Apropos Hugo Chávez's role as mediator in the Colombian conflict

By Eduardo Dimas                                                            Read Spanish Version

Mexican journalist Carlos Aznárez writes in Resumen Latinoamericano that President Hugo Chávez's decision to act as a mediator in a humanitarian exchange between the Colombian government and the guerrilla movement FARC (Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia) is a "difficult and bold role."

The purpose is to exchange the soldiers, politicians and policemen held by the FARC by about 500 FARC guerrillas now held in Colombian prisons. Aznárez calls them "dungeons" and, according to some information, he is quite right.

Chávez visited Colombia on Aug. 31 and met with his Colombian counterpart, Álvaro Uribe Vélez, one of the main allies of the United States in the region, to establish the mechanisms of mediation. This is not at all an easy task, when we take into account the substantial differences between the two presidents on political and ideological issues.

Those differences became particularly evident during the press conference both presidents gave after meeting for seven hours. Some of the journalists present said that Chávez looked uncomfortable and that he tried to explain his role in the negotiation. He announced that he will meet with representatives of the FARC and then added the ELN (National Liberation Army). Needless to say, the meetings will be held separately.

Of course, the Colombian government and the ELN held talks in Cuba for several months, without reaching an agreement, not even on peace negotiations.

Among other things, the representatives of the Colombian government demanded that the ELN provide the names of its principal leaders, as well as the number of weapons and guerrillas it has. It was something like getting intelligence information without giving anything in exchange.

At the press conference, Chávez said that "an analysis shows me that the swift response of the FARC is positive. We shall talk with whomever they choose." And he added something that didn't please President Uribe at all: "I hope that someone is [FARC chief] Manuel Marulanda. I would very much like to meet him and talk to him."

Visibly angered, Uribe began to talk about "the FARC terrorists and murderers." 

According to some alternative media, Uribe lied when he said that FARC guerrillas killed the 11 legislators they held captive, when it is well known that they died in the crossfire during a raid by paramilitary soldiers who tried to rescue them and collect a reward.

Then, Uribe annouced that under no conditions would he grant the FARC the character of "belligerent force" -- something the guerrillas demanded -- and that he will not clear any region of Colombia for the exchange of prisoners.

Some of the journalists present reported that Chávez appeared uncomfortable while listening to the Colombian president, because Uribe's stance left him little room to maneuver. Perhaps that's the objective.

Chávez insisted that the talks be held in Caracas, between his government and the FARC, which constitutes a de-facto recognition of that guerrilla movement. And, although he did not say so directly, he intimated that without the participation of the FARC there is no possible exchange of prisoners and peace will not come to Colombia.

Many questions can be posed after this meeting. It is evident that Chávez does not agree with Uribe and the U.S. government that the FARC and the ELN are terrorist organizations. The mere mention of his desire to meet Manuel Marulanda is eloquent.

In addition, it is more than obvious that the differences in posture between the two governments are practically incompatible. Therefore, the task of mediating between the Colombian guerrillas and the Colombian government becomes almost impossible.

So far, the Colombian government's position has been to seek amnesty for the paramilitary groups, whose links to the highest echelons of the army and to well-known politicians have been amply demonstrated.

Even President Uribe himself apparently had relations with the United Self-Defense Forces of Colombia (AUC) when he was governor of Antioquia province. His name, still not published, appears on a long list compiled by the U.S. Department of State.

The AUC (paramilitaries) have tortured, murdered and "disappeared" tens of thousands of Colombians and provoked the displacement of hundreds of thousands of peasants. The AUC's links to drug trafficking also are well known.

I find it noteworthy that Senator Susana Palacios, a renowned critic of the Colombian president, accepted being part of the mediation team with the FARC and later invited Chávez to act as the mediator.

I do not rule out that the senator fell into a trap and, in turn, led the the Venezuelan president to it. Regardless of whether that is true, Chávez is a man with ample political resources and much prestige among Latin American peoples.

It is precisely one of the constant tasks of the Venezuelan, Spanish, U.S. and other media to disparage the image of the president who has won the largest number of truly democratic elections and has taken the most steps to benefit his people in the past 40 years of Latin America's history.

A few weeks ago, the Peruvian daily Expreso raised a ruckus about some cans of tuna, allegedly sent by the Venezuelan government after the Aug. 15 earthquake, with labels showing images of Chávez and Peruvian opposition leader Ollanta Umala. It was a clumsy attempt to show that Chávez and Umala took advantage of the tragedy to make political propaganda.

Some Peruvian, Spanish, U.S. and other newspapers immediately seized on the allegation. They all quoted the daily Expreso. No other source reported seeing the tuna cans. It was a clumsy set-up and it died a natural death. But in Spain and the U.S. many people probably read the news and believed it to be true.

We cannot rule out that they are again trying to discredit Chávez. They may be trying to demonstrates that he has links to the Colombian guerrillas, something that has always been alleged in the campaigns against Chávez. It that is the objective -- I do not involve Senator Palacios in this -- it is also a clumsy move that could backfire against its perpetrators.

As journalist Carlos Aznárez writes, "when a member of the secretariat of the FARC shakes Hugo Chávez's hand and tells anyone who wishes to listen that the FARC fight for Colombia's national and social liberation and to topple unfair economic structures," it will be the first time that the FARC will have the opportunity in recent years to publicly express the motives of its struggle. 

It may happen that Chávez's mediation gets no publicity in the media of the U.S. and its allies worldwide. This is very probable and, if it occurs, the media's silence will be proof that the trap did not work. Time will tell.