra', que ha estado más interesado en otros temas", concluyó.

LILIANA MARTÍNEZ POLO
ENVIADA ESPECIAL
VALLEDUPAR

http://tinyurl.com/3t9z5g

Posted by El Cid | May 1, 2008 7:43 PM

One of Robert Kaplan's major interests is ethnic conflict, yet he fails to see the major differences between Colombia's civil war in which the narco-communist FARC fights against everyone else and ethnic-sectarian violence in Iraq and Afghanistan? WTF?

Posted by Reality Man | May 2, 2008 7:24 AM

For now, he's got all the political capital; why would he change that before he needs to?

Because a wise leader builds institutions that outlast his rule.

Posted by Randy Paul | May 2, 2008 10:29 AM