cannabisnews.com: Hard-Liner Elected in Colombia With a Mandate 





Hard-Liner Elected in Colombia With a Mandate 
Posted by CN Staff on May 26, 2002 at 22:33:43 PT
By Juan Forero
Source: New York Times 
Bitter after three years of fruitless peace talks, voters gave a resounding victory today to a hard-right candidate for president who promises a sharp buildup in the armed forces to battle two rebel groups that have been waging war for 38 years.With 97 percent of returns counted this evening, election officials said Álvaro Uribe Vélez had received 53 percent of the vote, more than 20 percentage points ahead of his closest rival, Horacio Serpa, a Liberal Party populist. 
By the end of the night, Mr. Uribe had collected the majority needed to avoid a June runoff with Mr. Serpa — an unmistakable endorsement of Mr. Uribe's hard-line policies.A former governor and mayor of Colombia's second-largest city, Medellín, Mr. Uribe, 49, promises an uncompromising "hard hand" against the insurgents, a position that has resonated across this nation of 40 million people in an election that was being closely followed by American officials."The international community should know Colombia has expressed its desire to recover civility, to recover order," Mr. Uribe said tonight, flanked by his family and supporters, in a 35-minute acceptance speech at a Bogotá hotel. "That Colombia does not want the world to just know the bad news about the violence, but that the world be notified of our determination to defeat violence."Mr. Uribe quickly received the backing of the American ambassador, Anne Patterson, who arrived at the hotel to offer congratulations. "We're ready to work with the next government," Ms. Patterson said. She said Washington expected to have close relations with Mr. Uribe, who will be inaugurated in August, replacing President Andrés Pastrana. Ms. Patterson added that the results of the vote showed that "Colombians are fed up with terrorism." Mr. Uribe's proposals — to double the size of the army's combat force to 100,000 soldiers and the National Police to 200,000 — could mean a more tangible American role in a country that produces 80 percent of the cocaine consumed in the United States.Because of that and Colombia's increasing instability, the United States has already made it the third-largest recipient of American aid. The assistance is limited to counter-drug operations, but the Bush administration is pushing Congress to drop restrictions so Colombia can use American helicopters and troops trained by American soldiers in direct combat with rebels.It is a proposition that President Pastrana, who was constitutionally barred from re-election, lobbied for after his peace talks with Colombia's largest rebel group, the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia, collapsed in February. If the American government agrees to provide aid to battle the rebels, Mr. Uribe seems willing to be an unwavering soldier in the fight. He has continuously stressed that the only way Colombia can extricate itself from its mess is by controlling the rebels."We do not need American troops, but what we need is to strengthen Plan Colombia," Mr. Uribe said in a recent interview, referring to a $1.1 billion mostly military aid package the United States Congress approved in 2000. "We need the resources from Plan Colombia, the helicopters and equipment, to be used to combat crimes, to prevent massacres, to prevent takeovers of towns, that they be used against kidnappings and to prevent forced displacements of villagers." Tired of escalating rebel violence, Colombians were willing to overlook concerns about the possibility of a more violent conflict in accepting Mr. Uribe's message."Now with Uribe as president, we are going to confront the guerrillas," said Camilo Santaella, a lawyer, moments after he cast his ballot in a suburban-like Bogotá neighborhood. "At last the hour has arrived to defend ourselves and finish with the cancer that's killing Colombia."Human rights groups warn that Mr. Uribe's plans could lead to increased abuses that would mostly befall poor villagers who live in the areas where the fighting often takes place. Mr. Uribe has tried to minimize those possibilities, saying he plans to combat illegal right-wing paramilitary forces with as much vigor as he does the rebels. Some Colombians fear that Mr. Uribe will take a softer approach to the paramilitaries, considering his close association with military officers accused of rights abuses and his friendships with far-right Colombians. The paramilitaries pay for their war against rebel sympathizers with drug trafficking and the donations of large landowners.Mr. Uribe, however, said he holds open the possibility of peace talks. Tonight he called for international mediation for future negotiations and urged the rebels to lay down their arms.But it is unlikely the rebels will declare a unilateral cease-fire or stop kidnappings — two demands Mr. Uribe says the guerrillas must meet before the government sits down to negotiate. As for Colombia's other myriad problems, Mr. Uribe has promised to reduce corruption and trim the size of Congress, measures that he says will save money for use in building up the army and addressing social programs."It is the message of a strong state with a communitarian component that includes social investments," said Hárvey Suárez of Codhes, a respected group that works with Colombians displaced by the war. "But I think people are letting themselves get seduced by promises." The voters gave Mr. Uribe, who survived an assassination attempt in April, a strong mandate. In taking the first round, he became the first candidate to avoid a runoff in the decade since the two-phase electoral system was put in place. According to a survey of Colombian lawmakers by the University of Los Andes, he and his running mate, the journalist Francisco Santos, have the support of 55 of 102 senators and of 97 of 165 representatives.To be sure, the election underscored voter weariness with centrists like Mr. Serpa, a longtime politician who took only 32 percent of the vote. Though Mr. Uribe was a member of the Liberal Party, voters saw him as an outsider who started his own movement, Colombia First.Luis Eduardo Garzón, a leftist union leader also running under an independent coalition, took advantage of voter disenchantment, too. Though little known a few months ago, Mr. Garzón apparently took third place even though the organized left has been largely destroyed by assassinations. His good performance came at the expense of Noemí Sanín, who was once considered a contender to become Colombia's first female president.Voters said they responded to Mr. Uribe's straightforward style at a time when they were ready for drastic change. "His discourse has been more coherent than the others, even if you do not agree with him," said Carlos Salgado, interim director of Planeta Paz, a peace group here.Mr. Uribe has proposed legislation that would expand the state's authority to detain suspected terrorists and enable government wiretaps. He has offered sketchy plans to bring in United Nations troops to ensure stability in war-torn regions. He has talked little about how he would pay for his proposals, though a top aide said higher taxes were a possibility."The only way I can respond to the people for this generous and clear mandate in a time of national difficulty is by applying my energy and asking God to give me more and more energy," Mr. Uribe said tonight.Just four years ago, Mr. Pastrana won a big victory as president on his pledge to bring peace through negotiations. But his decision to cede a swath of jungle to the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia as a venue for talks became an embarrassing failure. The guerrillas were accused of using the zone to mount offensives, grow drug crops, stash arms and hide kidnapping victims. Complete Title: Hard-Liner Elected in Colombia With a Mandate to Crush RebelsSource: New York Times (NY)Author: Juan FereroPublished: May 27, 2002Copyright: 2002 The New York Times Company Contact: letters nytimes.com Website: http://www.nytimes.com/ Related Articles & Web Site:Colombia Drug War Newshttp://freedomtoexhale.com/colombia.htm The U.S. Struggle to Battle Drugs in Colombia http://cannabisnews.com/news/thread12958.shtmlColombian Vote's Sinister Side http://cannabisnews.com/news/thread12957.shtmlColombia Rebels Could Be Target in Terror War http://cannabisnews.com/news/thread12630.shtml
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Comment #9 posted by qqqq on May 27, 2002 at 09:32:43 PT
....Ranting Ramblings from Outer Space....
...It looks to me as if the empire has succeeded in conjuring up a 'numbness',amongst the Sheeple,,,, the Sheeple who graze upon the daily portions of administered "news"....Think about it......consider the recent "terror alert" charades.....I find it utterly DISGUSTING,,to realize that most of the American people ,,who are spoon-fed their "news",from the empire media,,seem to be accepting it all,,,hook,,line and sinker!........
Like some idiot hillbilly fantasizing about orderin' some X-Ray Specs,from the back page of an Archie comic book, ,,it doesnt seem like anyone has 'caught on',to the absurd game that is being played out by the court appointed administration!.......I mean,,,let's just look at some of the highlights of the last year.......
*)...Item:...usa/patriot act passed into law in about a week.!!!..this could be compared to something like giving the IRS,your bank account #,so it can make automatic withdrawals for your "tax obligations"....yes,,and the usa/patriot act passed with almost zero debate ,,and a majority of our "elected officials",admitted to having not even read the article they signed into law...(keep in mind,,these are all people who have sworn an oath to defend,and uphold the Constitution !...
*)....Item:....Color coded "terror level" indicator system!......What sort of IDIOT who just got off the boat fell for this cruel joke!???..Would someone get mad,or offended,,if I pointed my finger,and laughed my ass off....in the sheer grotesque comic ridicule of this color coded "terror alertnessomometer"!!!?!!!. It's almost a fucking hilarious,and tragicly absurd as the "non specific,unverified,and uncorroberated" reports that terrorist may strike anywhere soon...They didnt leave out anything in their circus of possible terror "targets"!..We heard that terrorists may be planning to strike apartment buildings,,,then shopping malls,,,,,,,tyhen,,we heard that they might aim at national landmarks,,,,then,,there was a warning about terrorist scuba divers!!  ......!GREAT CEASARS GHOST! ,,,how fucking silly does it have to get before people start to WAKE fucking UP!....What,,, will the next terror alert be that terrorists might take over the Airport Orifice Checkers Union at the airport??? .. What's it gonna take?...Do you suppose that if the "news" headlines said:.."Latest terrorist alert warns of threat to US government...Al-Quieda linked to Libertarian Party."..........That may sound absurd,,but if you stop and think about it for a moment,,you will know why I am kicking the dead horse,,and banginbg the gong,about the empire dominating and formulating the national"news"...It's not that farfetched,,,"Bin Laden link with Libertarian party exposed",,,,and there would be millions of republicrat sheeple,in front of their network TVs,and corporate newspapers/magazines,.......and the gossip would be,,,"did you hear that the Libertarians are funded by Bin-laden,,and that John Ashcroft has seized all their assets?".....yup,,,they found a bunch of Al-Quieda stuff at Harry Brownes house,and Al-Quieda prisoners have admitted that Harry Browne was on Bin-Ladens payroll................................
.......would this be a suprize????...NO...not really ,when one considers the antics that have all ready been pulled of on America!.....We are coming dangerously close to a time,,when people will continue to disappear....Scarcely an eyebrow was raised,when right after the Enron bust,,,this top Enron executive suddenly commits "suicide".. This guy was in the process of buying a yacht!,,he had no history of depression,or emotional abnormalities,,,,,but what do ya know,,he shot himself in the head,in the middle of the night,,wearing his pajamas!!!...have we seen any real "news",about this?.....hmmm,,,not really...... Consider this,,,What about investigative news show on network TV?..Has anyone seen ANY 60 Minutes/48 Hours/Nightlines ,that have asked any serios questions about the rotten and obvious stench of corruption on catitol hill??????...NO........ It reminds me of that thing that a German Jew wrote about the Nazis,,,,something like,,"first they came for my neighbor,,,then they took away my cousin,,now they are taking me away,,.(that's a shabby rendition of what I'm talking about,,but I know someone out there will know what I mean,and hopefully post the actual quote)....
..that's kindaof the way it has been with the drug war,,,,,no one really knows what the fuck is going on,,until their son gets busted with a pot plant,,and they take Dads house,,but by then,it's a bit late to get involved in and dissenting movement......once you get the drug offender/terrorist linked,label,,,you're outa there......,
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Comment #8 posted by Letsgetfree on May 27, 2002 at 08:10:30 PT
I just heard about...
Uribe accepting president for 2 days Carmona into Columbia. We can see how nicely all the pieces fit togther, Carmona fails in Venezuela then runs and hides behind the new U.S. boi on da block, Uribe. If no one is scared of what's going down, pull your head out of the sand. Dark days ahead.
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Comment #7 posted by Duzt on May 27, 2002 at 07:53:27 PT
getting scary now
I travel quite a bit around the world and have seen some crazy things happening in the past couple of years. Hirst Bush is not elected President by the people and becomes Pres. (I was just in Miami with some influential friends and they explained very well how Jeb erased 2 counties votes which totalled to almost 400,000 votes which were counted by an independent company and verified). Then several European countries have far right conservatives elected including Holland. Noe South America will be having Bush-selected officials put into office (they failed in Venezuela and France). These people know they can control everything if they control those that are in power in other countries, which they have been trying to do forever. Thankfully there will always be places like Australia that don't let us rule them, hopefully.
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Comment #6 posted by Lehder on May 27, 2002 at 06:04:32 PT
mandate for war
Uribe was first elected to public office in 1982 as mayor of Medellin where he served as an employee of cartel boss Pablo Escobar. He now works for the DEA. As president of Colombia his second order of business, after accepting massive military assistance from the US, will be to pick a fight with Venezuela. That's where the oil is. Colombians are now assured of another four years of escaling drug war and probable expansion of the civil war to a continental scale.
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Comment #5 posted by dddd on May 27, 2002 at 05:28:10 PT
....Doh!!...
...believe it or not,,,,Zappa was my first guess,,but I started thinking about the "over 20 years ago",clause,,and I thought Zappa would be too obvious,,,then,I started trying to remember when Frank died,,(prostate cancer,,I dont recall what year?)............I know I'm always telling of superflous experiences of long ago,, ,so I guess I'll do it again,,...I saw Frank Zappa & TheMothers of Invention at the Moore Theatre in Seattle..I was 14 years old....the other band was Golden Earring,,(a dutch band,,with their big hit,'Radar Love')....I remember the only Frank Zappa album I had,was on the 'Verve" label,,,,and it had weird songs with lines like;,,,"only thirteen and she knows how to nasty".....The Zappa band put on a somewhat dimented show,,I believe they were joined by two members of 'The Turtles',,(Flo & Eddie?),,,and it was a strange show......I'll never forget that day,because I went with my best friend,and drummer of my first band..Lonnie,,,He started blacking out when we were in line before the show,,,a week later,,he had to go to the hospital,,and he had leukemia,,they put him on radical chemo-therapy,,and he lost all his hair,,and a month or so later he died.....I got really pissed at God,,and decided I wanted nothing to do with any "God",that would allow my best friend to die.....these were heavy times for my juvenille ass!.........................Golden Earring was way too loud.,,yes,,too loud..I had never really experienced "too loud" before,,but we decided to leave after a couple of songs..It was unbearable...They had a Woodstock sized sound system,in a small theatre....way too loud.........the only other show that I thought was "too loud",,was Emerson Lake and Palmer,at the Seattle Center Collosium...It was the 'Brain Salad Surgery ' tour,,,and they had this gargantuan quadrophonic sound system...I remember I started scraping the bottoms of my pockets for lint to use as ear plug buffers,,,finally,,I tried popcorn,,and I must say,,it worked quite well...yes popcorn..a great organic,100% natural earplug material.............oh,, did I get off topic?,,,gosh.,,I'm afraid to proofread this one...........dddd
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Comment #4 posted by xxdr_zombiexx on May 27, 2002 at 04:16:43 PT
Don't blame me, I voted for ZAPPA
 I'm gross and perverted
I'm obsessed 'n deranged
I have existed for years
But very little has changed
I am the tool of the Government
And industry too
For I am destined to rule
And regulate you I may be vile and pernicious
But you can't look away
I make you think I'm delicious
With the stuff that I say
I am the best you can get
Have you guessed me yet?
Well, I'm the slime oozin' out
From your TV set You will obey me while I lead you
And eat the garbage that I feed you
Until the day that we don't need you
Don't go for help...no one will heed you
Your mind is totally controlled
It has been stuffed into my mold
And you will do as you are told
Until the rights to you are sold That's right, folks...
Don't touch that dial Well, I am the slime from your video
Oozin' along on your livin' room floor I am the slime from your video
Can't stop the slime, people, lookit me go
I am the slime from your video
Oozin' along on your livin' room floor I am the slime from your video
Can't stop the slime, people, lookit me go PS: I wanted to respond to this horrible Colombia situation, but dddd ddddid such a gooddddd job I just found the Zappa lyrics.
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Comment #3 posted by dddd on May 27, 2002 at 02:15:24 PT
..SWAMPIE..
....Man....that's a goodie,,,,,,I'm going to make a couple of stupid guesses,,I'm not gonna cheat,,this is off the top of my head,,,but I think we are talking Don Henley?....Stones?,,,,,?Billy Joel??Elton??...I admit,,I only have a vague smidgen of recollection with those lyrics... ...d?d?d?d
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Comment #2 posted by SWAMPIE on May 27, 2002 at 01:17:25 PT
THE EAGLE HAS LANDED AND IS POISED TO........
Pinch an elephant-sized turd on all who disagree.We ain't in Kansas anymore Toto! 
 "I am gross and perverted,I'm obsessed and deranged,Ihave existed for years,although the rules have changed.Iam the tool of the government,and industry too,for I am destined to rule and regulate you.I may be vile and famicious'but you can't look away,I mean you think I'm delicious with the stuff that I say.I'm the best you can get,have you guessed me yet?I'm tha SLIME oozin out from your TV set!You will obey me while I lead you,and with the garbage that I feed you,until the day that we don't need you,don't go for help,no one will heed you!Your mind is totally cntrolled,and has been stuffed into my hole,and you will do as you are told,until the rights to you are sold! I am the slime from the video,movin'along on your living room floor!I am the slime from the video,can't touch the slime,people look at me go!   dddd,who wrote this tune over 20 years ago? 
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Comment #1 posted by dddd on May 27, 2002 at 00:49:35 PT
..The Eagle Has Landed!...
.....hang on to your hats folks...This is a classic empire fake-out election,,and I would encourage everyone to watch the "news",about Colombia.......Even mild scrutiny of most "news" reports,will reveal a significant flavor of,,the "narco terrorist rebels",,and the noble government battle against terror...
" "We do not need American troops, but what we need is to strengthen Plan Colombia," Mr. Uribe said in a recent
      interview, referring to a $1.1 billion mostly military aid package the United States Congress approved in 2000. "We need the resources from Plan Colombia, the helicopters and equipment, to be used to combat crimes, to prevent massacres, to prevent takeovers of towns, that they be used against kidnappings and to prevent forced
      displacements of villagers." "
....OK,,,here's a fact about this "election",,,,less than 30% of Colombian voters are from outside the major cities. and that is among "voters"...What percentage of Colombians total population is a different matter.. It is quite obvious that this was a sham election,when we read...
"With 97 percent of returns counted this evening, election officials said Álvaro Uribe Vélez had received 53 percent of the vote, more than 20 percentage points ahead of his closest rival, Horacio Serpa, a Liberal Party populist."
..When 97% of the returns are counted so soon,in a country like Colombia,,it becomes quite obvious that this "election",was conducted amongst a small sector of the population.,,and of course,,the "news",,blames rebel forces for threatening voters,,and supposedly not allowing a majority of the population to vote...hmmm, kinda reminds me of Florida chad fiasco coup empire takeover court appointed pResident....If there's one thing the empire knows how to do,it's staging a convincing "election"..And there's another thing that the empire is getting really good at;and that is controlling the "news",,and like I'm always harping on,,..;The control of the "news",,is equivilent to the control of the people who read the "news"....The "news" machine will continue to support the empire,and deceive Americans!..I cant stress this enough!.......Try looking at the "news",in a different way...Look at the mainstream "news",as if it might be designed to influence people to think in certain ways. Keep your eyes open for unsubstantiated presupposed CRAP!.......Here's a classic line from the article.:
 "Mr. Uribe, however, said he holds open the possibility of peace talks. Tonight he called for international mediation for future negotiations and urged the rebels to lay down their arms.      But it is unlikely the rebels will declare a unilateral cease-fire or stop kidnappings — two demands Mr. Uribe says the  guerrillas must meet before the government sits down to negotiate."
...This is a classic assumption,reminiscent of the Isreal Palestinian outrage,,where it is somehow assumed,that a group of angry ,abused people,are controlled by a central leader,who has complete command over all factions....I am disgusted at how people bought into the argument put forth by the Isreal/US Pigs,,that somehow Yasser Arafat was responsible for the conduct of all Palestinians!,,,That's about like blaming Kaptinemo,and CongressmanSuet,for accidently bombing and killing those four Canadian soldiers in Afghanastan.,,Why not blame the pope for all the deviate pervert-o-matic priests?,,or what about holding Saudi Arabia responsible for 9/11?Most of the hijackers were Saudi nationals...Blaming Arafat for suicide bombers,,and blaming Afghanistan for 9/11,,is far less reasonable than blaming Kenny Boy Lay,for absconding with Billions!....
...oh well,,,kinda got off track,,,so I'm gonna post this unproofread rambling discourse.......([sidenote]by the way,,I want to acknowledge, and confirm that I am aware of being guilty of overusing ,,and perhaps abusing quotation marks. ..I've always wanted to mention this,because it probably, specially annoys some people,,,sorry..it should be expected in lite of all my more obvious and blatant punctuational abuses...) 
......ddd..........................................................................................................................................d 
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