New complaints were learned about situations of insecurity that candidates for the Congress of the republic in the department of Magdalena.
(Also read: Commerce and schools closed in El Banco, Magdalena, for fear of Eln)
This time, Claudia Vázquez, a candidate for a peace seat, assured that as an applicant it has been impossible for her to promote her name in the upper parts of the Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta, due to the presence of armed groups.
He found some armed men on a motorcycle on the trail that leads to the corregimiento and they prevented him from entering
According to Vázquez, in this territory he is only allowed to enter Rodrigo ‘Yoyo’ Tovar Vélez, son of alias ‘Jorge 40’, who through alleged intimidation is pressuring the population to vote for his proposal.
“My running mate Daimer Dangond was going to the village of Doña María, in the upper part of the Sierra, and found some armed men on a motorcycle on the trail that leads to the village and they prevented him from entering,” Vázquez said.
This situation was reported to the authoritieswho did not give him the relevance he demanded, according to what he said, because they did not have enough evidence.
However, the issue became more relevant after another politician, also in the same area, announced a similar fact.
In this case, the armed men intercepted him and they disarmed their scheme of security. Subsequently, they were forced to withdraw from the territory.
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Authorities are investigating both cases.
Based on both situations, an investigation was initiated into what is happening in specific points of the Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta.
This testimony reinforces the version of the legal adviser of the government of Magdalena, José Humberto Torres, who warned that in that department there are armed groups that accompany the application of Jorge Rodrigo Tovar, son of former paramilitary leader Rodrigo Tovar Pupo, alias ‘Jorge 40’.
“In Magdalena, the GAO (Organized Armed Groups), heirs to paramilitarism, are forcing voters to vote for alias Yoyo, son of paramilitary chief Jorge 40; Everything indicates that the heirs of the parapolitics will also return to Congress,” the departmental official warned at the time.
Roger Urieles For THE WEATHER Santa Marta @rogeruv
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In Yumbo, the alarm remains in the face of reports of threats against four members of opposition parties.
One of them is Alianza Verde, which has been the target of political violence in recent years in this industrial town in Valle del Cauca.
They are four councilors who fear for their lives and insist that the authorities implement a greater security device to preserve their integrity.
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They are opposition lobbyists William Henao, from Alianza Verde; Fernando David Murgueitio, from Cambio Radical; William Jaramillo, from MAIS, and Andrés Cruz, from ASI.
According to Alianza Verde, councilor William Henao “received anonymous threats on his WhatsApp account, related to his political control activities that he carries out as a member of the opposition caucus before the mayor’s office of that municipality, especially with the public denunciations by the (alleged) excessive number of contracts for the provision of services during electoral times”.
According to the party, they far exceed what happens in other mayors’ offices in larger municipalities in Valle del Cauca.
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The mayor of Yumbo, Jhon Jairo Santamaría, said that he accompanies the complaint so that the Prosecutor’s Office investigates.
“The function of the councilors is covered by justice, the law and the Political Constitution, therefore, I respect their function and their actions focused on the respective controls and complaints,” added the president.
Valley with risks due to violence and fraud in elections
In the Electoral Observation Mission (MOE) they worked on a map of electoral risks in Cali with members of the Awamuy research hotbed, from the Javeriana University.
The information threw risks due to fraud and violence in 24 polling stations in Cali, some in communes 13, 14 and 15 of Aguablanca. But they would be greater in 14. There would also be risks in commune 21, also in the east, and in 20, where Siloé is, on the hillside.
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Another municipality in the Valley with factors indicative of electoral fraud and factors of violence is Buga.
The Cairo municipality, in the north, has a medium risk of fraud in Chamber elections due to fraud, while Versailles, for Senate.
Municipalities at risk of violence, with a high and extreme risk index are Cali, Yumbo, Bolívar and Buenaventura. In this list of high risks, according to the EOM, Buga, Florida, Jamundí and Tuluá also appear.
For the regional coordinator of the EOM, Alejandro Sánchez, it is necessary that institutional efforts be concentrated in such a way that irregularities can be detected.
Faculty, students and employees of the Francisco de Paula Santander Universityon Ocanahad to evacuate the university campus after learning that armed men had threatened to install explosives for not complying with the Eln armed strike.
According to preliminary reports, four men on two motorcycles arrived at the entrance to the campus and ordered the students and public transport drivers to leave the place, otherwise they would install explosives on the site.
The students immediately notified their classmates, who unanimously decided to leave the university premises.
In the midst of chaos and panic, the students left the place on motorcycles and private vehicles, while others walked towards a main road.
The educational community decided to leave the university quickly.
The university campus is located on the Alcosure road on the outskirts of the municipality of Ocaña, five kilometers from the municipal palace.
This event occurs five days after having started face-to-face classes at the headquarters of the Francisco de Paula Santander University in Ocaña, after the forced closure due to the covid-19 pandemic.
The situation of violence faced by Nte de Santander is alarming. Today, UFPS Ocaña had to be evacuated after events that put the life and integrity of the entire university community at risk. to the govt @IvanDuque we demand an urgent and negotiated solution to the conflict pic.twitter.com/c2TrANlGjh
The Colombian Association of University Students (Aceu), rejected what happened through a statement and asked the National Government to attend to the difficult public order situation that Norte de Santander is suffering.
“This type of action threatens our right to education, because it prevents that construction of ideas from taking place, it violates our right to peace, putting not only the entire student community, but also the municipality of Ocaña in distress,” says the release.
As he had announced, the mayor of Medellín, Daniel Quintero Calle, visited the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR) in Washington to request precautionary measures to protect his life and that of his family, and his political rights.
During the visit, the president met with Joel Hernández García, commissioner of the IACHR and rapporteur for Colombia; María Claudia Pulido, Deputy Executive Secretary of the IACHR; and Fernanda dos Anjos, coordinator of the Precautionary Measures Section.
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In the first instance and urgently, the mayor told the IACHR about the threats he has received since before beginning his mandate and since he took office as mayor of Medellín.
He especially referred to the increase in these events in recent months through emails, messages on social networks and the construction of plans to attempt against his life that were revealed by human sources.
“As everyone knows, the demands and complaints that we have made about Hidroituango have put my life and that of my family at serious risk. That is why today, before the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights, we have exposed these threats. Unfortunately, the Colombian State continues to fail to comply with the ruling of the Inter-American Court of Human Rights and the Attorney General’s Office has been violating the American Convention on Human Rights,” said Quintero Calle.
(You can also read: Quintero recall promoters announced demonstration)
Before the @IACHR we made known the threats against my life and that of my family. In addition, we denounce the violation of the American Convention on Human Rights by the Attorney General’s Office. We request guarantees in both cases. pic.twitter.com/hghdVFc9I5
Parallel, the mayor requested that his political rights and freedom of expression be protected in the recall process that he is currently facing and which coincides temporarily with the legislative elections in the country, for which the Colombian State must guarantee balance in its decisions in administrative or judicial processes.
In this regard, it also argued that the Colombian State has not complied with what was stated by the Inter-American Court of Human Rights that no administrative authority can prevent the defense of a democratically elected authority, which states that it has not complied with the sentence of the same IACHR in July 2020 in the case of Gustavo Petro and that requires taking legal measures to prevent the repetition of violations of political rights.
On this last point, this newspaper consulted the professor at the University of Antioquia, Alejandro Gómez Restrepo, a specialist in human rights issues, and explained that the mayor of Medellín could indeed request a precautionary measure (it is requested when there is an imminent risk or a violation of a human right) before the commission for his personal security with a technical document that is raised through a system, through a web page, but he could not do the same for the revocation process because, in simple words, this has not happened, that is, the citizenry has not voted whether or not to continue in office.
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Under this scenario, as the professor explained, the revocation could not be paused because for a precautionary measure to operate, three elements are required: urgency, necessity and irreparable damage.
“As long as the recall does not occur, we are neither in a state of emergency, nor need, nor irreparable damage. If eventually the revocation dismisses him, he could file an individual petition but he would have to first exhaust the internal resources (for example guardianships)”, explained the teacher.
MEDELLIN
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The Governor of Bolívar, Vicente Blel, spoke in front of the crime of Teófilo Acuña and Jorge Alberto Tafur, social leaders and spokespersons for the Interlocution Commission of southern Bolívar, for the center and south of Cesar, south of Magdalena and Procesos de los Santanderes (CISBCSC).
“Teófilo, spokesman for the Mesa del Sur de Bolívar, and his family hurt us; Jorge, a great representative of the National Agrarian Board, hurts us; it hurts us for his work and above all for their families who suffer this immense pain of firing a father , brother, friend and great representative of the Federation of Miners of the South of Bolívar”, said Blel.
Also: Teófilo Acuña and Jorge Tafur, the social leaders murdered in Cesar)
The Congress of the Peoples pronounces
“To whom we cry today, with deep regret, were important leaders of our department who accompanied all the conciliation demonstrations before the Government and with whom we work very closely,” added Blel.
Teófilo Acuña and Jorge Alberto Tafur were assassinated in San Martín, south of the department of Cesar. The events were recorded at 9:45 pm last Tuesday in Puerto Oculto, a rural area of the town.
The People’s Congress made public that both leaders had been threatened in their homes. He also recalled that Teófilo Acuña had been the victim of a judicial setup.
“These situations were reported to the authorities, who did nothing to protect their lives,” said the People’s Congress.
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Blel asked that the authorities in charge of the investigations deliver results as soon as possible in order to deal with this situation.
Governor Vicente Blel asks for more accompaniment and protection in Bolivarian territory
It is urgent that the National Government intervene and give us all the support and attention so that we can offer all the guarantees to the citizens
The Government of Bolívar reported that the director of Security and Citizen Coexistence, José Ardila, is leading the investigations with the support of the public force.
“We are coordinating and accompanying the authorities and public forces in this situation that is so painful for us, for Bolívar and above all for the families. The important thing is to preserve and take care of the lives of those who represent leadership in this area of Bolívar and we have done so, however unfortunately today with the death of these Bolivarians in the land of Cesar, greater actions are activated to stop and detect any other fact that put at risk the lives not only of leaders but also of the inhabitants of the Middle and South Magdalena of our Department.
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Governor Vicente Blel asks for more accompaniment and protection in Bolivarian territory for all threatened leaders, it is fully complied with and he remains in permanent contact with them, receiving reports of any news.
“It is urgent that the National Government intervene and give us all the support and attention so that we can offer all the guarantees to the citizens,” added Blel Scaff.
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During the government council held this Monday, February 21, the mayor of Medellín, Daniel Quintero reported that he will travel to Washington (USA) where he will hold a series of meetings, among which one stands out with the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR).
According to the local president, there he will denounce an increase in the threats received against him.
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In addition, he added, he will also inform the entity about an apparent persecution against the Municipal Administration.
“In the same way, we also ask that the persecution by some control organisms cease, and the Colombian authorities are reminded that the Democratically elected mayors can only be suspended through a final criminal ruling, thanks to the ‘Petro ruling’ that prevented the breakdown of democracy in Colombia. What the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights does is protect democracy and we hope that it will do so in our case,” added the mayor.
(Also read: They recovered a stolen piece from the Otraparte House Museum)
What the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights does is protect democracy and we hope that it will do so in our case.
The president also said that he had tensions with the National Police for a change in its security scheme.
However, he clarified that after talking with the director of the Police, General Jorge Luis Vargas, the situation was reversed and it did not escalate.
Quintero’s trip to the US capital will be on the night of this Wednesday, February 23, and he indicated that once it is over, he will travel to Barcelona (Spain).
There, he said, he will be representing Medellin at the World Mobile Congress, “the most important technology congress in the world, where it will show advances in the capital of Antioquia, especially with the Future Computing strategies and the neutral fiber optic network.”
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During these days the Secretary of Government and Management of the Cabinet, Esteban Restrepo, will be the mayor in charge.
Some young people who handed out flyers with messages against the vote buying they were threatened and attacked in the north of Barranquilla, as reported in recent hours.
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The group that took the initiative shared brochures in which messages were read rejecting the management of the presidential candidate Álex Char when he was mayor of the capital of Atlántico and, in the same papers, they invite him to “respond for the Merlano case”.
It must be remembered that the former congresswoman, a fugitive from justice, pointed out to the former president and other leaders of the Caribbean coast of having made millionaire contributions to her campaign for the Senate in 2018. was denied by Char.
“Public complaint: we have just been attacked by these four subjects, one of them kicked me, they arrived in a car, they took away the pedagogy from the volunteers, they threatened us that we could not distribute that. These people came directly looking for me,” said the author of the initiative, Reynaldo Torres.
In a video that he shared on his social networks, the youth leader pointed to the alleged group of aggressors who was arguing with two musicians, who, apparently, were also attacked, according to the activist and economist.
“They don’t let us work. They come attacking and there may be a murga (fight), so go look for murga elsewhere”, said one of the musicians during the discussion with the alleged aggressors.
🚨 PUBLIC COMPLAINT We have just been attacked by these 4 subjects, one of them kicked me because they arrived in a car, they took away the pedagogy from the volunteers, they threatened us that we could not distribute that THESE PEOPLE CAME DIRECTLY LOOKING FOR ME @DefensoriaColpic.twitter.com/qVGMNJG3Wc
I contacted the Ombudsman and they are going to send everything to the person in charge of early warnings
In dialogue with EL TIEMPO, Torres regretted what happened and maintained that it was “something premeditated”, when he got out of the vehicle and arrived directly at prevent activity.
“The seriousness of the matter is trying to intimidate and threaten freedom of expression, the development of political exercises as citizens, and sow fear so that people step aside,” said the young man.
It also indicated that it is in the process of filing a formal complaint before the authorities for these events that took place on the corner of Calle 52 and Carrera 54.
“Supposedly they were going to contact me the next day to take my statement, but there was no communication. They told me to do that virtual process. I contacted the Ombudsman and they are going to send everything to the person in charge of early warnings to advise me and make the complaint”, she said.
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Reactions to this complaint
This case was rejected by citizens, opinion leaders and politicians, who sympathized with the young affected.
The councilman of Barranquilla, Andrés Rengifo Lemus, stated: “We call on the authorities to investigate and guarantee that the constitutional right to peaceful protest and freedom of expression is respected in Barranquilla.”
For his part, former Minister Juan Fernando Cristo said: “I reject this aggression. Courage in your just struggles, dear Reynaldo Torres”.
BARRANQUILLA
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Iran has ramped up its threats and harassment of journalists working for the BBC’s Persian language service and their families, the British broadcaster says.
In a complaint filed with the United Nations this month, the BBC called on the U.N. and the international community to “condemn Iran for their unacceptable treatment” of its staff.
The complaint cited “extra-territorial threats” against the journalists in Britain and third countries; harassment of family members in Iran; financial pressures on the journalists and their families; and “increased intelligence and counter-intelligence activity aimed at undermining the professional reputation of BBC News Persian and its journalists.”
The problem has been going on for years, said Kasra Naji, BBC Persian special correspondent in London. But he said the threats have recently gotten worse.
“There has been an escalation,” Naji told VOA News. Over the span of six weeks, Iran’s intelligence agency called in several family members of BBC Persian personnel for questioning.
“They told our parents and brothers and sisters that we in London could be the target of kidnapping, or even killing, if we didn’t stop working for the BBC,” Naji said. “They also suggested that we could be kidnapped and renditioned to Iran.”
The agents cited the case of Ruhollah Zam as an example of what would happen if they didn’t comply, Naji said.
Zam, who founded an anti-government news website and Telegram channel while in exile in Paris, was lured to Iraq in 2019, where he had been promised an exclusive interview with a prominent cleric.
Instead, he was forcibly returned to Iran where the Revolutionary Court convicted him of “corruption on Earth” and executed him in December 2020.
In a joint statement, human rights lawyer Caoilfhionn Gallagher and Jennifer Robinson, counsel for the BBC World Service, said, “We know from Iran’s past actions that it is willing to take cross-border and deadly action to silence its critics, and that it perceives independent journalism about Iran as a risk to their power.”
Naji says the threats don’t appear to be linked to any particular story and haven’t impacted BBC Persian reporting.
Special Correspondent for BBC Persian TV, Kasra Naji attends a press conference on March 12, 2018 in Geneva.
“We have to report the stories. We have to report the news. We have to say what is happening,” Naji said. “And perhaps that’s the reason why the Iranian government keeps attacking us, because obviously they feel they haven’t managed to have an impact.”
Iran’s mission to the United Nations did not respond to VOA’s request for comment.
February’s complaint is the third filed against Iran by the BBC in the past five years, Naji said.
The U.N. Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights did not return VOA’s requests for comment.
In response to an earlier complaint, U.N. experts in 2020 demanded that Iran end the harassment and called on member states to ensure the safety of journalists.
Legacy of threats
Amir Soltani, activist and author of Zahra’s Paradise, a graphic novel about protests over the 2009 contested elections in Iran, says the Iranian intelligence agency has been targeting individuals since the 1979 revolution.
“From the beginning, many Iranian writers and dissidents were abducted by the Intelligence Ministry and killed,” Soltani told VOA. “Many people disappeared and then their bodies were found in various states of mutilation. This was a campaign of fear and terror against intellectuals, against writers, against dissidents, and quite naturally against journalists.”
The tactics have continued over the past 40 years and are aimed at silencing anyone who speaks critically of the Iranian regime, he said. But while previous attacks were conducted secretly, they have become much more brazen, Soltani said.
Tehran’s repressive media environment means that many journalists work in exile. But living outside of Iran is no guarantee of security.
Transnational repression, in which governments reach across borders to coerce, intimidate, and sometimes harm or even kill citizens, is becoming a widely used tactic by authoritarian regimes, groups including Freedom House have said.
Last year, VOA Persian host and outspoken government critic Masih Alinejad was the target of a kidnapping attempt from her home in New York.
Four Iranians, believed to be intelligence operatives, were charged with conspiracy to abduct Alinejad with the intent of forcibly bringing her to Iran, ostensibly for speaking out about human rights violations.
In 2020, media watchdog Reporters Without Borders said at least 200 Iranian journalists living outside of the country had been harassed, including 50 who had received death threats.
BBC Persian staff and their families have endured years of harassment.
In 2012, agents detained several relatives and tried to coerce them into persuading the journalists to either stop working for the BBC or to act as intelligence agents, according to the Committee to Protect Journalists. Other family members had their passports revoked, preventing them from leaving the country.
And in 2017, Iran charged 152 BBC Persian staff members, including Naji, with “conspiracy against national security.”
The court order, which is still in effect, froze all of their assets and has affected an estimated 600-700 family members, Naji said. The freeze prevents them from selling or dividing properties.
“Some of us think that our parents and our brothers and sisters are effectively hostages in Iran,” Naji told VOA.
Travel bans and sanctions on bank accounts are all too familiar, said Soltani, a U.S.-based human rights activist who left Iran in 1980. These issues have affected many members of society, not just journalists and their family members, he said.
“If you can attack an institution like the BBC, at that level, with impunity and not give a damn about what the repercussions can be, can you imagine what lone journalists and dissidents in Iran are facing?” Soltani asked.
As the BBC calls on the U.N. to condemn Iran for the latest threats, its journalists say they will not be silenced.
“We have all agreed, all of us here at the BBC,” Naji said, “that we have to shout from the rooftops so that everyone knows about this, particularly the Iranian government, that if they touch us, if they take action against us, there will be a cost attached.”
Reporter bio:Carmela Caruso is a freelance reporter based in Asheville, North Carolina, who specializes in press freedom and human rights. She is a student at Savannah College of Art and Design. Her work has appeared in VOA and The Mountain Xpress. Follow @CarmelaMCaruso
The district comptroller of Santa Marta, Chadan Rosado Taylormade known his concern about some intimidating text messages that he has been receiving on his private cell phone number.
(Also read: Controversy over the indigenous proposal to relocate statues in Santa Marta)
The representative of the control entity assures that these threats, in which they warn him that they will attempt against his life, do not have a clear issuer, but they coincide with some findings that he has made known in recent days, as a result of investigations carried out against the Public services company.
After ratifying an alleged detriment of Essmar worth 41,000 million pesos, I have been receiving threatening messages
“After ratifying an alleged detriment of Essmar worth 41,000 million pesos, I have been receiving threatening messages that continue to be disturbing for me and my family,” Rosado said.
The comptroller said that this risk situation was already reported to the authorities so that the origin can be established and immediate protection measures can be established.
“I cannot point to any at this time, but I am going to file a complaint against an undetermined subject, hoping that my safety and that of my family will be guaranteed,” Chadán Rosado noted.
(You may be interested in: “There are going to be internal repercussions”: Union DT for fighting with fans)
The Call to Mayor Virna Johnson
Likewise, the representative of the Comptroller indicated that in Santa Marta it has become a bad practice to receive insults and threats every time a control body pronounces on some irregularity.
He also called on Mayor Virna Johnson not to get involved in the case of alleged findings against Essmar.
The foregoing, taking into account that it is the responsibility of the managers linked to the investigations to exercise their defense and with technical evidence demonstrate that there was no kind of detriment to public resources during their management at the head of Essmar.
Roger Urieles For THE WEATHER Santa Marta @rogeruv
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The explosive device hit the Campo 25 village on Sunday night.
Photo:
Twitter @lorenzolizazo
The explosive device hit the Campo 25 village on Sunday night.
In Barrancabermeja there have been three attacks in recent months.
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February 15, 2022, 10:56 AM
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Maria Alejandra Rodriguez Castellanos February 15, 2022, 10:56 AM
After a third attack was recorded against the oil infrastructure in Barrancabermeja, the authorities held a security council to activate a plan to guarantee security.
“The activation of a unified command post throughout this week. From seven in the morning we will be active in the situation that may arise. We are looking forward to what the presidential visit will be,” said Leonardo Gómez Acevedo, Secretary of the Interior of Barrancabermeja.
The official indicated that an Army platoon was activated to be present in the oil fields to prevent this situation from being recorded.
“18 platoons are ready to guard the oil infrastructure. We ask the community to provide us with information to clarify these facts that affect security,” he said.
Next Friday, February 18, marks the 100th anniversary of the Ecopetrol refinery in Barrancabermeja, so there will be a ceremonial act with the presence of President Iván Duque and the president of Ecopetrol Felipe Bayón.
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February 15, 2022, 10:56 AM
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Maria Alejandra Rodriguez Castellanos February 15, 2022, 10:56 AM
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Seven predominately Black schools in Washington were evacuated over bomb threats Wednesday and later cleared, including a high school that was threatened a day earlier during a visit by U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris’ husband, authorities said.
The District of Columbia Police Department said four public high schools and three charter schools had received threats.
Washington police later declared Dunbar High School, where Harris’ husband, Douglas Emhoff, was rushed to safety after Tuesday’s bomb threat, and the others “cleared with no hazardous material found.”
Authorities have not indicated a connection to race in the spate of bomb threats, and police said Tuesday’s incident did not appear targeted at Emhoff, who was visiting Dunbar for a Black History Month event.
But the incidents have further raised fears among Black communities already rattled by a series of bomb threats made last week to at least a dozen historically Black colleges and universities, or HBCUs, nationwide.
“Americans have a right to be safe at work, in houses of worship and at school,” Harris said in a statement. “We must stand up against any threat of violence in our communities.”
No explosives were found at any of the HBCUs, but the threats are being investigated by the FBI. Washington police say they are investigating this week’s threats to Dunbar, considered the first high school for Black Americans in the United States, and the other schools.
“These are troublesome incidents that we take very seriously,” D.C. Public Schools Chancellor Lewis Ferebee said, adding the school system “will continue to offer support to our school communities while the (police) investigations are ongoing.”
A new pamphlet circulates in the department of Cesar in which threaten several people. bullying is against Luis Aguilar de Curumaní and Jimmy Herazo de Pelaya, calling them “promoting leftist, communist and revolutionary political forces” in these areas of the Colombian Caribbean.
(Also: Murder of young people terrorizes the south of Córdoba)
“They have been declared military objectives for our organization and we will begin to act against them and their lives, because they threaten the democratic security of the state,” reads the pamphlet signed by the alleged Black Eagles.
National early warning for social leaders
Under the protection of this alert we have been following up on the case of Herazo, who had a relative killed and he associated him with these threats to intimidate him.
Herazo has been the victim of threats on other occasions, for several cases of land restitution in Pelaya.
From the Ombudsman’s Office there is a National early warning for social leaders, whose process is being monitored.
“The government has been ordered to take measures and actions. Under the protection of this alert, we have been following up on the case of Herazo, who had a relative killed and he associated him with these threats to intimidate him,” highlighted a source from the Defender.
(Also: Five children and one adult missing after boat crash)
The warnings in these pamphlets took Luis Aguilar, a law student, by surprise, who requested the necessary support from the pertinent authorities since his life is at risk.
“This is the first time that they have threatened me. Which surprises me, because in my house nobody is a politician. Everything comes because I commented in a meeting that the current political class does not represent us. Now, irresponsibly, these pamphlets are circulating and exposing us danger. I want the authorities to guarantee us the right to live in peace and freedom of expression,” stressed Aguilar.
Ludys Ovalle Jacome Special for Weather Valledupar
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Car bomb in Padilla, Cauca, leaves four injured
Mass robbery in a Medellin restaurant during a birthday celebration
At their first meeting in four years, officials of the U.S.-European Union Energy Council confronted an urgent, short-term priority – bolstering natural gas supplies amid a Russian threat to invade Ukraine – and a longer-term concern: mitigating climate change.
“We’re coordinating with our allies and partners, with the energy sector stakeholders, including on how best to share energy reserves in the event that Russia turns off the spigot or initiates a conflict that disrupts the flow of gas through Ukraine,” said Secretary of State Antony Blinken following Monday’s meeting in Washington.
Moscow has threatened to halt the flow of gas to Europe if economic sanctions are imposed as a result of any further Russian aggression against Ukraine.
“This crisis has been pushing trans-Atlantic unity,” according to Josep Borrell, the European Union’s high representative for foreign affairs and security policy.
“In the medium term, there is the climate neutrality,” explained Borrell, who is also the vice president of the European Commission. “In the short term, it’s security of supplies of gas. Both things go together.”
Europe is likely to rely more on the United States for its gas supplies as a result of the crisis. President Joe Biden has pledged to help Europe find additional liquified natural gas from sources in the United States and other countries if Russia-Ukraine tensions cause disruptions.
“We think we can make up a significant portion of it that would be lost,” Biden said at a White House news conference alongside German Chancellor Olaf Scholz on Monday afternoon.
That is seen by some environmentalists as counter-productive to achieving reductions in greenhouse gas emissions, something the United States and the European Union have pledged to work together to accomplish.
European officials “are not doing everything they need to be to get their addiction to gas ramped down as fast as possible. They’re really convinced that they need gas, and they see the U.S. as a supplier for that,” Aki Kachi, senior policy analyst at NewClimate Institute in Germany, told VOA News. “Generally, in both the EU and the U.S., there’s a lack of understanding about the climate impacts of gas.”
“Germany has decided to phase out the use of oil and gas very soon and by 2045 Germany will have a carbon-neutral economy as one of the strongest economies of the world,” Scholz told reporters at the White House. “It’ll probably be the biggest industrial modernization project in Germany in 100 years.”
The trans-Atlantic partnership has pledged to increase collaboration on reducing emissions from fossil fuels and expanding use of energy from the sun, wind, batteries and hydrogen.
“As we face geopolitical tensions and the challenge of climate change, we need more, not less, trans-Atlantic cooperation,” Kadri Simson, the European Commission’s energy commissioner, said at the meeting’s opening.
European Commissioner for Energy Kadri Simson speaks during a meeting with Secretary of State Antony Blinken, Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm, and European Union High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Josep Borrell Fontelles, at th
At the start of Monday’s discussion, U.S. Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm said the goals set out in Washington and Brussels have significant geo-political ramifications at a time when energy prices have “gone through the roof” on both sides of the Atlantic amid the threats from Russia.
“This is not just an energy and climate issue,” Granholm told the meeting. “It also is potentially the greatest peace plan that ever existed, to be able to build out energy independence from clean energy.”
Together, the economies of the U.S. and the EU represent about 45% of the world’s economic output, and an even smaller percentage of global carbon dioxide emissions. That means for the world to achieve the goals of the Paris Agreement, the legally binding international treaty on climate change, other major emitters will need to make good on their ambitious pledges.
“If only the EU and the U.S. are taking action, it wouldn’t be enough,” Kachi noted. “But it’s not really the case because China and India and other countries are also major investors in renewables.”
RFE/RL condemns latest Kremlin threats as “political censorship”
February 5, 2022
Washington, D.C. — Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty (RFE/RL) strongly condemns a sharp escalation of intimidation tactics by Russian authorities, which saw state media-monitoring agency Roskomnadzor overnight threaten to block eight RFE/RL websites serving audiences in Russia, Ukraine, and Central Asia unless they pulled down articles tied to corruption investigations by jailed opposition leader Aleksei Navalny’s team.
RFE/RL will not comply with these demands. Said President and CEO Jamie Fly, “RFE/RL will not allow the Kremlin to dictate our editorial decisions. This is a blatant act of political censorship by a government apparently threatened by journalists who are merely reporting the truth.”
Roskomnadzor sent more than 60 e-mail notifications giving RFE/RL 24 hours to remove content related to Navalny investigations from its two largest websites for Russian audiences – Radio Libertyand Current Time – as well as RFE/RL’s Russian-language sites for Ukraine’s Crimean Peninsula, Kazakhstan, and Tajikistan, and local sites for Russia’s Siberian, Volga-Ural, and Northwestern regions.
In the past year, Roskomnadzor has issued 1,040 violations against RFE/RL that will result in fines of more than $13.4 million for its refusal to submit to the unjust and invasive content labeling provisions of Russia’s “foreign agent” law. RFE/RL continues to fight these fines in Russian court and has also filed suit with the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) over the law. In addition, 18 RFE/RL journalists have been designated as individual “foreign agents.”
On January 26, RFE/RL’s Russian Service was fined 3 million rubles ($39,000) for the alleged “public distribution of knowingly false information about the activities of the U.S.S.R. during World War II.” In fact, the existence of the published material is backed by documents from Russian archives – and RFE/RL is being held liable for actions that are not punishable under Russian law. RFE/RL is appealing the fine, not least to help defend Russia’s shrinking space for press freedom.
Radio Free Europe / Radio Liberty is a private, independent international news organization whose programs — radio, Internet, television, and mobile — reach influential audiences in 23 countries, including Russia, Ukraine, Iran, Afghanistan, Pakistan, the republics of Central Asia and the Caucasus. It is funded by the U.S. Congress through USAGM.
RFE/RL condemns latest Kremlin threats as “political censorship”
February 4, 2022
Washington, D.C. — Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty (RFE/RL) strongly condemns a sharp escalation of intimidation tactics by Russian authorities, which saw state media-monitoring agency Roskomnadzor overnight threaten to block eight RFE/RL websites serving audiences in Russia, Ukraine, and Central Asia unless they pulled down articles tied to corruption investigations by jailed opposition leader Aleksei Navalny’s team.
RFE/RL will not comply with these demands. Said President and CEO Jamie Fly, “RFE/RL will not allow the Kremlin to dictate our editorial decisions. This is a blatant act of political censorship by a government apparently threatened by journalists who are merely reporting the truth.”
Roskomnadzor sent more than 60 e-mail notifications giving RFE/RL 24 hours to remove content related to Navalny investigations from its two largest websites for Russian audiences – Radio Libertyand Current Time – as well as RFE/RL’s Russian-language sites for Ukraine’s Crimean Peninsula, Kazakhstan, and Tajikistan, and local sites for Russia’s Siberian, Volga-Ural, and Northwestern regions.
In the past year, Roskomnadzor has issued 1,040 violations against RFE/RL that will result in fines of more than $13.4 million for its refusal to submit to the unjust and invasive content labeling provisions of Russia’s “foreign agent” law. RFE/RL continues to fight these fines in Russian court and has also filed suit with the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) over the law. In addition, 18 RFE/RL journalists have been designated as individual “foreign agents.”
On January 26, RFE/RL’s Russian Service was fined 3 million rubles ($39,000) for the alleged “public distribution of knowingly false information about the activities of the U.S.S.R. during World War II.” In fact, the existence of the published material is backed by documents from Russian archives – and RFE/RL is being held liable for actions that are not punishable under Russian law. RFE/RL is appealing the fine, not least to help defend Russia’s shrinking space for press freedom.
Radio Free Europe / Radio Liberty is a private, independent international news organization whose programs — radio, Internet, television, and mobile — reach influential audiences in 23 countries, including Russia, Ukraine, Iran, Afghanistan, Pakistan, the republics of Central Asia and the Caucasus. It is funded by the U.S. Congress through USAGM.
The FBI says it is investigating a series of bomb threats earlier this week at historically Black colleges and universities.
There were no explosions, and no bombs were found.
“This investigation is of the highest priority for the Bureau and involves more than 20 FBI field offices across the country,” the FBI said in a statement Wednesday. “These threats are being investigated as Racially or Ethnically Motivated Violent Extremism and hate crimes.”
It added it was not able to provide any more details on the threats, citing an ongoing investigation.
Several historically African-American colleges received a second round of bomb threats Tuesday following similar threats Monday.
Among those receiving threats Tuesday were Howard University in Washington, D.C.; University of the District of Columbia; Edward Waters University in Jacksonville, Florida; Kentucky State University; Fort Valley State University in Georgia; Xavier University of Louisiana; Spelman College in Atlanta; and Morgan State University in Baltimore.
On Monday, Howard University, Southern University and A&M College (Louisiana), Bethune-Cookman University (Florida), Bowie State University (Maryland), Albany State University (Georgia) and Delaware State University (Delaware) confirmed similar threats.
The threats resulted in canceled classes and shelter-in-place orders.
Some information in this report came from The Associated Press.
Threats and constraint of the Gulf Clan, as well as manipulation of corrupt to the communities of Los Montes de Marìa (between the departments of Bolìvar and Sucre) are the risks that the Electoral Observation Mission, MOE, in this region of the Colombian Caribbean.
“The situation of constituency number 8 of Montes de María for these elections is really very complex. According to our analysis, there is a risk consolidated by factors of electoral fraud and violence. There are threats in four municipalities and three of them are at extreme risk,” says Rafael Martín Castillo Torres, delegate of the Electoral Observation Mission, MOE, for the region.
(Also: Narcos intended to export 20 thousand coconuts with cocaine from Cartagena to Italy)
Violent offer two million pesos for ‘the combo’ of the three votes in the upcoming elections
The concentration of municipalities at risk for fraud and violence is worrying in Montes de María with a view to the next elections:
Among the municipalities in the magnifying glass of the MOE are Sheep, San Onofre, Colosó and Chalán (in Sucre) and Carmen de Bolivar (in Bolivar).
“The indicator of electoral fraud today becomes alarming and is linked to acts of violence. Seven of the municipalities of the Montes de las María constituency are at extreme risk”, adds the EOM delegate for this region of the Colombian Caribbean.
(In context: Elections 2022: early warnings from the Ombudsman on Montes de María)
Sources consulted by EL TIEMPO in the municipality of Ovejas give an account of the way in which the violent allies with corrupt clans are offering two million pesos for ‘the combo’ of the three votes in the elections to Senate and Presidency of the Republic.
“The concentration of municipalities at risk for fraud and violence is worrying in Montes de María with a view to the next elections: regarding the factors of violence, we have a concentrated presence of the Gulf Clan in the municipalities of Bolívar and Sucre, and disputes with local gangs,” says the MOE observer.
Cartagena
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The Afghan LGBT+ community has faced an “increasingly desperate situation” with serious safety threats since the Taliban’s return to power, Human Rights Watch said in a joint report with OutRight Action International on Wednesday.
The 43-page report titled “Even If You Go to the Skies, We’ll Find You” is based on interviews with 60 lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) Afghans, residing in Afghanistan or in nearby countries and who have been Attacked by the Taliban or abused by family members or neighbors who support the fundamentalists.
“We spoke with LGBT Afghans who have survived gang rape, mob attacks, or have been hunted by their own family members who joined the Taliban, and they have no hope that state institutions will protect them,” J. Lester Feder, senior fellow for emergency research at OutRight Action International, said in a statement.
“It is difficult to overstate how devastating – and terrifying – the return of Taliban rule has been for LGBT Afghans.”
Jesús Manuel Rivera, known as ‘El Latino’; Edier Account, The Limpido; Walter Bill Vargas; Yosman Mariano, Iván Moreno, Daniel Barragán, Edilberto Púa, Jainer Moreno, José Mario del Toro, Juan Pertuz, Diego Andres Olivella, Manolo Forero Porto and Hugo Armando are the names of the 13 men who are receiving death threats for allegedly remaining on the sidelines. of the law.
The authors of the pamphlet give these people 24 hours to leave the municipality of Zona Bananera, in Magdalena, otherwise they will suffer the consequences of the social cleansing that would be carried out in the area.
The announcement is clear, they ask the community not to be on the streets of towns and districts after 9:00 at night. In addition, they threaten groups of women “who gossip about the lives of others, minors under 15, 16 and 17 years of age who remain in dark areas and mountains consuming hallucinogenic substances.”
The most recent pamphlet that was launched in the commercial areas and that circulated through social networks, says that they will punish each one of the people who are surprised in the streets after the mentioned hours.
