By Delisa Morris

Impunity Watch Reporter, South America

BOGOTA, Colombia — During peace talks in Cuba, Colombia’s leftist FARC guerillas announced on Thursday that they would stop recruiting soldiers under 17 years of age.  Before a recruit had to be 15 years old to join the FARC.

 

This is just one of the latest in a number of conciliatory steps as peace talks to end five decades of conflict with the government advance.  The two-year-old negotiations are taking place in Cuba’s capital, Havana.

Though Colombia’s government welcomed the move, they do not believe that it went far enough.  International human rights law sets the minimum age for participation in any kind of combat at 18.

“First, I don’t understand why 17 years of age?  The established norm is 18, and I don’t understand why they’ve only gone halfway,” President Juan Manuel Santos said in a speech in Colombia’s Caqueta province to inaugurate and electrification project.

“Colombian’s would have received it with greater joy, if they said they would not only stop recruiting children under 18 but they would free those they have recruited. … We will continue to insist upon that step,” he said.

The FARC, or Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia, has allegedly been forcibly recruiting minors or taking on underage volunteers in remote rural areas with few opportunities for a long time.

Defense Minister Juan Carlos Pinzon said on Thursday that half of the FARC members who have been demobilizing from the rebel force are under 18 or were when they joined.  They usually perform minor chores, such as cooking or clearing jungle paths while training as combatants.

The FARC’s ranks have been roughly halved to around 8,000 by a U.S.-backed military offensive that has run for over a decade and forced the group, and its lesser counterpart, the National Liberation Army (ELN), deeper in their jungle escapes.

The FARC initiated a unilateral ceasefire shortly before Christmas as both sides to de-escalate.  The FARC and the government are negotiating a five-point agenda for peace.

Partial agreement has been reached on three of the agenda items: land reform, ending the illegal drug trade and political participation for the guerrillas.  The remaining issues are disarmament and demobilization, and reparations for victims of the war, which has killed around 220,000 people.

For more information, please see:

Fox News – Colombia’s main rebel group vows to stop recruiting youths under age 17 – 21 Feb. 2015

Reuters – Colombia’s FARC rebels raise minimum recruitment age to 17 – 12 Feb. 2015

BBC – Colombian FARC: No recruitment of soldiers under 17 – 12 Feb. 2015

Yahoo News – Colombia rebels vow to stop recruiting youths under 17 – 12 Feb. 2015

 

By Delisa Morris

Impunity Watch Reporter, South America

BRASILIA, Brazil — On Wednesday, three workers had been killed and 10 injured in the explosion at an offshore oil and gas platform in Brazil.  By Thursday the number had risen to five.  The oil and gas platform was ran by state oil company, Petrobras was about 25 miles (40 km) off the coast.

According to the company four of the 74 workers who were on the platform remain missing.  The explosion occurred off the state of Espirito Santo.  Currently rescue teams are searching for the four missing workers, according to The Oil Workers Union of the State of Espirito Santo.  It also said that 10 workers were injured in the blast.

The union noted on its Facebook page that the two bodies were found inside the engine room of the vessel, one of many floating oil production, storage and offloading units that Petrobras employs in developing Brazil’s massive offshore oil fields.

The ship was leased by Petrobras from Norway-based BW Offshore, which confirmed the new death toll and the number of missing workers.

“It was a tragic day and we will not rest until we find the four workers who are missing,” BW Offshore’s CEO, Carl Arnet, said in a statement.

BW Offshore said that 65 workers were safely evacuated from the ship.

The Unified Oil Workers Federation, Brazil’s biggest oil industry union, has said that the blast was caused by a gas leak in the vessel’s engine room.

According to the Brazilian government’s National OIl Agency no oil leaked as a result of the accident and that it had begun an investigation.  The agency noted the ship had passed a navy inspection earlier this year.

This accident could not come at a worse time for state oil company Petrobras, as federal investigators continue to probe a massive kickback scheme allegedly coordinated and ran by former executives of the oil company, which led to them receiving hundreds of millions in bribes from construction and engineering firms in exchange for giving those companies inflated contracts.

For more information, please see:

the guardian – Brazil oil ship explosion death toll rises to five – 12 Feb. 2015

Reuters – BW Offshore says five killed in Brazil explosion were its workers – 12 Feb. 2015

Forbes – Explosion Kills Three Aboard Petrobras Offshore Natural Gas Platform in Brazil – 11 Feb. 2015

CNN – Oil platform explosion kills 3 in Brazil – 11 Feb. 2015

By Delisa Morris

Impunity Watch Reporter, South America

BRASILIA, Brazil — The warrant compelling Brazil’s ruling Worker’s Party’s treasurer to testify was just one of 62 arrest, search and other legal orders police issued Thursday in the investigation into an enormous kickback scheme at the state-run oil company Petrobras.

Treasurer Joao Vaccari Neto, was one of the people implicated by a former Petrobras director who was arrested last year, was order to testify about his knowledge of the scheme.

“We want to obtain information regarding donations he requested, legal, or illegal, involving people who had contracts with Petrobras,” federal prosecutor Carlos Lima stated at a news conference.

Vaccari arrived at federal police headquarters in Sao Paulo to be questioned, shortly after the conference.

Brazillian prosecutors have noted that the kickback scheme involved at least $800 million in bribes and other illegal funds.  Some of that money was funneled to the campaign funds of the Workers’ Party and other allies, often described as legal corporate donations.

The federal prosecutors have said they’ve recorded about $170 million involved in the scheme and more than 230 businesses of all sizes are being investigated for their participation in the scheme.  According to the prosecutors 86 people so far are facing charges, including several top executives from Brazil’s main construction and engineering firms who have already been jailed.

The prosecutors are also expected this month to announce charges against more than a dozen politicians, mostly congress members, in connection the the case.

The warrants came just one day after Petrobras CEO, Maria das Gracas Foster, the chief executive handpicked in 2012 by Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff, and five top directors resigned from the company.  The departures were announced Wednesday morning with a succinct, one-sentence statement posted on the company website, a quick let down after days of rumors surrounding the resignations.

The statement noted that the executives would be replaced on Friday.

Furthermore Thursday, Eduardo Cunha president of the lower house Chamber of Deputies approved the creation of a congressional panel to investigate the kickback scheme.  Specifically, the panel will investigate the “practice of illicit acts and irregularities at Petrobras between 2005 and 2015,” Congress’ website said.

Petrobras is a sad story for its investors worth $310 billion at its peak in 2008, a valuation that made it the world’s fifth-largest company, is just worth $48 billion today.

For more information, please see:

ABC News – Warrants Issued in Brazil’s Petrobras Corruption Scandal – 5 Feb. 2015

NY Times – Petrobras Executives Quit Amid Scandal – 4 Feb. 2015

St. Louis Post-Dispatch – Petrobras, $262 billion poorer, exposes busted Brazil dream – 5 Feb. 2015

the guardian – Oil giant boss quits as Brazil corruption scandal puts pressure on president – 4 Feb. 2015

by Delisa Morris
Impunity Watch Reporter, South America

BUENOS AIRES, Argentina — Right after accusing the Argentine government of a massive cover-up prosecutor Nisman was found dead.  Before his untimely death he had drafted an affidavit calling for the arrest of Argentine President Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner, detailed the lead investigator in the case, Tuesday.

Alberto Nisman was a special prosecutor hired to investigate the 1994 terrorist attack in Buenos Aires.

For 10 years, Nisman had been investigating the deadliest terrorist attack in Argentina’s history: the 1994 bombing of a Jewish community center that left 85 dead and hundreds wounded.

Nisman alleged that Fernandez and her government tried to cover-up Iran’s role in the terrorist attack.  Adding fuel to the fire with the affidavit for Fernandez’s arrest, Nisman’s death is raising more than a few eyebrows.

The draft document calling for President Fernandez’s arrest was found in a trash can at Nisman’s apartment, lead investigator Vivian Fein said.  Fernandez was not the only name on the affidavit, there was also a call for the arrest of Foreign Minister Hector Timerman and several political supporters of the President.

There has been much speculation concerning the existence of the document, with denial even by the lead investigator.  On Tuesday, however, Fein released a statement saying that there had been a miscommunication. She admitted the document existed and that it was included among the many documents gathered by police from Nisman’s apartment. All the documents are awaiting analysis, she said.

The draft affidavit warns the would-be judge that Fernandez, Timerman and the other subjects of his complaint could exert pressure on the judicial system, Clarin reported. Those he accuses, Nisman wrote, have a “total lack of scruples.”

Fernandez, who is out of the country in China, made no public comment on the matter.

Though Nisman may have contemplated the arrests, he never filed for an arrest warrant before his death.

Nisman’s report, totaling almost 300 pages, reported a massive cover up on the part of Argentina’s government of who was behind the 1994 bombing.  Arrest warrants were issued to eight Iranian nationals believed responsible for the attack, in 2006.

Nisman claimed that Fernandez’s government helped orchestrate a bargain with Iran: Cash-strapped Argentina would get Iranian oil. Iran would get Argentine grain and meat. And the bombing would remain unsolved.

“The most important information in the investigation (by) Nisman is the Argentine government (wants) to take away (Iran’s responsibility in) the bombing of AMIA,” Bullrich said. “They want to destroy the investigation of the Argentine justice.”

Ten days after Nisman’s death, he was buried in a ceremony carried live on Argentinian television. His grave is in the same cemetery where victims of the 1994 explosion are buried.

For more information, please see:

BBC News – Argentina prosecutor Nisman ‘planned warrant’ for President Fernandez – 3 Feb. 2015

The New York Times – Draft of Arrest Request for Argentine President Found at Dead Prosecutor’s Home – 3 Feb. 2015

CNN – Dead Prosecutor Sought Arrest of Argentina’s President, Investigator Says – 3 Feb. 2015

USA Today – Argentine Official Drafted Arrest Warrant for President – 3 Feb. 2015

Colombian President Juan Manuel Santos has decided to crack down on Venezuela’s socialist government as ask for the freedom of a prominent opposition leader.  In the past Colombia has preferred a hands-off approach in dealing with Venezuela, in hopes for the country’s support in peace talks with Colombian rebels.

This changing climate comes at a time when Venezuela’s deepening economic crisis has fellow Latin American countries reconsidering how the renewed unrest from the opposition in Colombia should be responded to.  This is not the first time the countries have been on opposing sides.

In 2008, there was tension that led to talks of war on both sides of the border.  Colombia became the first Latin American country to call for the release of activist Leopoldo Lopez late Monday evening.

Almost a year ago anti-government rallies stormed Venezuela, with Lopez being one of the people at the helm.  Lopez has been incarcerated for almost 11 months on charges of instigating violence at the rallies.  Until Monday Venezuela’s neighbors preferred to push dialogue with the government, while the U.S. and European governments openly condemn Lopez’s jailing.  The governments are also concerned with Venezuelan President Maduro’s crackdown on his opposition after the rallies.

“I don’t pretend for Colombia ever to adopt our socialist model or break its dependence on U.S. imperialism,” Maduro said at a military ceremony. “But nobody can accept lessons imparted from abroad about who can or cannot be jailed.”

It is clear that Maduro is not happy about the countries supporting his opposition.  Over the weekend former Colombian President Andres Pastrana attempted to visit Lopez in jail,  in addition to former Chilean President Sebastian Pinera.  The two leaders were barred from entering the military facility outside of Caracas where Lopez is jailed.  Following this Maduro said in a speech at the wo the countries have “”blood on their hands” for supporting groups trying to oust him.

While Maduro is unhappy, his Venezuelan opposition celebrated Colombia’s statement almost immediately.

“Our hearts are smiling,” Lopez’s wife, Lilian Tintori, told Bogota’s Caracol Radio. “We thank you for this statement because we need your help.”

Maduro has never been friendly with Colombia, constantly claiming that Colombia is working with the U.S., to overthrow him.  Santos has largely ignored Maduro’s jabs, but seems to be interested in distancing himself from the country.

However, Maduro and Santos came to a consensus on Wednesday in Costa Rica, where they both attended a meeting for Caribbean and South American leaders.

For more information, please see: 

Buenos Aires Herald – Free Leopoldo Lopez – 27 Jan. 15

ABC News – Colombia Angers Venezuela With Call to Free Jailed Opponent – 27 Jan. 2015

Colombia Reports – Venezuela defuses diplomatic tensions with Colombia – 29 Jan. 2015

The Washington Post – Colombia Angers Venezuela With Call to Free Jailed Opponent – 27 Jan. 2015