Eight Colombians arrested for allegedly spying on Venezuela's power system

[Judi Lynn]

CARACAS, Tuesday April 06, 2010
Eight Colombians arrested for allegedly spying on Venezuela's power system
Politics

Venezuelan Minister of Interior and Justice Tareck El Aissami announced on Tuesday that eight Colombians were arrested for allegedly spying on Venezuela's power system, for purposes of destabilization and sabotage.

He added that Venezuelan authorities seized a camera with photos of several electrical substations located all over the country, of the national interconnected system and the road infrastructure.

According to the Venezuelan minister, all these elements have allowed officials to corroborate the sabotage allegations made by President Hugo Chávez Frías.

El Aissami stressed in a TV program that before Easter Venezuelan authorities arrested two Colombians in the southern part of the state of Aragua and later they arrested six other Colombians in the state of Barinas.

http://english.eluniversal.com/2010/04/06/en_pol_esp_eight-colombians-arr_06A3698331.shtml
Oppisition newspaper

[Judi Lynn]

1. Venezuela arrests 8 Colombians suspected of espionage, allegedly gathering data on power grid

Venezuela arrests 8 Colombians suspected of espionage, allegedly gathering data on power grid
By Associated Press

5:01 p.m. EDT, April 6, 2010

CARACAS, Venezuela (AP) — Venezuelan authorities have arrested eight Colombians and the country's top security official on Tuesday accused them of spying.

Justice Minister Tareck El Aissami said the Colombians were detained more than a week ago and are suspected of "committing the crime of espionage" by gathering information on Venezuela's electricity system.

Investigators confiscated a camera containing images of power plants and the electrical system, El Aissami was quoted as saying by the state-run Bolivarian News Agency.

President Hugo Chavez has recently denounced purported sabotage of Venezuela's power grid, saying government foes hope to exacerbate problems as the country struggles with a severe energy crisis. But he has not offered any evidence of sabotage.

El Aissami told state television that two of the Colombians were arrested in northern Aragua state and six suspects were detained in the rural western state of Barinas. He did not elaborate on the suspects' identities or provide additional details about the spying accusations.

The arrests were first reported last week by the Colombian newspaper El Tiempo, which said five of the suspects are members of the same family that owns an ice cream manufacturing business in Barinas. The remaining three are employees of the business, El Tiempo said.

More:
http://www.courant.com/news/nation-world/sns-ap-lt-venezuela-colombia,0,6639198.story

[protocol rv]

2. I guess this is going to put and edge to relations with Colombia

There are lots of Colombians in Venezuela. They line up near where I live to send money to Colombia, and what gets me mad is they get a subsidized rate from the government. I heard on the street many of them send the money to relatives in Colombia by wire, then a friend comes back with the dollars from Colombia, they sell the dollars in the black market, and get Bolivars, then they use some of the Bolivars, and recycle the Bolivars back to dollars, again getting the subsidy. It's outrageous.

[Bacchus39]

3. Colombian ice cream shop owner aressted with family members and shop employees

the owner has lived in Venezuela 6 years. included in the arrest is 19 year old Venezuelan niece.

Ven Interior Minister didn't provide much details but said the fact that they are Colombian is worrisome.

Spanish

http://www.eltiempo.com/mundo/latinoamerica/gobierno-confirma-detencion-de-ocho-colombianos-por-presuntos-planes-de-sabotaje_7541987-1

[Wilms]

4. Well, you've probably noticed, Judi.

Some are trying hard to turn the power issue into an attack. And I sense the majority is wise to that.

[protocol rv]

5. Sounds like a bogus claim

But there should be an investigation. And if I were a Colombian living in Venezuela, I would consider packing my bags. This could get really ugly if they start trying to put the blame on Colombians.

Chavez said today the water level at the dam was 249.5 meters, claiming it had gone up. I seriously doubt it. He also claimed that if they had not taken measures, the level would be at 246 meters. But the projection made at Devil's Excrement was for 248,5 meters, so the dam is one meter above the projection. Let us look now at the math: the river flow has been running around 700 to 800 meters cubed per second, the water used by the power station has been running above 4000 meters cubed per second. To get the level to go up they need to increase the river's flow to say 5000 meters per second.

This website has a fairly decent analysis, based on the trends observed, the water level should not begin to increase until around June 1 if it rains. They are having some rains, but the first rains soak into the dry soil, therefore there will be a lag time before they start to reach the reservoir in the volumes needed to offset withdrawals.

Since this is a managed system, it would seem they will cut back on consumption as required to keep the level above 240 meters, and then sometime in late May or early June it will hit bottom, just above 240 meters. So the problem is solvable if there's strict rationing.

The problem will come later, because the economy doesn't work very well when factories and businesses are closed part of the time. And unless we have the mother of all rainy seasons, the reservoir won't be back to normal, which means that, as we enter the next dry season, we're set for another crisis. Which means the government has to get very serious about fixing what they can in our now decrepit system, and build new plants on schedule.

I trust the government to take the radical measures needed to avoid the collapse. But the price will be steep. Expect a very depressed set of GDP figures for the 2nd and 3rd quarters. Also there may be some unrest by union workers in factories closed to save power.

And then there's this brewing crisis with Colombia now. I recall the Argentinian military junta started a little war in 1982, when they lost the economy, and this made them popular for a few months. Then they lost the war. And the rest is history.

[Wilms]

6. You need a blog.

:eyes:

[rabs]

7. So what about the Colombian army ID cards?

That is what Hugo Chavez tonight asked the Colombian government to clarify.

Chavez said he was not blaming the Colombian government or the military, just asking for confirmation that the IDs, which have no expiration date, are valid.

Two of those detained, a man named "Luis" and his "companera" were found to have the IDs. "Luis" has claimed that he worked as a doctor for the Colombian army and his "companera" was an army nurse.

"Luis" left Colombia to go live in Canada, then moved to Venezuela using a Canadian visa, which Chavez called "strange."

The group had photos of electrical grids and hydroelectric dams, which are not the normal pictures ordinary tourists take.

It is now up to Colombia to clarify.

[protocol rv]

10. Colombia Spy Training Program

Trainer: "Luis, did you make sure you emptied your wallet before you go to Venezuela"?

Luis: Yes sir, I only kept my Colombian military card, but you know, that's from before, I figure I could use it to impress the Venezuelans if they arrest me"

Trainer: "I see we trained you well, don't forget, when you take pictures of their dams, keep the memory chip in the camera until it's full, we're running out of money to buy you extra chips".

Luis: "OK boss. One more thing, what are we gong to do with the pictures when I get them?"

Trainer: "Dunno, Luis, I heard Uribe wants to frame them and keep them in his office, so he can laugh when Chavez starts calling him names".

Luis: "Will do boss"

Trainer: "And Luis, don't forget, this time don't bring us pictures of those Venezuelan ladies you took last time, that camera's government property"

Luis: "that's ok boss, my wife got mad and she said she's coming with me this time, to keep me out of trouble"

Trainer: "good, just make sure you tell her to empty out her wallet"

Luis: "OK, boss, but you know women, they put stuff in their purses and keep it forever. I think she still keeps her grandmother's ashes in there".

[Zorro]

8. If it's not the US boogeyman, it's the Colombian boogeyman

There's really no need for Colombia to sabotage the electrical infrastructure -- Chavez has done that quite well on his own by neglecting it for years.

Guess he needs more Cuban managers.

[protocol rv]

9. Cuban experts

I don't think the Cubans are used to high voltage transmission systems, or have any large power plants. They are the ones who recommended to our government the installation of these distributed power stations which will burn 100 thousand barrels per day of diesel - in a country with the largest natural gas reserves in the hemisphere. However, they can send more Cuban experts, what the heck. We'll pay them twice what a Venezuelan gets, and they'll teach us how to play nine-figure dominos.

[Judi Lynn]

11. Uribe demands respect for Colombians suspects

CARACAS, Wednesday April 07, 2010
Uribe demands respect for Colombians suspects

President of Colombia Álvaro Uribe urged the Venezuelan government to respect the human rights of eight Colombians arrested for allegedly spying on Venezuela's power system. He also criticized Venezuela's unresponsiveness in previous cases of death or arrest of his fellow citizens.

Uribe said in an interview on Wednesday that two of the detainees worked for some years as a pharmacist and a general practitioner, respectively, at a medical center of the Colombian Army in Medellín. The Colombian leader added that as far as he knows, none of them have any link with Colombian security forces.

"Based on the report, these people are linked to Venezuela. They are working there and were carrying out tourism activities." The Colombians were arrested for allegedly taking pictures of powerhouses, bridges, and highways in several Venezuelan states. The Venezuelan authorities consider that their purpose was "sabotage."

http://english.eluniversal.com/2010/04/07/en_pol_esp_uribe-demands-respec_07A3704451.shtml
http://www.jimpeterik.com.nyud.net:8090/WS%202-5-05/ws2005BOW.jpg http://dalewolford.com.nyud.net:8090/page5/files/fusion_bow.jpg

Uribe didn't know there was a welcoming committee for his exalted emmissaries.