OAS supports Ecuador, Venezuela on "path of true peace"

[Joanne98]

In a special meeting of the Organization of American States (OAS) Tuesday to mediate the conflict sparked by Colombian attacks on encampments of the Revolutionary Forces Armed of Colombia (FARC) in Ecuadorian territory, the OAS formally declared that Colombia`s actions violated Ecuador`s national sovereignty and broke international law, both of which the OAS affirmed are "inviolable...directly or indirectly, for whatever reason, even temporarily".

Ecuador also achieved unanimous backing of its petition for an urgent meeting of foreign relations ministers in the hemisphere, which is scheduled to take place March 17th in Washington, D.C.

A special committee headed by OAS Secretary General José Miguel Insulza was created to investigate the attacks and prepare a report for the meeting in Washington. The proposal for this investigation was originally rejected by Colombian Ambassador to the OAS Camilo Ospina, who considered the theme impertinent and said "the internal affairs of Colombia will be resolved by the Colombian government."

Claims by the Colombian government to have acted in self-defense have been refuted by survivor testimonies and Ecuadorian government investigations which reveal evidence that it was a pre-planned "massacre" of a sleeping encampment.

On top of that, reports that U.S. Admiral Joseph Nimmich met with Colombian military leaders in Bogotá two days before Saturday`s attacks with the stated purpose of "sharing vital information in the fight against terrorism" have fueled suspicions of direct U.S. involvement in invasion.

Along the same vein, the international Spanish language news agency EFE and The Guardian report the use of cluster bombs in Saturday`s attacks, weapons which have been denounced by human rights organizations.

Ospina apologized before the OAS for Colombia`s incursion into Ecuadorian territory, but justified the assault, the death toll of which rose to 23 today after new bodies were found, on the basis that the FARC are a "narcotrafficking mafia".

Ecuadorian Foreign Relations Minister María Salvador asserted that "a diplomatic apology will not be sufficient," and demanded concrete measures that guarantee Ecuadorian sovereignty.

Such guarantees are the aim of Ecuadorian President Rafael Correa`s tour of Latin American nations to promote of international accords to avoid the spread of Colombia`s internal conflict and defend against what he called a "strategy to destabilize the Ecuadorian government in order to put another puppet in Ecuador".

On the first stop Tuesday Correa won the full backing of Peruvian President Alan García, who pleaded that "our dear friend" Uribe "admit his error," and also urged President Chávez not to get involved in the conflict between Ecuador and Colombia.

Correa traveled to Brazil Wednesday to meet with Brazilian President Lula da Silva, who announced Tuesday that "it is a concrete fact that Colombia violated the territorial sovereignty of Ecuador," but said he was "convinced that we are going to find a peaceful and tranquil solution to this. All the presidents in the region are conscious that tranquility is necessary for growth and peace is the most important."
http://www.venezuelanalysis.com/news/3246