NationMaster - Encyclopedia: Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia

The Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia–People's Army, in Spanish Fuerzas Armadas Revolucionarias de Colombia–Ejército del Pueblo, also known by the acronym of FARC or FARC-EP is a communist revolutionary and armed guerrilla organization in Colombia. It was established in 1964-1966 as the military wing of the Colombian Communist Party, and is designated by the Colombian Government, the United States, and the European Union, amongst others, as a terrorist organization for their actions against not only the government but also towards civilians, natural environment and infrastructure. Image File history File links Emblem-important. ... Colombian Armed Conflict or Colombian Civil War are terms that are employed to refer to the current low intensity conflict in Colombia that has existed since approximately 1964 or 1966, which was when the FARC and later the ELN were founded and subsequently started their guerrilla insurgency campaigns against successive... Image File history File links No higher resolution available. ... Image File history File links No higher resolution available. ... Also Nintendo emulator: 1964 (emulator). ... Vladimir Lenin in 1920 Leninism is a political and economic theory which builds upon Marxism; it is a branch of Marxism (and it has been the dominant branch of Marxism in the world since the 1920s). ... Manuel Marulanda is the leader of the FARC EP (Fuerzas Armadas Revolucionarias de Colombia - Ejercito del Pueblo). He was born on May 13, 1928 (a date that has been disputed), in a coffee-growing region of west-central Colombia to a peasant family and was named Pedro Antonio Marin. ... Wanted cards distributed by the Colombian government asking for information that can lead to Jorge BriceÃ±os arrest. ... Luis Edgar Devia-Silva aka RaÃºl Reyes. ... Guillermo LeÃ³n SÃ¡enz aka Alfonso Cano Alfonso Cano is the nom de guerre of Guillermo LeÃ³n SÃ¡enz is an important ideological leader of the FARC-EP (Fuerzas Armadas Revolucionarias de Colombia - EjÃ©rcito del Pueblo).Guillermo Leon Saenz was a student leader at the Law faculty... Constitutional Reforms Colombias present constitution, enacted on July 4, 1991, strengthened the administration of justice with the provision for introduction of an accusatorial system which ultimately is to replace entirely the existing Napoleonic Code. ... Paramilitarism in Colombia refers to the origin and development of paramilitary groups in Colombia during the 20th century. ... This article is about communism as a form of society and as a political movement. ... Revolutionary, when used as a noun, is a person who either advocates or actively engages in some kind of revolution. ... Guerilla may refer to Guerrilla warfare. ... The Colombian Communist Party is the legal Communist party of Colombia. ... Constitutional Reforms Colombias present constitution, enacted on July 4, 1991, strengthened the administration of justice with the provision for introduction of an accusatorial system which ultimately is to replace entirely the existing Napoleonic Code. ... Terrorist redirects here. ...

While the FARC originated as a purely guerrilla movement, the group became involved with the illicit drug trade during the 1980s,^[1] which caused an official separation from the Communist Party and the formation of a political structure it calls the Clandestine Colombian Communist Party. Despite their terrorist label, the FARC-EP still claims to be a guerrilla movement, and some analysts argue that the group's ideology has remained consistent.^[2] With an estimated 9,000-12,000 members at 2007 (approximately 20 to 30% of them are forcibly-recruited children under 18 years of age^[3]), the FARC-EP is present in 3-5 percent of Colombia's territory, most strongly in southeastern jungles and in plains at the base of the Andes mountains. â€œGuerrillaâ€ redirects here. ... The Clandestine Colombian Communist Party (in Spanish: Partido Comunista Colombiano Clandestino) is an underground communist party in Colombia. ... A male Caucasian toddler child A child (plural: children) is a young human. ... This article is about the mountain system in South America. ...

Overview

The Terrorism Group FARC-EP is governed by a secretariat led by septuagenarian Manuel Marulanda Vélez (Pedro Antonio Marín), also known as "Tirofijo", and seven others, including senior military commander Jorge Briceño, also known as "Mono Jojoy." It is organized along military lines and includes several urban fronts. The group added "-EP" (Ejército del Pueblo) to its official name during its Seventh Guerrilla Conference in 1982 as an expression of expected progression from guerrilla warfare to conventional military action outlined on that occasion. The FARC-EPs flag The military structure of the Fuerzas Armadas Revolucionarias de Colombia â€“ EjÃ©rcito del Pueblo (Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia â€“ Peoples Army, or FARC-EP), formally began to be developed after the middle of 1964, when the Colombian Army occupied the town of Marquetalia. ... Manuel Marulanda is the leader of the FARC EP (Fuerzas Armadas Revolucionarias de Colombia - Ejercito del Pueblo). He was born on May 13, 1928 (a date that has been disputed), in a coffee-growing region of west-central Colombia to a peasant family and was named Pedro Antonio Marin. ... Wanted cards distributed by the Colombian government asking for information that can lead to Jorge BriceÃ±os arrest. ... â€œGuerrillaâ€ redirects here. ...

The FARC-EP has proclaimed itself as a politico-military Marxist-Leninist organization of Bolivarian inspiration.^[4] It claims to represent the rural poor in a struggle against Colombia's wealthier classes and opposes the United States influence in Colombia (particularly Plan Colombia). Other prominent areas of focus for the FARC-EP include privatization of natural resources, multinational corporations, and paramilitary violence. The FARC-EP says these objectives motivate the group's efforts to seize power in Colombia through an armed revolution. It funds itself principally through extortion, kidnapping and participation in the illegal drug trade.^[1]^[5] Vladimir Lenin in 1920 Leninism is a political and economic theory which builds upon Marxism; it is a branch of Marxism (and it has been the dominant branch of Marxism in the world since the 1920s). ... This article does not cite any references or sources. ... Plan Colombia is a controversial initiative aimed at resolving the ongoing, fifty-year civil war in Colombia. ... This article does not adequately cite its references or sources. ... The word multinational can refer to: A Multinational corporation A Multinational State This is a disambiguation page, a list of pages that otherwise might share the same title. ... Paramilitary designates forces whose function and organization are similar to those of a professional military force, but which are not regarded as having the same status. ... Panamanian motor vessel Gatun during the largest cocaine bust in United States Coast Guard history (20 tons), off the coast of Panama. ...

The FARC-EP says it remains open to a negotiated solution to the nation's conflict, through a dialogue with a flexible government that agrees to certain conditions, such as the demilitarization of locations and the release of all jailed (and extradited) FARC rebels. At the same time, it claims that until these conditions surface, the armed revolutionary struggle will remain necessary to implement the group's policy objectives. This is because the FARC-EP perceives Colombia's political environment as closed, and because of politically motivated violence against its members, supporters and former members, including activists of the Patriotic Union and other social and political movements. But the FARC's claims have been undermined in recent years by the success of the left-wing Democratic Pole Party, whose candidate was elected mayor of the capital, Bogota. The socio-economic structure of the FARC-EP refers to the FARCs social structure and economic activities. ... The UniÃ³n PatriÃ³tica, Patriotic Union (UP), was a leftist Colombian political party founded by the FARC in 1985, as part of the peace negotiations that the guerrillas held with the Belisario Betancur administration. ...

National and international critics often characterize the FARC-EP as terrorist. Critics of the FARC-EP often suggest that the group's methods have discredited its original goals and ideology. The FARC, like the rightwing paramilitary groups that are their sworn enemies (e.g. AUC), attacks civilian targets, plants land-mines Report Cites Rebels' Wide Use of Mines In Colombia and is responsible for many of the civilians displaced by the conflict. The AUCs logo The United Self-Defense Forces of Colombia (Autodefensas Unidas de Colombia, or AUC, in Spanish), were formed in April 1997 as an umbrella paramilitary federation seeking to consolidate many local and regional paramilitary groups in Colombia, each intending to protect different local economic, social and political...

The FARC also frequently recruits teens as soldiers and informants. There are those who join voluntarily, seeking to escape rural poverty and unemployment. Human Rights Watch estimates that the FARC has the majority of child combatants in Colombia. An estimated 20-30 percent of FARC combatants are under 18 years old, with many as young as 12 years old, for a total of around 5000 children. Girl members are sometimes subjected to sexual abuse and exploitation. Sexual Harassment and Abuse Children who try to escape the ranks of the guerrillas can be punished with torture and death.^[3]^[6]

The United States Department of State includes the FARC-EP on its list of foreign terrorist organizations, as does the European Union. Department of State redirects here. ... The U.S. State Departments list of Foreign Terrorist Organizations is a list of non-US organizations that are designated as terrorist by the United States Secretary of State in accordance with section 219 of the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA). ...

History

The period that followed the murder of Jorge Eliécer Gaitán in 1948 saw the loss of more than 200,000 lives and became known as La Violencia ("The Violence"). "Toward the end of La Violencia, a new generation of young Colombians who had been socialized to think that violence was a normal way of life…increasingly took to banditry."^{[cite this quote]} By 1953, the Colombian Conservative Party government of Laureano Gómez (elected 1950 in an election boycotted by the Colombian Liberal Party), unable to cope with the situation, became increasingly unpopular in the eyes of both public opinion and other political figures of both parties. In what was seen as a successful effort that sought to reestablish order, the military, under the figure of General Gustavo Rojas Pinilla, seized control of the country in 1953. This article or section is not written in the formal tone expected of an encyclopedia article. ... Jorge EliÃ©cer GaitÃ¡n (January 23, 1903 - April 9, 1948) was a politician, a leader of a populist movement in Colombia, a former Education Minister (1940) and Labor Minister (1943-1944), mayor of BogotÃ¡ (1936) and chief of the Colombian Liberal Party (1947-1948). ... La Violencia (literally The Violence, in Spanish) is a term that refers to an era of civil conflict in Colombia between supporters of the Colombian Liberal PartybobColombian Conservative Party, a conflict which took place roughly from 1948 to 1958 (exact dates vary). ... La Violencia (literally The Violence, in Spanish) is a term that refers to an era of civil conflict in Colombia between supporters of the Colombian Liberal PartybobColombian Conservative Party, a conflict which took place roughly from 1948 to 1958 (exact dates vary). ... The Colombian Conservative Party (Spanish: Partido Conservador Colombiano), is a conservative right wing / center right Colombian political party. ... Gustavo Rojas Pinilla was a former military dictator (1953-1957) and Colombian political figure, as well as a former 1966 and 1970 presidential candidate on behalf of the National Popular Alliance, Alianza Nacional Popular, (ANAPO). ...

The new military government offered amnesty to the bandits and guerrillas that surrendered their weapons. And most did. However, some Liberal guerrilla groups included a large number of communists who refused to surrender their arms. They retreated to isolated areas of the country where they continued to operate and organize their own communities. In other areas, such as Villarrica, Tolima, former guerrillas suffered attacks. Jacobo Arenas, who would later become the ideological leader of the FARC, was sent by the Colombian Communist Party as a political activist in order to help organize existing self-defense and guerrilla units in a rural enclave during "La Violencia" (1948-1955). Jacobo Arenas (died August 10, 1990, possibly due to cancer, but perhaps also due to diabetes or an ulcer, according to different versions) was the nom de guerre of Luis Morantes, a founder and ideological leader of the FARC-EP (Fuerzas Armadas Revolucionarias de Colombia - Ejercito del Pueblo). He was... The Colombian Communist Party is the legal Communist party of Colombia. ...

Jacobo Arenas later wrote a book called "Diario de la resistencia de Marquetalia" ("Diary of the Marquetalian resistance"). The book includes a chronicle of the events of the fight between the guerrilla fighters and the soldiers of the Colombian army brigade. Jacobo Arenas (died August 10, 1990, possibly due to cancer, but perhaps also due to diabetes or an ulcer, according to different versions) was the nom de guerre of Luis Morantes, a founder and ideological leader of the FARC-EP (Fuerzas Armadas Revolucionarias de Colombia - Ejercito del Pueblo). He was...

Civilian rule was restored in 1958 after moderate Conservatives and Liberals, with the support of dissident sectors of the military, agreed to unite under a bipartisan coalition known as the National Front. (Political alternation within the coalition eventually resulted in the election of Misael Pastrana in 1970 as president, under a very criticized process which was considered to be dishonest by many in the Colombian public and media.) Meanwhile, armed self-defense groups of communists had successfully established their own government in a remote region of the country, unofficially known as the "republic" of Marquetalia. National Front (Spanish: 1958-1974) was a period in the history of Colombia in which the two main political parties; Liberal Party and Conservative Party agreed to let the opposite party govern, intercalating for a period of four presidential terms. ... Marquetalia Republic was a term used to unofficially refer to one of the enclaves in rural Colombia which Communist peasant guerrillas held during the aftermath of La Violencia (aprox. ...

According to 1958 US embassy and military records on file at the US National Archives, one of the largest Liberal guerrilla bands that came into existence during "La Violencia" had been known as "Fuerzas Armadas Revolucionarias de Colombia" (FARC),^[7] This group had been organized some time in the early 1950s by Dumar Aljure, an associate of Guadalupe Salcedo. In the following years, Aljure's power and that of this early guerrilla organization declined until his own death in 1968, when he still had a degree of control and influence over Puerto Lleras. The National Archives building Constitution Avenue facade. ... La Violencia (literally The Violence, in Spanish) is a term that refers to an era of civil conflict in Colombia between supporters of the Colombian Liberal PartybobColombian Conservative Party, a conflict which took place roughly from 1948 to 1958 (exact dates vary). ...

Separately, the Colombian government had initially ignored the growing influence of several communist enclaves in and around Sumapaz until 1964 when, under pressure by Conservatives who considered the autonomous communities to be a threat, the Colombian National Army was ordered to attack the so-called "independent republics". The Colombian National Army (Spanish: Ejercito Nacional de Colombia) is the land force of Colombia and the largest branch of the Colombian Armed Forces. ...

Following the attack the communists dispersed, only to later reorganize as the "Southern Bloc" ("Bloque Sur"). In 1964, the Bloque Sur renamed itself the "Fuerzas Armadas Revolucionarias de Colombia" (FARC). Jacobo Arenas and Manuel Marulanda were two of the founders of the new guerrilla group and became its two top leaders. The Southern Bloc of the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia was the first bloc to exist and is where the roots of the guerilla movement lie. ... Jacobo Arenas (died August 10, 1990, possibly due to cancer, but perhaps also due to diabetes or an ulcer, according to different versions) was the nom de guerre of Luis Morantes, a founder and ideological leader of the FARC-EP (Fuerzas Armadas Revolucionarias de Colombia - Ejercito del Pueblo). He was... Manuel Marulanda VÃ©lez is the nom de guerre of Pedro Antonio Marin, the main leader of the FARC EP (Fuerzas Armadas Revolucionarias de Colombia - Ejercito del Pueblo). He was born on May 13, 1928 (a date that has been disputed), in a coffee-growing region of west-central Colombia...

Whether the organization's new name could have been derived from Dumar Aljure's earlier Liberal guerrilla, or whether the new FARC may possibly have included among its initial members some of Aljure's former followers, is not clear. The finer details of this part of the FARC's early history are unclear, and most histories of the FARC, including those which reference the writings of Arenas and other FARC founders, omit any mention of Aljure's guerrilla army entirely.

While the group officially came into existence in 1966, some of its leaders were former liberal and communist guerrillas^{[citation needed]}.

Other observers^{[citation needed]} point out that, by the time that the 1964 movement was founded, different national and international realities, such as the successful example of armed revolution provided by the Cuban revolution, had come into being and had a more direct influence on the final creation and establishment of the FARC (and the contemporary National Liberation Army). As FARC continued to grow, it established itself throughout the country in semi-autonomous fronts. On February 14, 1977, FARC guerillas kidnapped Richard Starr (1947-83), a Peace Corps volunteer, during a raid on a rural police station. Starr was held for almost three years, until his mother, assisted by newspaper columnist Jack Anderson secured his release on February 11, 1980, after payment of a ransom of $250,000. The Cuban Revolution refers to the revolution that led to the overthrow of General Fulgencio Batistas regime on January 1, 1959 by the 26th of July Movement and other revolutionary elements within the country. ... EjÃ©rcito de LiberaciÃ³n Nacional (usually abbreviated to ELN), or National Liberation Army, is a revolutionary, Marxist, insurgent guerrilla group that has been operating in several regions of Colombia since 1964. ... is the 45th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ... Also: 1977 (album) by Ash. ... jack donald anderson (september 156, 1995 and wasted himself with a gun; december19, 1999) was an American newspaper columnist and is considered one of the fathers of modern investigative journalism. ... is the 42nd day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1980 (MCMLXXX) was a leap year starting on Tuesday (link displays the 1980 Gregorian calendar). ...

Seventh Guerrilla Conference of the FARC-EP

FARC ideologue Jacobo Arenas was allegedly the main figure behind the FARC's Seventh Guerrilla Conference in 1982, and a contemporary "Strategic Plan", which would have outlined a series of goals and steps that would organize the FARC into an "Army of the People" (the initials "EP", Ejército del Pueblo, were adopted during this Conference) capable of potentially seizing power sometime in the 1990s, explicitly combining both the illegal and legal forms of struggle (organically implementing a traditional Marxist and Communist strategy termed "the combination of all forms of struggle"), as well as the political and the military aspects of their group. Manuel Marulanda and Jacobo Arenas The Seventh Guerrilla Conference was a conference held by the Colombian FARC in 1982 under the guidance of Jacobo Arenas and Manuel Marulanda. ... Image File history File links No higher resolution available. ...

Under the guidance of Jacobo Arenas and Manuel Marulanda, the Seventh Guerrilla Conference was a turning point in the FARC's struggle, as it provided them with the opportunity to finetune their policies and plans in order for them to build their desired socialist state in the future.

Many U.S. and other military experts argue that Manuel Marulanda Vélez, as a veteran guerilla fighter and as an excellent commander for four decades, heads perhaps the most capable and dangerous Marxist guerilla organization in the world. Marulanda is very often referred to as "Sureshot" ("Tirofijo"), because of a reputation for using firearms very accurately during his earlier years as an insurgent. For some of those analysts, an allegedly problematic aspect in Marulanda's profile concerns the fact that he has limited educational background, due to the poor economic conditions that his family and many others had to face when growing up in rural Colombia. Jacobo Arenas, on the other hand, had political and ideological education as a communist intellectual, thus it is believed that he realized that FARC's initial status was not up to the necessary standards needed to properly fight a Colombian Army that could count on the aid of the United States from time to time.

This was possible since, after the 1959 Cuban Revolution, the United States increased its military influence throughout the region through the activities of the United States Southern Command, an organization tasked with overseeing and handling military affairs in Latin America. U.S. Special Forces, such as the Green Berets, specifically trained to fight in Latin America jungles for counterinsurgency operations. Additionally, the widespread Spanish language was also taught to many members of U.S. forces in the region. From the perspective of Arenas, the challenge of having to potentially face the most technologically advanced military in the world made upgrading FARC's own military capabilities a necessity. USSOUTHCOM emblem The United States Southern Command (USSOUTHCOM, or informally: SOUTHCOM) is a Unified Combatant Command responsible for all United States military activities in Central America, South America, and the Caribbean basin (except Cuba and Puerto Rico, which are the responsibility of United States Northern Command). ... Latin America consists of the countries of South America and some of North America (including Central America and some the islands of the Caribbean) whose inhabitants mostly speak Romance languages, although Native American languages are also spoken. ... The United States Special Operations Forces is the official category where the U.S. Department of Defense lists the U.S. military units that have a training specialization in unconventional warfare and special operations. ... A green beret is a type of headgear. ... Counter-insurgency is the combatting of insurgency, by the government (or allies) of the territory in which the insurgency takes place. ...

The role of Jacobo Arenas in FARC's military reorganization was significant. After the Seventh Guerilla Conference in 1982, Arenas started to work toward the goal of turning the FARC from a guerrilla organization to a rebel army (the "People's Army"). According to his instructions, FARC added ranks and badges to many of its uniforms, as well as introducing a new inventory system for firearms and ammunition, in addition to providing new weapons and technology for FARC militants. In theory, a properly organized and trained guerrilla army would thus meet the international requirements for the recognition of a "state of belligerence", contained within the Geneva Conventions of August 12, 1949 and its additional protocols. Original document. ... is the 224th day of the year (225th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1949 (MCMXLIX) was a common year starting on Saturday (link will display the full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ...

Jacobo Arenas died in August 1990. Official FARC versions claimed he died of a sudden heart attack. However, claims of foul play have not gone without notice. Different sources from within the guerrilla group state that he was murdered by a low ranking guerrilla officer sometime after Arenas himself had ordered to execute, for unknown reasons, this officer's brother. Heart attack redirects here. ...

1998-2002 Peace Process

On September 4, 1996 the FARC-EP attacked a military base in Guaviare, which started three weeks of guerrilla warfare that claimed the lives of at least 130 Colombians, soldiers and civilians included. The FARC-Government peace process (1999-2002), from January 7, 1999 to February 20, 2002, was a failed peace process between the Government of President Andres Pastrana and the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) guerrilla group in an effort to bring to an end the ongoing Colombian Armed Conflict. ... Image File history File links Download high-resolution version (565x819, 58 KB) Licensing I, the creator of this work, hereby grant the permission to copy, distribute and/or modify this document under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License, Version 1. ... Image File history File links Download high-resolution version (565x819, 58 KB) Licensing I, the creator of this work, hereby grant the permission to copy, distribute and/or modify this document under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License, Version 1. ... is the 247th day of the year (248th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1996 (MCMXCVI) was a leap year starting on Monday (link will display full 1996 Gregorian calendar). ... Motto: Capital San JosÃ© del Guaviare Governor Area 53,460 kmÂ² Population - Total (2003) - Density 133,236 2,5 people/kmÂ² Adjective Guaviare is a department of Colombia. ...

In hope of negotiating a peace settlement, on November 7, 1998, President Andrés Pastrana Arango granted FARC a 42,000 km² safe haven meant to serve as a confidence building measure, centered around the San Vicente del Caguán settlement. The demilitarization of some of the included Colombian locations had previously been among the FARC-EPs conditions for beginning peace talks. The peace process with the government continued at a slow pace for three years during which the BBC and other news organizations reported that the FARC-EP also used the safe haven to import arms, export drugs, recruit minors, and build up their military. After a series of high-profile guerrilla actions, including the hijacking of an airplane, the arrest of three Irish Republicans accused being members of the IRA and of training FARC militants, and the kidnapping of several political figures, Pastrana ended the peace talks on February 21, 2002 and ordered the armed forces to start retaking the FARC-controlled zone, beginning at midnight. A 48-hour respite that had been previously agreed to with the rebel group was not applied at this time; the government argued that it had already been granted and almost used up during an earlier crisis in January, when most of the more prominent FARC commanders had apparently left the demilitarized zone.^[8] Shortly after the end of talks, the FARC kidnapped presidential candidate Ingrid Betancourt, who was traveling in guerrilla territory. is the 311th day of the year (312th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1998 (MCMXCVIII) was a common year starting on Thursday (link will display full 1998 Gregorian calendar). ... | dead=alive | death_date= | death_place= | spouse=Nohra Puyana de Pastrana | party=Conservative | vicepresident=Gustavo Bell }} AndrÃ©s Pastrana Arango (born August 17, 1954) was the President of Colombia from 1998 to 2002, following in the footsteps of his father, Misael Pastrana, who was president from 1970 to 1974. ... For other uses, see San Vicente. ... For other uses, see BBC (disambiguation). ... is the 52nd day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ... Also see: 2002 (number). ... Image:PhotoIngridSimple. ...

Involvement of Irish bomb-makers

The "Colombia Three" were three prominent Irish republicans – Niall Connolly, James Monaghan and Martin McCauley – arrested and accused of travelling on false passports on 11 August 2001 while waiting for flights out of the country. They had spent five weeks in a demilitarized southern zone of Colombia, then under the control of the FARC. The Colombia Three are three individuals â€“ Niall Connolly, James Monaghan and Martin McCauley â€“ who are currently residing in the Republic of Ireland, having fled from Colombia, where they have been sentenced to prison terms of seventeen years for training FARC rebels. ... is the 223rd day of the year (224th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2001 (MMI) was a common year starting on Monday (link displays the 2001 Gregorian calendar). ...

In 15 February 2002 they were charged with training FARC rebels in bomb-making. The trial closed on 1 August 2003 with a verdict which found them guilty of travelling on false passports and they were given sentences of up to 44 months. They were found not guilty on the charges relating to training FARC rebels and were released in June 2004 upon payment of fines. An appeal court overturned the original trial verdict on 16 December 2004, and convicted the men of training the rebels, sentencing them to seventeen years. However, by this time they had returned to Ireland. is the 46th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ... Also see: 2002 (number). ... is the 213th day of the year (214th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2003 (MMIII) was a common year starting on Wednesday of the Gregorian calendar. ... is the 350th day of the year (351st in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2004 (MMIV) was a leap year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ...

According to RAND Corporation, beginning in early 2001 FARC sharply intensified its operations, killing more than 400 members of the Colombian armed forces in 18 months with car bombs and homemade mortars. FARC then expanded its campaign into Colombian cities. The February 2003 bombing of the El Nogal club in Bogotá was attributed to the guerrilla group by authorities, investigators and prosecutors. FARC themselves denied any involvement.^[9] Alternate meanings: See RAND (disambiguation) The RAND Corporation is an American think tank first formed to offer research and analysis to the U.S. military. ... The 2003 Nogal Club Terrorist Attack was a terrorist attack that occurred in BogotÃ¡, Colombia on February 7, 2003. ...

Post 2002 peace process

For most of the period between 2002 and 2005, the FARC-EP was believed to be in a strategic withdrawal due to the increasing military and police actions of new hardline president Álvaro Uribe, which led to the capture or desertion of many fighters and medium-level commanders, one of the most important of which has been that of "Simón Trinidad" (Juvenal Ovidio Palmera Pineda) in January 2004, a former banker turned rebel, who had participated as a high-profile negotiator in the recent Pastrana peace talks, and who was also part of the central command of the organization. Image File history File linksMetadata Download high resolution version (1654x2373, 812 KB) Kolumbianischer PrÃ¤sident Alvaro Uribe VÃ©lez besucht Donald Rumsfeld im Pentagon am 22. ... Image File history File linksMetadata Download high resolution version (1654x2373, 812 KB) Kolumbianischer PrÃ¤sident Alvaro Uribe VÃ©lez besucht Donald Rumsfeld im Pentagon am 22. ... Ãlvaro Uribe VÃ©lez (born July 4, 1952) is the 56th President of Colombia, whose first term ran from 2002 to 2006 and is currently serving his second term from 2006 to 2010. ... Ãlvaro Uribe VÃ©lez (born July 4, 1952) is the 56th President of Colombia, whose first term ran from 2002 to 2006 and is currently serving his second term from 2006 to 2010. ... SimÃ³n Trinidad during his capture on January 2, 2004. ... January 2004 : â† - January - February - March - April - May - June - July - August - September - October - November - December- â†’ Irelands Roman Catholic and Protestant Boy Scouts organisations merge after nearly a century of division, in spite of efforts by the Roman Catholic bishops to block the merger. ...

During the first two years of the Uribe administration, the strength of several FARC fronts, mostly notably in Cundinamarca and Antioquia, was broken by the government's military operations, and several analysts reported that many of the other FARC structures, while mostly intact, reverted back to guerrilla warfare, using "hit and run" tactics against targets of opportunity and the weaker links in the military's defenses. Cundinamarca is a department of Colombia, one of the original nine states of the United States of Colombia. Most of Cundinamarca is in the Eastern Cordillera, just south of BoyacÃ¡, bordered by the Magdalena River on the west, reaching down into the Amazon River basin on the east, and bordering... Motto: Capital MedellÃn Governor Area 63,612 kmÂ² Population - Total (2003) - Density 5,750,478 90 people/kmÂ² Adjective antioqueÃ±o Antioquia was one of the states in the original United States of Colombia, and is now a department in the northwest part of the Republic of Colombia. ...

An article in the respected Bogotá newspaper El Tiempo on June 12, 2004 reported that Guillermo León Sánchez (aka "Alfonso Cano") had apparently been elected commander-in-chief by the estado mayor central (central command), with the blessing of Manuel Marulanda Vélez.^[10] When questioned about the matter by interviews, different FARC spokesmen have, both directly and indirectly, tended to dismiss this claim. For other uses, see BogotÃ¡ (disambiguation). ... El Tiempo is the highest circulation daily newspaper in Colombia and the only non-tabloid daily with national distribution. ... is the 163rd day of the year (164th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2004 (MMIV) was a leap year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Alfonso Cano is the nom de guerre of an important ideological leader of the FARC-EP (Fuerzas Armadas Revolucionarias de Colombia - EjÃ©rcito del Pueblo). Canos real name is Guillermo LeÃ³n SÃ¡enz. ... Manuel Marulanda VÃ©lez is the nom de guerre of Pedro Antonio Marin, the main leader of the FARC EP (Fuerzas Armadas Revolucionarias de Colombia - Ejercito del Pueblo). He was born on May 13, 1928 (a date that has been disputed), in a coffee-growing region of west-central Colombia...

In June 2004, 34 coca farmers were found bound hand and foot and shot with automatic weapons. Blame was placed on the FARC-EP by the government, and after several days of uncertainty the FARC-EP publicly claimed responsibility for the massacre, saying they had killed the farmers for being supporters of right-wing paramilitaries and accusing the government of shedding "crocodile tears" for their deaths. The United Nations condemned the massacre as a war crime. After the FARC's communique was made public, other human rights organizations likewise rejected the event and called on the Colombian government to protect villagers from the guerrillas.^[11] 2004 : January - February - March - April - May - June - July - August - September - October - November - December See also: June 2004 in sports Deaths in June â€¢ 28 Anthony Buckeridge â€¢ 26 Naomi Shemer â€¢ 26 Yash Johar â€¢ 22 Bob Bemer â€¢ 22 Thomas Gold â€¢ 22 Francisco Ortiz Franco â€¢ 16 Thanom Kittikachorn â€¢ 10 Ray Charles â€¢ 5 Ronald Reagan... For other uses, see Coca (disambiguation). ... M2 machine gun An automatic firearm is a firearm that will continue to load and fire rounds of ammunition as long as the trigger (or equivalent) is activated or until it runs out of ammunition. ... UN and U.N. redirect here. ... In the context of war, a war crime is a punishable offense under International Law, for violations of the laws of war by any person or persons, military or civilian. ...

Another incident occurred on July 10, 2004, when the FARC allegedly assassinated seven peasants (Francisco Giraldo, Carlos Torres, José Velásquez, Israel Velásquez, Mauricio Herrera, John Jairo Usuga and Pablo Usuga), in Samaná, near the municipality of San Carlos, Antioquia, according to the mayor of San Carlos, Colombian authorities and witnesses to the event. is the 191st day of the year (192nd in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2004 (MMIV) was a leap year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Motto: Capital MedellÃn Governor Area 63,612 kmÂ² Population - Total (2003) - Density 5,750,478 90 people/kmÂ² Adjective antioqueÃ±o Antioquia was one of the states in the original United States of Colombia, and is now a department in the northwest part of the Republic of Colombia. ...

The victims of the massacre were labourers who had returned to the zone after being forcefully displaced by the FARC earlier, presumably due to military or paramilitary activity in the area. They were apparently murdered because they had not received permission from the FARC to return yet, according to witnesses. The July 10 massacre provoked a further exodus of at least 80 persons from the surrounding rural area towards the urban locality of San Carlos. is the 191st day of the year (192nd in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ...

On July 13, 2004, the office of the United Nations' High Commissioner for Human Rights publicly condemned this further act of violence and the ensuing displacement, accusing the FARC of violating article 17 of the additional Protocol II of the Geneva Convention and of international humanitarian law, expressing its solidarity towards the families of the victims. is the 194th day of the year (195th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2004 (MMIV) was a leap year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ... UN and U.N. redirect here. ... The purpose of the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights involves the promotion and protection of human rights worldwide through direct contact with individual governments and the provision of technical assistance where appropriate. ... The Geneva Conventions consist of treaties formulated in Geneva, Switzerland that set the standards for international law for humanitarian concerns. ...

The office reminded the FARC, which in the past has publicly rejected the legal applicability of the Geneva Convention to its case (though it also claims to be following most of its directives anyway), that these principles must be followed by any person or group of persons, independent of their legal condition.^[12]^[13]^[14]

According to the AP news agency, on August 18, 2004, a Colombian arms broker, Carlos Gamarra Murillo, arrested on April 1, 2004 in Tampa, Florida, USA, was charged with attempting to buy $4 million in rocket launchers, machine guns, and other heavy weapons and ammunition for the FARC, which would have been paid for with 2 tons of cocaine (worth 60% of the total amount, according to investigators) and cash. The Associated Press, or AP, is an American news agency, the worlds largest such organization. ... is the 230th day of the year (231st in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2004 (MMIV) was a leap year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ... is the 91st day of the year (92nd in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2004 (MMIV) was a leap year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Tampa redirects here. ... This article is about the U.S. State of Florida. ...

The weapons would then have been shipped through Venezuela, according to investigators. US Attorney General John Ashcroft stated that Gamarra "attempted to provide the fuel to feed a dangerous foreign terrorist organization". Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) chief Michael Garcia signaled the indictment as "a significant achievement". In most common law jurisdictions, the Attorney General is the main legal adviser to the government, and in some jurisdictions may in addition have executive responsibility for law enforcement or responsibility for public prosecutions. ... John David Ashcroft (born May 9, 1942) is an American politician who was the 79th United States Attorney General. ...

Gamarra apparently made contact with an undercover informant in Colombia in March 2003, according to an ICE agent who testified in April. Gamarra is currently held without bail after heading to Tampa in order to meet U.S. agents posing as weapons dealers. During the next year, it is alleged that he met and called the agents in order to arrange the weapons shipment and also inquired about buying surface-to-air missiles, presumably for use against Colombian military helicopters and other aircraft [1]. March 2003 : January - February - March - April - May - June - July - August - September - October - November - December - â†’ // Events March 1, 2003 Iraq disarmament crisis: The Turkish speaker of Parliament voids the vote accepting U.S. troops involved in the planned invasion of Iraq into Turkey on constitutional grounds. ... A surface-to-air missile (SAM) is a missile designed to be launched from the ground to destroy aircraft. ...

On November 27, 2004, Colombian Defense Minister Jorge Alberto Uribe told reporters that apparently the FARC leadership had secretly commanded their followers to attempt to attack visiting U.S. President George W. Bush during his visit to the city of Cartagena, according to intelligence reports. It was mentioned that any such intentions were made impractical by the presence of about 15,000 members of the Colombian security forces in the area, in addition to U.S. security personnel. No specific evidence (such as the content of the intelligence reports) that FARC actually managed to organize such an attack has been publicly released. [2] Interior and Justice Minister Sabas Pretelt later downplayed the comments, stating that he had no specific details about any concrete assassination plots directed against President Bush and the FARC strongly denied the accusation, blaming it on US intelligence sources.^[15] is the 331st day of the year (332nd in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2004 (MMIV) was a leap year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Department of Defence redirects here. ... Jorge Alberto Uribe Echavarría (b. ... George Walker Bush (born July 6, 1946) is the forty-third and current President of the United States of America, originally inaugurated on January 20, 2001. ... For other places with the same name, see Cartagena (disambiguation). ...

In early February 2005, a series of small scale military actions by the FARC around the southwestern departments of Colombia, which resulted in an estimated 40 casualties (dead and wounded) for the Colombian security forces, were interpreted by many Colombian analysts as evidence of their remaining strength and as signs of a possible comeback for the group, signaling what could become the potential beginning of more offensive operations and the end of what was termed as their strategic withdrawal. The FARC-EP, in response to government military operations in the south and in the southeast, would now be displacing its military center of gravity towards the Nariño, Putumayo and Cauca departments. It was speculated that these actions, and those that might follow later into the year, could be directed towards undermining the advances made by the policies of the Uribe administration, as a possible means to weaken Uribe's chances in the future 2006 electoral contest, where he was expected to run for reelection.^[16] The center of gravity (CoG) is a concept developed by Carl von Clausewitz, a Prussian military theorist, in his work On War. ... NariÃ±o is a department of Colombia named after Antonio NariÃ±o. ... Categories: Departments of Colombia | Stub ... Cauca may refer to: Cauca Department, an administrative division of Colombia Cauca language Cauca River Cauca Valley Coca, Segovia, Spain, Latin name was Cauca Cauca Guan, a bird Category: ...

Attacks in 2005

See also : List of FARC attacks in 2005 The FARC-EPs flag In early 2005, the Fuerzas Armadas Revolucionarias de Colombia â€“ EjÃ©rcito del Pueblo (Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia â€“ Peoples Army, or FARC-EP), launched what has been interpreted as their active response to Colombian president Alvaro Uribes security strategy and to the military...

During 2005, the FARC launched a response to Álvaro Uribe's security strategy and to Plan Patriota, apparently adopting a new style of operations, in particular near the southwest of Colombia. ^{[citation needed]} Plan Patriota is military plan developed by the Government of Colombia with the financial support and approval of the Government of the United States in an effort to uproot the guerrilla groups in Colombia, more specifically the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) and the National Liberation Army (ELN). ...

The FARC would have previously implemented what was later called "Plan Resistencia" in order to endure Plan Patriota's continuing effects, by withdrawing into the jungle and executing a temporary halt in its larger scale attacks. The FARC believe that Plan Patriota has been a failure, as mentioned in some of their communiques.^{[citation needed]}

Between 1996 and 1998, and even until 2000, the FARC had executed large scale multi-front attacks. The FARC's newer attacks were different, consisting of what have been called medium-size unit concentrations, considered to be potentially more flexible against Colombian military action but still able to pack a substantial punch.^{[citation needed]}

Possibility of prisoner exchange with the government

The FARC-EP have demanded the formalization of a mechanism for prisoner exchange, which would involve the liberation of the approximately 70 political and military hostages (not those civilians held for extortion or ransom, which may number in the thousands) that the group currently holds, in exchange for the release of at least 500 to 600 jailed rebels, or at most all of the rebels currently in jail. During the days of the Pastrana negotiations, a limited exchange took place. Colombian protesters against kidnappings and military rescue operations of FARC hostages. ...

The newly elected Uribe administration initially ruled out any negotiation with FARC that did not include a cease-fire, and instead pushed for rescue operations, many of which have traditionally been successful when carried out by the police's GAULA anti-kidnapping group in urban settings (as opposed to the mountains and jungles where the FARC keeps most hostages), according to official statistics.

However, relatives of most FARC kidnapping victims have come to strongly reject any potential rescue operations, in part due to the tragic death of the governor of Antioquia department, Guillermo Gaviria Correa, his peace advisor and several soldiers, kidnapped by the FARC during a peace march in 2003. The governor and the others were shot at close range by the FARC when the government launched an army (not GAULA) rescue mission into the jungle which failed as soon as the guerrillas learned of its presence in the area. Guillermo Gaviria Correa was the state governor of Antioquia. ...

In August 2004, after several false starts and in the face of mounting pressure from relatives, former Liberal presidents Alfonso López Michelsen and Ernesto Samper Pizano and, as shown in recent Colombian polls^[17] the growing majority popular backing in favor of a humanitarian exchange (more than 60% would consider Colombia a "better country" if the exchange took place), the Uribe government seems to have gradually flexibilized its position, announcing that it has given the FARC a formal proposal on July 23, in which it offers to free 50 to 60 jailed rebels in exchange for the political and military hostages held by the FARC (not including ransom kidnapees as well, as the government had earlier demanded).^{[citation needed]} Politics of Colombia Categories: Politics stubs | Liberal related stubs | Colombian political parties | Liberal parties ... Alfonso LÃ³pez Michelsen (b. ... Categories: Stub | Presidents of Colombia | 1950 births ... is the 204th day of the year (205th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ...

The government would make the first move, releasing insurgents charged or condemned for rebellion and either allowing them to leave the country or to stay and join the state's reinsertion program, and then the FARC would release the hostages in its possession, including Ingrid Betancourt. The proposal would have been carried out with the backing and support of the French and Swiss governments, which publicly supported it once it was revealed.

The move has been signaled as potentially positive by several relatives of the victims and political figures. Some critics of the president have considered that Uribe may seek to gain political prestige from such a move, though they would agree with the project in practice.^[18]^[19]

FARC released a communique, dated August 20 but apparently published publicly by August 22, in which they denied having received the proposal earlier through the mediation of Switzerland (as the government had stated) and, while making note of the fact that a proposal had been made by Uribe's administration and that it hoped that common ground could eventually be reached, criticized it because they believe that any deal should allow them to decide how many of its jailed comrades should be freed and that they should be able to return to rebel ranks.^{[citation needed]} is the 232nd day of the year (233rd in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... is the 234th day of the year (235th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ...

On September 5, what has been considered as a sort of FARC counter proposal was revealed in the Colombian press. The FARC-EP is proposing that the government declare a "security" or "guarantee" zone for 72 hours in order for official insurgent and state negotiators to meet face to face and directly discuss a prisoner exchange. Government military forces would not have to leave the area but to concentrate in their available garrisons, in a similar move to that agreed by the Ernesto Samper Pizano administration (1994-1998) which allowed the rebel group to free some captured police and military. In addition, the Colombian government's peace commissioner would have to make an official public pronouncement regarding this proposal. is the 248th day of the year (249th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ...

If the zone was created, the first day would be used for travelling to the chosen location, the second to discuss the matter, and the third for the guerrillas to abandon the area. The government would be able to chose as the location for the "security zone" among one of the municipalities of Peñas Coloradas, El Rosal or La Tuna, all in Caquetá department, where the FARC has clear rebel influence. CaquetÃ¡ is a department of Colombia. ...

Some analysts have considered that this rebel proposal would also be seeking to reduce the pressure that recent military offensives may be exerting against the insurgents in Caquetá, Guaviare and Putumayo departments, and president Uribe stated that the "security zone" would demoralize the military, since they should free a region that has been fought fiercely. Also, the FARC has been known to change their mind easily and they seem to be using the kidnapped families' hopes of freedom to put the government under civilian pressure. It has been speculated by retired military officials that the FARC could potentially set up mines and other traps around the garrisoned troops while the zone is in place.^{[citation needed]} Relatives of hostages currently in rebel hands have considered that both the FARC and government proposals may represent the biggest public advance in the last couple of years regarding their plight.^[20] CaquetÃ¡ is a department of Colombia. ... Motto: Capital San JosÃ© del Guaviare Governor Area 53,460 kmÂ² Population - Total (2003) - Density 133,236 2,5 people/kmÂ² Adjective Guaviare is a department of Colombia. ... Categories: Departments of Colombia | Stub ...

On September 14, the FARC released an official communique in which they denied that the 72-hour proposal came from their organization, and instead asked for the demilitarization of San Vicente del Caguán and Cartagena del Chairá in Caquetá department in order to discuss the prisoner exchange, without any concrete time limit. The document also mentions that several hostages had to be moved to other locations, due to increased military activity in the south. The FARC again stated that, while they are open to discuss a prisoner exchange with the current representatives of the government, they will only consider opening peace negotiations with a different administration.^[21] is the 257th day of the year (258th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ...

On December 2, the government announced the pardon of 23 FARC prisoners, to encourage a reciprocal move. The FARC ignored the gesture, and the 23 rebels released were all of low rank and had promised not to rejoin the armed struggle. The government is hoping to win the release of dozens of hostages, including three US citizens. In November, the FARC rejected a proposal to hand over 63 (the numbers vary between 59 and 63) of its captives in exchange for 50 guerrillas imprisoned by the government.^[15] is the 336th day of the year (337th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ...

In a communique dated November 28 but released publicly on December 3, the FARC-EP declared that they are no longer insisting on the demilitarization of San Vicente del Caguán and Cartagena del Chairá as a pre-condition for the negotiation of the prisoner exchange, but instead that of Florida and Pradera in the Valle department.^[22] They state that this area would lie outside the "area of influence" of both their Southern and Eastern Blocks (the FARC's strongest) and that of the military operations being carried out by the Uribe administration. is the 332nd day of the year (333rd in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... is the 337th day of the year (338th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Valle is a municipality in the county of Aust-Agder, Norway. ...

They request security guarantees both for the displacement of their negotiators and that of the guerrillas that would be freed, which are specifically stated to number as many as 500 or more, and ask the Catholic Church to coordinate the participation of the United Nations and other countries in the process.

The FARC-EP also mention in the communique that Simón Trinidad's extradition, which has been approved by the Supreme Court but still lacks the president's go-ahead, would be a serious obstacle to reaching a prisoner exchange agreement with the government.^{[citation needed]} SimÃ³n Trinidad during his capture on January 2, 2004. ... Extradition is the official process by which one nation or state requests and obtains from another nation or state the surrender of a suspected or convicted criminal. ...

On December 17, 2004, the Colombian government authorized Trinidad's extradition to the United States, but stated that the measure could be revoked if the FARC released all 60 (number at the time) (political and military) hostages in its possession before December 30. December 17 is the 351st day of the year (352nd in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2004 (MMIV) was a leap year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ... is the 364th day of the year (365th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ...

Partial Prisoner Release

On March 25, 2006, after a public announcement made weeks earlier, the FARC-EP released two kidnapped policemen at La Dorada, Putumayo. The release took place some 335 miles southwest of Bogotá, near the Ecuadorean border. The Red Cross said the two were released in good health. Military operations in the area and bad weather had prevented the release from occurring one week earlier.^[23] is the 84th day of the year (85th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2006 (MMVI) was a common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. ...

In a communique, the FARC had stated that this move was in part a consequence of a secret meeting between former minister Álvaro Leyva Durán and FARC's Manuel Marulanda in December 2005. Details of the meeting had been publicly disclosed in the February 26 edition of the Colombian newsweekly Semana. Leyva Durán was subsequently engaged in a political campaign as a presidential candidate. The FARC also reiterated its position to negotiate a prisoner exchange in the future, without dealing with current Colombian President Álvaro Uribe. is the 57th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ...

In a separate series of events, civilian hostage and German citizen Lothar Hintze was released by FARC on April 4, 2006, after five years in captivity. Hintze had been kidnapped for extortion purposes, and his wife had paid three ransom payments without any result. is the 94th day of the year (95th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2006 (MMVI) was a common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. ...

Another prisoner named Julian Ernesto Guevera Castro died of heart failure in December 2005. He was a police captain and was captured on November 1, 1998.^[24] [3] FARC has yet to return his body to his family. is the 305th day of the year (306th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ...

Another hostage, Fernando Araújo Perdomo, the current Minister of Foreign Relations and former Development Minister, escaped his captors on December 31, 2006. Araújo had to walk through the jungle for five days before being found by troops in the hamlet of San Agustin, 350 miles north of Bogotá. He was kidnapped on December 5, 2000 while exercising in the Caribbean coastal city of Cartagena. He was reunited with his family on January 5, 2007. [4] Fernando AraÃºjo Perdomo (born c. ... is the 365th day of the year (366th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2006 (MMVI) was a common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. ... is the 339th day of the year (340th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2000 (MM) was a leap year starting on Saturday (link will display full 2000 Gregorian calendar). ... is the 5th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2007 (MMVII) is the current year, a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar and the AD/CE era in the 21st century. ...

Another hostage, Jhon Frank Pinchao, escaped his captors on April 28, 2007 after nine years in captivity. He was reunited with his family on May 15, 2007. National Police sub-intendant rank Jhon Frank Pinchao Blanco (born in 1970) is a Colombian policeman with the rank of sub-intendant who was kidnapped by the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) guerrilla group[1] after Farcs attack on the town of MitÃº, VaupÃ©s Department on November...

Death of 11 hostages

On June 28, 2007, the FARC reported the death of 11 out of 12 provincial deputies from the Valle del Cauca Department whom the guerrillas had kidnapped in 2002. The guerrillas claimed that the deputies had been killed by crossfire during an attack by an "unidentified military group." The Colombian government has stated that government forces had not made any rescue attempts and that the FARC executed the hostages. The guerrillas did not report any other casualties on either side and delayed months before permitting the Red Cross to recover the remains. According to the government, the guerrillas delayed turning over the corpses in order to let decomposition hide evidence of how they died. The Red Cross reported that the corpses had been washed and their clothing changed before burial, hiding evidence of how they were killed. The Red Cross also reported that the deputies had been killed by multiple shots, including two by shots to the head. [5]. Victims of the Valle del Cauca deputies hostage crisis, 2007 The Valle del Cauca Deputies hostage crisis (Spanish: ) refers to the kidnapping of 12 Deputies of the Valle del Cauca Department, Colombia on April 12, 2002 by members of the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) to preassure a prisoner... is the 179th day of the year (180th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2007 (MMVII) is the current year, a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar and the AD/CE era in the 21st century. ... Motto: Capital Santiago de Cali Governor Angelino Garzon Area 22,140 kmÂ² Population - Total (2003) - Density 4,524,678 204 people/kmÂ² Adjective vallecaucano Valle del Cauca is a department of Colombia. ...

Activities

Image File history File links No higher resolution available. ... The military history of the Fuerzas Armadas Revolucionarias de Colombia â€“ EjÃ©rcito del Pueblo (Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia â€“ Peoples Army, or FARC-EP) formally began in the middle of 1964, when the Colombian military, advised and aided by the U.S., attacked Communist self-defense and guerrilla forces... Colombian protesters against kidnappings and military rescue operations of FARC hostages Kidnappings in Colombia referes to the practice of kidnapping in the Republic of Colombia. ... Stacks of Cocaine. ...

Financing

FARC has financed itself through kidnapping ransoms, extortion, and drug trafficking which includes but it is not limited to coca plant harvesting, protection of their crops, processing of coca leaves to manufacture cocaine, and drug trade protection. Businesses operating in rural areas, including agricultural, oil, and mining interests, were required to pay "vaccines" (monthly extortions) which "protected" them from subsequent attacks and kidnappings. An additional, albeit less lucrative, source of revenue was highway blockades where guerrillas stopped motorists and buses in order to confiscate jewelry and money, which were especially prevalent during the presidencies of Ernesto Samper Pizano (1994-1998) and that of Andrés Pastrana (1998-2002). Extortion is a criminal offense, which occurs when a person either obtains money, property or services from another through coercion or intimidation or threatens one with physical harm unless they are paid money or property. ... Retail selling Street selling is the bottom of the chain and can be accomplished through purchasing from prostitutes, through cloaked retail stores or refuse houses for users in the act located in red-light districts which often also deal in paraphernalia, dealers marketing merriment at night clubs and other events... For other uses, see Coca (disambiguation). ... Cocaine is a crystalline tropane alkaloid that is obtained from the leaves of the coca plant. ... These lollipops were found to contain heroin when inspected by the US DEA The drug trade is a worldwide black market consisting of production, distribution, packaging and sale of illegal psychoactive substances. ... Petro redirects here. ... This article is about mineral extractions. ... Categories: Stub | Presidents of Colombia | 1950 births ... Order: 42nd President Vice President: Gustavo Bell Lemus Term of office: August 7, 1998 â€“ August 7, 2002 Preceded by: Ernesto Samper Succeeded by: Ãlvaro Uribe Date of birth: August 17, 1954 Place of birth: BogotÃ¡ First Lady: Nohra Puyana de Pastrana Political party: Conservative AndrÃ©s Pastrana Arango (born August...

Over time, fewer recruits joined the organization for ideological reasons, but rather as a means to escape poverty and unemployment.^{[citation needed]} "FARC's narcotics-related income for 1995 reportedly totaled $647 million."^{[cite this quote]} Although the FARC rarely provides a regular cash pay to the majority of its members, per capita income for Colombian guerrilla fighters has at times been calculated to reach at least 40 times the national average. ^{[citation needed]} A boy from an East Cipinang trash dump slum in Jakarta, Indonesia shows what he found. ... CIA figures for world unemployment rates, 2006 Unemployment is the state in which a worker wants, but is unable, to work. ...

In 1991, a small group of guerrillas invaded the Brazilian side of the jungle, and attacked an army post near the Traira River, in the first and only confirmed clash with the Brazilian army to date. Three soldiers were killed and some weapons stolen. A few days later a Brazilian commando struck back, killing seven guerrillas. There has also been alleged FARC activity in Panama, Peru, Venezuela, and Ecuador. The Brazilian Army is the land arm of the Brazilian Military. ...

By 1998, some studies showed that FARC's ranks could have swelled to approximately some 15,000 guerrilla fighters, up from an estimated 7,500 in 1992, and effectively were in a position to control and freely operate through large rural areas of the country (the high-end estimates being about 40%-50%, according to some analysts). Other observers would dispute the current applicability of this assessment in the face of increased U.S. aid and training to the Colombia state and its military.

Drug trafficking

The FARC is believed to have ties to narcotics traffickers, principally through the provision of armed protection and a form of "taxation" over drugs crops and their profits. During the mid- to late-1990s, several drugwar analysts have stated that the FARC would have become increasingly involved in the drug trade, controlling farming, production and exportation of cocaine in those areas of the country under their influence. This claim is also supported by U.S. and Colombian authorities.

Brazilian druglord Fernandinho Beira-Mar was captured in Colombia on April 20, 2001 while in the company of FARC-EP guerrillas. Colombian and Brazilian authorities have claimed that this constitutes proof of further cooperation between the FARC-EP and the druglord based on the exchange of weapons for cocaine.^[25]^[26]^[27] Fernandinho himself and the FARC-EP have denied this. FARC itself has claimed that in their areas of influence the growth of coca plants by farmers would be taxed on the same basis as any other crop, though there would be higher cash profits stemming from coca production and exportation. is the 110th day of the year (111th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2001 (MMI) was a common year starting on Monday (link displays the 2001 Gregorian calendar). ...

In August 2006, Chilean authorities seized more than 108 kilograms of cocaine and captured twelve members of an international drug trafficking ring, which they described as being led by an unnamed Colombian in Panama who received and distributed the ring's profits to finance FARC activities. [6]

Modus operandi

The FARC-EP has employed vehicle bombings, gas cylinder bombs, killings, landmines, kidnapping, extortion, hijacking, as well as guerrilla and conventional military action against Colombian political, military, and economic targets, to attack those it considers a threat to its movement. It has not been uncommon for civilians to die or suffer forced displacement, directly or indirectly, due to many of these actions. The FARC-EPs April 16 and April 18, 2005 gas cylinder attacks on the town of Toribió, Cauca led to the displacement of more than two thousand indigenous inhabitants and the destruction of two dozen civilian houses. A February 2005 report from the United Nations' High Commissioner for Human Rights mentioned that, during 2004, "FARC-EP continued to commit grave breaches [of human rights] such as murders of protected persons, torture and hostage-taking, which affected many civilians, including women, returnees, boys and girls, and ethnic groups."^[28] For other uses, see Car bomb (disambiguation). ... â€œMinefieldâ€ redirects here. ... Hijacking or highjacking is the forcible robbery from, or seizure of, a vehicle in transit. ... is the 106th day of the year (107th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... is the 108th day of the year (109th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2005 (MMV) was a common year starting on Saturday (link displays full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... ToribÃo is a city in Cauca Department, Colombia. ... Cauca may refer to: Cauca Department, an administrative division of Colombia Cauca language Cauca River Cauca Valley Coca, Segovia, Spain, Latin name was Cauca Cauca Guan, a bird Category: ... February 2005 : â† - January - February - March - April - May - June - July - August - September - October - November - December - â†’ Pope John Paul II is taken to a hospital suffering from a serious case of influenza. ... UN and U.N. redirect here. ... The purpose of the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights involves the promotion and protection of human rights worldwide through direct contact with individual governments and the provision of technical assistance where appropriate. ...

IEDs

The FARC's tactic of employing a type improvised mortars made from gas canisters (or cylinders) as explosives, a weapon it often uses when launching attacks at towns and sites in them that they consider as military objectives (such as police stations), has a high degree of inaccuracy. Resulting targeting difficulties have caused these weapons to often level civilian houses and/or harm civilians, such as the case in Toribío on April 24, 2005, and the earlier 2002 attack on a church in Bojayá which killed 119 civilians. US soldier loading a M224 60-mm mortar. ... ToribÃo is a city in Cauca Department, Colombia. ... is the 114th day of the year (115th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2005 (MMV) was a common year starting on Saturday (link displays full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... Also see: 2002 (number). ... BojayÃ¡ is a town in ChocÃ³ Department, Colombia. ...

Attacks on civilian population

Human Rights Watch considers that "the FARC-EPs continued use of gas cylinder mortars shows this armed group’s flagrant disregard for lives of civilians...gas cylinder bombs are impossible to aim with accuracy and, as a result, frequently strike civilian objects and cause avoidable civilian casualties."^[29] Human Rights Watch Banner Human Rights Watch is a United States-based international non-government organization that conducts research and advocacy on human rights. ...

Assassination of three Americans

In March 1999, the FARC-EP killed three U.S. Native American rights activists, in Venezuelan territory after kidnapping them in Colombia. After initial denials and claims that these U.S. citizens were CIA agents, the FARC-EP subsequently admitted that this action was a mistake, and claimed that it would internally punish those responsible. International NGOs and observers have argued that the FARC would have yet to apply any serious punishment to those involved in the incident. March 1999 : January - February - March - April - May - June - July - August - September - October - November - December March 1 - One of four bombs detonated in Lusaka, Zambia, destroys the Angolan Embassy. ... Brazilian Indian chiefs The scope of this indigenous peoples of the Americas article encompasses the definitions of indigenous peoples and the Americas as established in their respective articles. ... CIA redirects here. ... NGO is an abbreviation or code for: Non-governmental organization Nagoya Airport (IATA code) This is a disambiguation page — a navigational aid which lists other pages that might otherwise share the same title. ...

Kidnappings

The FARC-EP is responsible for most of the ransom kidnappings in Colombia. The group's kidnapping targets are usually those that it considers wealthy landowners and businessmen, as well as foreign tourists and entrepreneurs, and prominent international and domestic officials. Colombian and international NGOs have documented that in recent years the FARC has also resorted to kidnapping people from lower income sectors (that is, from the Colombian middle class downward), in particular when they are thought to be collaborators or relatives of the FARC's enemies. It is argued that many of these kidnappings have taken place with little to no regard for the target's age, gender or health conditions. Colombian protesters against kidnappings and military rescue operations of FARC hostages Kidnappings in Colombia referes to the practice of kidnapping in the Republic of Colombia. ...

In February 2005, Juan José Martínez Vega, also known as "Gentil Alvis Patiño" or "El Chigüiro", was arrested by Venezuelan authorities during a rescue operation that freed the mother of baseball player Ugueth Urbina. According to authorities, Martínez Vega had some 600 to 650 kilograms of cocaine on location. Colombian authorities identified him as a member of FARC and accused him of exchanging cocaine for weapons in the black market. Martínez Vega had several false identity papers, including some which identified him as Gentil Albis Patiño, which delayed his initial identification. Eventually Venezuela confirmed him to be "El Chigüiro" and subsequently extradited him to Colombia.^[30]^[31] February 2005 : â† - January - February - March - April - May - June - July - August - September - October - November - December - â†’ Pope John Paul II is taken to a hospital suffering from a serious case of influenza. ... Ugueth Urbina (IPA pronunciation: ), born Ugueth UrtaÃn Urbina Villarreal (February 15, 1974 in Caracas, Venezuela), is a former relief pitcher in Major League Baseball. ...

Arms trafficking

During the first quarter of 2005, joint intelligence and police operations by law enforcement authorities from Honduras and Colombia resulted in the seizure of a number of AK-47 and M16 assault rifles, M60 machineguns, rocket launchers and ammunition cartridges that were stated to be part of illegal weapons shipments from criminal gangs and black market dealers in Central America to the FARC in exchange for drugs, allegedly for two thousand kilos of cocaine. Ethalson Mejia Hoy, a Colombian who was illegally released from Honduran custody in July 2004 24 hours after his arrest, was named as one of the key figures in such an arms-for-drugs traffic. It was reported that "Police intelligence were monitoring communications between two 14th Front guerrillas when they heard 'the package' being discussed. In actuality the package consisted of sufficient weapons to arm a minimum of 180 combatants."^{[cite this quote]} Arms dealers in the region were also accused of providing similar weapons to rightwing paramilitaries in Colombia.^[32]^[33] Avtomat Kalashnikova model 1947 g. ... M16 (more formally United States Rifle, Caliber 5. ... For other uses, see M60. ... It has been suggested that this article or section be merged into underground economy. ... For other uses, see Central America (disambiguation). ...

Organization and Structure

The FARC-EPs flag The military structure of the Fuerzas Armadas Revolucionarias de Colombia â€“ EjÃ©rcito del Pueblo (Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia â€“ Peoples Army, or FARC-EP), formally began to be developed after the middle of 1964, when the Colombian Army occupied the town of Marquetalia. ... The FARC military leadership is divided as follows, for details of each section, see the detailed descriptions below: 1) The Central High Command (Estado Mayor Central), also known as the secretariat, is the superior organism of direction and command of the FARC-EP. Its agreements, orders and decisions rule over...

Development

The FARC's force strength is usually estimated to be at around 15,000 to 18,000 men, organized in more than 80 fronts. Image File history File links No higher resolution available. ...

Roughly from 1949 to 1964, during the "La Violencia" period of Colombian history, the FARC's precursor was a small Communist guerrilla band around Marquetalia. In May 1964 the Colombian Army retook Marquetalia. The rebels scattered, reorganised, and in 1966, the FARC was formally created as a slightly enlargened guerrilla entity (estimated at 350 members)

During the 1970s the FARC kept a low profile by staying inside its traditional heartland areas, but the Seventh Guerilla Conference in 1982 represented a significant change in outlook, as the FARC changed its structure.

Manuel Marulanda Vélez is the organisation's leader. Jacobo Arenas is the FARC's main ideologue and academic. From the early 1980s, the FARC added ranks and unit badges to uniforms, as well as introducing a new inventory system for firearms and ammunition, in addition to providing new weapons and technology for FARC militants. Jacobo Arenas was probably central to planning the FARC-EP which is used to this day.

Unit structure

These are the units the FARC uses: Image File history File links No higher resolution available. ... Image File history File links No higher resolution available. ...

The FARC believes that since the early 1980s it has met the requirements for the recognition of a "state of belligerence" contained within the Geneva Conventions of August 12, 1949 and additional protocols. Their opponents and the Colombian government claim that the practice of civilian kidnapping for ransom and the tax levied on coca crop buyers makes it an illegitimate army and also point to a wide rejection of the guerrilla policies in national surveys. is the 224th day of the year (225th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1949 (MCMXLIX) was a common year starting on Saturday (link will display the full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ...

The FARC-EP is organized into seven main operational regions and “block” is the name given to each FARC military command inside one of the main operational regions. According to the FARC's military operational strategies, which take into account factors such as the size of the area and its population, each block is composed of between 5 to 15 fronts.

In addition, there are various independent, elite or mobile fronts attached to some blocks normally under the direct control of the FARC's high command. The FARC also maintains various "Military intelligence units".

The FARC-EP maintains a Military Academy and a two-month basic military training program, mainly involoving infantry tactics. After basic training, guerrilla fighters are further assessed and have evaluation and performance records. After some time, better candidates may do advanced training.

Ranks

It should be remembered that a FARC company is a lower level of command (of approximately 50 men) than a company in traditional army organization. Wanted cards distributed by the Colombian government asking for information that can lead to Jorge BriceÃ±os arrest. ... Manuel Marulanda is the leader of the FARC EP (Fuerzas Armadas Revolucionarias de Colombia - Ejercito del Pueblo). He was born on May 13, 1928 (a date that has been disputed), in a coffee-growing region of west-central Colombia to a peasant family and was named Pedro Antonio Marin. ...

Contents

Overview

History

Seventh Guerrilla Conference of the FARC-EP

1998-2002 Peace Process

Involvement of Irish bomb-makers

Post 2002 peace process

Attacks in 2005

Possibility of prisoner exchange with the government

Partial Prisoner Release

Death of 11 hostages

Activities

Financing

Drug trafficking

Modus operandi

IEDs

Attacks on civilian population

Assassination of three Americans

Kidnappings

Arms trafficking

Organization and Structure

Development

Unit structure

Ranks

See also

Notes

References

External links

Video

Contents

Overview GA_googleFillSlot("encyclopedia_square");

History

Seventh Guerrilla Conference of the FARC-EP

1998-2002 Peace Process

Involvement of Irish bomb-makers

Post 2002 peace process

Attacks in 2005

Possibility of prisoner exchange with the government

Partial Prisoner Release

Death of 11 hostages

Activities

Financing

Drug trafficking

Modus operandi

IEDs

Attacks on civilian population

Assassination of three Americans

Kidnappings

Arms trafficking

Organization and Structure

Development

Unit structure

Ranks

See also

Notes

References

External links

Video

Overview