Colombian Singer Juanes Strolls Through Havana

Colombian singer Juanes took a stroll through the streets of this capital on Thursday where he was recognized by dozens of Cubans, and he chatted with them, posed for photos and gave autographs.

Juanes arrived in Cuba on Wednesday on a private visit, sources at the Cuban Music Institute confirmed to Efe.

On Thursday morning, the singer went out to take a walk through Havana’s historic downtown and was unable to remain unrecognized.

“People recognized (him) on the street, photos were taken, he gave autographs, he spoke a lot with the people who stopped him,” an expert with the Havana Historian’s Office who accompanied Juanes on his stroll told Efe.

Juanes spent two hours visiting various museums and colonial squares in the Cuban capital’s picturesque historic center, taking an interest in the restoration work being carried out on the oldest part of the city.

The Colombian singer, 36, won a Grammy this year for best Latino pop album for “La vida... es un ratico.”

Juanes is the founder of the “Mi Sangre” foundation, which focuses attention on the victims of the conflict in Colombia and – in particular – on children injured by anti-personnel mines.

The FARC's Ecuadorean Friends

Previously undisclosed documents, fruits of the Colombian military's raid on a Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (a.k.a. FARC) camp in Ecuador in 2008, came into my hands last week.

The FARC's second in command, Raúl Reyes, was killed in that raid. But he left behind laptop computers containing correspondence detailing a cozy relationship not only with Venezuelan President Hugo Chávez but also -- the fresh documents reveal -- with the government of Ecuadorean President Rafael Correa.

Someone should tell the White House. Ten days ago, President Obama called Mr. Correa to, according to a spokesman, "congratulate him on his recent re-election." Mr. Obama also wanted to "express his desire to deepen our bilateral relationship and to maintain an ongoing dialogue that can ensure a productive relationship based on mutual respect."

Mr. Correa is anything but respectful of U.S. interests in the region. He's more like Fidel Castro -- albeit with a Ph.D. in economics from the University of Illinois. Under his rule, liberty has been evaporating faster than you can say bolivariano. Now the Reyes letters provide strong evidence that he has been actively supporting the Marxist FARC guerrillas, who see the U.S. as a major enemy.

Mr. Correa has publicly claimed that he is not a FARC accomplice. But Reyes reported otherwise. In a Jan. 5, 2007, letter to FARC leader Manuel Marulanda he wrote of an impending visit from "an emissary of Rafael Correa." The purpose of the meeting was, among other things, to come up with "bilateral collaborative agreements" in which "our captured guerrillas in their territory are handed over to us and none of them go into the hands of Colombian authorities."

Reyes said that the emissary was coming "to strengthen the binational committee -- made up of comrades of the [Colombian Clandestine Communist Party] and Ecuadorean friends -- that would denounce the violations of Ecuadorean sovereignty by [Colombian] troops and demonstrate the harmful effects of fumigation." In other words, Ecuador wanted to help the FARC in two of its most important objectives: establishing a safe haven over the border and ending fumigation of coca crops, a key source of the FARC's drug-trade income.

In another note to Marulanda on Jan. 28, 2007, Reyes mourns the death of his "amiga, the minister," referring no doubt to Ecuador's minister of defense, Guadalupe Larriva, who was killed in a helicopter crash four days earlier. But looking on the bright side, he said, another minister, this one "of finance, also wants to visit us on the 9th."

Then, on Jan. 18, 2008, Reyes wrote to the FARC secretariat summarizing "a visit from the Ecuadorean minister of security, Gustavo Larrea, who in the name of President Correa brought greetings" for Marulanda. According to Reyes, Mr. Larrea expressed "interest on behalf of the president to make official [Ecuador's] relationship with FARC leadership."

Reyes wrote that Mr. Larrea said he was ready to remove security-force commanders who were "hostile with communities" in the border area, and that Ecuador would not do anything to help Colombian President Alvaro Uribe in Colombia's internal conflict. "For [Ecuador]," Mr. Reyes explained, "the FARC are an insurgent organization of the people with social proposals and policies that [Ecuador] understands."

According to Reyes, Mr. Larrea asked if the FARC was interested in gaining belligerent status (i.e. international legitimacy). He also reported that Ecuador "would sue Colombia in international court for the damages caused by fumigating" the coca crops and revoke the license for the U.S. military base at Manta. (Ecuador did both.) Ecuador "has it clear that Uribe represents the interests of the White House, the multinationals and the oligarchs and considers him dangerous to the region."

Mr. Larrea has conceded publicly that he called on Reyes. But he claims it was in the interest of winning the release of FARC hostages. For sure that was one objective. Reyes reported that Mr. Larrea wanted to pull off a "swap" of hostages for prisoners because it would "energize" Mr. Correa's political career. But the Reyes letters reveal much more than a desire on the part of Mr. Correa to be a humanitarian hero. They paint a picture of a government bent on undermining its neighbor, Colombia.

It is possible that Reyes mistook Correa realpolitik for genuine goodwill toward the FARC. But the rebel leader seemed certain that six Latin countries are sympathetic to the Marxist cause. He proposed that Marulanda write to the presidents of Ecuador, Argentina, Bolivia, Nicaragua, Venezuela and Uruguay to seek "support from various friendly countries" that might advance the process of forcing a settlement with Colombia.

Mr. Uribe will visit the White House next week. It will be interesting to see if Mr. Obama is as concerned about the bilateral relationship with Colombia as he is about the relationship with Mr. Uribe's not very friendly neighbor next door.

U.N. Envoy Finds Colombia Soldiers Killed Civilians

BOGOTA -- Hundreds of innocent civilians have been slain by Colombian soldiers and falsely identified as guerrillas killed in combat as part of a "more or less" systematic practice by "significant elements" of the military, a U.N. human-rights investigator said Thursday.

Philip Alston, UN Special Rapporteur on extrajudicial, summary or arbitrary executions, gestures during a news conference in Bogota.

After a 10-day visit interviewing more than 100 witnesses and survivors, special envoy Philip Alston told reporters he found nothing to indicate that such extra-judicial killings were state policy or that President Alvaro Uribe and his defense ministers knew of them.

However, the Australian investigator said it was "unsustainable" for officials in Mr. Uribe's government to argue that the killings were carried out "on a small scale by a few bad apples." The vast majority of the slayings occurred after Mr. Uribe's 2002 election.

Colombia's government, which under Mr. Uribe has put leftist rebels on the defensive and seriously curbed kidnapping and murder with the help of more than $4 billion in U.S. aid, said it would respond quickly.

Mr. Alston said he would issue a full report in four to five months.

Uribe will meet Obama on June the 29th

For the first time since U.S. President Barack Obama took office, he will privately receive Colombian President Álvaro Uribe at the White House. The meeting has been scheduled for June 29, according to Colombian Ambassador in Washington Carolina Barco. The presidents are expected to discuss topics such as energy and education, as well as the Free Trade Agreement which was signed by both countries but still lacks the approve of the US Congress.

Colombia’s Ospina Wins Prestigious Venezuelan Novel Prize

CARACAS – Colombian writer William Ospina was awarded the Romulo Gallegos International Novel Prize on Thursday for “El pais de la canela” (The Country of the Cinnamon), beating out 274 other works from a score of countries.

In reading the jury’s verdict, reached unanimously, Argentine writer Graciela Maturo hailed the high quality of the entries and said of the winning novel – published by Norma – that “it is an interpretive reading of the first expeditions the Europeans made in the (hemisphere), with a strong orientation toward the present.”

Ospina told Efe Wednesday in presenting the novel at the Madrid Book Fair that it examines the Conquest of New World from the perspective of the mestizo son of a Spanish colonizer and Indian mother, adding that his purpose was to recover “the consciousness of the indigenous people regarding that cultural clash.”

The 55-year-old author, who said the Spanish explorers were motivated by the hope of exploiting the land for economic gain, namely cinnamon plantations, wanted the book to shed greater light on that period without reducing what happened to good versus evil.

The jury that chose Ospina’s work was presided over by Mexico’s Elena Poniatowska and also included Argentine writer Gabriela Maturo, Venezuelan essayist Humberto Mata, Cuban author Miguel Barnet and Venezuelan poet Enrique Hernandez De Jesus.

The biennial award will be handed out at a ceremony on Aug. 2 and consist of a gold medal and a 100,000-euro cash prize; the winning work also will be published in an edition that will circulate only in Venezuela.

The prize was created in 1964 by then-President Raul Leoni to honor the work of Gallegos, author of the regionalist classic “Doña Barbara” and Venezuela’s head of state for nine months in 1948.

Previous recipients of the award include Peru’s Mario Vargas Llosa, who won the inaugural edition in 1967; Colombian Nobel literature laureate Gabriel Garcia Marquez; Spain’s Javier Marias and Mexico’s Carlos Fuentes.

The FARC isn't finished

The Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia, the oldest and strongest terrorist group in North or South America, turns 45 this week -- that's 45 years of kidnappings, murders, bombings and drug trafficking. And although the FARC, whose goal is to overthrow the democratically elected government, began terrorizing the country in 1964, many in the United States became aware of the rebels only a few years ago, when they captured three Americans.

Marc Gonsalves, Keith Stansell and Thomas Howes, military contractors with Northrop Grumman Corp., were doing drug surveillance work when their plane crashed in the Colombian jungle. The three men, held along with hundreds of Colombian military, government and civilian hostages, would go on to endure the longest captivity of any Americans. They gained their freedom last year in a daring ruse, when the Colombian army tricked the rebels into turning them over to rescuers, along with other high-profile captives. A group memoir published this year shed new light on the rebels' viciousness. The men were routinely starved and chained by the neck even while eating, sleeping and bathing. Their captors, mostly impoverished teenagers, had orders to shoot them rather than allow a rescue.

Although that event highlighted one connection between the United States and the FARC, the relationship runs deeper. The U.S. has indirectly been waging war against the rebels since 2000, when the multibillion-dollar aid package known as Plan Colombia began. And although the U.S. has little or nothing to show for that effort in thwarting drug trafficking -- coca growth in Colombia rose 27% from 2006 to 2007 -- the aid has directly contributed to the weakening of not only the leftist guerrillas but right-wing paramilitaries. Since 2002, more than 47,000 combatants have demobilized.

Unfortunately, Colombia still is not at a clear turning point. Under President Alvaro Uribe, the rebels have been outmaneuvered time and again. The rescue of the Americans, along with Franco-Colombian politician Ingrid Betancourt, was a major blow, as was the raid on a FARC camp in Ecuador that killed the group's second in command, Raul Reyes. Its founder, Manuel Marulanda, died of natural causes last year, and members have deserted by the thousands. But with an estimated 7,000 fighters and $400 million to $600 million each year from coca production, the FARC remains a serious threat.

Earlier this week, Colombian news reports said that the group had returned to guerrilla warfare: It has killed 10 people and injured 36 in car bombings since the beginning of the year. So although real progress is being made in the fight against the FARC, on this grim anniversary it's also clear that the struggle continues.

Why Colombia's successful president should not seek another term in office

IN SEVEN years Álvaro Uribe has established himself as one of the most successful presidents in modern Colombian history. When he took office, his country was on the verge of failed-state status; under his guidance the government has reestablished control over most of the country, demobilized or defeated guerrillas of the right and left, and revived the economy. Though Colombia remains a major source of cocaine traffic, drug kingpins no longer operate with impunity -- dozens have been captured, killed or shipped to the United States for trial.

Now Mr. Uribe's very success threatens to become his undoing. Four years ago his political supporters led a movement to amend the constitution so that he could serve another term; the president won reelection in a landslide. Now, with his second term due to expire in 2010, another such movement has appeared. Last week, the Colombian Senate approved a constitutional amendment that, if reconciled with a version in the lower house and approved by the country's supreme court, could be put to a public referendum this year. Polls show that Mr. Uribe remains extremely popular and would be likely to win a third term.

That means that Mr. Uribe -- who has not yet said whether he will seek to remain in office -- must be challenged to undertake what might be his most impressive feat yet. He should exercise the check on himself that Colombia voters would forgo and step down after his current term ends. Despite his landmark achievements, his government has been weakened by scandals in the past several years, some of them serious. More than two dozen army soldiers have been arrested for the practice of murdering innocent civilians and depicting them as guerrillas; the intelligence service is under investigation for spying on opposition politicians and journalists. Though Mr. Uribe has not been personally implicated in the scandals, two of his sons have recently been the target of corruption charges.

The most compelling reason for his retirement, however, is to strengthen Colombia's democratic institutions. With its vibrant press, independent courts and active civil society, the country stands out as an alternative to the populist autocracy established in neighboring Venezuela. After two tries, Hugo Chávez recently eliminated the limit on his own tenure and now is seeking to destroy what remains of his opposition. In a region plagued by misrule, Mr. Uribe has demonstrated how much a capable elected president can accomplish; now he has the chance to show the importance of placing institutions and the rule of law above any one leader.

Mr. Uribe said recently that he is conflicted about a reelection bid; while acknowledging that it might weaken democracy, he said he is worried about preserving his "democratic security" policy. But at least one worthy successor is available: Defense Minister Juan Manuel Santos recently resigned and said he would run for president if Mr. Uribe did not. If he remains in office, Mr. Uribe would run the risk of undermining his own successes; some of his strongest supporters could turn against him, and the good relations he has enjoyed with the United States could come under strain. Better that the president choose to step down and give his country a last great gift, by strengthening the political system he has fought so hard to save.