Colombia: vicious friend of the WestUKWatch.net - 22 Mar 2008Colombia?s government is not just a vicious regime that targets trade unionists and civil activists. It is also George Bush?s key ally in Latin America and on the front line of his intervention in that region. Bush recently declared uncritical support for Colombian president Alvaro Uribe. He sees Uribe as a bulwark against the radical anti-US governments of Venezuela?s president Hugo Chavez and Bolivian president Evo Morales. The US has been channelling huge amounts of money and military assistance to Colombia for years ? first under the cover of the ?war on drugs?, then under the ?war on terror?. Britain is the second biggest donor of aid to Colombia. New Labour refuses to say exactly how much military aid and assistance it has given to Colombia, but it is thought to be over 1 million a year. This comes in addition to military training and granting export licences for the sale of arms to Colombia. Bush and his defence secretary Robert Gates are trying to push a controversial free trade agreement through the US Congress. Bush says this agreement is ?pivotal? to countering the influence of Chavez in Latin America. Meanwhile the Colombian national army and right wing paramilitaries that operate with the collusion of the state are waging a brutal war on the poor and left wing activists in the country. Colombia is one of the most dangerous countries in the world to be a trade unionist. More than 4,000 union activists have been murdered in the last 15 years, as have thousands of human rights campaigners, journalists, students and opposition politicians. Torture and ?disappearances? are common. The links between the Colombian state and paramilitary death squads are widely documented. In 2003 Uribe?s government claimed it was ?dismantling? the paramilitary groups. But an investigation by Amnesty International found that ?paramilitarism has not been dismantled ? it has simply been re-engineered?. Amnesty pointed out that many paramilitaries were encouraged to join ?civilian informer networks? to provide military intelligence to the security forces, or to become ?civic guards?. It concluded that ?many paramilitary structures remain virtually intact and that paramilitaries continue to kill, often in collusion with the security forces?. State repression is often carried out under the pretence of stopping the ?terrorism? of left wing guerrilla groups. Colombia recently launched a raid into neighbouring Ecuador and murdered several members of the left wing Farc guerrilla organisation. Guerillas This is just the latest in a 40 year war that the Colombian state has waged against leftist guerrilla groups such as Farc and the smaller ELN group. These groups emerged in the 1960s in response to state violence against the poor and political opposition. They have been fighting corrupt and elitist governments for decades. Chavez has called on Colombia to recognise Farc as a legitimate political force and enter peace negotiations. Any serious peace process in Colombia must involve negotiations with both Farc and the ELN. But Uribe is desperate not to give credit to Chavez or make any concessions to Farc. Instead he continues to attempt to defeat the opposition groups by brute force. Farc and the ELN offer some protection for farmers in the areas they control. These farmers face chemical crop spraying and violence from US-backed ?counter-insurgency? programmes. However, the guerilla groups are not based on mass democratic movements. Nor are the social and economic conditions in areas they control significantly better for the poor. Farc and the ELN have been locked into a bloody war for decades against a highly armed state that is backed, financially and militarily, by the US and Britain. Their guerilla strategy will not offer the political progress ordinary Colombians need so badly. But against all the odds ? and in the face of brutal repression ? Colombian trade unions, students and social movements are resisting and fighting for fundamental change.
ShowstoppersUKWatch.net - 22 Mar 2008AS POLICE SEEK TO AXE ANTI-ARMS TRADE MOVIE Yet another below the belt blow to civil liberties was struck by the Sussex Plod this Monday. The long-awaited world premier of SchMOVIES ?On The Verge? – the cinematic debut of the Smash Edo campaign – was cancelled after police intervention. In the days that followed, across the country venues due to show the film on the forthcoming tour have received visits from the police and licensing authorities keen to stop screenings. Early on Monday evening, the SchNEWS crew were squeezing into our tuxedoes and ballgowns ready for the red carpet reception at local independent cinema the Duke of York?s (DoY). But barely had the first champagne cork been popped when we received a call to tell us the show was cancelled. The cinema had been contacted at 4.15pm by environmental health officer, Martin New, claiming that as the film does not have an official BBFC classification, the DoY would be in breach of their licence if the screening went ahead. The timing left the cinema with no option but to cancel. According to one source, the police then phoned the cinema and warned them that they should ?bolt the doors? as these protesters were ?extremely violent? and likely to try and force entry! One manager said the decision to question the film?s classification this way ?was virtually unprecedented in my experience?. Yer ever-good-in-a-crisis SchNEWS crew swiftly relocated the showing to a local pub, where around 140 people (over two screenings) were able to watch the ?illicit? film. THE PLOD THICKENS The next day, local rag the Argus ran the story as front page news: ?Anti-war movie banned by council at the last minute?. They quoted top cop Chief Inspector Lawrence Taylor denying any police involvement in the sting, saying, ?We would never get involved with the certification of a film ? it is not something we do. It was as much a surprise to us as anyone else?. Well it must have then come as a real surprise when, the next day, B&H council?s press office confirmed that the police had in fact called them up and prompted their action. Swiftly back-tracking, Sussex Police pinned the blame on a mysterious ?junior officer? (and inadvertently admitted they don?t bother knowing the law regarding showing films!): ?Brighton and Hove Police were aware that ?On The Verge? was being shown at the Duke of York cinema. However, we do not become involved in, nor do we have knowledge of, the law relating to film certification. That is a matter for Brighton & Hove City Council. However, a junior officer, who is not based in the city, alerted the city council to the showing and they advised the cinema of its responsibilities.?. So either Lawrence Taylor was lying or his rank-and-file are showing a little more initiative than usual. Whoever the ?junior officer? is, it seems she/he?s been pretty busy organising a coordinated clampdown on the film. By this afternoon venues due to show the film across the country were receiving visits from the police. Staff at the Arthouse Community Cafe in Bedford Place, Southampton were approached at 11am by police and licensing officers. Threats were made concerning their licensing if the film, due to be shown on Thursday night was screened. Jani Franck of the Community Cafe said, ?I grew up in South Africa and this feels awfully familiar. This has nothing to do with protecting the public – this is nothing but censorship?. As SchNEWS goes to press, the first tour venues in Bath, Southampton, Oxford and Chichester have all been visited and leaned on to pull the plug. Classifications for similar independent films are not normally an issue ? especially for private showings where no money changes hands (and with official BBFC certifications costing up to a grand, it would kill any local independent no-budget film making). Given that there is no swearing or nudity in the film, and that the only violence in the film is at the hands of Sussex police, offences against public morals are unlikely. But in an unusual bout of sensitivity towards the public, police decided that although it?s OK to violently attack protesters, it might disturb members of the public were they to see it on film. Steve Bishop of SchMovies told us exclusively ?We?re not exactly surprised by the police action. Yeah, the film doesn?t have a certificate but since when has this applied to productions with a budget of under five hundred quid! What next, a PG certificate for yer wedding video? The only reason they want to ban this is ?cuz it shows ?em in a bad light.? Want to see the film they tried (are trying) to ban? People are re-arranging showings in many of the towns ? for more info check out www.smashedo.org.uk or local Indymedia postings. Interested in putting on a screening, e-mail: on-the-verge@hotmail.co.uk View the trailer at www.schnews.org.uk/schmovies/index-on-the-verge
