Eight Colombians arrested for allegedly spying on Venezuela's power system

[Judi Lynn]

Source: El Universal - opposition newspaper

CARACAS, Tuesday April 06, 2010
Eight Colombians arrested for allegedly spying on Venezuela's power system
Politics

Venezuelan Minister of Interior and Justice Tareck El Aissami announced on Tuesday that eight Colombians were arrested for allegedly spying on Venezuela's power system, for purposes of destabilization and sabotage.

He added that Venezuelan authorities seized a camera with photos of several electrical substations located all over the country, of the national interconnected system and the road infrastructure.

According to the Venezuelan minister, all these elements have allowed officials to corroborate the sabotage allegations made by President Hugo Chávez Frías.

El Aissami stressed in a TV program that before Easter Venezuelan authorities arrested two Colombians in the southern part of the state of Aragua and later they arrested six other Colombians in the state of Barinas.

Read more: http://english.eluniversal.com/2010/04/06/en_pol_esp_eight-colombians-arr_06A3698331.shtml

[Judi Lynn]

1. Venezuela arrests 8 Colombians suspected of espionage, allegedly gathering data on power grid

Venezuela arrests 8 Colombians suspected of espionage, allegedly gathering data on power grid
By Associated Press

5:01 p.m. EDT, April 6, 2010

CARACAS, Venezuela (AP) — Venezuelan authorities have arrested eight Colombians and the country's top security official on Tuesday accused them of spying.

Justice Minister Tareck El Aissami said the Colombians were detained more than a week ago and are suspected of "committing the crime of espionage" by gathering information on Venezuela's electricity system.

Investigators confiscated a camera containing images of power plants and the electrical system, El Aissami was quoted as saying by the state-run Bolivarian News Agency.

President Hugo Chavez has recently denounced purported sabotage of Venezuela's power grid, saying government foes hope to exacerbate problems as the country struggles with a severe energy crisis. But he has not offered any evidence of sabotage.

El Aissami told state television that two of the Colombians were arrested in northern Aragua state and six suspects were detained in the rural western state of Barinas. He did not elaborate on the suspects' identities or provide additional details about the spying accusations.

The arrests were first reported last week by the Colombian newspaper El Tiempo, which said five of the suspects are members of the same family that owns an ice cream manufacturing business in Barinas. The remaining three are employees of the business, El Tiempo said.

More:
http://www.courant.com/news/nation-world/sns-ap-lt-venezuela-colombia,0,6639198.story

[Judi Lynn]

20. Reiterating information from the Associated Press article some apparently didn't bother to read:

The arrests were first reported last week by the Colombian newspaper El Tiempo, which said five of the suspects are members of the same family that owns an ice cream manufacturing business in Barinas. The remaining three are employees of the business, El Tiempo said.

http://www.courant.com/news/nation-world/sns-ap-lt-venezuela-colombia,0,6639198.story

Associated Press quotes El Tiempo, Colombia's largest newspaper.

[COLGATE4]

2. I call bullshit

Chavez is just stirring the populist pot again and redirecting the anger of the people of Venezuela who are suffering major power shortages, at the same time trying to poke his bete-noir Uribe in the eye with these allegations.

[Judi Lynn]

3. Really? Why don't you advise them on what to do with the saboteurs? n/t

[Judi Lynn]

4. You were needed to "call bullshit" on the discovery of many Colombian paramilitaries in Venezuela,

discovered living on a ranch near Caracas owned by Cuban/Venezuelan Miami "exile" connected Roberto Alonso, the creator, promoter of the "Guarimba" (violent demonstrations against Chavez).

From earlier times:
The Venezuelan elite imports soldiers
by Marta Harnecker
May 23, 2004

~snip~
Since 'the conspiracies against Venezuela do not end with the capture of mercenaries in Caracas,' there must be many other infiltrators in other areas of the country; since this is not an isolated action, but one whose efforts to stop the process continue, one can reach but only one conclusion: it is necessary to prepare oneself for self-defense. This is why the President considered it opportune to take advantage of the occasion and to announce three strategic lines for defending the country. The most radical proposal was a call for the population to massively participate in the defense of the nation.

A week earlier, on the 9th of May, on the outskirts of Caracas, a paramilitary force was discovered, dressed in field uniforms. Later, more were found, raising the total to 130, leaving open the possibility that there are still more in the country. The three Colombian paramilitary leaders of the group are members of the Autonomous Self-Defense Forces (AUC) in Northern Santander state in Colombia.

Some of the captured Colombian fighters have a long history as members of paramilitary forces. Others are reservists of the Colombian army and yet others were specifically recruited for the task in Venezuela and were surely tricked. Among these there are several who are minors.

A colonel of the Venezuelan air force was also detained, as well as seven officers of the National Guard. Among those implicated in the plot is a group of civilians headed by the Cuban Roberto Alonso, creator of the 'guarimbas,'<1> and Gustavo Quintero Machado, a Venezuelan, both who are currently wanted by the Venezuelan justice system.

What the real objectives were is now being discussed. One of them could have been to steal weapons so as to then attack the Miraflores presidential palace and President Chavez himself.

The government denounced the existence of an international plot in which the governments of the United States and of Colombian would be involved. U.S. Ambassador Shapiro denied that his country had any participation in the incident. And the Colombian president, for his part, solidarized himself with the Venezuelan government, affirming that he supports its actions against the members of the irregular Colombian military group, which then caused Chavez to publicly announce that he was convinced that President Alvaro Uribe did not have anything to do with the plot, even though he insisted on leveling charges against a Colombian general by the name of Carreño.

Even though the oppositional media conducted a big campaign to minimize the issue, trying to accuse the government of having organized a montage, so as to have a pretext for taking forceful measures that would impede a confrontation at the voting booth, every day more evidence surfaces that confirm the official version.

The Colombian attorney general's office has evidence that proves that paramilitary fighters were recruited and then transported to Venezuela and that extreme right-wing groups infiltrated intelligence services in the border town of Cúcuta. The proof was shown on the news program 'The Independent Network.' The program broadcast some intercepted recordings of paramilitary soldiers in Cúcuta, in which the operations they carried out in Venezuelan territory are reviewed.
(snip)

http://www.zmag.org/content/showarticle.cfm?ItemID=5579

More:
http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=102x3314164#3314170

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=102x3314164#3314164

[fascisthunter]

5. lol... yeah, that's the ticket

[Peace Patriot]

6. Bullshit? How do you know? Crystal ball? nt

[bitchkitty]

8. It has always been very curious to me

how these anti-democracy types always seem to have an endless supply of juicy tidbits which they carry around in their ass, ready to be pulled out and proudly displayed on these forums.

[BolivarianHero]

40. Pelosi say Chavez bad. Pelosi say Bush good.

I sheeple. I always listen to what Democrat boss say.

[IndianaGreen]

7. Sorry that your SOA grad guys got busted by Venezuela

Better luck next time!

Hello, Langley!

:hi:

[tburnsten]

9. Personally I think some courses at SOA would be a ball to take

Wouldn't have anything to do with the skillset afterwards, but the courses would be fun and interesting.

Then again I like loud booms and marksmanship training.

[Judi Lynn]

10. They've taught torture, too. Those guys really know how to have fun.

What a bunch of winners.

SOA grads have tortured and hacked to pieces, and chainsawed villagers, one at a time, in Latin America.

It would be a non-stop holiday for a filthy pervert.

[tburnsten]

11. Like I said, "some courses"

Not all. Sorry if my lightness was unbearable. I do not think either torture or murdering people with chainsaws are productive things to do with ones time.

Some of those infiltration courses must rock though. I guess I just like to get out in the field and bang around as much as possible.

Would make me a monster at paintball I'm guessing.

[bitchkitty]

21. So are you too old to join the Army?

If not, why don't you? You might get to hear a lot of loud booms - you might get to make some yourself!

Wheeeeeeeee! War is so much fucking fun.

[IndianaGreen]

27. The bigger the bang, the more meat on the trees

That's what an Army instructor I knew used to say. It wasn't a game!

[tburnsten]

29. What isn't fun about blowing things up?

Things that aren't homes or people anyway.


And I'm already in the Army bud. I think you should read my posts about this a little more carefully, I said the (non-torture) classes would probably be a lot of fun. I never said anything about war being fun.

[bitchkitty]

32. Not a bud, dear. I'm a female-type person.

And no, I don't think it's fun to blow things up. I don't think many normal people find fun in destruction. Some do, I suppose. Myself, I like to create. You should try that instead.

[tburnsten]

35. If you've never had an object or appliance that just wouldn't behave

to the point that smashing it would make you feel better, you are not a normal person.


There is a reason that the printer scene in Office Space is so comical. It is because the great bulk of non-robotic, non-sedated adults can relate to it.


I think it's painting with a pretty broad brush to assume that no one normal has fun while wrecking things that otherwise have no value. Or to assume that someone either enjoys creation or destruction. Part of being alive is the joy of experiencing most of what life has to offer.


Or that they are even mutually exclusive of each other simultaneously. I was tasked to video a controlled burn on a training site a year or so ago, and it was great. Do you think that a carefully controlled fire isn't a good time? It's hot, the equipment is heavy, and you are creating a safer environment that promotes healthy forest growth. Sometimes getting out and exerting yourself can be fun in and of itself, regardless of how worn out you are at the end of the day.

[bitchkitty]

41. Big jump - from smashing printers, to

having fun and taking classes with the guys at murder school?

I think that fire is a good thing when you're camping out, or in the fireplace on a cold winter's night. I don't go to forest fires or controlled burns for entertainment, no. Again, big jump - from a "carefully controlled fire" to Explosives 101 at Murder U.

[tburnsten]

42. Like I said

Not every class there. They can't all be about torture and how to best terrorize locals and the best ways to slaughter opposition.

Ranger school or the Lancero training Colombia offers would be a blast as well, doesn't mean I ever want to be behind enemy lines or in combat of any type.

[rabs]

12. So how do you explain ...

...the Colombian Army ID cards two of those detained were carrying?

:shrug:

[ChangoLoa]

16. Secret agents carrying their army ID-cards during their mission in a foreign country?

I really don't know exactly what to think about this and I don't have a great knowledge on secret agents and spying issues...

But it does sound pretty strange and a bit absurd to hear about secret agents getting caught with their own army ID-cards during their mission in a foreign country. :shrug:

[tburnsten]

19. Right on

If they were actually spies of any type they would not be carrying their nation's military ID cards.

It's idiotic to think otherwise, unless you think REALLY lowly of Colombians.

[ChangoLoa]

30. Monty Pythonesque. nt

[bitchkitty]

33. Er, um, uh....forgeries!

Forgeries from the magic laptop, from which all knowledge floweth!!!!!

[tburnsten]

36. In one of the articles it says that two of the arrested were civilian medical employees

on a Colombian base at one point, a pharmacist and a physician, so they most likely kept their ID cards after leaving that job.

Not a rare occurence in any part of the world, except for spies.

They were working and touring in Venezuela. Do they not have a right, or even a responsibility, to keep all of their forms of identification on them while in a foreign nation?

Again the fact that they had Colombian military identification just proves that whatever they were, they were definitely not spies.

[CynicalObserver]

13. I live fairly close by, and it seems clear to me that at some point

when he feels he can win, chavez will provoke a war with colombia, via instigated 'incident' or whatever.

Of all the governing personalities in south america, he is by far the most beligerent, he is buying up all the russian arms he can, and some of the parallels to 1930's europe are just disturbing. he is also a lifetime ruler, whatever some posters here or other places may say.

[EFerrari]

14. We repeatedly attack his government but *he* is belligerent?

Is that how it works?

And, fyi, since the US decided to expand its military presence in Latin America, a number of nations are buying weapons, not only Venezuela.

[CynicalObserver]

15. wait and see as far as how it works.

US military assets in latin america are, as far as I know, MUCH lower than they were prior to the closing of the canal zone bases.

[EFerrari]

17. Panama is one of the places where they want a new base. n/t

[CynicalObserver]

43. 2 small navy outposts out in the middle of nowhere is

nothing compared to what was here pre-2000.

[Lagomorph]

24. Militarity, Columbia is weak...

Mostly internal security/anti guerrilla assets.

They don't even own a tank, that I can find. A lot or armored cars for chasing after drug lords.

[Judi Lynn]

25. They probably wouldn't have a crying need for lots of tanks in that terrain.

Here's an article taken from Colombia's largest newspaper, El Tiempo published in 2008 concerning new weapons they received:

Colombian Army will acquire new Combat Aircraft and weapons
April 13 of 2008

New aircrafts and weapons of high precision will acquire the Colombian Army for the war against the Farc

Colombian news paper El Tiempo has established that the arrival of 25 helicopters is confirmed (Blackhawk), 8 Supertucanos combat airplanes (they are lacked of the initial flotilla of 24), some 13 thousand weapons and 187 armored trucks for transport.

These armament supports, transport and logistics were announced in the 2007 and they make part of the package of acquisitions that they are carried out with the I collect from the tax to the patrimony that already reaches the 4.2 Billions of dollars.

Another part of this money collected it will be dedicated to the logistics and maintenance of the troops and the apparatuses.

"To the 16 airplanes that the Colombian Air Force already flies in the country, it owes himself in a great percentage the success of the operations against the 'Negro Acacio', 'Martin Caballero' and 'Raúl Reyes', among others", one of the officials that has been to the front of the acquisitions assures.

Other purchases that the Military Forces needed with urgency are the helicopters that will allow the Colombian Army to have better mobility in remote areas (especially the forest), as Guaviare, Guainía and Vaupés, where to supply to the troops is difficult.

"One of the most complicated works that complete the Colombian Military Forces and that it seems the simplest, it is the supply of the contraguerrillas comands. To arrive to these places with the food, daily, it is one of the most important missions so that the operations are successful".

For that reason, the Aviation of the Army will receive 5 helicopters MI-17 Russian that, besides men's mobility, they allow to take pieces of heavy artillery, as canyons and howitzers to areas where the apparatuses cannot even land.

They will also bring, in a long voyage from United States, 8 helicopters Black Hawk, of a purchase of 15, for assault operations.

In this respect, the vice minister of the wallet, Juan Carlos Chaffinch, pointed out that between May and November they will be arriving to the country, gradually, as much the aircraft as the other purchases.

For the vice minister Chaffinch these airships will reinforce the task that the Army has come completing in critical regions of the country.

The only material that had been acquired in advance is the Supertucanos, of those that the country already received 16 between the 2006 and the 2007.

The Air force will receive 12 helicopters Gunship “Rapaz”, fundamental for the support of special operations and populations' defense and patrol cars attacked by the Farc.

A change in terrestrial mobility

This force will also have in its flotilla an airplane Super King 350 and 3 airplanes C-295 for transport of troops and logistical support flights and doctors.

And keeping in mind that one of the points to reinforce is the terrestrial mobility of the troops, especially of the Army, 187 trucks were bought to those that are adapting a special armor-plating. These vehicles have the mission of arriving to areas that supposedly, they are impassable for the military ones.

But not alone the Army will be reinforced in this topic. The Navy will receive three patrol boats and two interceptors to counteract the drug traffic, especially in the Pacific. Likewise, the Police will have 511 mottos to reinforce the security in the highways and some cities.

As for the armament, in next 6 months 8 will be received new Galil rifles for the battalions that will be activated this year, as well as grenade launchers, mortars and special teams of night vision and you arm of assault for units elite. As for the teams of communications an investment was made to modernize them.

In the 2009 the IAI KFIR arrives

In the case of the airships that they will be repaired, the vice minister Chaffinch pointed out that an important step will be the upgrade of the 11 airplanes KFir that has Colombia and that it will be made in the country, with national manpower.

"It is expected that next year a commission of technicians from Israel that will guide the work, arrives but it will be made with our technicians", the official pointed out.

Likewise, the 13 K-Fir that were acquired in Israel (for an included total of 162 million dollars the upgrade of the other ones 11), they will begin to arrive in the second trimester of next year.

http://www.eltiempo.com/archivo/documento/CMS-4097202
http://www.militaryphotos.net/forums/showthread.php?132305-Colombian-Army-will-acquire-new-Combat-Aircraft-and-weapons

[Judi Lynn]

26. You might consider the fact the US will be hauling in all kinds of weaponry

to have on hand at the SEVEN military bases it will be accessing immediately, to the distress of the other Latin American countries.

U.S. Bases in Colombia Rattle the Region
By Benjamin Dangl, March 2010 issue

On the shores of the Magdalena River, in a lush green valley dotted with cattle ranches and farms, sits the Palanquero military base, an outpost equipped with Colombia’s longest runway, housing for 2,000 troops, a theater, a supermarket, and a casino.

Palanquero is at the heart of a ten-year, renewable military agreement signed between the United States and Colombia on October 30, 2009, which gives Washington access to seven military bases in the country. Though officials from the U.S. and Colombian governments contend the agreement is aimed at fighting narcotraffickers and guerrillas within Colombian borders, a U.S. Air Force document states the deal offers a “unique opportunity” for “conducting full spectrum operations” in the region against various threats, including “anti-U.S. governments.”

The Pentagon sought access to the bases in Colombia after Ecuadorian President Rafael Correa canceled the lease for the U.S. military base in Manta, Ecuador. The U.S. capability in Colombia will now be greater than at Manta, which worries human rights advocates in Colombia and left-leaning governments throughout the region.

“The main purpose of expanding these bases is to take strategic control of Latin America,” opposition senator Jorge Enrique Robledo of the Polo Democrático Alternativo told me over the phone from Bogotá.

http://www.progressive.org/danglmarch10.html

[Lagomorph]

28. The bases needed upgrades...

...simply because our planes and helicopters require bigger, thicker runways and higher tech support. Things like reliable electricity and running water help too.

We aren't flying bare bones Huey's anymore, our newest toys require a lot of TLC to keep the gizmo's running. Our lease in Equador ran out and now that they have their new runways and support facilities, they invited us to leave. So we're moving our anti-drug forces to Columbia.

The kind of equipment we use to fight drug lords is along the lines of ELINT/SWAT/police gear. We're not arming Columbia with heavy warfighting equipment. More like COIN gear.

Hugo could roll across Columbia with a column of trucks, let alone tanks and Sukhoi's.

[hack89]

31. Wrong - Colombia is much stronger

In 1999, Colombia assigned 3.6% of its GDP to defense, according to the National Planning Department. By 2007 this figure had risen to 6.1% of GDP, one of the highest rates in the world. The armed forces number about 250,000 uniformed personnel: 145,000 military and 105,000 police. These figures do not include assistance personnel such as cooks, medics, mechanics, etc. This makes the Colombian military one of the largest and most well-equipped in Latin America.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Military_Forces_of_Colombia

From their long war with the FARC, the Army is tough, well trained and has plenty of combat experience

The training of Colombian soldiers is world recognized due to its demanding features. The promotion courses (courses that the candidate has to take in order to be promoted to a higher rank) are usually tough and physically demanding.

A "Lancero" training course in counterinsurgency warfare is held in Tolemaida, 150 miles (240 km) from Bogotá, where temperatures range between 85 and 100 degrees F. (29.5-38 degrees C.) throughout the year. The course, which has been called the toughest in the world, is run by the Colombian army with U.S. military instructors also playing a role. According to Paris Match (no. 2964, March 9-15, 2006) the course lasts 73 days and trains Bolivian, Ecuadorean, and Panamanian troops as well as Colombian soldiers; some French and American soldiers are also trained there.<1> The course, founded in 1955, derives from the Ranger program of the US Army. Reportedly, severe techniques and live ammunition are used. Because of its exceptional nature, the course has gained international prestige.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/National_Army_of_Colombia

In any war between Colombia and Venezuala, tanks would be irrelevent. It is hard to imagine terrain more hostile to armored warfare than the border between the two. Tanks in SA are used primarily for internal security.

[tburnsten]

37. Interesting. In most nations police are civilian, not military. Weird. N/T

[hack89]

38. I think it is because of the FARC

the FARC is a combination army and criminal organization - fighting them would require a combination of military and police/domestic security skills.

[tburnsten]

39. Good call

[Lagomorph]

23. I might agree with you...

I've seen a lot of infrastructure photos on Google Earth.

Anything of military or national security value would get the stereo photo satellite treatment.

[Flanker]

34. Tanks are panned to conquer tue Guajira peninsula

Which is highly suited for armor warfare,



also there are plains to the south right in between the Andes and the Amazon.



But there is no armor presence here and it holding on to this territory would be impossible.

[Judi Lynn]

18. What an “Unconstitutional State of Affairs” in Colombia!

What an “Unconstitutional State of Affairs” in Colombia!
Americas | Posted by: Kathryn R. Striffolino, April 7, 2010 at 10:48 AM

The human rights situation in Colombia for internally displaced persons (IDPs) is deteriorating rapidly. The incidence of displacement in Colombia is one of the highest in the world. Between 3 and 4 million people have been forced to flee their homes and seek refuge elsewhere in the country; a further 500,000 are believed to have fled to neighboring countries. Indigenous Peoples, Afro-descendants and campesino communities make up a disproportionate number of those who have been internally displaced.

This level of human suffering prompted the Colombian Constitutional Court to issue two declarations in 2004 calling for the Colombian government to protect IDPs and their human rights (see pages 9-18). The government of Colombia has yet to implement the recommended public policies to adequately protect these vulnerable communities. Unfortunately their suffering continues and more people are continuously forced from their land, which is why Afro-Colombians and Indigenous Colombians need your help.

Right now an important resolution is in the US House of Representatives: Resolution 1224, which, if passed, could help IDPs in Colombia. Representative Hank Johnson of Georgia along with 22 other Representatives has sponsored this resolution, which urges the Colombian government to comply with the rulings of the Colombian Constitutional Court and protect the human rights of Afro-Colombian and Indigenous communities.

Don’t pass up the opportunity to urge your Representative to support this important resolution today!

http://blog.amnestyusa.org/americas/what-an-unconstitutional-state-of-affairs-in-colombia/

[Judi Lynn]

22. Uribe demands respect for Colombians suspects

CARACAS, Wednesday April 07, 2010
Uribe demands respect for Colombians suspects

President of Colombia Álvaro Uribe urged the Venezuelan government to respect the human rights of eight Colombians arrested for allegedly spying on Venezuela's power system. He also criticized Venezuela's unresponsiveness in previous cases of death or arrest of his fellow citizens.

Uribe said in an interview on Wednesday that two of the detainees worked for some years as a pharmacist and a general practitioner, respectively, at a medical center of the Colombian Army in Medellín. The Colombian leader added that as far as he knows, none of them have any link with Colombian security forces.

"Based on the report, these people are linked to Venezuela. They are working there and were carrying out tourism activities." The Colombians were arrested for allegedly taking pictures of powerhouses, bridges, and highways in several Venezuelan states. The Venezuelan authorities consider that their purpose was "sabotage."

http://english.eluniversal.com/2010/04/07/en_pol_esp_uribe-demands-respec_07A3704451.shtml
http://www.jimpeterik.com.nyud.net:8090/WS%202-5-05/ws2005BOW.jpg http://dalewolford.com.nyud.net:8090/page5/files/fusion_bow.jpg

Uribe didn't know there was a welcoming committee for his exalted emmissaries.