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sandensea

(21,530 posts)
Tue Jul 3, 2018, 09:21 PM Jul 2018

Ecuador court orders arrest of former President Rafael Correa in kidnap probe

An Ecuadorian court on Tuesday ordered the arrest of former President Rafael Correa, who lives in Brussels, over links to the kidnapping of an opponent in Colombia.

The National Court of Justice said Judge Daniella Camacho "resolves to impose preventive detention" against Correa and has alerted Interpol.

Correa, who was president from 2007 to 2017 and now lives in his wife's native Belgium, is under investigation for involvement in the attempted kidnapping of former right-wing Ecuadorian lawmaker Fernando Balda in Colombia in 2012.

Last month, the court ordered Correa to appear in court every two weeks. Three police intelligence agents have already been ordered arrested in the case, in addition to an ex-police commander and a former top intelligence official, who was arrested last month in Spain.

Correa believes his successor, President Lenin Moreno, may be behind the charges, and has accused him of misusing his power. He said in a recent Twitter message that he had no knowledge of the crime.

"Maybe they can get some false testimony. But they'll never prove anything, because there is nothing."

At: http://www.france24.com/en/20180704-ecuador-court-orders-arrest-ex-leader-correa-kidnap-probe



Former President of Ecuador Rafael Correa. Lawful arrest order, or lawfare?
6 replies = new reply since forum marked as read
Highlight: NoneDon't highlight anything 5 newestHighlight 5 most recent replies

Judi Lynn

(160,219 posts)
1. They tried to kill him, smear him while he was in office. Poor Ecuadorean right wing dirtbags.
Wed Jul 4, 2018, 12:59 AM
Jul 2018

They really hated his guts, although Ecuador did so WELL while he was Ecuador's president.

Interesting, isn't it?

Remember when Alvaro Uribe used US weaponry to overfly Ecuador and drop bombs inside Ecuador's border to kill FARCs who were bringing prisoners to hand over to French and Swiss envoys there, as arranged earlier? Using U.S. weapons, Uribe bombed the bejesus out of the FARC camp, killing their leader, some visiting Mexican students, and the whole thing was destroyed. No prisoners to go to the European envoys, who were there to safely collect them to deliver them to Colombia, 25 lives were stolen, Ecuador's border was violated, Correa was NOT notified Uribe would be bombing his country, and peace was not achieved for 9 years, and it actually won't be now that a filthy fascist, heavily promoted by Uribe, his mentor, has taken over, and promised to destroy the peace treaty.

Surely looks like "lawfare." Absolutely.

Correa, kidnapping? Oh, please! That's so right-wing, like the 30,000 kidnapping, torturing, and murdering of suspected lefltist political "enemies" of the Dirty War.

Judi Lynn

(160,219 posts)
2. Must add, Correa was so furious there could have been war over it,
Wed Jul 4, 2018, 01:12 AM
Jul 2018

and South America had an emergency meeting, the Rio Group summit, to try to talk the leftists down after that filthy action taken by Uribe.


Last Updated: Friday, 7 March 2008, 21:18 GMT
War of words opens LatAm summit

A regional summit of Latin American leaders has opened with a flurry of accusations over Colombia's cross-border raid into Ecuador.
Ecuador's Rafael Correa condemned Colombia's "aggression" in his opening speech in the Dominican Republic.

His Colombian counterpart, President Alvaro Uribe, responded with claims Mr Correa had links to Farc rebels and had not co-operated in fighting terrorism.

Venezuela's Hugo Chavez had called for a cooling of tensions over the raid.

The operation left some 20 rebels dead, including a senior Farc commander, Raul Reyes, but has had massive political repercussions in Latin America.

More:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/7283151.stm

sandensea

(21,530 posts)
4. Excellent historical reminder, Judi.
Wed Jul 4, 2018, 07:35 PM
Jul 2018

And who can forget the way he sabotaged Operation Emmanuel (mediated, you'll recall, by Chávez and Kirchner to free Colombian lawmakers Clara Rojas and Ingrid Betancourt).

Uribe, as Orwell might put it, never cared who exactly the war was against; but that it go on. Now, sadly, with that narco Duque in office, he may get his wish.

No wonder he and Bush understood each other so well.

That said, Happy Fourth of July, Judi. Peace! (and a little fun too!)

Judi Lynn

(160,219 posts)
5. Oh, yes! That was hideous. So underhanded, treacherous, shameful.
Wed Jul 4, 2018, 08:08 PM
Jul 2018

Hadn't thought of that in years, but seeing your post brought a rush of images, a bogus Red Cross insignia, soldiers shooting, people running back to the jungle, and retreating for the 20 miles or more, that they took to get there in the first place? It has been so long I can't recall a steady story line immediately...

Found a carefully managed story from the New York Times:

Colombian Soldier Wore Red Cross Logo in Hostage Rescue
By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS JULY 17, 2008

BOGOTÁ, Colombia (AP) — A member of the military mission that tricked Colombian rebels into freeing 15 hostages wore the insignia of the International Red Cross during the operation, President Álvaro Uribe said Wednesday.

. . .

Mr. Uribe said in a speech in Bogotá that an officer had, “mistakenly and contrary to orders,” worn a cloth bib over his vest that carried the Red Cross symbol.

A fleeting image of a portion of the cloth is visible in video taken of the operation by an agent who posed as a cameraman. The Colombian government released the video.

Using the Red Cross symbol in a military operation violates the Geneva Convention because it could damage the relief group’s neutrality in conflicts and could endanger medical personnel using the symbol.

More:
https://www.nytimes.com/2008/07/17/world/americas/17colombia.html

Thanks for refreshening the memory. I hadn't really wanted to forget that situation.

If I remember correctly, there was an earlier attempt Uribe deliberately skotched right away as it appeared to allow Hugo Chavez to be seen as too much the "hero" since he was acting as the mediator in that occassion. I'll have to look it up later, to recover the details. Uribe really did want to eliminate him, even though he was very trusted as the go-between.

Happy 4th to you, find a good vantage spot if you're ready for aerial displays. Some of them are amazing!

The most astonishing work I ever saw was on the internet:


Michael lee
Published on Jul 6, 2015

"A stairway to heaven" but we'd be careful as it is made of fireworks and is held up by a balloon.
This footage is of artist Cai Guoqiang's recent (successful) display in China.

Cai, an artist who often works with gunpowder, is said to have come up with the idea for this spectacle some twenty years ago.
Cai had already attempted to complete this task on several occasions but never fully succeeded until recently.

The occasion, Cai said, is for his grandmother who 'was born in a small fishing village in Quanzhou and sold fish to help her grandson realise his artistic dream,' the artist revealed.



Judi Lynn

(160,219 posts)
3. Ecuador wants former president arrested over Colombia kidnapping attempts
Wed Jul 4, 2018, 06:05 PM
Jul 2018

Ecuador wants former president arrested over Colombia kidnapping attempts
by Adriaan Alsema July 3, 2018

A judge in Ecuador has ordered the arrest of former President Rafael Correa, who is accused of trying to kidnap an opponent who had sought refuge in Colombia.

Because Correa moved to Belgium after his resignation last year, the country’s authorities issued a red notice that would allow Belgian authorities to arrest and possible extradite the former head of state.

Correa called the arrest warrant “a new and serious abuse of justice and my rights,” adding that “such a monstrosity would never work in a country with a rule of law like Belgium.

The alleged kidnapping attempts
Correa’s legal troubles at home are related to the attempted kidnapping of former congressman Fernando Balda, who has accused Ecuador’s secret service of trying to kidnap him from Bogota in 2012.

More:
https://colombiareports.com/ecuador-wants-former-president-arrested-over-colombia-kidnapping-attempts/

Judi Lynn

(160,219 posts)
6. AP Interview: Correa says no plans to return to Ecuador
Thu Jul 5, 2018, 07:59 PM
Jul 2018

Raf Casert, Associated Press
Updated 5:59 pm CDT, Thursday, July 5, 2018

LOUVAIN-LA-NEUVE, Belgium (AP) — Former President Rafael Correa on Thursday called Ecuador's demand for him to be jailed and extradited from Belgium just a power ploy by the government to stamp out opposition, adding that it will instead push him back to the forefront of politics.

In an interview with The Associated Press from his family home close to Brussels, Correa said he had no plans to report to Ecuadoran authorities investigating his possible links with a botched, brief 2012 kidnapping of a lawmaker.

Ecuador's chief prosecutor this week demanded Correa's arrest and extradition after the 55-year-old former leader failed to appear at court in Ecuador's capital as required under the terms of the investigation.

Correa said the case was politically motivated to put him in jail or keep him from coming back. "I cannot go back to Ecuador during the next eight to 10 years," if the case continues to run its course, he said.

More:
https://www.chron.com/news/crime/article/AP-Interview-Correa-says-no-plans-to-return-to-13050916.php
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