(Translated by John Laun, a CSN volunteer translator)
Doctor
ALVARO URIBE VELEZ
President of Colombia
Bogota
Dear Mr. President :
The legal figure of extradition should be maintained in Colombia as a
fundamental tool in the struggle against drugs. However it should not be
converted into a mechanism to impede knowledge of the reality about
violations of Human Rights committed by the armed groups in their alliance with
drug trafficking.
Mr. President for the benefit of protecting the right of victims to know
the truth, to be compensated and to guarantee that abuses will never be
repeated, I request that you put off the extradition of paramilitary chief Ever
Veloza, former commander of the Bloque Calima and Bananeros, so that he can
provide his complete testimony before the tribunals of Justice and Peace,
about the relations among self-defense forces, politicians, businessmen and
military officers.
Cordially,
GUSTAVO PETRO
Senator- Congress of Colombia
Colombia Support Network
P.O. Box 1505
Madison, WI 53701-1505
phone: (608) 257-8753
fax: (608) 255-6621
e-mail: csn@igc.org
http://www.colombiasupport.net