Dollar vs. Colombian Peso
One dollar is now COL $2561.21
Tuesday, March 31, 2009
Monday, March 30, 2009
BBC News:
Incest accusations shock Colombia
A Colombian man has appeared in court accused of raping his daughter over many years and fathering several children with her.
Arcebio Alvarez, dubbed the "monster of Mariquita" by the local media, allegedly abused his daughter, now in her 30s, since she was nine years old.
The case has shocked Colombia, and the 59-year-old needed police and army protection for his court appearance.
Mr Alvarez denies incest and rape, saying his daughter was adopted.
"We agreed to have a romantic relationship because we really loved each other. But she was not my own child," he told the court in the central Tolima province.
Sometimes I would ask him [why we were doing it] and he would say it was God's will
Arcedio Alvarez's daughter
It is not clear whether his claim is true, or whether it would affect the charges he faces, but the woman says she always saw him as her father.
"I always respected him as my father and he is my father," she said.
"He never spoke about [incest], about why we were doing it. Sometimes I would ask him and he would say it was God's will."
The woman told police how her mother died when she was five years old, leaving her in the care of Mr Alvarez.
She says she was raped repeatedly and became pregnant 14 times. Eight of her children, aged between one and 19, survived.
The woman and her children are now under state protection.
Child welfare campaigners have called for a life sentence if he is convicted, saying there are hundreds of thousands of child sexual abuse cases in Colombia not being prosecuted.
The case has also prompted a movement to change Colombian law, says the BBC's Jeremy McDermott in Colombia, to ensure that those found guilty of raping children go to prison for life.
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I posted this article from BBC News because it gave a more in depth description on the story about the man raping his daughter that I previously posted. I am glad that the case has prompted a movement to change Colombian law when it comes to raping children. This is a sad story and I hope that justice is ultimately served.
Incest accusations shock Colombia
A Colombian man has appeared in court accused of raping his daughter over many years and fathering several children with her.
Arcebio Alvarez, dubbed the "monster of Mariquita" by the local media, allegedly abused his daughter, now in her 30s, since she was nine years old.
The case has shocked Colombia, and the 59-year-old needed police and army protection for his court appearance.
Mr Alvarez denies incest and rape, saying his daughter was adopted.
"We agreed to have a romantic relationship because we really loved each other. But she was not my own child," he told the court in the central Tolima province.
Sometimes I would ask him [why we were doing it] and he would say it was God's will
Arcedio Alvarez's daughter
It is not clear whether his claim is true, or whether it would affect the charges he faces, but the woman says she always saw him as her father.
"I always respected him as my father and he is my father," she said.
"He never spoke about [incest], about why we were doing it. Sometimes I would ask him and he would say it was God's will."
The woman told police how her mother died when she was five years old, leaving her in the care of Mr Alvarez.
She says she was raped repeatedly and became pregnant 14 times. Eight of her children, aged between one and 19, survived.
The woman and her children are now under state protection.
Child welfare campaigners have called for a life sentence if he is convicted, saying there are hundreds of thousands of child sexual abuse cases in Colombia not being prosecuted.
The case has also prompted a movement to change Colombian law, says the BBC's Jeremy McDermott in Colombia, to ensure that those found guilty of raping children go to prison for life.
..........................................
I posted this article from BBC News because it gave a more in depth description on the story about the man raping his daughter that I previously posted. I am glad that the case has prompted a movement to change Colombian law when it comes to raping children. This is a sad story and I hope that justice is ultimately served.
...........................................
This video is about the current drug problem in Colombia and how it came to be. It is from Al Jazeera news and tells of how Mexico has now become the number one place for drug trafficking. The demand for the cocaine in America seems to be the main issue in the countries that are fighting drug wars. It will be interesting to see how the U.S. leaders and other country leaders deal with the problem.
Sunday, March 29, 2009
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Interesting video, it was neat to see a documentary on the drug problem in Colombia from a different perspective. You can watch parts 3 & 4 to this video at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RtGG0EOGTPg&feature=player_embedded
Photo: Colombia Reports
'How is it possible that no one reported this?
How is it possible that the Monster of Mariquita, who raped his daughter for thirty years, impregnating her 14 times and was sexually abusing the girls she gave birth to, was able to do this for so long, Tolima authorities ask.
"How is it possible nobody reported this?" Director Carlos Eduardo Buenaventura Gómez of Tolima's Family Welfare institute openly asks.
The official, who says he knew nothing of the situation until news broke Friday about the 59-year old farmer who had been sexually abusing his siblings for thirty years. Buenaventure Gómez does not understand why nobody said anything over this long period of time.
Buenaventura Gómez says he was warned by the national Family Welfare office last Thursday after daughter Alba finally reported the abuse by her father.
After the story became known, a team of psychologists and social workers was sent to the small Tolima town to attend the victims of the abuse. The welfare workers are now trying to help the daughter and her eight children, all born from the "Monster".
"We are working with the family now and are looking for ways to keep them together, is that's possible. Experts are currently assassing and analyzing the situation and we welcome their recommendations," teh regional Welfare director told newspaper El Tiempo.
According to Buenaventura, he is instructed by the national office for Family Welfare to give the victims all support and collaboration possible and that they will be offered the best programs available to overcome their destructive past of abuse.
The Welfare director denounces how nobody in the community sent warning signals to the authorities that something was wrong in teh farmer's household.
The horror story stayed within the family until Alba turned to the local priest and told him what happened. The priest then warned the authorities.
"How is it possible nobody reported this?" Director Carlos Eduardo Buenaventura Gómez of Tolima's Family Welfare institute openly asks.
The official, who says he knew nothing of the situation until news broke Friday about the 59-year old farmer who had been sexually abusing his siblings for thirty years. Buenaventure Gómez does not understand why nobody said anything over this long period of time.
Buenaventura Gómez says he was warned by the national Family Welfare office last Thursday after daughter Alba finally reported the abuse by her father.
After the story became known, a team of psychologists and social workers was sent to the small Tolima town to attend the victims of the abuse. The welfare workers are now trying to help the daughter and her eight children, all born from the "Monster".
"We are working with the family now and are looking for ways to keep them together, is that's possible. Experts are currently assassing and analyzing the situation and we welcome their recommendations," teh regional Welfare director told newspaper El Tiempo.
According to Buenaventura, he is instructed by the national office for Family Welfare to give the victims all support and collaboration possible and that they will be offered the best programs available to overcome their destructive past of abuse.
The Welfare director denounces how nobody in the community sent warning signals to the authorities that something was wrong in teh farmer's household.
The horror story stayed within the family until Alba turned to the local priest and told him what happened. The priest then warned the authorities.
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This story was pretty shocking to me as well as repulsive. I hope that the man who did this gets some kind of major punishment because it is obviously not right. It will be interesting to see how the Colombian government handles the situation.
Sunday, March 22, 2009
This is a documentary on Pablo Escobar by Manuel Francisco Contreras. It shows two different perceptions on the most famous drug lord of Colombia. One is by the poor people who Escobar gave money to and the other is by the government who fought to capture him. It is very interesting to see these two perceptions compared. He was both a hero and a killer in Colombia depending on who you talk to. Check out this video to get a better understanding.
Monday, March 9, 2009
Garry Leech
Photo: Colombia ReportsInterview with Gary Leech, the gringo who goes where no gringo goes
Independent journalist Garry Leech is one of the few foreigners who have seen the Colombia that hardly anyone sees. He has spent nearly ten years in Colombia's war zones and has seen a side of Colombia that most prefer not to know about.
Leech, editor of colombiajournal.org, has recently finished the book 'Beyond Bogota: Diary of a Drug War Journalist in Colombia' about the years he spent investigating Colombia's conflict. A book he decided to start writing while he was held at gunpoint by FARC guerrillas and realized his son would never know the kind of work his father did if at that point or anytime something would happen to him.
Without Leech' reporting, the stories of the Colombia that most of us never see would not be told. The reality that hardly anyone of us know, is still hitting hard on the rural areas of Colombia, the reporter assures. The American does not report on the beautiful women of Medellín, the architecture of Cartagena and the vibrant nightlife of Bogotá. Leech reports the stories of the Colombians who live in areas where you and I are smart enough not to go.
According to the independent reporter, there is no one-sided answer as to whether Colombia has improved over the years he has spent researching the country. "The situation has improved incredibly in cities like Bogotá, Medellín and Cali and large parts of central Colombia, but if you go to the rural areas the situation is equally bad and in some cases even worse than ten years ago," he says.
Most people are not aware of the seriousness of the conflict that's still going on, because they're simply not told about it, he says. "All mainstream media and press agencies are based in Bogotá and rarely leave Bogotá. They do not see or show what goes on in the country. Because of this lack of investigative reporting they are over-dependent on official information. This causes a lot of misconception of Colombia and a lack of awareness of what is really going on here."
"There are very few foreign reporters who have been to the war zones. Even Colombian journalists hardly report from where the war is taking place, except for guys like Hollman Morris," he says.
Having spent that much time in the conflict areas and having seen so many sides of the country, Leech sees very little future in the military approach to the conflict with the FARC or in Plan Colombia as a way to end the cultivation of coca. "To be able to achieve peace in Colombia, it is necessary that the FARC lay down their weapons. The problem is that the FARC are not like the AUC and won't demobilize without real compromises made in the economic system in Colombia," Leech says. "The AUC could demobilize, because they never demanded change, they were protecting the system. The FARC does demand change and now, although it is using terrorism and violates human rights, tries to achieve that. The only way to stop the violence is by addressing the inequalities and poverty so prevalent in Colombia, which is something that many Colombians are struggling non-violently to achieve."
Leech's 'Beyond Bogota' is not an analysis on the situation of Colombia's violent conflict, but more an eye-witness account of the gringo that goes where no gringo goes.
.............................
The same seems to be true in the video posted above. Most of the drug problem in Colombia exists in the rural areas and has the biggest affect on the indigenous people. This is why Colombia seems to be getting better to some but really as Leech says in the interview it is worse now in some areas. It is a good thing there are reporter like Leech who is face to face with the situation because it keeps the people somewhat aware of the situation in the rural areas. I think it is going to be hard for Colombia to get the FARC to hand down their weapons because the FARC are now a terrorists group that wants change and to take over the country. It will be interesting to see how the Colombian government handles the FARC over the next few years or longer. Reporters like Garry Leech bring the public valuable information about places that are not often covered and I am appreciative of his work.
Independent journalist Garry Leech is one of the few foreigners who have seen the Colombia that hardly anyone sees. He has spent nearly ten years in Colombia's war zones and has seen a side of Colombia that most prefer not to know about.
Leech, editor of colombiajournal.org, has recently finished the book 'Beyond Bogota: Diary of a Drug War Journalist in Colombia' about the years he spent investigating Colombia's conflict. A book he decided to start writing while he was held at gunpoint by FARC guerrillas and realized his son would never know the kind of work his father did if at that point or anytime something would happen to him.
Without Leech' reporting, the stories of the Colombia that most of us never see would not be told. The reality that hardly anyone of us know, is still hitting hard on the rural areas of Colombia, the reporter assures. The American does not report on the beautiful women of Medellín, the architecture of Cartagena and the vibrant nightlife of Bogotá. Leech reports the stories of the Colombians who live in areas where you and I are smart enough not to go.
According to the independent reporter, there is no one-sided answer as to whether Colombia has improved over the years he has spent researching the country. "The situation has improved incredibly in cities like Bogotá, Medellín and Cali and large parts of central Colombia, but if you go to the rural areas the situation is equally bad and in some cases even worse than ten years ago," he says.
Most people are not aware of the seriousness of the conflict that's still going on, because they're simply not told about it, he says. "All mainstream media and press agencies are based in Bogotá and rarely leave Bogotá. They do not see or show what goes on in the country. Because of this lack of investigative reporting they are over-dependent on official information. This causes a lot of misconception of Colombia and a lack of awareness of what is really going on here."
"There are very few foreign reporters who have been to the war zones. Even Colombian journalists hardly report from where the war is taking place, except for guys like Hollman Morris," he says.
Having spent that much time in the conflict areas and having seen so many sides of the country, Leech sees very little future in the military approach to the conflict with the FARC or in Plan Colombia as a way to end the cultivation of coca. "To be able to achieve peace in Colombia, it is necessary that the FARC lay down their weapons. The problem is that the FARC are not like the AUC and won't demobilize without real compromises made in the economic system in Colombia," Leech says. "The AUC could demobilize, because they never demanded change, they were protecting the system. The FARC does demand change and now, although it is using terrorism and violates human rights, tries to achieve that. The only way to stop the violence is by addressing the inequalities and poverty so prevalent in Colombia, which is something that many Colombians are struggling non-violently to achieve."
Leech's 'Beyond Bogota' is not an analysis on the situation of Colombia's violent conflict, but more an eye-witness account of the gringo that goes where no gringo goes.
.............................
The same seems to be true in the video posted above. Most of the drug problem in Colombia exists in the rural areas and has the biggest affect on the indigenous people. This is why Colombia seems to be getting better to some but really as Leech says in the interview it is worse now in some areas. It is a good thing there are reporter like Leech who is face to face with the situation because it keeps the people somewhat aware of the situation in the rural areas. I think it is going to be hard for Colombia to get the FARC to hand down their weapons because the FARC are now a terrorists group that wants change and to take over the country. It will be interesting to see how the Colombian government handles the FARC over the next few years or longer. Reporters like Garry Leech bring the public valuable information about places that are not often covered and I am appreciative of his work.
Thursday, March 5, 2009
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