Identifier
Created
Classification
Origin
05BOGOTA8696
2005-09-15 14:47:00
CONFIDENTIAL//NOFORN
Embassy Bogota
Cable title:  

THE FARC'S INTERNATIONAL TENTACLES

Tags:  PTER PREL ASEC CO 
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C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 04 BOGOTA 008696 

SIPDIS

NOFORN

E.O. 12958: DECL: 09/15/2020
TAGS: PTER PREL ASEC CO
SUBJECT: THE FARC'S INTERNATIONAL TENTACLES

Classified By: Charge Milton K. Drucker, Reasons 1.4 (b) and (d).

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 04 BOGOTA 008696

SIPDIS

NOFORN

E.O. 12958: DECL: 09/15/2020
TAGS: PTER PREL ASEC CO
SUBJECT: THE FARC'S INTERNATIONAL TENTACLES

Classified By: Charge Milton K. Drucker, Reasons 1.4 (b) and (d).


1. (C) Summary: The Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia
(FARC) has outgrown its local roots and should now be
characterized as a regional terrorist group with hemispheric
reach. Its tentacles reach into many Latin American
countries. International law enforcement cooperation has led
to the arrest of five key FARC "ambassadors" or operatives in
four Latin American countries over the past three years,
dealing a blow to the organization's propaganda and
fund-raising activities. The FARC still maintains
"ambassadors" and other operatives in Latin America, however,
highlighting its continued international presence and
ambitions. End summary.

-------------- -
LAW ENFORCEMENT COOPERATION DEALS BLOW TO FARC
-------------- -


2. (U) Brazilian police arrested the FARC's "ambassador" in
Brazil, Francisco Antonio Medina Collazos, on an Interpol
warrant August 24, making Medina the fifth key FARC operative
arrested in Latin America in the past three years. His
extradition to Colombia is pending. Longtime FARC member
Medina, aka "El Cura," aka "Pacho," aka "Oliverio Medina," is
wanted in Colombia for murder for his leadership of the 1991
attack on a military base in Meta in which a number of people
died. According to Colombian press accounts, Medina
organized from Sao Paulo the FARC's outreach to Argentina,
Chile, Uruguay, and Bolivia.


3. (U) Aside from Medina, international law enforcement
cooperation has led to the arrest and extradition of an
additional four key FARC "ambassadors" in Latin America:
Eugenio Vargas Perdomo (aka "Carlos Bolas"),arrested in
Suriname in June 2002; "Simon Trinidad," seized in Ecuador in
January 2004; Rodrigo Granda, captured in Venezuela in
December 2004; and Juan Jose Martin Vega (aka "El Chiguiro"),
detained in Venezuela in February 2005.

-------------- --
FARC MAINTAINS, REPLENISHES OVERSEAS OPERATIVES
-------------- --


4. (SBU) We understand that at least eight FARC "ambassadors"
continue to have representational and other responsibilities
in Latin America, some covering more than one country. They

are the tip of the iceberg but have the highest profile of
the FARC's international operatives. According to weekly
magazine "Cambio," the individuals are:

Pablo Trejos Freyre: Peru

Nubia Calderon (aka "Esperanza"): Ecuador and Bolivia

Aldo Moscote Fragoso: Venezuela

Luis Alberto Alban Urbano (aka "Marco Leon Calarca"): Cuba
and Canada

Jairo Alfonso Lesmes: Paraguay, Uruguay, and Chile

Ovidio Salinas Perez (aka "Juan A. Rojas"): Panama and
Venezuela

Miguel Angel Castaneda (aka "Miguel Diaz Pachi"): Costa Rica

Hernando Vanegas: Sweden

--------------
Andean Nation Outreach
--------------


5. (C) Proximity, lax border controls, and government
inaction make neighboring nations the number one target for
FARC international missions. The FARC does business,
transits and even trains nationals from other countries in
the Andean region, most often in Venezuela and Ecuador. One
of the FARC's goals is to export the "revolution," so some
members focus on gaining support and establishing a
revolutionary network in select countries abroad. In
addition, the FARC reportedly meets and works with leftist
groups in several Latin American countries.

-- Venezuela: In addition to Granda and "El Chiguiro," the
GOC has requested the immediate arrest of seven other
high-profile FARC leaders known to reside in Venezuela.
Hundreds of members reside in camps across the border from
Colombia's Cesar and Norte de Santander Departments.
According to the GOC, the Venezuelan government has provided
safe-haven (including official Venezuelan identity cards),to
FARC operatives since 2001 and ignored Colombian requests to
expel FARC members. Over the last several years, Venezuela
has become a major supplier for FARC camps in southern
Colombia.

-- Ecuador: The FARC historically has enjoyed safehaven and
medical treatment in Ecuador, although the GOE is working now
to hinder FARC activity, and arrest and extradite members.
Since the Ecuadorian border is adjacent to the FARC's
southern strongholds, many guerrillas cross the border
freely. The Ecuadorian Government does not have the
resources to defend the border, stop routine FARC incursions
and impede camps from migrating into Ecuador. Nevertheless,
the January 2004 arrest of Simon Trinidad and subsequent
extraditions has put the FARC on the defensive and ensured a
lower-profile presence. A February 2005 communique to the
Ecuadorians called on the president to carry out his
agreement with the FARC. Ecuador denied all knowledge of any
"agreement" and pledged to continue the fight against the
group.

--------------
Southern Cone Activity
--------------


6. (C) Southern Cone nations have had less contact with the
FARC, but there is evidence that the group is active in the
area. Like the Andean nations, Southern Cone nations have
weak border controls and the access to weapons that the FARC
is seeking.

-- Paraguay: The FARC made front-page headlines with evidence
that they masterminded the kidnapping of former Paraguayan
President Raul Cubas' daughter, Cecilia Cubas in September

2004. According to reports by post and the media, FARC
leader Rodrigo Granda (subsequently captured in Venezuela in
December 2004) was behind the crime. Paraguayan Attorney
General Latorre accused the FARC of training Paraguayans in
kidnapping methods in exchange for weapons. It is clear that
the FARC uses Paraguay as a significant weapons source and
logistical base. As a result, the GOP has created a special
unit to target the FARC and gather information about FARC
activity in country.

-- Brazil: Brazil has been less affected by FARC activities
than other neighboring nations, but there is recent evidence
of a small presence. In March, the Brazilian media outlined
allegations that the FARC had funded the Brazilian PT
(Worker's Party) during the 2002 elections. Brazilian weekly
magazine "Veja" reported that there was some evidence in the
Brazilian intelligence agency that the FARC gave USD 5
million to the party and the GOB has opened an investigation
into the matter. In a separate incident, Brazilian
authorities along the Amazon border seized a shipment of
medicine, guns and munitions destined for the FARC. The
medicine was to treat leishmaniasis, a potentially fatal
parasitic infection, which has been a problem for both GOC
forces and the FARC in the jungle combat zone. Brazilian
press speculated that other medicine shipments for the FARC
had probably passed that border region undetected.

-- Chile: Chile is another nation used by the FARC as a
narcotics consumer and occasional safehaven. In November
2004, Chilean officials were asked to grant asylum for FARC
leader Jairo Curan Collazo, who reportedly entered Chile with
fake identification and eluded Colombian law enforcement.

--------------
Central America and Caribbean Ties
--------------

7. (C) The FARC has some presence in both Central America and
the Caribbean, most notably in Cuba and Panama.

-- Cuba: Given ideological sympathies, the FARC and Cuban
authorities have maintained a cordial relationship. Cuba
offers safe haven to FARC international front leader Raul
Reyes' wife and children among others. Cuba's ties to the
FARC seem to have declined since President Uribe took office
in 2002, but there is evidence that Cuba's doors remain open
to members.

-- Panama: U.S. law enforcement and intelligence reports
indicate that Panama has been used as a money-laundering
destination for the FARC. While the GOP banking authorities
attempt to crack down by calling on all banks to follow
international anti-money laundering guidelines and avoid
narco-terrorist entities (such as those named by U.S.
Treasury Office of Foreign Asset Control) standards, the
Colon Free Zone, a booming casino industry, and geography
leave it open to free movement and ongoing trans-border
activity.

-- Honduras, Guatemala and Nicaragua: According to press
reports, at least two FARC members were arrested in Honduras
for arms and drug trafficking on March 20. Honduran Minister
of Security Alvarez claimed that the weapons being shipped to
Colombia included AK-47 and M-60 machine-guns and RPG-6
rocket launchers, as well as ammunition, and grenades.
Alvarez also claimed that the FARC had made an attempt
against President Ricardo Maduro's life in March, although
there was no substantial proof to back the claim. Some
intelligence reports claim that in Nicaragua, El Salvador,
and Guatemala FARC representatives conduct weapons for drugs
(or cash) deals on occasion. San Andres Island, a department
of Colombia off the coast of Nicaragua, is a convenient
transport point.

--------------
Echoes in Europe, Though Fainter
--------------


8. (C) In 2001, Raul Reyes, the FARC's International Front
Director and 33 other FARC members took a month long tour of
European capitals as part of the Pastrana peace negotiations.
According to the national weekly magazine "Cambio," the FARC
had placed permanent representatives in Spain and Sweden and
even established a FM radio station in Stockholm during the
Pastrana administration. However, the 2002 kidnapping of
Ingrid Betancourt, a French-Colombian dual national, prompted
European nations to declare the FARC a foreign terrorist
organizations in June 2002 and placed sanctions on the group.
The FARC have had a continued presence in several European
nations, but unofficial interactions between the FARC and
sympathetic non-governmental groups have become more
clandestine.

-- Denmark: In October 2004, Danish police began an
investigation of the Danish NGO "Rebelion Association"
members who publicly claimed that they raised and sent (USD
8,500) to the FARC. When confronted by police, the group
claimed that no money was actually transferred, but rather
the announcement had been to show solidarity with the FARC's
cause. In August, Rebelion was charged with supporting and
attempting to fund the FARC. The Danish courts agreed to
partially shut down the website.

-- Sweden: ANNCOL, a website that touts the news for "a new
Colombia," carries articles from Latin American and European
journalists. The group has maintained a website since 1998
which prints all FARC correspondence and serves as a public
relations branch and a media outlet for the organization.
Raul Reyes routinely posts interviews on the website.

--------------
Comment
--------------


9. (C) The FARC began life in 1964 as a peasant community
self-defense group whose international activities were
minimal. Recent arrests in several Latin American countries
demonstrate just how far the FARC's reach extends. FARC
operatives in Latin America play an important role in raising
money, forging or buying political support, and securing R&R
or medical facilities for FARC guerrillas. The FARC has
taken significant blows in recent years from the Colombian
military and Latin American governments, but the fact that
arrests have been made and FARC activities disrupted
demonstrates that it is now more accurately characterized at
a minimum as a regional terrorist organization with
hemispheric reach. End comment.
DRUCKER