A-Infos (en) Colombian Government to Dismantle Controversial Army Brigade

[Tom Burghardt <tburghardt@igc.apc.org>]

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  COLOMBIAN GOVERNMENT TO DISMANTLE CONTROVERSIAL ARMY BRIGADE
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     THE DALLAS MORNING NEWS
     Wednesday, May 20, 1998
     By Tod Robberson, The Dallas Morning News
     http://www.dallasnews.com/international-nf/int81.htm
 
     BOGOTA, Colombia - Under pressure from the United States and
international human rights groups, the Colombian government
announced late Tuesday that it will dismantle a controversial
army brigade accused of involvement in death-squad activities.
   
     Army commander Gen. Manuel Jose Bonett announced he would
immediately begin dismantling the 20th Intelligence Brigade,
which has been accused by human rights groups of involvement in
extrajudicial killings and assisting right-wing paramilitary
groups across the country.
   
     The move follows a decision by the U.S. State Department
earlier this month to revoke the visa of Gen. Ivan Ramirez, a
former commander of the brigade whom Washington suspects of
involvement in serious cases of human rights abuse. It was
believed to be the first such action by the U.S. government in
connection with a human rights case.
   
     U.S. officials have made clear that other visa cancellations
could be pending unless the Colombian government took action to
investigate human rights abusers within the army.
   
     Gen. Ramirez has repeatedly denied wrongdoing, telling
reporters last week: "The only thing I've done is to combat
violence and terrorists for 36 years. . . . I don't have any
investigations pending against me."
   
     In announcing the decision to dismantle the 20th Brigade,
army commander Gen. Bonett said studies about the brigade's fate
had been under way for several months as part of a "total and
profound" restructuring of the army command. He said each of six
intelligence units that make up the brigade would be placed under
separate regional commands.
   
     Defense Minister Gilberto Echeverri said the brigade's
dismantling had been under study since September and denied it
was taken in response to international pressure.
   
     The decision, announced as Colombians celebrated a "national
day of peace," followed a week of turmoil the included the
assassination in Bogota of a retired army commander who had urged
a hard-line solution to the nation's three-decade civil conflict.
   
     Gen. Bonett drew harsh criticism from the State Department
for blaming the assassination on reports by a U.S. newspaper and
a Washington human rights group alleging human rights abuses by
the 20th Brigade.
 
     Copyright 1998 The Dallas Morning News
 
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