by Emilee Gaebler
Impunity Watch Reporter, South America

BOGOTÁ, Colombia – Viviane Morales, the chief prosecutor of Colombia has been forced to step down from her post.  A lawsuit was filed claiming that Morales was elected improperly according to provisions of the Colombian constitution.  She took office in 2010 and was the first woman to be elected to the position as Colombia’s top prosecutor.

The lawsuit claims that Morales was improperly elected because at the time she failed to get the 2/3 majority vote of the Supreme Court magistrates as required.  She was elected by a 14-4 vote and the discrepancy arises because the number of magistrates mandated by the Colombian constitution is 23.  The suit claims that since there were 5 vacancies during her election, and only 18 sitting magistrates, she did not properly take office.

As reported by NTN24 News, the decision to elect Morales ended a 1.5 year impasse between the Supreme Court and the government where the magistrates refused to accept any of the nominees submitted to them.  Colombian president, Juan Manuel Santos, expressed his regret that Morales resigned.  He noted that during her time as chief prosecutor she performed with, “great dignity, great efficiency, great transparency and great character.”

Morales resigned when the ruling was handed down by Colombia’s Council of State that her election was invalid.  In her resignation speech, she emphasized her aggressive stance in prosecuting even those seen as “untouchable” like government agencies and officials.

During her time as the chief prosecutor Morales investigated, prosecuted and dismantled the DAS department for its use by past-president, Alvaro Uribe’s administration to illegally spy on political opponents.  She also prosecuted a number of past ministers who were close to Uribe including Bernado Moreno, Uribe’s chief of staff, and Andres Felipe Arias, Uribe’s agriculture minister.

In the past year Morales has faced strong criticism and a rash of bad publicity for her marriage to Carlos Alonso Lucio, an ex-guerilla member of the group M-19.  The group is now demobilized but was linked to drug paramilitaries and drug trafficking.  Morales noted that such attacks against her and her husband were “vile, low and slanderous.”

Vice Prosecutor General, Wilson Martinez, will step in until Morales’ successor is elected.  President Santos will now submit a shortlist of three candidates to the Supreme Court for their consideration.  It would be possible to place Morales on that list, however she noted in her resignation speech that she would not be available as a candidate.

For more information, please see;

Xinhua News – Colombia’s Chief Prosecutor Resigns After Adverse Verdict – 3 March 2012

BBC News – Colombia Chief Prosecutor Viviane Morales Resigns – 2 March 2012

Colombia Reports – Colombia’s Unseated Prosecutor General not Available for Re-election – 2 March 2012

Colombia Reports – President Santos Regrets Prosecutor General Resignation – 2 March 2012

Colombia Reports – Colombia’s Prosecutor General Removed From Office – 29 February 2012

NTN24 News – Colombia Prosecutor that Jailed Uribe Officials Ousted – 29 February 2012

By Paula Buzzi
Impunity Watch Reporter, South America

BOGOTA, Colombia — At least 11 oil workers were kidnapped on Tuesday by an unidentified armed group as they were working on Colombia’s largest oil-pipeline project, Oleoducto Bicentario. Colombia’s Defense Minister, Juan Carlos Pinzon, announced on Wednesday morning that the workers had been found and freed after a search mission. He later backtracked his statement and admitted that the workers are still missing.

The oil workers were kidnapped as they were riding the bus to work in the rural Arauca province. Colombian authorities are blaming the ELN, Colombia’s second largest rebel group, for the kidnapping because of the location of the act. According to authorities, 500 security forces are looking for the missing oil workers and they are promising a $57,000 reward for any information leading to their safe recovery.

Defense Minister Pinzon’s statement on Wednesday morning stirred up some controversy when it was later discovered that the oil workers were still missing. He confirmed to the media that the oil workers were safe in a military base when in fact they had never been found. Furthermore, he initially said nine workers had been kidnapped, which he corrected to 11 later that day in his redaction.

The kidnapping highlights the dangers of the new booming oil sector in Colombia. Oil and gas companies operating in dangerous rural regions are often vulnerable to attacks by organized crime and drug cartels. The Colombian Petroleum Association has recently warned of an increase in extortion demands on oil companies.  President Juan Manuel Santos has threatened to exile any foreign company that participates in extortion to any criminal group.

The Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC), Colombia’s biggest rebel group and one of many criminal groups in Arauca, has been bombing oil pipelines and kidnapping civilian workers for decades in order to disrupt the oil market. The FARC is famous for their high profile kidnappings of politicians and business executives.

The kidnapping came only days after FARC announced its intent to stop abducting civilians. Three Chinese oil contractors and a translator are still missing from when the FARC kidnapped them in June.

For further information, please see:

Colombia Reports – ELN Blamed For Kidnapping Oil Workers – 01 March 2012

Fox Business – Colombian Military Continues Search For Missing Oil Workers – 29 February 2012

Colombia Reports – 9 Kidnapped Oil Workers Liberated – 29 February 2012

Reuters – Eleven Colombian Oil Workers Kidnapped by Armed Group – 29 February 2011

Associated Press – Colombia’s FARC Announces Halt to Kidnapping – 27 February 2012

by Emilee Gaebler
Impunity Watch Reporter, South America

SANTIAGO, Chile – The Aysén region of Chile continues to experience unrest as local residents rebel against the government in an attempt to get better health care access, fuel subsidies, education programs and infrastructure improvements.

On Thursday, February 23, about 400 protestors in the Aysén area clashed with police when their week long blockade of the southern highways was not dismantled.  Police also clashed with protestors in the capital city of Santiago on Thursday.   A group of over 1,000 people, mainly students, were demonstrating in support of the Aysén cause.

In both instances, the Chilean police forces used tear gas and water cannons in dispersing the groups.  As reported by the Santiago Times, the protest in Santiago was the third one this week and was markedly different; there were hardly any signs and no chanting.  Instead, the group, immediately upon entering the square, began to throw rocks at the buildings and the armored police cars surrounding them.

The Aysén protest movement began last Friday when negotiations with the government broke down.  The Aysén region is in southern Patagonia and is a rural area that largely subsists on the tourism industry.  The cost of living in the area is disparately high in comparison to those living in urban areas.  Local leaders had been in talks to get higher government investments in the area.

The uprising is led by the Social Movement for the Aysén Region (MSPRA) which is a collaboration of labor, environmental and student organizations.  The week-long blockade of the highways is significantly slowing the tourism industry as well as causing reported food shortages.  Residents are describing the situation as a war zone

“Tonight is a night of terror like every night, because this is turning into a war. It’s not just clashes anymore but a war where rocks fly, pellets fly, Molotov cocktails fly, buckshot flies. There are all kinds of things outside our homes,” was a statement by an unidentified resident to NTN24 News.

On Friday the protest expanded into the fishing industry as well.  Roughly 200 local fishermen blockaded the North Route 9 of the Magallanese strait and access to the Punta Arenas airport.  They were demonstrating their solidarity with the overall Aysén movement as well as protesting against proposed amendments to the fishing and aquaculture laws which favor “big business” over local production.

For more information, please see;

NTN24 News – Aysén Protestors Clash with Chilean Police – 24 February 2012

The Santiago Times – Chile’s Local Fishermen Add More Roadblocks in Aysén Protests– 24 February 2012

The Santiago Times – Aysén Protest Fails to Make Waves in Chile’s Capital – 23 February 2012

The Guardian – Clashes with Police in Santiago over Aysén Region – 21 February 2012

by Emilee Gaebler
Impunity Watch Reporter, South America

LA PAZ, Bolivia – Yesterday police and a crowd of protestors clashed in the Plaza Murillo, the center of the national government.  Roughly 50 disabled individuals ended a 1,000 mile protest walk at the Plaza Murillo and were met by police barricades.

Upon entering the Plaza the group attempted to pass the barricades and the police stepped in to stop them.  Some of the protestors used their wheelchairs, canes and crutches to fight the police.  Pepper spray was used to disperse and end the riot.

La Razón, a daily news agency in Bolivia, reports that four protestors were detained by police and roughly 10 of the disabled had minor injuries from the confrontation.  The police report that about 10 officers were also injured.

The group began the protest on the 15 of November, roughly 100 days ago, in the streets of Trinidad, Bolivia.  Along the way the protestors were fed and given places to sleep by families in the towns they passed through.

The protestors sought to draw attention to a government statute, passed on the 5th of November, that kept monthly payment subsidies, to those disabled, at roughly $130 US.  The demand of the group was that payment be increased to $400 US; a more appropriate amount which they could viably live on.  They also want to establish a more integrated place in society for those with disabilities.

The march was especially symbolic as it claimed for those disabled a strong political identity just like any other social group.  They specifically chose to end the march at Plaza Murillo as that is where other groups typically gather for protests.

“Why not us?  It is a public space and like everyone we all have the right to protest,” said Camilo Bianchi, a leader of the group.

Living in Bolivia as a disabled individual is not an easy life.  Most of the buildings throughout the nation are not handicapped accessible and there is a strong prejudice that continues to exist against them.  Most who are disabled find it impossible to work or to attend school.

“It’s very hard to be a person with a disability. Even our own husbands abandon us because they feel ashamed of us. I look after my four children alone, washing and ironing clothes for people, and doing whatever I can,” said Domitila Franco, one of the protestors.

The group has now declared that 10 individuals will begin a hunger strike in an attempt to gain governmental acquiescence to their demands.  The government’s defense of its actions yesterday centered on the theory that the group had been “infiltrated” by other political activists.  This presented too great of a threat to the Plaza as a public forum and thus police barricades were erected.

For more information, please see;

BBC News – Bolivia’s Disabled Clash with Police Over Subsidies – 24 February 2012

Bolivia Weekly – Disabled Battle Police in the Street – 24 February 2012

The Guardian – Disabled Protestors Clash with Police in Bolivia – 24 February 2012

La Razón – Tras la Violencia, Discapacitados Ingresan en Huelga de Hambre – 24 February 2012