SENATOR PIEDAD CORDOBA'S COMMENTS INCREASINGLY

UNCLAS BOGOTA 002089 SIPDIS FOR WHA/AND E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: PGOV PTER CO SUBJECT: SENATOR PIEDAD CORDOBA'S COMMENTS INCREASINGLY STRIDENT REF: BOGOTA 1954 SUMMARY -------------- ¶1. Liberal Party Senator Piedad Cordoba publicly praised the efforts of deceased FARC founder Pedro Marin in a June 3 public address and again in an exclusive interview published on June 8. Cordoba called the Uribe administration a "puppet government" and called the Ambassador a "reptile." She claimed the CIA is bribing former FARC members to give false testimony that will implicate her as a FARC supporter. Liberal Party leader and former President Cesar Gaviria reprimanded Cordoba for her comments. The Liberal Party announced June 8 it would call her before a party committee. End Summary. PIEDAD PRAISES THE FARC... -------------- ¶2. In a June 3 address to a student group in Medellin, Senator Piedad Cordoba eulogized the recently deceased FARC founder Pedro Marin (Manuel Marulanda) and likened him to other historic Colombian figures. She called for more active revolutionaries in Colombia. In an exclusive interview with Semana magazine published on June 8, Cordoba underscored she did not regret her June 3 remarks. She insisted she does not support armed conflict, but applauded Marulanda for spending his life confronting "the establishment," justifying the FARC's existence due to social injustice. ¶3. The press reported that the 900 emails discovered on former FARC Secretariart member Raul Reyes' computers, reportedly sent by, to, or about Cordoba, calls into doubt her role as an impartial intermediary for a humanitarian exchange or broader peace process. Emails from Cordoba to members of the FARC show her strong affinity for the FARC's cause and also reveal her providing the group strategic advice. In a December 11, 2007 email, FARC member "Cesar" provides what he calls an "almost verbatim" account of his meeting with Cordoba earlier that day. According to the email, Cordoba advised the FARC against liberating high-profile hostage Ingrid Betancourt. At the time the meeting allegedly took place, Cordoba no longer had GOC authorization to negotiate with the FARC. ...AND BLAMES THE GOC AND USG -------------- ¶4. Also in her June 3 speech, Cordoba claimed the country is tired of the "puppet government" controlled by the United States. She called President Uribe the "leader of paramilitarism." In the subsequent Semana interview, she also criticized Uribe as Colombia's "murder champion." Cordoba claimed the contents of the Reyes computers are fabrications set up by Minister of Defense Juan Manual Santos. She also described the Ambassador as a "perfect reptile" who goes out on Sundays on his bicycle seeking acclaim as if he were in the Roman Empire. In her Semana interview, Cordoba charged that the CIA is trying to implicate her as a FARC supporter, offering USD 300,000 and work visas to former FARC members to testify against her. REACTIONS -------------- ¶5. Liberal party leader and former President Cesar Gaviria publicly reprimanded Cordoba, saying that her comments damage Colombia's democracy and the Liberal party. He announced that party members should make clear that the FARC is not a legitimate organization. In a June 9 announcement, Liberal Party spokesman and Senator Hector Heli Rojas said Cordoba would be called before a party committee. He noted that while the party welcomes a diversity of views, the Liberal Party is not a friend of the FARC or kidnapping. An unrepentant Cordoba replied that she is the legitimate "intellectual heir" of murdered Liberal leader Jorge Gaitan. ¶6. Based on its preliminary review of Reyes' computer files, the Prosecutor General (Fiscal General) referred Cordoba's case, as well those of two other legislators, to the Supreme Court for further investigation into possible sedition or other charges. To date, the Court has not yet called her to testify. BROWNFIELD