US to help Colombia fight urban crime .

[Judi Lynn]

US to help Colombia fight urban crime .
Monday, 30 August 2010 11:35 Adriaan Alsema

The United States will help Colombia to combat soaring homicide rates in the country's biggest cities, a U.S. embassy official told Spanish press agency Efe.

According to Narcotics Affairs Director Dann Foott, the United States government is concerned about violence in cities like Medellin and will support Colombia's national police with "equipment, resources and the strengthening of security."
/b]
The destruction of big criminal organizations like the Medellin and Cali cartels in the 1990s, and the AUC paramilitary coalition in the early years of this century, caused the drug trafficking business to become fragmented. The rise of smaller groups trying to control the drug trade responsible for the violence, the U.S. official said.

"My department is working a lot with General Naranjo to try to increase the capacity of the police in the fight against these criminal gangs," said Foott.

Gang warfare has been most violent in Medellin, where in the first half of 2010 1,250 homicides were committed and 2,300 people were forced to leave their homes because of violence or threats, according to data provided by the city's ombudsman.

According to Ombudsman Jairo Herran, Medellin has some 400 gangs, of which 200 are active, and there are a total of 5,000 members.

bThese gangs "are formed by paramilitaries that never demobilized, by former paramilitaries that entered government reintegration programs and recruited young men," the ombudsmen said.

More:
http://colombiareports.com/colombia-news/news/11574-us-to-assist-in-colombian-urban-crime-fight.html

[Taverner]

1. Is this how we are going to invade Venezuela?

Sure seems like it

[COLGATE4]

4. Do yourself a favor

and don't hold your breath until we (and/or Colombia) 'invades' Venezuela.

[Taverner]

5. I'd rather we didn't

But with the Neocons in charge, god knows what we'll try to do

[Judi Lynn]

6. So many times Colombian paras, including former military men, were found inside Venezuela,

involved in plans to overthrow Chavez. Once over 100 men were found quartered at a ranch outside Caracas owned by opposition member, Cuban-Venezuelan "exile" with Miami connections, Roberto Alonso. THOSE paras , indicated they were brought there specifically to rob a national guard armory, steal 1400 rifles, and penetrate Miraflores, and kill Hugo Chavez. Many, MANY more episodes over the years since February, 1999 when Chavez was inaugurated.

Here's a video posted by Joanne98:

Al Jazeera has obtained exclusive footage of a Colombian contract killer detailing an alleged $25 million plot to kill Hugo Chavez, the Venezuelan president.

Geovanny Velasquez Zambrano says the money was offered by Manuel Rosales, one of Chavez's main political rivals, during a secret meeting in 1999.

A Colombian paramilitary group took up the offer, according to Zambrano.

Chavez has long said there is a plot by Colombia to kill him, and relations between the two countries are tense.

Francisco Dominguez, head of the Centre of Brazil and Latin American Studies at UK's Middlesex University, told Al Jazeera that so far, it has been impossible for Chavez's opponents to bring him down by political means.

"He's very popular. He's lost one of 16 elections only. So if anyone is desperate to get rid of him, the
one neat mechanism to get rid of him would be assassination," Dominquez said.

"Chavez is pretty justified in thinking this guy's claims were credible. It is credible that Rosales could have offered $25 million."

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=385x378448

~~~~~
From a Venezuelan 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.

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=102x4334422

~~~~~
Venezuela's Chavez pardons Colombian prisoners accused in plot
The Associated Press
Published: August 30, 2007

CARACAS, Venezuela: President Hugo Chavez on Thursday pardoned dozens of Colombians imprisoned in Venezuela on charges of involvement in an alleged 2004 plot against his government.

The order to free the 41 prisoners took effect with its publication in the government's official gazette that dismissed their convictions on charges of military rebellion.

Chavez announced his decision to free the prisoners last week as a goodwill gesture as he tries to help broker an unrelated prisoner and hostage exchange between Colombia's government and leftist rebels.

In May 2004, 118 Colombians were arrested at a ranch outside Caracas. Authorities said they were wearing Venezuelan military uniforms and were suspected of belonging to paramilitary group that was plotting to create chaos in the country and assassinate Chavez.

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=102x2972477

~~~~~
Sounds as if you have been paying real attention to Latin American news. Thank you.

[dixiegrrrrl]

2. Wow..we can afford to fight crime in ...a foreign country, but not here???

[Arctic Dave]

3. Too many gangs competing? Are they going to create one large

state gang to take over?

That would make it easier to control.

[emilyg]

7. Why don't we help Chicago?

[Judi Lynn]

8. Chicago is not strategically important to the U.S. government. They can't spy on Latin America

from Chicago, can't conduct covert operations on Latin America from Chicago, etc.

[emilyg]

9. Right you are. sigh