SHERBROOKE, February 4th, 2008. The government of Alvaro Uribe has rallied Colombians to take part in a large march on Monday, February 4th under the slogan “No more kidnappings, no more lies, no more deaths, no more FARC”. With groups in Montreal and elsewhere responding to this call, we must manifest before the public our indignation at this manipulation of public opinion which distances any negotiation attempts that would permit an end to this armed conflict. The Colombian government seeks to obscure the true face of the conflict: 75% of human rights violations in Colombia are committed by the Uribe administration and the paramilitary forces which are linked to the state. (Source: Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch)

This call to mobilization against the FARC discredits the will of the guerrillas to negotiate a political solution to the current conflict since it comes at a moment when the spokespeople of the guerrillas, under the lead of Venezuelan Hugo Chavez, has permitted the liberation of two important hostages, Clara Rojas and Consuelo Gonzalez. Instead of getting involved in the negotiations, the Uribe government manipulates the pain of the hostages’ families to nourish a vengeful hatred which reduces the possibilities of a negotiated end to the conflict and negates the responsibility of the state for crimes against humanity.



For if it is true that the FARC violate International Human Rights by holding civilians hostage, the Uribe administration maintains a regime of terror against any political opposition, not only against guerrilla groups, but also the civilian population, specifically targeting union organizations (Colombia has the highest rate of assassinations of unionists in the world), student organizations, peasants, indigenous, etc. These groups are victims of massacres, displacements and forced exile (3.5 million displaced in Colombia), disappearances, extra-judicial executions, arbitrary detentions and torture committed by paramilitary troops, national Army and the police.



This Monday, February 4th, in Montreal and in Sherbrooke, Quebecois and Colombians will be out to counter this war tactic of the Colombian government. “A military solution to the conflict and show of force have demonstrated their incapacity to put an end to the war that has existed for more than 40 years”, explains Antonio Suarez, Colombian refugee in Quebec. “Instead of promoting hostilities, the government must begin to recognize the existence of the political conflict and not negate it’s reality by reducing it to terrorist acts. We need a negotiated political solution to the conflict, because without it the circle of violence will continue beheading our lives and our hopes for peace.”

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Have signed this release

Comité de solidarité avec le mouvement étudiant colombien du Regroupement autonome des jeunes, RAJ, Sherbrooke

Projet Accompagnement Solidarité Colombie, PASC, Montréal www.pasc.ca

Comité pour les Droits Humains en Amérique Latine , CDHAL, Montréal www.cdhal.org



Contact :



Sherbrooke: David Lanneville , Comité de solidarité avec le mouvement étudiant colombien du

Regroupement autonome des jeunes

(819) 791-4007 Cellulaire: ( 819) 580-3103



Montréal : Leila Celis , PASC

( 514) 966-8421



We will be availible for any questions or interviews on Feburary 4th and over. Do not hesitate to contact us.















Complément d'informations :

Newsweek

De la liste noire aux favoris: Autrefois un baron de la drogue, Uribe est maintenant un allié de premier plan de l'administration américaine.

http://www.newsweek.com/id/54793

Human Rights Watch

Colombia's Checkbook Impunity - a Briefing Paper

http://hrw.org/backgrounder/americas/checkbook-impunity.htm

Colombie: Le pouvoir des chefs paramilitaires menace la démocratie

http://hrw.org/french/docs/2007/05/02/colomb15835.htm



Amnistie Internationale

Le président Uribe doit réaffirmer ses engagements en faveur des droits humains

http://www.amnestyinternational.be/doc/article4193.html

National Security Archive, Georges Washington University

Les liens d'Alvaro Uribe avec le cartel de Medellin: document déclasifié

http://www.gwu.edu/~nsarchiv/NSAEBB/NSAEBB131/index.htm

Le Nouvel Observateur

Colombie: Amnistie internationale répond aux accusations d'Alvaro Uribe

http://tempsreel.nouvelobs.com/actualites/international/20080122.OBS6479/amnesty_repond_aux_accusations_dalvaro_uribe.html?idfx=RSS_notr







PLUS JAMAIS DE DÉPLACEMENTS FORCÉS

D’EXÉCUTIONS EXTRA-JUDICIAIRES,

DE TORTURE,

DE DISPARITIONS,

DE TERRORISME D’ÉTAT,

NON À LA « PARAPOLITIQUE »

OUI À UNE SOLUTION POLITIQUE

ET NÉGOCIÉE AU CONFLIT SOCIAL ET ARMÉ

With all the respect...your article is close to be 100% out of context with the Colombian reality. First: Alvaro Uribe did not have anything to do with the "protest" on February 4th. It was motivated by regular citizens (through Facebook) tired of a situation that has only stopped Colombia from being the best place on earth. Second: It is true that Alvaro Uribe initiated extreme mechanisms while his role as Governor of Antioquia, but paralimitary forces are as terrorist as FARC and neither of them represent or are accepted by the Colombian citizens in any sense.

Besides, who are you to be laying about our reality?

The protest was as wonderful event, that only demostrated that we Colombians are proud of our country and do not want to see it suffer anymore bacause of few "out-of-context" people.