The Referendum in Colombia: Democratic Participation or Endorsement of

Dictatorship?

I was just reading this, and it made me think of Musharraf's
referendum. I guess Alvaro is taking lessons.


June 30, 2003

The Referendum in Colombia: Democratic Participation or Endorsement of Dictatorship?

by Pablo Emilio Alvarez

Now more than ever, the referendum proposed by the government of President Alvaro Uribe Vélez and
approved by the Colombian Congress is a heated topic of discussion. The recent declaration by the
Procurador General that proclaimed 15 of the 19 points of the referendum as unconstitutional have the
government on edge, despite Minister of Justice Fernando Londoño's best attempts to minimize the
impact of the pronouncements. According to a recent survey, a mere 3.7 percent of the population
claim to have a good understanding of what this referendum is all about. Researchers have also
determined that an average person needs 27 minutes to thoroughly read all 19 points of the
referendum. If you combine this with the restricted conditions in which the vote is taking place (voters
cannot cast partial ballots or declare that they are in agreement with only some of the government's
proposals and not with others), it is hard to consider this vote a strictly democratic act.

Seen through the lens of the waves of propaganda launched by the
Uribe administration through the corporate media, this referendum can
perhaps best be described as a proselytizing campaign in support of
promises that cannot be kept, given the current state of the country
and the personal interests of the people holding the reins of power in
Colombia today.

Included in the various points of the referendum are several which will
especially affect public sector employees, including the proposal to
get rid of the state and municipal contralorias that would, if passed,
literally leave thousands of public employees out on the street. With
no means of earning income to support their families, they would
inevitably join the swelling ranks of Colombia's poor. Equally, the proposal to eliminate the personerias
(city clerks) in municipalities with less than 100,000 inhabitants would also add to the chaotic situation
of chronic unemployment and poverty.

Colombia Report

Interesting site also, bookmarked it. thanks.

One of the links on the side of the main page was rather surreal, Powell apparently lying in front of Congress again--
http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&u=/ap/20030708/ap_on_re_la_am_ca/us_colombia_6

Doesn't change fast, but the quality is high.
Narco News is good too, but a bit more histrionic.
And TriniCenter, better for keeping up.
I actually find google search works best for a lot of the
"little wars" that aren't "interesting" to US media.

I saw the thing about Colon "certifying" Colombia, but
didn't really consider it "news". It is impossible to keep
the money straight down there anyway, what with the ICC fuss
and all the black-budget funds going back & forth, and lets
not forget the pharmaceuticals.