FARC rebels kill 18 in Colombia

[Bacchus39]

Source: IANS or EFE

FARC rebels kill 18 in Colombia
Tuesday 10th February, 2009 (IANS)

At least 18 people have been killed by leftist rebels in a settlement in Colombia, EFE news agency reported Tuesday.

According to the National Indigenous Organization of Colombia (ONIC), the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) guerrillas have killed at least 18 Awa Indians in recent days in southwestern Colombia's Narino province. It feared that the death toll could be even higher.

'We fear from the fragmentary information received that as many as 18 could have died,' ONIC President Luis Evelis Andrade said, warning that the magnitude of the incident will only be known when a commission of Indians from the area reach Pasto, the provincial capital.

The Indian leader said that the people were killed between Feb 4-6 on the Tortugaña Telembi reservation.



Read more: http://www.latinamericanews.net/story/464574

[catnhatnh]

1. Headline "18" dead

Paragraph 1 "at least 18" dead
Paragraph 3 "as many as 18" dead

Yep, that's the kind of rock solid reporting I believe...

[Bacchus39]

2. it seems there are still people missing. English language reports are slow

in coming. Look at the Latin America forum and the Spanish articles have more details.

[David__77]

3. Maybe it was the fascist state that did it.

http://www.dissidentvoice.org/2008/04/propagandizing-human-rights-in-colombia/

[catnhatnh]

4. Thanks for a great read. N/T

[Judi Lynn]

5. Beautiful! This was my belief the moment I saw that headline yesterday.

It's such an old, OLD practise, unfortunately.

Even bombing places and claiming "the FARCs done it." Even slaughtering ordinary citizens, dressing them in guerrila garb and claiming they killed them in combat.

It was the GOVERNMENT only a few weeks ago which sat outside a neutral, indigenous area, and waited until the car of a world-famous indigenous human rights spokesmwoman approached, and shot it up, claiming the car didn't slow down when commanded. They killed her husband. She had just returned from a UN meeting in Geneva, Switzerland.

So ####ing typical there's no mystery whatsoever, and you really can't believe the corporate media, as your article illustrates so very, VERY well.

Thanks for taking the time to post that piece.

[ConcernedCanuk]

6. The Last paragraph in that article is very disturbing, and probably correct . .

.
.
.

Finally, the mainstream media in both Colombia and the United States are complicit in this psychological warfare by continuing to dutifully report the allegations of government officials even though reporters are fully aware of the fact that the claims are often false.

It does not seem to matter to reporters and media outlets that the same officials have repeatedly manipulated them in the past—and are likely doing so again.

Representatives of the mainstream media claim that they are simply reporting what a particular government official has said—and that the allegations by officials are, in and of themselves, news.

However, by dutifully and unquestioningly reporting any statement issued by government officials, the mainstream media reduces itself to little more than a propaganda tool for the state.
________________________________________________________________________

I broke it up into smaller paragraphs for easier reading -

anyhoo - the last line is the USA MSM well described per the BushGang/PNAC agenda -

the mainstream media reduces itself to little more than a propaganda tool for the state

too true

(sigh)

[Bacchus39]

7. here is some propaganda for you: Human Rights Watch news

http://www.alertnet.org/thenews/newsdesk/HRW/57d86681401ab23dd5edb72e377ea35e.htm

Colombia: FARC Kills 17 from Indigenous Group 10 Feb 2009 18:53:48 GMT
Source: Human Rights Watch
Reuters and AlertNet are not responsible for the content of this article or for any external internet sites. The views expressed are the author's alone.
(Washington, DC, February 10, 2009) - The recent killings of some 17 members of the Awa indigenous community by the guerrillas of the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) in the state of Nariño shows its utter disregard for the lives of civilians and refusal to respect the most basic tenets of humanitarian law, Human Rights Watch said today.
According to reports Human Rights Watch received from reliable sources, the FARC has killed approximately 17 Awa members, including at least two minors, in Nariño in recent days. Many of the victims are reported to have been tortured. The killings come on the heels of several other attacks that the government has attributed to the FARC, including a bombing in downtown Bogota that killed two civilians and attacks in Cali and Arauca.
"These cruel killings violate the most basic principles of human decency and dignity," said José Miguel Vivanco, Americas director at Human Rights Watch. "There is no possible excuse or justification for these horrific actions."
Human Rights Watch called on the national, state, and local governments to take immediate action to provide assistance to the displaced population and victims, to protect the civilian population in Nariño, and to ensure that all abuses in the region, by all armed groups or forces, are thoroughly investigated and prosecuted.


Human Rights Watch has repeatedly visited the southern border state of Nariño, which has a heavy presence of various armed groups and Colombian military forces and has one of the worst human rights and humanitarian situations in Colombia. The Awa territories, especially in the municipalities of Barbacoas, Magui Payan, and Roberto Payan, have been particularly affected.
The Office of the Ombudsman of Colombia (Defensoría del Pueblo) had, through its Early Warning System, previously issued a formal "risk report" warning authorities that civilians in the region were at risk. On January 8, 2009, the ombudsman's office reiterated the warning, noting that these communities were at risk as the Army, FARC, National Liberation Army (ELN) guerrillas, and new armed groups linked to the paramilitaries had been fighting for control of the area.
The ombudsman's latest report warned of a serious risk that the FARC would retaliate against civilians in the area, accusing them of collaborating with the Army or ELN. Meanwhile, new armed groups that emerged after the supposed demobilization of the paramilitaries are reported to have been engaging in threats, extortion, selective killings of civilians they accuse of being allied with the guerrillas, enforced disappearances and displacement, and rape of women and children.
According to information Human Rights Watch received, the region is now suffering a severe humanitarian crisis. The FARC is reported to have "confined" some villages, cutting them off from the outside world and refusing to let anyone enter or leave. It has also been laying antipersonnel landmines in the region. Large numbers of civilians are reported to have been displaced, and apparently have not yet received meaningful assistance from the government, according to Human Rights Watch's sources.
Civilians from the most vulnerable sectors of society, including Afro-Colombians and indigenous groups, are among the most adversely affected by the violence in Nariño.
Human Rights Watch called on the government, in addition to taking immediate action to aid and protect civilians, to improve its response to warnings from the Early Warning System.
"The Early Warning System of the ombudsman's office often issues excellent risk reports warning of serious threats to civilians, yet too many times, we have seen that the authorities that are supposed to respond fail to do so in time," said Vivanco

[Mudoria]

8. **Crickets**

Thanks for the info on these murdering thugs.