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
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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
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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
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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
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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
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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
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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