WASHINGTON (AP) — A jury says it is deadlocked in the cocaine trafficking case against Colombia rebel leader Ricardo Palmera.

That raises the prospect of an embarrassing second mistrial in a case the U.S. hoped would reinforce its stance that Latin America's largest rebel group is also a drug cartel.

A federal judge told jurors to take the weekend off and resume deliberating Monday.

Ricardo Palmera is already serving a 60-year prison sentence, so the outcome of the drug trial will have little effect on him. But prosecutors are seeking a symbolic drug war victory in a trial that could cost most than $1 million.

Source: Associated Press

By Mick Kelly

Washington D.C. - Colombian revolutionary Ricardo Palmera will testify in his own defense here in Federal Court the second week of April. Members of the National Committee to Free Ricardo Palmera will be attending the trial April 8 and urge other supporters to join them.

Palmera, who was kidnapped from Latin America by the U.S. government, is on trial for phony drug charges. His last trial on the same charges ended with a hung jury. The well-known Colombian Marxist and peace negotiator for the FARC (the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia), is being held in solitary confinement.

Tom Burke of the National Committee to Free Ricardo Palmera stated, "Ricardo Palmera should be released at once. The U.S. government has no right to try him and his trial is a farce. The names of many of the witnesses are secret and government admits they are being paid. And they are liars to boot."

Source: Fight Back! News Service

NO, OTRA VEZ ! NUEVO JUICIO AL REVOLUCIONARIO COLOMBIANO RICARDO PALMERA

Línea de piquete y conferencia de prensa por la libertad del revolucionario colombiano Ricardo Palmera, injustamente encarcelado y enjuiciado varias veces en Washington, D.C., Estados Unidos (EE.UU).

¿ Cuándo ? Lunes 3 de marzo, 2008. ¿ A qué hora ? Piquete de línea 8 : 30 a.m. / Conferencia de prensa a las 9:00 a.m. / ¿ Dónde ? Edificio de la Corte Federal , (333 Constitución Avenue N W), Washington D.C.

Demandamos la libertad del revolucionario colombiano Ricardo Palmera ( Simón Trinidad ). Su detención, encarcelamiento y juicios son una violación de la soberanía de Colombia. Palmera no ha cometido crimen alguno como tampoco ha hecho nada malo. Ni mucho menos en los EE.UU. Es todo lo contrario, él ha sido un luchador al servicio del pueblo colombiano. Palmera ha luchado en contra de la corrupción y el Terrorismo de Estado, que le ha impuesto a su país la política del presidente Bush y Cía.

Palmera ha estado detenido en una cárcel en los alrededores de la ciudad de Washington D.C., en confinamiento solitario y con una prohibición total de contactos y comunicación : con sus familias, amigos, medios de comunicación tanto de EE.UU. como del resto del mundo. Ni siquiera su propio abogado en Colombia ha podido visitarlo. No puede hacer ni recibir llamadas teléfonicas, al igual que correspondencia.

Ahora, los juicios al professor Palmera han sido algo extraño. El primer juicio terminó en un NO VEREDICTO. Entonces, volvieron a juzgarlo por los mismos cargos. Al terminar el primer juicio y en la preparación del segundo juicio, el juez Hogan tuvo que renunciar al ser agarrado junto al US fiscal Ken Kohl haciendo componendas para favorecer a la fiscalia en contra de Palmera . Hogan fue reemplazado por el juez Lamberth, este juez rehusó permitirle a la defensa de Palmera presentar testigos. Pero, a su vez autorizó a la fiscalia de EE.UU. a presentar docenas de testigos, informantes pagados, mentirosos y convictos tráficantes de drogas, corruptos oficiales del gobierno de Colombia testificar en contra de Palmera. Por eso decimos que EL UNICO JUICIO JUSTO ES NINGUN JUICIO !

email: info@freericardopalmera.org o contacte telefonicamente a Tom Burke (773) 844-3612 / Mick Kelly ( 612) 715-3280.

By Kati Ketz and Angela Denio

Washington D.C. - Professor Palmera appeared calm and confident as he entered the courtroom in an orange prison jumpsuit, Jan. 28 He listened with interest as U.S. prosecutor Ken Kohl repeatedly called him a ‘terrorist’ as he argued that Palmera should receive a life sentence.

Ricardo Palmera, who served as a peace negotiator for Colombia’s largest rebel group, the FARC (Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia) and is now a political prisoner held the U.S., had faced Prosecutor Kohl at past trials. In two previous trials, prosecutor Kohl failed to prove terrorism charges against Professor Palmera.

In the last case, Kohl was caught colluding with the judge and the judge had to step down. Kohl’s cheating set the stage for Judge Lamberth to take over. In the retrial, Judge Lamberth approved dozens of prosecution witnesses, while not allowing Palmera even one. U.S. prosecutor Kohl’s sentencing arguments were outrageous distortions.

In response, public defender Bob Tucker argued for a lesser sentence. Tucker’s arguments emphasized the political background of the trial and the U.S. government’s intervention in Colombia’s civil war. Tucker spoke of how Judge Royce Lamberth influenced the jury by instructing them to use wide definitions in finding Ricardo Palmera guilty of belonging to a conspiracy - the FARC. Tucker also pleaded to the judge to show some leniency due to Palmera’s honesty in his testimony, contrasted with the coached testimony and lies of many prosecution witnesses.

For the next hour, Ricardo Palmera spoke with honor and pride. These are excerpts:

“I speak as a member of the FARC, an insurgent organization that takes up arms against the Colombian government. I have been a member since 1987. The Colombian oligarchy has used arms to oppress the people; this gave rise to the FARC, which uses arms to free them. The FARC are part of the Colombian people. They use arms and protests and various other ways to express opposition to the violent and elitist regime.”

Professor Palmera spoke about various FARC leaders, like Marulanda, and their backgrounds including farmers, workers, indigenous, women and student leaders and their struggle for a “pluralistic, democratic and peaceful Colombia with social justice.” Later he added “The ruling regime uses a policy of violence - employing murder, assassination, threats and death squads to keep themselves in power.”

Palmera went on to speak about economic inequality. “Latin America represents the greatest economic disparity. Colombia is third in Latin America in economic and social disparity. 24 million Colombians live below the poverty line and subsist on one or two dollars per day.”

Referring to the trial, Palmera said, “What takes place here is a political trial from beginning to end, no matter what the U.S. government may try to claim. The political nature of this trial is pleasing to me because it allows me to present the ideas of the FARC and the Secretariat to the judge and the jury, and to explain the ideas and goals of the FARC to the American people. I am also quite satisfied because despite the great lengths the U.S. government went to, the jury did not find me, Ricardo Palmera, guilty of being a terrorist, which I believe the U.S. government has mistakenly classified the FARC as. I take the opportunity here, on behalf of the FARC and myself, to make a condemnation of all terrorism no matter its origin. I will never forget that it is the terrorist actions of the Colombian state that brought me to become a member of the FARC and I will never allow it to become our practice.”

“The FARC - and I as a member of the FARC in particular - reject extradition. It is a neo-colonial policy that violates the sovereignty of the Colombian people. It is used as a weapon by the U.S. to blackmail men and women who fight for a just cause, including Sonia and myself. On the charge of conspiracy itself, I bear no guilt. The charge pertains to problems in my country and not beyond. It reflects real problems of the conflict and ways to exchange prisoners on both sides. I sent a letter to FARC leader Marulanda asking that my freedom not become a barrier for the freedom of others in Colombia. I think that the Prisoner Accords will become an important factor to achieve peace and justice in Colombia. A political solution has always been a part of any conflict and it has always been part of the FARC platform to find a political solution. As I have already had a meeting with the U.S. Department of State, I am willing for further meetings to take place to increase dialogue. When I joined the FARC, I was aware I might lose my life or liberty to obtain peace and justice for the Colombian people.”

Palmera’s arguments were coherent and clear. He was unrepentant and defended all of his actions on behalf of the Colombian people. He described and spoke with pride about the FARC and its leadership. Palmera thanked the National Committee to Free Ricardo Palmera for their support. He thanked Colombian Senator Piedad Cordoba for meeting with him prior to the sentencing. Then Palmera ended his speech with slogans and a quote from Bolivar: “Viva La FARC! Viva Marulanda! Viva Bolivar!”

Following Ricardo Palmera’s speech, Judge Royce Lambert praised Ricardo Palmera’s intelligence, his belief in principles, and while emphasizing his own ‘judicial independence’ sentenced Palmera to 60 years in prison, calling him a terrorist and saying his activity in Colombia broke U.S. law. A few months earlier, Judge Lamberth would not allow criminal proceedings against the executives of Chiquita Banana who armed and paid right-wing paramilitaries to kill union workers and leaders.

Tom Burke of the National Committee to Free Ricardo Palmera said, “This verdict is the equivalent of a life sentence for Ricardo Palmera. It is a slap in the face to the Colombian people and anybody who believes in the sovereignty of their own country. Professor Palmera can be proud that despite solitary confinement, cheating prosecutors and biased judges, he has beaten nine other charges during three trials. Like their wars in Iraq and Colombia, the Bush administration “made an underestimation” in deciding to put Ricardo Palmera on trial. Palmera’s speech was brilliant.”

It remains to be seen whether Ricardo Palmera or Colombian revolutionary Sonia, held in a Fort Worth, Texas prison, will be included in any prisoner exchanges. The National Committee to Free Ricardo Palmera plans to protest an upcoming re-trial of Ricardo Palmera in late March.

Source: Fight Back News Service

BOGOTA, Jan. 15 (Xinhua) -- Colombia's largest anti-government rebel group, the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC), said Tuesday it is willing to hand over their highest-profile hostages if its two key fighters are released from a U.S. jail as part of the exchange deal.

Speaking to a domestic news agency Anncol, FARC commander Edgar Devia also demanded the demilitarization of Pradera and Florida, two southern Colombian towns.

The two key fighters imprisoned in the United States are Omaira Rojas Cabrera, better known by her alias Sonia, and Juvenal Ovidio Ricardo Palmera Pineda, known as Simon Trinidad.

"All of the high-value hostages will be released by the FARC as part of a swap of prisoners that guarantees freedom for the guerillas deprived of their freedom at the time of signing, including Simon and Sonia," Devia said.

The FARC released two hostages, former vice-presidential candidate Clara Rojas and former legislator Consuelo Gonzalez, on Jan. 10. Gonzalez was carrying documents showing that other hostages are alive.

Colombia's president Alvaro Uribe has previously rejected demilitarization of the towns, saying it would leave residents without protection.

He has instead offered to demilitarize a sparsely populated area measuring 150,000 square km, and said that the FARC and the government should talk there.

Uribe also opposed the inclusion of the two FARC fighters held in U.S. jails, saying he had offered to release them before they were extradited if the FARC was willing to free all its hostages.

The most well known of the high-profile hostages are U.S. citizens Keith Stansell, Thomas Howes and Marc Gonsalves, and Rojas's running-mate Ingrid Betancourt, a former presidential candidate of dual French and Colombian nationality.

The Colombian government estimates there are 44 high-profile hostages, whom the FARC is seeking to swap, and around 700 other hostages, whom the guerrillas are seeking to ransom.

Source Xinhua News Agency

FARC Communiqué in Regards to the Liberation of Clara and Consuelo

1. Honouring our word and commitment, today the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia FARC, handover Clara Rojas and Consuelo González de Perdomo to the President of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela, Hugo Chávez, to Senator Piedad Cordova and the international community. If the boy Emmanuel is not in the arms of his mother, it is because President Uribe Vélez has sequestered him in Bogotá. Let him free so that we can all celebrate this event.

2. This humanitarian and unilateral liberation is possible despite the hindrance presented by President Uribe himself, a sworn enemy of the exchange of prisoners and enemy of peace with social justice, as he follows the ideological guidelines of Washington. Raising above the intense military operations of the Patriotic Plan, the seizure of the proofs of life, the capture of the humanitarian messengers who carried them, the sequestering of little Emmanuel in Bogotá, and the absurd intention to exclude the international humanitarian commission from the facilitation, we have taken this first encouraging step that invites to think about the possibility of peace in Colombia.

3. The efforts must now be directed at obtaining the military c learing of Pradera and Florida as the stage for the dialogue government-FARC for the agreement and the materialization of the exchange to make possible the liberation of all the prisoners in control of the contending forces, of those captives in the mountain and the imprisoned guerrillas in the jails of the regime, including Sonia and Simón. Our will is unquestionable. Let's not forget that in the recent past we unilaterally released 304 military and police officers, captured in combat. The handover of Clara and Consuelo we carry out today reaffirms our disposition.

4. The fact is that we are a belligerent force awaiting recognition by the governments of the world. This step would smooth the winding path of the Colombia people in their search for peace. Ours is a legitimate struggle. It is upheld by the universal right that all the peoples of the world have to raise against oppression. Our father, the Liberator Simón Bolivar teaches u s that, when power is oppressive, virtue has the right to overwhelm it, and that the virtuous man rises against the opressive and unbearable authority to replace it with a kind and respected one. And this is, indeed, the FARC's endeavour.

5, President Chávez, thank you very much. The world does not doubt that your immense heart beats sincerely for the peace of Colombia and the redemption of the peoples. We also thank the governments and personalities of the world who have surrounded him without reservations in this noble effort. And our special thanks to the brave people of Venezuela for their support and brotherhood. To the relatives of the prisoners and the friends of the humanitarian exchange our call to persist. We will obtain the exchange.

Secretariat, Central High Command of the FARC Mountains of Colombia, January 10 of 2008

Washington, D.C. - The National Committee to Free Ricardo Palmera, along with students and other activists from around the country protested here Dec. 3 against the sentencing of Colombian revolutionary Ricardo Palmera. Ricardo Palmera was convinced of 'conspiracy to kidnap' in July. The other false charges the government attempted to pin on him met with a hung jury.

This conviction came after Professor Palmera's first trial was thrown out when the jury refused to find him guilty and after the judge in the case, Judge Kenneth Hogan, was forced to step down after being caught cheating with the prosecution’s lawyers. The sentencing, originally scheduled to take place on Nov. 20, was postponed until Dec. 3 with no reasoning given for the postponement.

At the picket and press conference before the hearing members of the Colombian Action Network, Students for a Democratic Society, Fight Imperialism, Stand Together and the National Committee to Free Ricardo Palmera blasted plans to sentence Palmera.

"This man being sentenced today has done nothing wrong," said Jeremy Miller, a member of Students for Democratic Society. "He his being punished simply for being a member of an organization fighting back against the oppression in his country."

Many of the protesters spoke to why they had traveled so far to stand in solidarity with Professor Palmera. "Palmera is a hero, not just for the Colombian people but for all people. He fights for the freedom and sovereignty of the Colombian masses, which is in the interest of all oppressed people. We must support the freedom of Colombian people if we ever wish to attain our own freedom," said Tyneshia Bowen of Fight Imperialism, Stand Together.

Once inside the courtroom the public was in for a surprise, as the sentencing was again postponed - this time for almost two months. The extension was granted to the prosecution owing to their desire to respond to a 30-plus page statement written by Professor Palmera himself, which cited legal reasons for his immediate release. The prosecution has expressed their intention to demand 60 years in prison for Professor Palmera, while the defense has said that Professor Palmera deserves time served.

When court ended, protesters raised their fists in solitary with Ricardo Palmera, who in turn raised his fist into the air.

"We do not believe that Palmera should be sentenced at all and are very happy about the extension of time for the sentencing," said Mick Kelly of the National Committee to Free Ricardo Palmera. "He should be released at once and we urge all progressive people to join us in this effort." In interviews with the Colombia's main radio and TV stations, Kelly praised both Palmera and the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC).

The National Committee has pledged to return to the Washington D.C. Federal Court House Jan. 28, the date now scheduled for Professor Palmera's sentencing.

Source: Fight Back News

On December 3, Colombian revolutionary Ricardo Palmera faces sentencing in a Washington D.C federal court. The National Committee to Free Ricardo Palmera will pack the courtroom in support of this brave freedom fighter.

Ricardo Palmera is a peace negotiator for Colombia's rebels - the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC). The U.S. extradited Palmera to a prison outside Washington D.C. and hold him in solitary confinement—no family, no friends, no reporters, not even his own Colombian lawyer. Palmera only defends his country and fights for freedom and democracy for the Colombian people.

Professor Palmera's trials are extraordinary. By speaking the truth, FARC leader Palmera has consistently beaten the Bush administration's prosecutors. Palmera won a victory when the first trial ended in a hung jury. When the U.S. government re-tried Palmera on the same exact charges, Judge Hogan was caught cheating and had to step down. Hogan's replacement, Judge Lamberth refused to allow Palmera any witnesses. The U.S. prosecutor has dozens of witnesses--paid informants, lying convicted drug runners, and corrupt Colombian government officials. At the end of the retrial, the jury could not find Palmera guilty of "terrorism" charges or a kidnapping charge related to three U.S. military contractors captured and held by the FARC. Unfortunately, based upon the FARC capturing its enemies in combat, the jury convicted Palmera of "belonging to a conspiracy to kidnap". In another recent "drug" trial, seven American jurors wanted to find Professor Palmera "not guilty", but a hung jury resulted. The U.S. prosecutor plans to re-try Ricardo Palmera though there is no evidence, only paid informants. Palmera plans to testify and win again. The only fair trial is no trial. The only fair sentence is no sentence.

Tom Burke of the National Committee says, "Ricardo Palmera is a good man who dedicates his whole life to the Colombian people. We oppose the extradition, trials, and imprisonment of Ricardo Palmera because it violates the sovereignty of the Colombian people. Palmera is a political prisoner."

Angela Denio of Students for a Democratic Society (SDS) relates, "Students from across the U.S. are educating themselves and protesting the trials and sentencing of Professor Palmera. We oppose the war in Iraq and we oppose Plan Colombia—the U.S. dirty war that brings poverty, misery, and death to the Colombian people. SDS protests at the U.S. Military's School of the America's in Georgia, where the Colombian death squads are trained. An SOA graduate recently testified against Professor Palmera. It is Bush and the SOA that should be on trial! Our campaign to Free Ricardo Palmera is growing and spreading. People are speaking out."

Burke finishes, "From Baghdad to Bogotá, President Bush's empire is crumbling around him. At every trial, the rebel leader Ricardo Palmera exposes the lies, distortions, and injustice of Bush and the U.S. Empire. Palmera has beaten the U.S. government again and again. We await Ricardo Palmera's speech! We say Free Ricardo Palmera!"

Free Ricardo Palmera!

Picket line and press conference to demand Ricardo Palmera's freedom!
Monday, December 3rd, 8:30 AM picket line 9:00 AM press conference
U.S. Federal Court Building (333 Constitution Ave., NW)

On November 20th Colombian revolutionary Ricardo Palmera faces sentencing in a Washington D.C federal court. The National Committee to Free Ricardo Palmera will pack the courtroom in support of this brave freedom fighter.

Tom Burke of the National Committee says, “We oppose the kidnapping, trials, and imprisonment of Ricardo Palmera. Palmera is a political prisoner. President Bush’s empire is crumbling around him--from Baghdad to Bogota. Even in U.S. courtrooms, brave revolutionaries like Ricardo Palmera speak against the U.S. Empire and expose the lies, the distortions, and the injustice of the Bush administration. Palmera has beaten the slanders and lies of the U.S. government again and again. We say Free Ricardo Palmera!”

Angela Denio of Students for a Democratic Society (SDS) relates, “Students from across the U.S. are educating themselves and protesting the trials and sentencing of Professor Palmera. We oppose the war in Iraq. We oppose Plan Colombia—the U.S. dirty war that brings poverty, misery, and death to the Colombian people. SDS protests at the U.S. Military’s School of the America’s in Georgia, where the Colombian death squads are trained. An SOA graduate recently testified against Professor Palmera. It is Bush and the SOA that should be on trial! Our campaign to Free Ricardo Palmera shows Latin Americans that most North Americans are for peace and justice.”

Ricardo Palmera is a peace negotiator for Colombia’s rebels - the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC). The U.S. kidnapped and extradited Palmera to a prison outside Washington D.C. where he is held in solitary confinement—allowed no family, no friends, no reporters, not even his own Colombian lawyer. Ricardo Palmera is a political prisoner. He has committed no crime. He only defends his country and fights for freedom and democracy for the Colombian people.

Professor Palmera’s trials are extraordinary. By speaking the truth, FARC leader Palmera has consistently beaten the Bush administration’s prosecutors. Palmera won a victory when the first trial ended in a hung jury. When the U.S. government re-tried Palmera on the same exact charges, Judge Hogan was caught cheating and had to step down. Hogan’s replacement, Judge Lamberth refused to allow Palmera any witnesses. The U.S. prosecutor has dozens of witnesses--paid informants, lying convicted drug runners, and corrupt Colombian government officials. At the end of the retrial, the jury could not find Palmera guilty of “terrorism” charges or a kidnapping charge related to three U.S. military contractors captured and held by the FARC. Unfortunately, based upon the FARC capturing its enemies in combat, the jury convicted Palmera of “belonging to a conspiracy to kidnap”. In another recent “drug” trial, seven American jurors wanted to find Professor Palmera “not guilty”, but a hung jury resulted. The U.S. prosecutor plans to re-try Ricardo Palmera though there is no evidence, only paid informants. Palmera plans to testify and win again. The only fair trial is no trial. The only fair sentence is no sentence.

Free Ricardo Palmera!
Picket line and press conference to demand Ricardo Palmera's freedom!
Tuesday, November 20th, 8:30 AM picket line 9:00 AM press conference
U.S. Federal Court Building (333 Constitution Ave., NW)

For more info contact Tom Burke at 773-844-3612 or Mick Kelly at 612-715-3280.

On November 20th Colombian revolutionary Ricardo Palmera will be handed the equivalent of a life sentence by Judge Royce Lamberth in a Washington D.C. Federal court. The National Committee to Free Ricardo Palmera will be there to show our support for Colombian freedom fighter Ricardo Palmera and to oppose the overreaching arrogance of the U.S. Empire and President Bush.

Join the National Committee to Free Ricardo Palmera to show our support for Colombian freedom fighter Ricardo Palmera and to oppose the overreaching arrogance of the U.S. Empire and President Bush. We need you to give him strength and to show the people what is right and how to FIGHT!

The U.S. kidnapped and extradited Palmera to a prison outside Washington D.C. where he is held in solitary confinement - NO family, NO friends, NO reporters, not even his own Colombian lawyer. Ricardo Palmera is a political prisoner. HE HAS COMMITTED NO CRIME!

Professor Palmera's trial is bizarre. The first trial ended in a hung jury, so Palmera was re-tried on the same charges. At the start of the second trial, Judge Hogan had to step down because he was caught cheating with U.S. prosecutor Ken Kohl. Hogan's replacement Judge Lamberth refused to allow Palmera any witnesses. At the same time, Judge Lamberth allowed the U.S. prosecutor dozens of witnesses -- paid informants, lying convicted drug runners, and corrupt Colombian government officials. THE ONLY FAIR TRIAL IS NO TRIAL!

Picket line and press conference for Ricardo Palmer's freedom!
Tuesday November 20, 2007, 8:30 AM picket line,
9:00 AM press conference
Federal Court Building (333 Constitution Ave. NW), Washington, D.C.

Download the flyer in PDF format.
For more info contact Tom Burke at 773-844-3612 or Mick Kelly at 612-715-3280.

The following is a commentary by Colombian revolutionary Rodrigo Granda. It gives a personal account of the social conditions and political realities of a country that would cause a man like Ricardo Palmera, for instance, to give up everthing he had, in order to fight for the liberation of the Colombian people and the betterment of humanity at large.

My name is Rodrigo Granda. My compañeros call me Ricardo. I am a Colombian citizen who was born 58 years ago in a small forgotten town of the Antioquia department (province) called Frontino. My father was a versatile man. Coming from a family of miners and muleteers, he was a professor, mayor, topographer, miner and painter. He belonged to the Conservative Party without being a "godo", (1*) as then in Colombia one was born being a conservative or a liberal.

It used to call my attention that, although my father was a conservative, he never hid his permanent critic to the high echelons of the Catholic Church hierarchy, because he realized that the church was bound to the terrenal power of the large estate holdings, that it acted as a support and usufructuary of privileges, and that it was obscurantist and reactionary.

In regards to the relation between his membership in the Conservative Party and my father's general attitude before life, it could be said that it was like "if the devil were making hosts", because his thought and social practice were very advanced for his time. Later, in the sixties, he entered in the Alianza Nacional Popular (ANAPO) [Popular National Alliance], the political movement founded by General Gustavo Rojas Pinilla. Rojas Pinilla reached the Presidency of the Republic in 1953, by means of a coup d'etat against the conservative President Laureano Gómez (1950-1953). The coup of Rojas Pinilla counted with the support of the leadership and the militancy of the Liberal Party, and from a wide social base formed by workers from the rural areas and the city, who saw him as a second "liberator" (the first was Simón Bolivar), because the policy followed by the conservatives against the liberals and communists was to exterminate them by "blood and bullets". Gómez himself proclaimed it with those words. At that time, the "first violence" began, from 1946 to 1953, unleashed by the liberal-conservative oligarchy, which had a cost of three hundred thousand dead for our people.

With the arrival of Rojas Pinilla to power, people thought that the violence would stop and a model of independent economic development would be undertaken. His slogan was: "Bread, Peace, Justice and Freedom". Soon the General becomes a dictator, makes the Communists illegal, imposes press censorship, closes the Congress and names a Constituency Assembly "of pocket" to be perpetuated in government. The liberals and conservatives, who see their political and economic privileges and interest threatened, unite themselves against Rojas, they overthrow him in 1957 and Rojas seeks asylum in Spain. In the decade of 1960, Rojas Pinilla returns to the country and founds the ANAPO, based in caudillismo (strongman), demagoguery and populism, which attracts the attention of great masses that, again, believe to see in him the person able to carry out the changes that Colombia demanded.

My mother comes from a wealthy family related to land tenancy. My maternal grandfather was one of the main landowners of the Antiochian West. With money and some knowledge of medicine, he gained the respect of the powerful and the obedience of the laborers submitted to the prevailing relations of feudal character in that zone at the beginning of the XX century. By virtue of the economic comfort of the family, my mother's childhood was one of a princess. She did not have any needs in her childhood. She was transported on "indian back" through the rustic trails of the mountainous and old Antioquia. Today, the Fair of the Flowers, in Medellín, is a memory of that time, only that instead of carrying people, as they did before, the "silleteros"[men-chair] (before indians) load on their backs the most varied and beautiful flowers of the region. My mother conserves her aristocratic customs, although the economic comfort does no longer exist. Unlike my father, she is a practicing catholic. If the "heavens" were gained by reason of how much people pray, she would have already assured herself a place in it. I have no doubt about it. All mothers, for me, are saints.

From early age I had social sensitivity and great sense of solidarity with the destitute. I did it as something natural, as it came spontaneously from me. At 11 years of age I listened in the radio and recorded in those old acetate discs, the series Caudillos and Crowds. That was a collection of the best interventions of Jorge Eliécer Gaitán, the great speaker and liberal caudillo assassinated on April 09 of 1948 by the liberal-conservative oligarchy, event that unleashes the violence that still persists in the country. I also listened to the speeches of Laureano Gómez, great admirer of the Spanish phalange, whom they nicknamed "the monster" due to his bloodthirsty practices, and the speeches of Gilberto Alzate Avendaño and Silvio Villegas, formidable speakers and senators of the Conservative Party.

By then the Cuban Revolution had already prevailed. Many of the counter-revolutionaries that emigrated from that country went to Colombia and were taken to the secondary schools to dictate conferences on the evils that Communism would bring to Cuba. In Marco Fidel Suárez School, of Medellín, I attended several "conferences" of those repulsive subjects that received the rejection of those of us who attended the last years of secondary education. I remember them speaking of "executions without trial", of "mothers who the government took their new born children away from", of "people who their clocks, their gold chains, automobiles, their houses and other properties were confiscated" and that "all those who protested were executed in the act". In synthesis, the calumnies and the insults were so many that I wanted to know the truth, and thus I began to listen to Radio Havana Cuba.

The speeches of Fidel Castro impacted me with hurricane forces. Names before strange to me became familiar: I am talking about heroes of the young revolution such as Camilo Cienfuegos, Ché Guevara, Ramiro Valdés, Haydee Santamaría, Melba Hernández and Vilma Espín, and of martyrs such as Abel Santamaría, Frank País and many others. I wanted from my heart that what was being done in Cuba we repeated in Colombia, but I did not have the most remote idea from where to begin. In my innocence and lack of revolutionary conscience, I believed everyone who did speak of revolution and change, regardless of them not having a clear project nor that their words agreed with what they practiced. The most radical that I knew then was the ANAPO, whose youth organization I joined because that movement, for me, was composed by the people, and that movement won the elections of 1970 with Gustavo Rojas Pinilla as candidate to the Presidency of the Republic.

The presidential election of 1970 was robbed from Rojas Pinilla by means of the greatest fraud committed in the history of Colombia. At 8 o'clock on the night of the April 19, when all the counting gave Rojas as the winner, President Carlos Lleras Restrepo decrees a curfew commanding all Colombians to go to sleep. Shortly after, at dawn of the 20th, the conservative Misael Pastrana Borrero candidate of the National Front shows up as the elected President. After an insignificant struggle in the Apostolic Nunciature, Rojas Pinilla reaches a compromise with the government, while the people are deceived and disillusioned. These events give rise to the Movimiento 19 de Abril [Movement April 19] (M 19). (2*)

In 1971, I take root in Bogotá to work as a banking employee. In that city I establish my first contacts with the labor, communal and neigborhood movement, and is there where I meet members of the Partido Comunista Colombiano [Colombian Communist Party] (PCC). After studying its program, I request entrance to the party and am assigned to a cell of the Restrepo district, in the south of the capital. I could say that it is then when I begin to have class awareness, and to understand why and how one struggles. I take the first introductory steps to Marxist-Leninism, and combine the work, the study and the political activity. To the PCC I owe a great part of my formation, that later continues and is deepened in the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia - People's Army (FARC-EP). (3*)

In the PCC I undertook local, regional and national tasks. In 1985 the Unión Patriótica [Patriotic Union] (UP) arises, to which leadership I was promoted in its First Congress. That movement was a product of the Agreements of the Uribe, signed by President Belisario Betancur and the FARC. The agreements of the Uribe, which motto was "Cease of Fire, Truce and Peace", allowed the insurgency to participate in the electoral competition, that is to say, they could elect their own mayors, councilmen, deputies and senators, on the bases that it was the elected functionaries, in particular the members of the National Congress, who had to approve and to make work in the day to day life the changes that would end the armed conflict.

The irruption of the UP caused turmoil in Colombian politics for the number of councilmen, deputies, mayors and senators that it managed to elect, and for the voting obtained by its presidential candidate, Jaime Pardo Leal, ex- magistrate of the Superior Court of Bogotá and member of the PCC, later assassinated by the State terrorism in 1986. That turmoil scares the national oligarchy that undertakes the route of the physical elimination of that movement, without concerning for the methods used. The high spheres of the government stimulate the mafia groups to attempt against the leadership of the UP and give green light to the Armed Forces to organize the paramilitary groups, while the political chiefs, the landowners and the obscurantist sectors of the clergy, that see their political and economic power threatened, begin to fuse their interests with the mafia.

Although I rejected all the pressures exerted against me to try to turn me into an "intermediary" of their plans to divide the guerrilla movement, and that I also refused the unacceptable conditions that the government raised as requirement to excarcerate a group of so-called FARC guerrillas, I was left in freedom, against my will, on the 4 of July of this year. Mr. Uribe said to the country and the world that my excarceration took place for reason of State, because he had received the request of the President of France, Nicholas Sarcozy, to release me unconditionally. Uribe added that he had not asked the French President what were the motivations that move him to make such request, and that in his decision confidence was put ahead of any other interest.

I am frankly between those who ask oneself what is the role that the President of France plays in this plot. My conviction is that the High Peace Commissioner, by order of Uribe, resorted to blackmail so that I lead a demobilization from jail, of dark individuals who have nothing to do with the guerrilla movement. The plan consisted in leaving the true guerrillas in jail, and that the false ones, chosen by the government of Uribe, would leave with me.

The "unilateral measures" of the government of Uribe were part of a meticulous plan, whose second part consisted of rescuing, by blood and bullets, the ex-deputies of the Assembly of Valle del Cauca who were prisoners of the FARC-EP in mountains of the south of the country. With that commando action, the government of Uribe wanted to do something similar to the "Entebbe Operation" (5*) or to the rescue of the hostages captured by the Movimiento Revolucionario Tupac Amaru [Tupac Amaru Revolutionary Movement] (MRTA) in the embassy of Japan, in Lima, Peru. (6*) This became known when on June 28 of this year the News Agency Nueva Colombia [New Colombia] (ANNCOL) informed on an attempt of rescue of the mentioned prisoners, executed on the 18 of that same month by a unidentified commando, that caused the death, in the middle of the crossfire, of 11 of the 12 prisoners of that group, who were in control of the organization since the 11 of April of 2002, and who were part of the group of 56 people included in the proposal of humanitarian exchange.

The Colombian government failed in what we can define as a combat and propaganda operation, based on an attempted "two-pronged effect" that would take place between the unilateral excarceration of so-called FARC guerrillas, and a commando action to rescue prisoners in control of the FARC, that would show that the humanitarian exchange was "unnecessary". If the rescue would have been successful, the government would had projected, on the one hand, an image of "moderation" and "indulgence", by way of the liberation of the "guerrillas" who accepted their conditions, and on the other hand, a successful vision of his militarist policy. In other words, if it is possible to defeat the guerrilla, there is no need for humanitarian exchanges and much less for undertaking a peace dialogue. As far as me goes, they would have deported me to Paraguay to put me on trial under false charges of kidnapping and murder of the daughter of ex- president Cubas.

After the failure of this plan, the national and international outcry for the humanitarian exchange has multiplied, as has been expressed in the massive mobilizations of this past July 5. We wish for the exchange to happen, we continue working for it and are convinced that it is absolutely viable. I am convinced that the international climate is very favorable. We continue calling on all the governments and peoples of the world, to personalities and organizations in general, to accompany us to achieve this noble objective.

I believe that the presidents of the Group of the Eight recognize the existence of the social and armed conflict that Colombia is living through. I observe that in their most recent declaration they do not talk of kidnapped but of hostages; I notice that they support the steps taken by France, Spain and Switzerland in favor of the dialogue; I ascertain that they talk about the parts in conflict, which constitutes recognition that we the FARC-EP are a belligerent force. For that same reason, I conclude that it looks very bad on their part to continue labelling us as "terrorists", after having explicitly recognized that we are a movement of national liberation.

The Colombian government must leave its obstinacy aside and show political will to carry out the humanitarian exchange. This does not imply that the prevailing political system will crumble or that the Armed Forces will feel defeated, neither that Colombia will become balkanised. It is simply to accept the solution of a problem that concerns and it is in the best interest to all the parts. As we arrived at this point, it is necessary to refute the lie propagated by the Colombian government, when stating that the clearing of the municipalities of Pradera and Florida, requested by the FARC-EP, would be for an indefinite time. That clearing would only be for between 45 and 60 days, sufficient time to give security to the guerrillas, to the government; to the countries, the organizations and the accompanying personalities; and to the retained of both sides. The clearing of those municipalities is, then, an urgent necessity.

Rodrigo Granda (Ricardo) is a combatant of the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia - People's Army, a member of its International Relations Commission of which he was the highest hierarchical representative in the exterior until the time of his kidnapping and for that reason he is known as the Chancellor of the FARC-EP.

(1*)- Term designated to the most reactionary elements of that party.

(2*)-The M19 was an insurgent movement initially formed by youth coming from the ANAPO, that was demobilized in 1991 and it was transformed then into the Democratic Alliance - M 19 (AD-M19). At the present time a, part of their old cadres and leaders, among them Antonio NavarroWolf, form part along with other political and social parties and organizations, of Polo Democrático Alternativo [Democratic Alternative Pole] (PDA).

(3*)-In their VII National Conference of Guerrillas, the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia make the decision to become People’s Army, reason why, from then on, its name is Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia – People’s Army (FARC-EP).

(4*) – Taken from El Mundo Internacional [International World] of May 27, 2007, in www.elmundo.es

(5*)-It refers to the rescue operation of more than one hundred Israeli and Jewish hostages of other nationalities, made by special commandos of the Armed Forces of Israel, in July of 1976, at the airport of Entebbe, Uganda.

(6*)-It refers to the rescue operation of the 72 hostages who the MRTA kept during four months in the residence of the Ambassador of Japan in Lima, made by special commandos of the Peruvian Armed Forces in April of 1997.

Reprinted from Fight Back News:

Washington, D.C. - Colombian revolutionary Ricardo Palmera won another victory against the Bush administration and U.S. policy in court today. Judge Royce Lamberth was forced to declare a mistrial.

U.S. prosecutors are refusing to comment on a their loss in a case where they claimed Professor Palmera and the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) are drug traffickers. The mistrial was declared as result of a hung jury. After four weeks of U.S. prosecutors telling the jurors Palmera was a narco-trafficker, seven of the jurors wanted a not guilty verdict. This is a significant victory for Colombian freedom fighter Palmera. It destroys the U.S. government’s attempt to paint the FARC as drug runners and terrorists. Despite this, U.S. prosecutor McNeil, with plenty of money and staff, is claiming he will try again.

Ricardo Palmera joined the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia 20 years ago, after mass repression, torture and assassination of political activists proved to him that in Colombia the road to peaceful change is closed. In court Palmera explains that his decision to take up arms was one that was made for the sake of Colombia: “It is our duty; my generation has never known one day of peace in Colombia.”

He told about how the decision he made was a heart-wrenching one - watching his family leave the country, leaving his home, risking his life - but as he put it in his own words, “I did not have the courage to take off running and leave all the dead bodies of the people who had struggled behind me. I had to choose between my family and the desire to work for real change in Colombia.”

Repeatedly, the U.S. prosecution tried to find ties between the FARC and narco-trafficking, stretching the truth beyond its limits. In talking about the prosecution’s witnesses, defense attorney Robert Tucker told the jury, “These people were just flat out intimidated…some of the testimony has been absurd, in fact some of the evidence is totally, totally insulting.”

After being asked to admit to ties to coca countless time, Professor Palmera himself spoke about the problem of cocaine in Colombia. “Farmers growing coca leaf is a big problem in Colombia. A serious problem that affects the entire country economically, socially and politically as well as affecting its international relations…The poor believe in the mirage of coca production to relieve them of their misery.”

During his trial Professor Palmera testified that in the entire 20 years he has been in the FARC he never knew of a single cocaine lab controlled by the FARC, that he has never encouraged another human being to grow coca and that he has never exchanged drugs for money.

After five days of jury deliberations Judge Lambert was forced to declare the mistrial.

Tom Burke, of the National Committee to Free Ricardo Palmera, said, “What a joy to see Ricardo Palmera beat the U.S. empire again! It is no wonder the Bush administration is losing its wars in Iraq and Colombia, when they cannot defeat one lone revolutionary in a Washington D.C. court with everything stacked against him.”

Burke continued, “This is a political trial that should not be taking place in the U.S. Ricardo Palmera is a prisoner of war - a dirty war the U.S. is fighting to benefit big corporations like Occidental, Drummond and Chiquita banana. For three years Ricardo Palmera was held in solitary confinement under special administrative measures. We say it is time to set him free. Free Ricardo Palmera!”

Washington D.C. - the Bush Administration is turning justice on its head with the trial of Colombian revolutionary Ricardo Palmera. The National Committee to Free Ricardo Palmera is calling a protest at the D.C. Federal Court Building to demand Palmera's immediate release. Supporters will support Professor Palmera in the courtroom.

Ricardo Palmera is a peace negotiator for Colombia’s rebels - the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC). More than three years ago Palmera was in Ecuador to meet a UN official and discuss prisoner exchanges between the FARC and the Colombian government. U.S. and Colombian agents kidnapped and extradited him to the United States where he sits in solitary confinement. Ricardo Palmera is a political prisoner who should not be on trial in the U.S.

Professor Palmera's trials are anything but ordinary. In the first trial American jurors did not find him guilty, so Judge Hogan declared a mistrial. Then at the start of the second trial, Judge Hogan was caught cheating with US Prosecutor Ken Kohl and had to step down. Next, Palmera beat four counts against him, including "terrorism" and kidnapping charges. The jury found Palmera guilty of "conspiracy to kidnap" --referring to his membership in the FARC and the FARC capture of prisoners in their war with the Colombian government. The FARC is a 28,000-member rebel army that controls wide areas of Colombia where it is the only sort of government. The FARC plans to overthrow the corrupt U.S. backed government, distribute land to the peasants, replace drug crops with food crops, and end foreign corporate domination of the economy. Colombian workers and peasants will have power in the New Colombia.

"The U.S. government has no right to put Ricardo Palmera on trial." says Tom Burke of the National Committee to Free Ricardo Palmera. "The Bush administration putting the FARC on trial for drug trafficking is the same as looking for weapons of mass destruction in Iraq. The evidence simply does not exist. It is an excuse for military adventure." Burke continues, "The U.S. prosecutors are losing this trial before they even started. Ironically, while Colombian prisoner exchange negotiations begin, the FARC’s negotiator is sitting in solitary confinement, kidnapped by Bush."

Angela Denio, also of the National Committee and Students for a Democratic Society says, "Ricardo Palmera is a freedom fighter. He stands tall compared to his accusers. President Bush is desperate, surrounded by rats abandoning his ship of state because of all the lying, cheating, and corruption. That includes Colombian President Uribe who is tied to narco-traffickers and paramilitary death squads. The truth is coming out now."

Angela urges all progressive people to join the Monday, September 17th protest, stating, "We plan to see Professor Palmera and show our public support. We will not allow the Bush administration to criminalize the fight for freedom and justice. People around the world are watching the travesty of Palmera's trial. In his other trials, Palmera was not allowed witnesses, and the Judge and Prosecutor limited what Palmera could say. The only fair trial is no trial - we demand Professor Palmera’s immediate release."

Free Ricardo Palmera!

Picket line and press conference for Ricardo Palmera’s freedom!
Monday, September 17, 2007, 8:30 a.m. picket line, 9:00 a.m. press conference
Federal Court Building (333 Constitution Ave. NW), Washington, D.C.

For more info contact Tom Burke at 773-844-3612 or Mick Kelly at 612-715-3280.

Reposted from Fight Back News:

Washington D.C. - Protesters from eight U.S. states gathered here at the start of a new trial for Colombian revolutionary Ricardo Palmera, Aug. 20. The protesters chanted, "Free Ricardo Palmera! Stop Plan Colombia!" and "The people of Colombia are under attack. What do we do? Stand up, fight back!" The activists then proceeded into the Washington D.C. Federal Court building.

Inside the spacious ceremonial courtroom, under the historical portraits of U.S. Supreme Court judges, the solidarity activists waved, held clenched fists in the air and smiled to Ricardo Palmera as he entered. Professor Palmera raised his clenched fist and then held his open hands over his heart - once again happy to see his American and Colombian supporters. Judge Royce Lamberth read the charges against Professor Palmera and instructed the jury pool of nearly 100 people. The charges accuse Ricardo Palmera, a leading peace negotiator for the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC), of producing and trafficking five kilograms or more of cocaine to the U.S.

Tom Burke of the National Committee to Free Ricardo Palmera was at the opening day of the trial and said, "The U.S. government has no right to put Ricardo Palmera on trial. This trial is ridiculous. Putting the FARC on trial for drug trafficking is the same as looking for weapons of mass destruction in Iraq. The evidence simply does not exist. The U.S. government can only insinuate or fabricate the evidence."

Burke continued, "Palmera is a good man who has done nothing wrong. He is fighting for social justice and the liberation of the Colombian people from solitary confinement in a U.S. prison. President Bush is desperate because of growing public concern about lying, cheating and corruption. Now the truth is coming out about Colombian President Uribe's ties to narco-traffickers and paramilitary death squads. Bush is backing the wrong side in Colombia's civil war. Bush is behind the bad guys and the drug traffickers."

Angela Denio, also of the National Committee and a member of Students for a Democratic Society (SDS) said, "We were happy to see Ricardo Palmera and hope he is successful in defending himself and can sway the jury through his testimony again. The tragedy here is that paid professional liars and drug traffickers looking for lighter sentences will be given more time to testify than Professor Palmera. The Bush administration is criminalizing the fight for freedom and justice. People around the world are watching the travesty of Palmera's trial. In his other trials, Palmera was not allowed witnesses and the judge and prosecutor limited what Palmera could say. The only fair trial is no trial. We demand Professor Palmera's immediate release."

Professor Palmera's first U.S. trial on terrorism and kidnapping charges ended with a hung jury and Judge Hogan declared a mistrial.

Afterwards, Judge Hogan was caught cheating with U.S. Prosecutor Ken Kohl and was forced to step down. Judge Royce Lambert replaced Hogan on the bench and presided over Palmera's second trial. Palmera won a victory of sorts again when the jury could not agree on four counts against him, including 'terrorism' and kidnapping charges. However, the Bush administration got what it wanted because the jury found Palmera guilty of belonging to a 'conspiracy to kidnap' referring to his membership in the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia.

The FARC is a 28,000-member rebel army that controls wide areas of Colombia, where it acts as the de facto government. The FARC plans to overthrow the corrupt U.S.-backed government, distribute land to the peasants, replace drug crops with food crops and end foreign corporate domination of the economy by empowering working people to run things.

The FARC wants the workers and peasants to rule instead of foreign corporations, rich landlords and drug traffickers. Professor Palmera joined the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia back in 1989, following the extermination of his fellow Patriotic Union (a political party) members by the Colombian state and its death squads. Over 4000 Patriotic Union members were murdered - including two presidential candidates, eight congressmen, 70 councilmen, dozens of deputies and mayors, hundreds of trade unionists, communist and peasant leaders, students and youth. Professor Palmera, in his dedication to building a just and peaceful society, joined the FARC when all avenues to reform were closed. Today, Ricardo Palmera continues his fight for the Colombian people and the oppressed and exploited everywhere.

The trial of Ricardo Palmera will continue during the week of August 27. Members of the National Committee to Free Ricardo Palmera will be present in the court room Monday, Aug. 27 and Tuesday, August 28. The trial will take place in the courtroom of Judge Royce Lambert Federal Court Building (333 Constitution Ave. NW) Washington, D.C. It should start around 9:30 am.

Washington D.C. - the Bush Administration is continuing its trials against Colombian revolutionary Ricardo Palmera. The National Committee to Free Ricardo Palmera is calling a protest at the D.C. Federal Court Building to demand Palmera's immediate release. Professor Palmera's supporters plan to picket the courts prior to jury selection.

Ricardo Palmera is a peace negotiator for Colombia's rebels - the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia. He was kidnapped in Ecuador and extradited to the United States where he sits in solitary confinement. Palmera is a political prisoner who should not be on trial in the U.S.

Professor Palmera's first trial ended with a hung jury and Judge Hogan declared a mistrial. Afterwards, Judge Hogan was caught cheating with US Prosecutor Ken Kohl and was forced to step down. Judge Royce Lambert replaced Hogan on the bench and presided over Palmera's second trial. Palmera won a victory of sorts again when the jury could not agree on four counts against him, including "terrorism" and kidnapping charges. However, the Bush administration got what it wanted because the jury found Palmera guilty of belonging to a "conspiracy to kidnap" referring to his membership in the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC). The FARC is a 28,000-member rebel army that controls wide areas of Colombia where it acts as the de facto government. The FARC plans to overthrow the corrupt U.S. backed government, distribute land to the peasants, replace drug crops with food crops, and end foreign corporate domination of the economy by empowering workers to run things.

"The U.S. government has no right to put Ricardo Palmera on trial, and the upcoming drug trial is ludicrous," says Tom Burke of the National Committee to Free Ricardo Palmera. "Putting the FARC on trial for drug trafficking is the same as looking for weapons of mass destruction in Iraq. The evidence simply does not exist. The U.S. Government can only insinuate or fabricate the evidence."

Burke continues "Palmera is a good man who has done nothing wrong. Ricardo Palmera continues to fight for social justice and the liberation of the Colombian people from his prison cell. President Bush is desperate because of growing public concern about lying, cheating, and Colombian President Uribe's ties to narco-traffickers and paramilitary death squads. The truth is coming out now."

Angela Denio, also of the National Committee, urges all progressive people to join the August 20th protest, stating, "It will be interesting to hear Ricardo Palmera defend himself and sway the jury through his testimony again. The tragedy here is that paid professional liars and drug traffickers who are looking for lighter sentences will be given more time to testify than will Professor Palmera. The Bush administration is criminalizing the fight for freedom and justice. People around the world are watching the travesty of Palmera's trial. In his other trials, Palmera was not allowed witnesses, and the Judge and Prosecutor limited what Palmera could say. The only fair trial is no trial - we demand Professor Palmera's immediate release."

Free Ricardo Palmera!

Picket line and press conference for Ricardo Palmera's freedom!
Monday, August 20th, 2007, 8:30 a.m. picket line, 9:00 a.m. press
conference
Federal Court Building (333 Constitution Ave. NW), Washington, D.C.

For more info contact Tom Burke at 773-844-3612 or Mick Kelly at 612-715-3280.

La administración de Bush ha continuado sus absurdos juicios en contra del revolucionario colombiano Ricardo Palmera (Simón Trinidad).. El Comité Nacional para la Libertad de Ricardo Palmera (CNLRP) invita a un piquete de protesta a todos los que demandan la libertad inmediata de Palmera.Está protesta se llevará a cabo frente al edificio de la Corte Federal en Washington, DC.en donde se hará la selección para los jurado de este nuevo juicio.

Ricardo Palmera fue el negociador por parte de las Fuerzas Armadas Revolucionarias de Colombia (FARC), en las negociaciones para la búsqueda de la paz en Colombia llevadas a cabo con el gobierno de Andrés Pastrana (1998-2002). Palmera fue prácticamente secuestrado del Ecuador hacia Colombia y posteriormente fue extraditado hacia Washington, DC.,,Estados Unidos (EE.UU.). Desde el día de su llegada (12 -31- 2003) hasta el presente ha sido mantenido en una celda bajo el regímen SAM-( Special Administratives Measures- Medidas Administrativas Especiales).Esto quiere decir, confinamiento solitario, encerrado las 24 horas del día, no puede ver a nadie, sin derecho a recibir visitas, ni recibir o hacer llamadas teléfonicas, ni enviar ni recibir correspondencia, tampoco puede ser entrevistado por los medios de comunicación. No se le permitió la libertad de escoger su abogado y el gobierno de Bush le nombró abogados de oficio, estos son sólo con los que se puede entrevistar con Palmera, pero en presencia de los alguaciles de la prisión. Ricardo Palmera es un preso político colombiano que no debería ser juzgado por las cortes ni acusado por el gobierno de Bush. Ricardo no ha cometido ningún delito en el territorio de los EE.UU.

En el primer juicio que se le hizo al profesor Palmera en la Corte Federal de Washington DC, fue declarado nulo y viciado. Posteriormente, el juez Hogan, quien llevaba el caso tuvo que renunciar por haber violado los reglamentos para favorecer a los fiscales. En su reemplazó fue nombrado Royce Lamberth para el segundo juicio. Nuevamente, Palmera ganó otra victoria al no poderse poner de acuerdo el jurado en los cuatro (4) de los cincos cargos, entre los que se incluían el de "terrorismo y secuestro" .De todas maneras, la administración Bush consiguió lo que quería porque el jurado lo encontró culpable de pertener a una "conspiración para secuestrar" por ser miembro de las FARC. Las FARC son una organización revolucionaria que los gobiernos y los expertos del conflicto social y armado de Colombia, dice que tiene 28.000 miembros en armas, controlan algunas regiones y areas en donde actúan como gobierno y tienen influencia en todo el territorio de Colombia. El objetivo de las FARC es derrotar al corrupto, torturador, asesino, dependiente y sumiso gobierno de Colombia, cipayamente acepta las ordenes de los EE.UU. Las FARC se han planteado un gobierno de Reconstrucción y Reconciliación Nacional, que sustituya los cultivos ilícitos por cosechas alimenticias y que termine con la dominación extranjera de la economía y lleve a los trabajadores a administrar sus propios medios de producción para alcanzar mejores beneficios para sus vidas.

El gobierno de EE.UU. no tiene ningún derecho a tener encarcelado y poner en juicio tras juicio a Ricardo Palmera.En este juicio venidero la acusación es por tráfico de drogas,será otro juicio absurdo. Tom Burke, vocero del CNLRP, dijó : " Poner a las FARC en juicio por tráfico de drogas es lo mismo que buscar las armas de destrucción masivas en Irak. Simplemente, las evidencias no existen. El gobierno de EE.UU. únicamente puede insinuar la fabricación de evidencias".

Por otra parte, Angela Denio del CNLRP, urgió a la gente progresista hacerse presente en la protesta del 20 de agosto, y dijó : "Otra vez, volverá a ser interesante escuchar el testimonio Ricardo Palmera, defendiéndose e inclinar el jurado a su favor. La tragedia aquí es la que darán los mentirosos informantes pagados y los convictos que buscan la reducción de sus sentencias a través de testimonios fabricados en contra del profesor Ricardo Palmera. La administración de Bush ha estado criminalizando la lucha por la libertad y la justicia social. La opinión pública a través del mundo ha estado mirando la parodía del juicio en contra de Palmera, a quien no se le ha permitido presentar un sólo testigo y su propio testimonio ha sido limitado por el juez y el fiscal. El único juicio justo, es ningún juicio.

LIBERTAD PARA RICARDO PALMERA
PIQUETE Y CONFERENCIA DE PRENSA
¿ Cuándo ? Lunes agosto 20 a las 8 : 30 a. m./ Conferencia de Prensa a las 9 : a.m.
¿ Dónde ? Frente al edificio de la Corte Federal ( 333 Constitution Ave. N.W.) Washington DC.

Para más información favor llamar a Tom Burke al teléfono (773) 844-3612 o Mick Kelly al teléfono (612) 715-3280.

Bush criminalizes the fight for liberation

On Monday, July 9, 2007, in the second trial on the same charges, Colombian revolutionary Ricardo Palmera was convicted of conspiring to take hostages. The hostages are three U.S. military contractors - foreign mercenaries fighting in Colombia's civil war. While conducting electronic spying, the three were shot down and captured over the territory held by the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC).

Their capture and imprisonment takes place in the context of the Bush administration intervening more and more in Colombia's civil war. The U.S. is fighting a dirty war in Colombia, with 800 U.S. military advisors and 500 U.S. military contractors. Like a small-scale Iraq war, the U.S. military arms, trains and directs the Colombian military and its paramilitary death squads. Bush and the U.S. generals are in charge. President Uribe takes orders. Uribe signed the papers to extradite Ricardo Palmera to the U.S., a violation of the Colombian people's sovereignty.

The Colombian civil war pits the peasant and worker revolutionaries of the FARC against the wealthy and corrupt Colombian elite. The Bush administration fully supports President Uribe, as he becomes entangled in scandal after scandal involving narco-traffickers in his own government.

On the other side is the FARC - incorruptible, dynamic, growing and expanding, a force to be reckoned with. The FARC is attracting leaders like Ricardo Palmera, a college professor from a wealthy banking family, who seeks peace and justice, but sees no other avenue for reform and joins the revolution. The FARC promises to turn the world upside down.

Ricardo Palmera was a leading negotiator for peace and prisoner exchanges for the FARC. During a prisoner exchange negotiation, the U.S. kidnapped Palmera in Ecuador and extradited him to the U.S. in 2004. Along with FARC member Anayibe "Sonia" Rojas, he faces bogus criminal trials in U.S. courts.

There is no fair trial. Ricardo Palmera is held in solitary confinement, with no family visits, no friends, no reporters allowed. The only time he sees friendly faces is during his trial when supporters from across the country pack the courtroom. Palmera's defense lawyer is handpicked by the U.S. government, given little resources, and allowed no witnesses. The U.S. prosecutor spends hundreds of thousands of dollars, and is allowed a stream of witnesses, many who are paid. It was hard for the U.S. government to lose, but lose they did.

Professor Palmera beat the U.S. government in the first case with his own testimony, compelling some jurors to refuse to find him guilty. Judge Hogan declared a mistrial. At the start of the second trial, on the same exact charges, public defender Bob Tucker caught Judge Hogan cheating with U.S. prosecutor Ken Kohl. Against Hogan's own ruling, the Judge and prosecutor conspired to find out from the jury foreperson why they lost. Judge Hogan was forced to step down - to recuse himself.

So now Ricardo Palmera is found guilty on one count of intent to take hostages. The jury appears deadlocked on the other charges and one can only imagine the horse trading taking place. The only surprise in the railroading of Ricardo Palmera is how bumbling and foolish the U.S. government has been.

Putting the FARC on trial in a U.S. criminal court as part of the Bush 'war on terror' is intended to criminalize revolutionaries. In the eyes of most Colombians and Americans who know of the case, it is more proof that the U.S. empire is growing desperate and acting wildly in an attempt to hold its grip.

The Colombian people understand there is no justice in the Colombian system, with impunity for the powerful and wealthy. Now too, they understand American injustice as the White House criminal Scooter Libby skips free under Bush's orders, while Ricardo Palmera returns to a lonely prison cell. Palmera can hold his head high, knowing he struggles with the people of Colombia against poverty, misery and death brought by the U.S. dirty war in Colombia. Professor Palmera will be preparing himself for the next criminal trial where he will - unbelievably - be charged with drug trafficking to the U.S.

We will be mobilizing protests and filling the courtroom starting around Aug. 20. Join us to free Ricardo Palmera!

Washington, D.C. - Anayibe Rojas Valderama, a member of the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) also know as 'Sonia', was sentenced here, July 2 by Judge James Robertson to nearly 17 years in federal prison on charges of shipping cocaine to the United States.

"What took place in this courtroom today was anything but justice. This is a frame-up, pure and simple," stated Mick Kelly outside the D.C. courtroom. Kelly, who helps lead the defense work for another Colombian political prisoner, Ricardo Palmera, added, "In the course of the trial the prosecution called on a band of professional liars to testify. There was the $15,000-a month DEA informant, Rocio Alvarez. Then there were the tales of the retired Colombian National Police officer, Mauricio Moreno, who spoke of plots to sell cocaine to the paramilitaries and then steal it. And then there was 'Juan Valdez' whose testimony was a collection of lies."

During the sentencing hearing, defense attorney Carmen Hernandez pressed for a new trial. She cited the fact that the testimony of 'Juan Valdez' was completely discredited and this amounted to new evidence. She also pointed out that her interviews with the jurors after Sonia's conviction indicated that they were influenced by the 'Juan Valdez' testimony. Judge Robinson agreed that the 'Juan Valdez' testimony was dubious at best, but then he ruled against a new trial.

Outside the courtroom, defense attorney Hernandez told the press that the trial is not the way things are supposed to work under the constitution. Hernandez was not allowed to make needed investigations and the instructions to the jury were flawed.

Sonia speaks out

Before she was sentenced, Sonia, who was wearing an orange prison jumpsuit, told the court that she was innocent of the charges. She repeatedly proclaimed her innocence throughout her statement.

She related that she had been born to a poor farm family in an outlying area without a government presence. She only received two years of schooling and had to attend school barefoot because of her family's poverty. She got her first pair of shoes at age 14. It was because of the conditions in her area that she joined the FARC guerrillas.

She was arrested in February of 2004 on her brother's farm and charged with rebellion. However, she was extradited to the United States 13 months later on charges of export of large amounts of cocaine to the United States - the charge she continues to deny.

She asked how it can be explained that, if she was a major drug dealer, her family continues to live in poverty and does not have enough to eat. She also said that family members of Colombians convicted on similar charges in the United States cannot visit because they are denied visas. Even if her family could get visas they could not afford airfare to visit her.

The Bush administration labeled her as a 'terrorist' because of her FARC membership. Because of that label, she was kept in solitary confinement for two years of her time here, in spite of never having been charged with infraction of prison rules. She was subjected to severe treatment, for instance being allowed to bathe only twice a week - and then only in handcuffs. Sonia described her solitary confinement as "psychological torture."

Sonia noted that during a brief period she had been held in the general population of the District of Columbia jail and had been able to study and learn some English. She asked that the 'terrorist' label be lifted from her so that she not be held in maximum security and would be able to continue to study and learn.

"It is sad that a lie has become justice in this court because I have not done what they say I have," said Sonia.

More to come

According to U.S. Assistant Attorney General Fisher, "The prosecution of these FARC members, the first of its kind in the United States, was made possible because of the exceptional cooperation of Colombian authorities and the hard work and efforts of the DEA agents and federal prosecutors who, working together, were essential to the successful conclusion of this important case."

Tom Burke of the National Committee to Free Ricardo Palmera responds: "This case demonstrates that the Bush administration will stop at nothing to criminalize the struggle for free and independent Colombia. Sonia is not a drug dealer. She is hero who is being made to suffer for her efforts to bring justice to Colombia. Her frame-up was made in the U.S.A. and was assisted by Colombia's death-squad government."

In a related case, the trial of FARC spokesman and peace negotiator Ricardo Palmera has moved to the jury phase.

Burke urges all progressive people to support the efforts to for the immediate release of Colombian political prisoners held in the U.S.

Source: Fight Back News

For immediate release:

Protest June 18th in D.C.
Colombian revolutionary Ricardo Palmera endures retrial

Washington D.C. - Colombian revolutionary Ricardo Palmera is on trial for a second time under orders from the Bush Administration. The National Committee to Free Ricardo Palmera is calling for a protest to demand his immediate release on June 18th at the D.C. Federal Court Building. Professor Palmera’s supporters will then pack the courtroom.

Ricardo Palmera is a peace negotiator for Colombia’s rebels - the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia. He was kidnapped in Ecuador and extradited to the United States where he sits in solitary confinement.

Palmera’s first trial ended with a hung jury. Afterwards, presiding Judge Hogan had to step down or recuse himself from the case. Judge Hogan was caught colluding with U.S. Prosecutor Ken Kohl. Judge Royce Lambert, a Ronald Reagan appointee, is Hogan’s replacement on the bench.

“The U.S. government has no right to put Ricardo Palmera on trial, let alone keep trying him until they get a guilty verdict,” says Tom Burke of the National Committee to Free Ricardo Palmera. “Palmera is a good man who has done nothing wrong. Palmera spends all his energy fighting for social justice and the liberation of the Colombian people, who live under a U.S.-backed death squad government. President Bush and President Uribe are desperate because of growing public concern in both countries about lying, cheating, and paramilitary death squad murders.”

Angela Denio, also of the National Committee, urges all progressive people to join the June 18th protest, stating, “The Bush administration and the increasingly isolated President Uribe are criminalizing the fight for freedom and justice. People around the world are watching the travesty of Palmera’s trial. Palmera is not allowed witnesses, and the Judge and Prosecutor are even trying to limit what Palmera can say. The only fair trial is no trial - we demand Professor Palmera’s immediate release.”

Free Ricardo Palmera!

Picket line and press conference for Ricardo Palmera’s freedom!
Monday, June 18th, 2007
8:30 a.m. picket line, 9:00 a.m. press conference
Federal Court Building (333 Constitution Ave. NW)
Washington, D.C.

National Committee to Free Ricardo Palmera For more info contact Tom Burke at 773-844-3612 or Mick Kelly at 612-715-3280.

¡Para español, click aquí!

Washington D.C. - The chant "Free Ricardo Palmera! Hands off Colombia!" rang out in front of the Federal Courthouse here, June 4, as members of the National Committee to Free Ricardo Palmera held a picket line to demand his release. The picket line coincided with the onset of Palmera's second trial. Members of Students for a Democratic Society from Asheville, North Carolina and the Colombian Action Network participated in the protest.

Palmera's first trial ended with a hung jury. Presiding judge Thomas Hogan then had to remove himself from the case, when the defense brought to light Hogan's secret maneuvering to give the prosecution an unfair advantage. Reagan appointee Judge Royce C. Lambert is presiding over the current trial.

"Ricardo Palmera is a hero who has devoted his entire life to working and fighting for the liberation of the Colombian people," said Mick Kelly, of the National Committee to Free Ricardo Palmera, speaking outside the courthouse. "He has done nothing wrong. The only fair trial is no trail and what is going to take place in that courtroom is the real crime. There are reports that Ricardo Palmera will be allowed few or no witnesses on his behalf. And we know that a number of the witnesses for the prosecution are liars who can not keep their stories straight."

After the picket line and press conference, supporters of Palmera entered the courtroom where the final stages of jury selection were under way. Palmera flashed a big smile as his backers discreetly raised their fists and gave him the thumbs up sign.

Palmera, who is also known as Simon Trinidad, is a leading member of the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC), and represented the rebel group in peace negotiations with Colombian government. Palmera was kidnapped in Quito, Ecuador by the FBI, brought to Colombia and sent to United States. Currently he is in solitary confinement in Washington D.C. Incredibly enough, he is charged with 'hostage taking,' in relation to an incident in Colombia where the FARC shot down a plane that had some U.S. mercenaries on board.

Sonia is a Colombian guerrilla and prisoner of war extradited to the U.S.

Sonia is 34 years of age and the mother of a 6-year-old boy. She was imprisoned for a year in the Buen Pastor prison in Bogotá in oppressive conditions of isolation, deprived of all her rights as a political prisoner. After strong pressure on the part of the U.S. Drug Enforcement Agency and the U.S. Central Intelligence Agency to force here to declare herself against her organization and to deny herself, the Colombian government gave her over to be extradited to the U.S., chained by hands and feet, put in the U.S. prisons, where she was imprisoned for more than a year and when she is done being processed, faces being condemned to 29 years of imprisonment, in total isolation, with only one hour of sun a day, and two showers per week, away from her family and without knowledge of the language.

We request that everyone who is part of the FDIM implement campaigns of solidarity with Sonia around the world until we win her return to Colombia.

The XIV International Conference of the International Federation of Democratic Women (FDIM)

Caracas, Venezeula April 12, 2007

Sonia es una guerrillera colombiana, prisionera de guerra, extraditada a Estados Unidos.

Sonia, de 34 años de edad es madre de un niño de 6 años. Permaneción un año en prisión en la cárcel del Buen Pastor, en Bogotá, en oprobiosas condiciones de aislamiento, privada de todos sus derechos como prisionera política.

Después de fuertes presiones por parte de la DEA y de la CIA para que declarara en contra de su organización, y habiéndose negado a ello, el gobierno colombiano la entregó a Estados Unidos siendo trasladada, encadenada de pies y manos, a las cárceles de ese país, donde permanece desde hace más de un año y donde acaba de ser procesada y condenada a 29 años de prisión infame, en total aislamiento, con sólo una hora de sol al día y dos baños por semana, alejada de sus familiares y sin conocer el idioma.

Pedimos a la FDIM que se implementen campañas de solidaridad con Sonia en todo el mundo hasta lograr su regreso a Colombia.

XIV Congreso internacional de la FDIM
Caracas, 12 de abril de 2007

By Angela Denio

Washington, D.C. - In an intense start to the second trial of Colombian revolutionary Ricardo Palmera, the presiding judge, Thomas F. Hogan, was forced to step down March 26, thus ending his involvement in the Palmera case. Participants in the International Day of Action to Free Ricardo Palmera were present in the courtroom and hailed this turn of events.

Judge Hogan presided over Palmera’s first trial, where Palmera, the peace negotiator for the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC), faced injustice after injustice. In the end Judge Hogan’s cheating finally caught up with him.

At a March 19 pretrial hearing it was revealed that the judge and prosecution had secret dealings with one another. After the first trial ended, Judge Hogan had allowed the prosecution to speak to the jury foreperson about the mistrial. Their request was sealed, meaning the defense was never told that this was happening.

Paul Wolf, a lawyer closely observing the trial, explained what happened, "There was so much cheating going on, the prosecutor was simply unable to keep track of it. Last week, while arguing that the defense was trying to 'politicize' the case, Ken Kohl, the lead prosecutor in the case, referred to [an] ex parte interview of the jury foreman. For Kohl, this was a fatal mistake. Not only Mr. Kohl, but the judge himself was caught breaking the rules." In demanding that Judge Hogan recuse himself, U.S. public defender Bob Tucker told the court that the unmerited partnership of the judge and prosecution against Palmera had, "cast a cloud over the fairness of this [judicial] system."

In his farewell to the court, Hogan said that he was forced to step down because of the intense public interest in the case of Ricardo Palmera.

On the day of the trial, ten protesters demanding Palmera’s freedom were sitting in the courtroom. Solidarity actions against the trial were held all over the globe - including Argentina, Peru, Sweden, Germany, New York and San Francisco.

One of the protesters, Doug Michel of Students for a Democratic Society, explained that he came out to the trial because, "We support the call to free Ricardo Palmera. His trial is unfair and he is grossly mistreated. The U.S. has spent nearly $5 billion on Plan Colombia, and we say no to this U.S. intervention." Between the scandal in Colombia and the protests around the trial, things are only getting worse for the entire spectacle of 'legitimacy' around Plan Colombia.

After the trial, Tom Burke, spokesperson for the National Committee to Free Ricardo Palmera stated, "The National Committee to Free Ricardo Palmera is already preparing to protest the next trial of Ricardo Palmera. We look forward to professor Palmera putting U.S. aggression and war on trial for a second time. These trials only get more bizarre - solitary confinement, no freedom of the press, no witnesses for the defense, no visits from friends, family or supporters, handpicked government lawyers, the judge and prosecutor caught cheating. If the U.S. runs their dirty war in Colombia the way they run Palmera's trial, it is no wonder they are losing."

This is a great victory for Ricardo Palmera and all of those interested in the wellbeing and sovereignty of the Colombian people. Judge Hogan had already earned himself the nickname of the ‘crazy judge’ after he took out ads in Latin American newspapers demanding that the leadership of the FARC present themselves in his D.C. courtroom.

A new judge is assigned to the Palmera trial, and the National Committee to Free Ricardo Palmera is preparing another round of protests . The movement to free Ricardo Palmera can only continue to grow.

source: Fight Back News

Thomas F. Hogan, Chief Judge of the U.S. District Court was forced to step down, to recuse himself, from the trial of Colombian revolutionary Ricardo Palmera. In the first trial American jurors refused to find Ricardo Palmera guilty and Judge Hogan was forced to declare a mistrial. Prosecutor Kohl, frustrated with losing, approached Judge Hogan for permission to interview the jurors. Neither Judge Hogan or prosecutor Kohl informed the U.S. public defender Bob Tucker. This ex parte communication is not allowed. Prosecutor Kohl slipped up at a March 19th pretrial hearing and mentioned interviewing the jury foreperson following the mistrial. Public defender Tucker cleverly picked up on Kohl's slip up and turned it back on Judge Hogan, forcing him to step down.

Tom Burke spokesperson for the National Committee to Free Ricardo Palmera (NCFRP) stated "This confirms everything we have been saying. Ricardo Palmera should be set free. President Bush and the U.S. Government have no right to put Ricardo Palmera on trial. He has committed no crime. Palmera is a political prisoner. He is a Colombian revolutionary fighting for social change--for liberty and equality. The U.S. Government should stop trying to criminalize a revolution and end the U.S. war in Colombia."

Burke continues "Ricardo Palmera and everyone who stands for peace and justice in Colombia just won another big victory. Judge Hogan and prosecutor Kohl were acting like hooligans--colluding to gain a strategic advantage in the case. Judge Hogan was considering severely limiting the testimony of Professor Palmera. This is a direct result of prosecutor Kohl's interview with the jury foreperson. The secret plotting blew up in Judge Hogan's face."

Burke concludes "The NCFRP is already preparing to protest the next trial of Ricardo Palmera. We hope to hear Professor Palmera putting U.S. aggression and war on trial for a second time. These trials only get more bizarre - solitary confinement, no freedom of the press, no witnesses for the defense, no visits from friends, family, or supporters, handpicked government lawyers, the judge and prosecutor caught cheating. If the U.S. runs their dirty war in Colombia the way they run Palmera's trial, it is no wonder they are losing."

Free Ricardo Palmera! For more information, contact Tom Burke at 773-844-3612 or Mick Kelly at 612-715-3280 or send the committee an email.

Picket line and press conference to demand Palmera's freedom!
March 26th, 2007 / 8:30 AM picket line
9:00 AM press conference
Federal Court Building (333 Constitution Ave., NW)
Join us around the world at the nearest U.S. Embassy or Consulate on this day!

Ricardo Palmera goes on trial for a second time on March 26th. Palmera, known in Colombia as Simon Trinidad, is a political prisoner of George Bush and the U.S. government. Palmera's first trial resulted in a hung jury and Judge Hogan was forced to declare a mistrial. Even though it hand-picked the judge, the prosecution, and the defense, the Bush Administration was not able to convince the jurors of its bogus accusations. Not satisfied with this outcome, the government is trying Palmera once again under the same charges.

Palmera, a top-level peace negotiator for the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia or FARC, was kidnapped on the streets of Quito, Ecuador and then extradited from Colombia to the U.S. Palmera is being tried under U.S. domestic law for participating in a revolutionary movement in his own country of Colombia!

There is nothing fair about these trials. Palmera is not allowed visits from family, friends, supporters, or his own Colombian lawyer. He is held in solitary confinement and has no contact with anyone. The U.S. Government handpicked his lawyer. The media is not allowed to interview him or the lawyers. It is only Palmera's own testimony that convinced many jurors that the trial was a joke. Similarly, the ongoing trial of "Sonia", a woman rebel of the FARC, is another travesty of justice.

In the first Palmera trial, the U.S. prosecutor was allowed to present as many witnesses as he wanted, including corrupt Colombian Military officials and paid informers given free passage to the U.S. Judge Hogan ruled Palmera could not have his two witnesses. One, an official from the U.N., and the other a professor living in exile in Sweden because state-sponsored death squads in Colombia prevent her from returning home. The new trial will be more restricted if the prosecution and judge have their way.

The fact this trial can take place at all is an affront to Colombian sovereignty. The trial is an extension of Plan Colombia--the undeclared U.S. war against the Colombian people. We are protesting the extradition, imprisonment, and trial of Ricardo Palmera by Bush and the U.S. government.

The victory of the National Committee to Free Ricardo Palmera created more support and we will have a large protest on March 26th. Our protests and our presence in the courtroom had a big impact. We are building a movement for peace and justice in solidarity with Colombia. We look forward to hearing Ricardo Palmera's eloquent testimony again.

Free Ricardo Palmera! For more information, contact Tom Burke at 773-844-3612 or Mick Kelly at 612-715-3280 or send an email to info@freericardopalmera.org

Download PDF version here.

Imelda Daza-Cotes recently completed a national speaking tour that included a stop in Minneapolis. Once a political activist and elected official in Colombia, Daza-Cotes was targeted by a murderous campaign that wiped out the Patriotic Union, a leftist political party that rose to prominence in the 1980s. She fled to Sweden where she's been living in exile since 1989. On Feb. 13, Daza-Cotes addressed an audience of 40 people at Spirit of the Lakes Church in Minneapolis to discuss her experiences, as well as the extradition and trial of Colombian rebel Ricardo Palmera and U.S. intervention in her homeland.

In Colombia, 65 percent of the land is owned by 5 percent of the population, creating an elite ruling class and a poverty-stricken majority. Due to pervasive inequalities, the Colombian people have a long history of resistance to injustice. For decades, Colombian activists have struggled for social change by organizing trade unions, demanding human rights and advocating for land reform. Frequently, they suffer violent repression from the Colombian military and paramilitaries. Discouraged by the lack of progress, thousands have joined the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC), a 27,000-strong guerilla army formed in 1964.

The U.S. intervenes directly in the Colombian civil war on the side of the wealthy. Since 2000, the Colombian government has received $4.7 billion from the U.S. military aid package, "Plan Colombia." U.S. tax dollars fund a counter-insurgency war against Colombians fighting for social change. Using violence and intimidation, the Colombian army and their paramilitary allies make no distinction between those who choose the political process versus the armed struggle.

In 1984, the Colombian government and the FARC agreed to a cease-fire and entered negotiations that created the Patriotic Union (UP), a leftist alternative to the two ruling parties. In exchange for guaranteed amnesty, thousands of guerilla fighters laid down their arms and joined the UP. Teachers, unionists, peasants and various professionals also joined the party. At that time, Daza-Cotes was an economics professor organizing the peasant community in her hometown, Valledupar. A founding member of the UP, she was elected as a city council representative.

The UP was recognized as a legal political party, yet the military and paramilitaries began assassinating its members, murdering 3,000 people. "One day in 1989, I came home to find a wreath of flowers and an invitation to my own funeral," said Daza-Cotes. She fled the country, seeking refuge in Sweden with her husband and three children. Of the 19 founding members of the UP, only three are still alive: Daza-Cotes, another Colombian woman now living in Sweden, and current U.S. political prisoner Ricardo Palmera.

"Ricardo was my friend," said Daza-Cotes. "We worked at the same university and did political organizing together. When I left the country, he joined the FARC. He didn't see any alternative." Despite the enduring armed struggle, Daza-Cotes emphasized that the rebels want peace. On Jan. 2, 2004, Palmera went to Ecuador to make contact with a United Nations representative about negotiations with the Colombian government. He was captured by the CIA and extradited to the United States. In November 2006 he was tried in U.S. federal court for narco-trafficking and kidnapping.

Daza-Cotes said the charges are ridiculous. "He was always against drug trafficking, and they have no evidence that he was involved." The kidnapping charges stem from a February 2003 incident in which a helicopter carrying U.S. private contractors was shot down over FARC-controlled land. The three American contractors have been held captive ever since. Said Daza-Cotes: "They invaded territory controlled by an opposing army. They were not kidnapped. They are prisoners of war."

Palmera is not charged with direct involvement in the "kidnapping." Rather, under the U.S. "war on terror," he is charged with "conspiracy" to commit the crime of hostage-taking. Daza-Cotes was contacted in Sweden to testify for Palmera. "I flew to Washington, D.C.," she said. "The day before the trial began, they told me I wouldn't be allowed to testify." Dozens of activists from the National Committee to Free Ricardo Palmera, including several Minneapolis residents, demonstrated against Palmera's trial. They picketed outside the courtroom, attended the trial and held press conferences to publicize a case largely ignored by U.S. media. After deliberating four days, the jury was unable to convict Palmera due to lack of evidence. Rather than dismissing the case, the judge decided to re-open it. Palmera's second trial on the same charges will begin March 26. The U.S. government hand-picked his lawyer, and the media is not allowed to interview him.

"If Ricardo is convicted, it implies a victory for the Colombian government and U.S. interference," said Daza-Cotes. "A just solution requires a prisoner-exchange and reopened negotiations." She urges U.S. citizens to stop Plan Colombia. "U.S. tax-payers are financing war against the Colombian people. Colombians want justice and the right of self-determination."

Source: PulseTC.com