atrocities. You, more than anyone, have revealed the independence and tenacity of the Colombian legal system, and demonstrated the claim that Colombia doesn't pursue criminals is completely false.

recommending

RESEARCH SERIES: USE AND ABUSE OF
EXTRADITION IN THE WAR ON DRUGS*

Policy Brief Number 6/ March 15, 2010
The Supreme Court: Doing Justice by Restoring Justice

On the 17th of February this year the Supreme Court denied
the request for the extradition of Edwar Cobos Téllez, alias “Diego
Vecino”. The former paramilitary leader of the Montes de María
Bloc had been active in Sucre and Bolívar Departments and he
is considered to have instigated or been involved in infamous
massacres such as those perpetrated in Macayepo, Chengue, El
Salado, and Mampuján, and Las Brisas, among others.

The request was declined for the same legal reasons that the
high court cited in refusing to allow the extradition of Luís Edgar
Medina Flórez, alias “Commander Chaparro”, a demobilized fighter
from the AUC Tayrona Resistance Bloc.

These two rulings reflect a drastic change in the court’s jurisprudence
on extradition, given that no fewer than 28 former paramilitary
leaders had been extradited to the United States on drug
trafficking charges. This policy brief looks at the motives for this
change in jurisprudence, and the possible implications for both
for the fight against drug trafficking, as well as for the Justice and
Peace Law.

FIP makes recommendations to the Colombian and U.S. Governments
with the aim of substantially improving two-way judicial
cooperation. So far, the extradition of paramilitary leaders
has better served the interests of those who are fighting drug
trafficking, at the expense of the investigations being conducted
by the Colombian justice system to establish the truth, reparation,
and justice for acts of paramilitary barbarism. If the latter
situation does not change, the United States will see the use
of extradition drastically cut back as a tool for combating drug
trafficking.

http://www.ideaspaz.org/portal/images/Policy_Brief_6_en.pdf

Reminder to DU'er of the most vicious of this clown's lifetime achievements:

~snip~
In
this massacre around 12 peasants (“campesinos”) were slashed
with machetes and clubbed to death and the incident, along with
other violent actions, caused the displacement of around 4,000
people in Sucre and Bolívar Departments.5 Of all the paramilitaries’
barbaric deeds, the terrified “campesinos” have never forgotten
the soccer games that paramilitaries played with the heads of
their murdered victims.

I just don't know why someone would say the government doesn't. thanks to you, we know that isn't true.

Colombia Remains Violent for Trade Unionists, Even After US Free Trade Deal
By: David Dayen Thursday January 26, 2012 11:38 am

Remember during the debate over the Colombian trade deal when the Administration swore up and down that they would, as a condition of putting the free trade agreement forward, insist on an “action plan” that would end the murder of trade unionists in Colombia and bring about justice for those already killed? Yeah, so, we’re several months beyond the passage of those trade deals – Obama highlighted them in the State of the Union on Tuesday. So how’s that action plan going? Not so well, Human Rights Watch says.

In its World Report 2012, the human rights organization stated that Washington “provided approximately US$562 million in aid, about 61 percent of which was military and police aid. Thirty percent of US military aid is subject to human rights conditions, which the US Department of State has not enforced.”

The report also criticized the U.S. for failing to “address the paramilitary successor groups believed to be responsible for a large portion of anti-union violence,” as promised in the April 2011 Labor Action Plan. Improving the situation of labor rights for Colombian workers was a condition for the Democrats to ratify the free trade agreement with the South American country.

~snip~

But the other problem here is that there has been no accountability for any of the other murders. Practically nobody has been prosecuted for committing acts of violence against unionists, or even for making threats. There have been 195 trade unionist murders since 2007 and just 6 convictions, and zero convictions on any attempted homicides or threats, which number in the thousands.

More:
http://news.firedoglake.com/2012/01/26/colombia-remains-violent-for-trade-unionists-even-after-us-free-trade-deal/

[center]~~~~~[/center]

Colombia: Ensure Justice for Anti-Union Violence
Letter to Attorney General Morales
October 3, 2011

Dear Attorney General Morales:

~snip~

As you know, Colombia continues to face an extraordinarily high level of anti-union violence.[1] While the number of trade unionists killed every year is certainly less today than a decade ago,it remains higher than any other country in the world. The National Labor School (ENS), Colombia’s leading NGO monitoring labor rights, reports that in 2010 there were 51 killings of trade unionists, 22 homicide attempts, and 397 threats.[2]
A major reason for this ongoing violence has been the chronic lack of accountability for cases of anti-union violence. Colombia has failed to deliver justice for more than 2,500 trade unionist killings committed over the past 25 years.[3] As Vice-President Angelino Garzón acknowledged during a November 2010 speech, “[T]he immense majority of crimes [against] trade unionists remain in impunity…there have been advances in the investigations…but we still have not gotten to 200 court rulings, and there are thousands of workers and union leaders killed and disappeared.”[4]

~snip~

Over the past several months, Human Rights Watch has carried out a comprehensive evaluation of the sub-unit’s work, reviewing hundreds of court judgments for crimes against trade unionists, examining the most recent available data provided by the Attorney General’s Office on the status of investigations, and conducting dozens of interviews with prosecutors, judges, rights advocates, and victims.

Our research has found severe shortcomings in both the scope of the sub-unit’s work and the investigative methodology that it employs. In terms of the scope, we found that:

• The increase in the number of convictions since the sub-unit’s creation, while substantial, represents only a small fraction of the total number of cases of trade unionist killings that still need to be investigated and prosecuted.
• The increase in convictions is largely due to confessions provided by paramilitaries under the Justice and Peace process, which does not apply to cases of killings committed after 2006.
• The sub-unit has made virtually no progress in obtaining convictions for killings from the past four-and-a-half years.
• The sub-unit has made virtually no progress in prosecuting people who order, pay, instigate or collude with paramilitaries in attacking trade unionists.

More:
http://www.hrw.org/news/2011/10/03/colombia-ensure-justice-anti-union-violence

[center]~~~~~[/center]

Posted: February 11, 2011 01:06 PM
Colombia's Anti-Union Violence Rules out Free Trade Agreement

~snip~

The level of anti-union violence in Colombia is only acceptable if you don't really care about the victims or justice. Last year, 46 unionists were murdered in a country less than one-seventh the size of the United States -- a rate that would translate to more than 320 murdered union members and leaders in a country of our size. Would we stand for that here?

Even if the number of murders had fallen to zero last year, it would be far too soon to reward Colombia for an improvement. The violence against unionists in Colombia has been so vicious and overwhelming that there should be no trade deal until years have passed without any further incidents. In addition to the murders of more than 2,850 trade unionists (more than 700 of whom were union leaders) over the last 25 years, there have been more than 10,000 violent incidents such as kidnappings, cases of torture, assaults, death threats, disappearances, etc.

Appalling violence continues in Colombia. Last year's 46 murders of unionists followed 47 in 2009 and 49 in 2008. Eleven of the 2010 murders occurred during the new Santos presidency, and dozens of death threats are being made against unionists and their leaders month after month. The campaign of terror hasn't stopped.

~snip~

Most of the unionists' murders have never even been investigated. The Colombian attorney general is investigating only 800 cases in the union\human rights groups' database of murdered trade unionists.

More:
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/ross-eisenbrey/colombias-antiunion-viole_b_820629.html

for example, the last story obviously isn't accurate. the FTA will be signed and Obama will be in Colombia this month. I can't believe its taken this long for him to get there frankly given Colombia's staunch support of the US.

Colombia is a violent country. never claimed it wasn't. and unionists aren't the only ones murdered or their lives more important than others killed.

its a good sign though that Colombia is agressive in pursuing justice and maintains an independent justice system, as you frequently point out, unlike some of their neighbors particularly the one located to the east.

Let me see...

Thousands of news about Colombia not prosecuting atrocities, over the years - bullshit.

One news about Colombia prosecuting atrocities - a prove of the "independence and tenacity of the Colombian legal system".

In Brazil we have a popular saying ("o pior cego é o que não quer ver&quot that can be translated as "the worst blind is the one who doesn't want to see". Is that used in English also?

------------------

*Edit. Posted in the wrong place. This is an answer to Bacchus comment (1).

It has been that way since the beginning. Also, the assassinations were carried out by the same paramilitaries who have been connected to the Colombian military for ages, as has been proven, even by testimony in court from former death squad members, the same paramilitaries whose connections have even been traced right to the brother and cousin of the last Colombian President, Alvaro Uribe, whose entire political group has had its senators and congressmen sent to prison in the last couple of years, after Uribe's power was weakening.

It's just a matter of time until the last Colombian President finally is trapped in a corner and won't be able to escape ALL the connections which will condemn him for life. It was known years ago, as was testified by Colombian citizens that the death squads have been lurking in the voting centers, even going into voting booths to intimidate the Colombian voters into voting for Uribe, "Vote for him, the one wearing glasses."

Colombia has managed to withstand all movements toward democracy by murdering all serious candidates from the left for high office, the most famous one, Jorge Eliécer Gaitán Ayala, in 1948 set off a period of hellish murderous war known as "La Violencia" which lasted 10 years.

Thanks for posting the saying, "o pior cego é o que não quer ver". It's proven to us daily!

its not just one story. this is just another instance.

I completely agree with that saying. I constantly see it on DU.

of assassination, torture, etc. against union workers, and the few which have been undertaken are wildly insufficient, and very, very recent, as in during the time the FTA has been held up because of universal protests over Colombia's human rights records.

Pretty damned low, but it's a familiar pattern.

Please take the time to note:

numerous stories of paramilitaries and military officials being prosecuted and then make a claim that the Colombian government doesn't prosecute atrocities.

whether the prosecution is sufficiently broad and every injustice is being pursued is a completely different matter.

Since Santos, justice is being done. That is a fact. Viva Santos.