WEEKLY NEWS UPDATE ON THE AMERICAS ISSUE #446
AUGUST 16, 1998

NICARAGUA SOLIDARITY NETWORK OF GREATER NEW YORK
339 LAFAYETTE ST., NEW YORK, NY 10012 (212) 674-9499

*1. US SAYS COLOMBIAN GENERAL WORKED FOR CIA

According to the Washington Post, unnamed "US officials" say
Colombian Gen. Ivan Ramirez Quintero was a paid informant for the
US Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) from an unspecified date
until the US cut off ties with him in 1995. Ramirez was third in
command in the Colombian army until this month, but will
reportedly be retired soon as part of a wholesale change of the
military command under new president Andres Pastrana [see below].
The US revoked Ramirez' visa in May, calling him a "terrorist"
[see Updates #433-435].
 
"We began to hear of Ramirez's ties to drug trafficking,
paramilitary activities and human rights violations in the mid-
1990s," a "knowledgeable US official" told the Post. "That was
reported back to the appropriate consumers. The [CIA] severed
contact with him because of that in 1995."
 
Ramirez was trained in intelligence in Washington in 1983. From
1986 to 1988 he headed the notorious 20th Brigade, which was
disbanded in May of this year because of its record of
assassinations. Ramirez was closely tied to Carlos Castano,
leader of the paramilitary United Self-Defense Forces of Colombia
(AUC). The US Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) says Castano
is a "major" drug trafficker. Castano reportedly passed
information to Ramirez about alleged Medellin Cartel head Pablo
Escobar Gaviria; Ramirez then passed the information about
Escobar--Castano's business rival--on to the army and the police.
Escobar was killed by the police in December 1993. [WP 8/11/98]
[A paramilitary squad headed by Carlos Castano's brother Fidel
Castano reportedly cooperated with the US-backed military unit
that killed Escobar--see Update #295.]
 
On Aug. 11 Ramirez denied being a paid informant with the CIA but
admitted that "[e]veryone knows I had a relationship with the
CIA... It is part of a double standard by the Americans. First,
they use one and one's ties to work like we did in the Cold War.
Then they leave you holding the bag." [WP 8/12/98]
 
*2. NEW COLOMBIAN PRESIDENT FIRES TOP MILITARY LEADERS

On Aug. 9, two days after taking office, Colombian president
Andres Pastrana Arango--together with Defense Minister Rodrigo
Lloreda--replaced the country's military high command with
officers who are said to support a peace agreement with leftist
rebels. Gen. Fernando Tapias Stahelin is the new head of
Colombia's armed forces, replacing Gen. Manuel Jose Bonett
Locarno. (Tapias was second-in-command under Bonett.) Gen. Rafael
Hernandez was appointed head of the joint chiefs of staff; Gen.
Jorge Enrique Mora is the new head of the army; Gen. Jose Manuel
Sandoval heads the air force; and Vice-Admiral Sergio Edilberto
Torres was appointed head of the navy. Pastrana ratified Gen.
Rosso Jose Serrano as head of the National Police. Serrano is a
favorite of Washington, who sees him as a hard-liner in the war
against drugs. [Agence France-Presse 8/10/98]