Colombia asks Panama to extradite ex-spy chief

[Judi Lynn]

Colombia asks Panama to extradite ex-spy chief
Wednesday, 14 December 2011 07:26
Miriam Wells

Colombia's foreign ministry has confirmed it has requested the extradition of the former director of the now defunct intelligence agency, DAS, from Panama.

Maria del Pilar Hurtado, who was granted political asylum in Panama last year, is accused of the illegal surveillance of journalists, opposition politicians, NGOs and high court judges.

~snip~
Former Colombian president Alvaro Uribe openly acknowledged he had advised Hurtado to move to Panama, and thanked the Panamanian government publicly for taking her in.

Uribe is accused of having ordered the intelligence agency DAS to carry out the illegal spying. He began to dismantle the agency after the scandal broke - then became implicated himself. An investigation into his role began about a year ago.

More:
http://colombiareports.com/colombia-news/news/21038-colombia-requests-extradition-of-former-das-director.html

[Peace Patriot]

1. Didn't know Uribe had admitted aiding Hurtado's escape. Interesting.

But I still don't think he was the prime mover in getting her instant, overnight asylum in the U.S. client state of Panama. That I attribute to Leon Panetta, whose first visible act as CIA Director was to go to Bogota, to arrange Uribe's fall from power onto a silk cushion. Why? Well, recent testimony in the Uribe investigation in Colombia tells us part of why. The Bush Cartel's agent in Colombia, U.S. ambassador William Brownfield, had a direct line to DAS (which was spying on judges, prosecutors and others and was apparently drawing up "hit lists" of trade unionists and others, for the U.S.-funded/"trained" Colombian military and its death squads and possibly for U.S. military and/or U.S. military 'contractor' "turkey shoot" practice in Colombia).

I think the whole story in Colombia, is far, FAR worse than meets the eye, and involves the Bush Cartel use of the U.S. "war war on drugs" to consolidate the trillion+ dollar cocaine trade. They were also prepping the country for U.S. "free trade for the rich" by decapitating the labor movement and killing peasants, and driving 5 MILLION peasants from their lands. Panetta was cleaning up after Bush Jr., mafia style. And I think that a condition of Obama's presidency is that Panetta be allowed to do this. The Bush Junta is very dirty in Colombia, and Hurtado is a key part of the case against Uribe which could implicate them.

Indeed, Uribe may have "admitted" helping Hurtado as flak cover for the CIA role in getting her asylum in Panama. That asylum has caused the rightwing president of Panama so much political trouble, internally and in the region, that it almost had to have been done under U.S. pressure. I suppose it's possible that mafia boss Uribe has that much clout in Panama. But I'm 99% that it was CIA strong-arming.