JOURNALIST RECEIVING DEATH THREATS - BLAMES GOC

C O N F I D E N T I A L BOGOTA 000571 SIPDIS E.O. 12958: DECL: 02/23/2019 TAGS: PHUM PTER PGOV PREL MOPS KJUS CO SUBJECT: JOURNALIST RECEIVING DEATH THREATS - BLAMES GOC CRITICISM Classified By: Political Counselor John Creamer Reasons: 1.4 (b) and (d) SUMMARY -------------- ¶1. (C) Independent journalist Hollman Morris told us he has received 50 death threats after President Uribe called him a "terrorist apologist" for his presence at the FARC's liberation of four hostages on February 1. He also complained that he was detained for seven hours by the Colombian military after leaving the hostage release area. The military pressed him to hand over his notes and recordings from the FARC handover, but did not mistreat or physically threaten him. Morris and his family receive protection from the GOC, including an armored vehicle and bodyguards, but he abandoned his protective detail when he went into the jungle to meet with the FARC. International organizations and human rights groups publicly condemned the GOC's statements, but some in Colombia said Morris' presence at the site had jeopardized the release's success. End Summary MORRIS RECEIVING THREATS -------------- ¶2. (C) Independent journalist and Colombians for Peace member Hollman Morris told us February 13 that he received 50 unattributed death threats after President Uribe and other GOC officials publicly denounced his presence at the site where the FARC freed four hostages on February 1. Uribe called Morris a "terrorist apologist" who had violated the terms of the GOC agreement with Colombians for Peace--the group that brokered six recent FARC hostage releases--that there would be no press at the liberation site. Vice President Francisco Santos criticized Morris for abandoning his GOC provided security to meet with the FARC; Defense Minister Juan Manuel Santos accused Morris of taking part in the FARC's "show" by conducting scripted interviews of the soon-to-be-released hostages. INTERNATIONAL CONDEMNATION OF GOC STATEMENTS SOME CONSTERNATION AT MORRIS' RISKY MANEUVER -------------- ¶4. (SBU) The OAS and UN issued a joint press release on February 9 protesting the GOC's statements, saying they put Morris' life at risk and threatened press freedom. Human Rights Watch, Reporters Without Borders, and the Committee to Protect Journalists also criticized the GOC comments. In contrast, Bogota weekly Semana noted Morris' scoop had placed the freedom of the four hostages at risk and compromised the integrity of Colombians for Peace. The Inter American Press Association (IAPA) decried the GOC's criticism of Morris, but added that his actions should start "a much needed debate among professionals and civil society on the role of the press in sensitive matters and situations." Morris' television program "Contravia" is highly critical of GOC human rights abuses. MORRIS DETAINED BY MILITARY -------------- ¶5. (U) Morris told us he and his crew were detained by a Colombian military unit for more than seven hours in La Union Peneya (Caqueta) as they were leaving the area where the hostages had been released. Morris refused to comply with the military's request that he turn over his journalistic materials and instead called his employer Radio France International (RFI). RFI contacted the Human Rights Ombudsman (Defensor) of Caqueta, who called the case an arbitrary detention and facilitated Morris' release. Morris confirmed the military was not physically aggressive and did not stop him from making calls or filming the event. He explained that he was in Caqueta for ten days conducting interviews for a new History Channel series, when he received a FARC invitation to interview a FARC official. Morris claimed that when he arrived at the agreed location, the FARC instructed him to interview the four political hostages. MORRIS RECEIVES PROTECTION -------------- ¶6. (C) Under the GOC's protection program for at-risk individuals, Morris receives three Department of Administrative Security (DAS) guards, a policeman stationed at his apartment, an armored car, and a police guard for his family. Morris explained he never uses the GOC's protective detail when he travels to conflict zones, because the presence of armed guards inhibits interviews. He said he had personally informed each DAS Director of his personal policy since he joined the protection program. The Inter-American Commission for Human Rights (IACHR) ordered the GOC to protect Morris in 2000. The GOC announced on February 11 that it will ask that the IACHR review Morris' protective order in light of his actions. MORRIS CONFIRMED OVERFLIGHT BUT NOT GROUND OPS -------------- - ¶7. (C) Morris indicated he heard a plane overhead in the early morning of the February 1 hostage liberation. He said FARC were visibly disturbed by the flights, placing the release and the security of the individuals participating in the operation at risk. Morris could not confirm if there were any Colombian military ground operations in the area as well. In a February 11 conversation, International Committee for the Red Cross (ICRC) spokesman Yves Heller told us that the GOC had agreed to no military operations, including no overflights at any altitude, in the area around the hostage release site. Still, Heller also criticized Morris' presence at the release, noting that it violated the agreement between the GOC and Colombians for Peace and also jeopardized the mission's success. He noted that the ICRC refused Morris' request to depart the area with the ICRC mission. BROWNFIELD