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About Portland observer. (Portland, Or.) 1970-current | View Entire Issue (Jan. 30, 2002)
Page B6 2TÍJC IJnrtlanb (Dhseruer January 30,2002 jpurtlaub A w a i t i ng Á ti o p i i Colombian President Requests o n Military Help from U.S. Civil War in Colombia Threatens American Oil Interests BOGOTA, Colombia (AP) — President Andres Pastrana says W ashington should widen its in volvement in Colom bia’s war to assure a continued flow of oil from this South American country. Colombia is the 10th-biggest supplier of oil to the United States. But attacks by leftist guerrillas have squeezed Colombia’s out put to 600,000 barrels per day. Pastrana said in a news inter view that his government will ask W ashington to have U.S. soldiers train Colombian troops to protect oil pipelines, bridges and other infrastructure from rebel attacks. Currently, U.S. aid is restricted mainly to supporting Colombian anti-narcotics troops. A vice president for Occidental Petroleum, the biggest U.S. oil company in Colombia with a 35 percent stake in the country’s sec ond-largest oil field, applauded Pastrana’s proposal. Rebel bombings of the Cano-Limon pipe line serving the O cci dental field — which has a capac ity of pumping some 115,000 bar rels per day — shut down opera tions 56 percent of the time last year. In all, rebel sabotage o f U.S. and Colombian oil operations pre vented the production of more than 24 million barrels o f crude last year, according to state oil company Ecopetrol. The raids also scare away foreign investors seek ing to exploit Colom bia’s un tapped reserves. With seven months left in office, Colombian President Andres Pastrana has vowed to do all he can to end the civil war and put his country on an “irreversible" path to peace. There was no immediate com m e n t fro m W a sh in g to n on Pastrana’s proposal. Any broad ening of the U.S. aid effort could run into opposition in Congress, where concerns run high about Last weekend, negotiators from the government and the Revolu tionary Armed Forces of Colom bia, or FARC, agreed to set cease fire terms by April 7, narrowly averting a collapse o f the three- year-old peace pro cess. Pastrana acknow l edged he may not be able to bring peace to Colombia before his term expires next A u gust, but said he hoped it would remain on track for his successor, who will be chosen in elec tions this spring. He also described his dream of Colombia’s future: its oil, coal and other resources at tracting foreign investors and cre ating millions of jobs; its varied and gorgeous landscape beckon ing tourists. Pastrana said he only needed to c o n v in c e th e re b e ls and paramilitaries that everyone would benefit if the war ends. “This is the job we have to do ... to tell the violent ones that peace is the best business this country can have,” Pastrana said. Any broadening o f the U.S. aid effort could run into opposition in Congress, where concerns run high about getting too deeply involved in Colombia. Ten-year-old William needs a loving family to take good care o f him. If you are interested in becoming an adoptive parent Se necesitan padres temporales de o r w ould like to provide foster care to the children crianza o padres adoptivos. Si está under the State o f O regon custody, please call J udy inte rezada en adoptara cuidara uno O rellan a and H elen A ughtry at the S ervices to de estos niños, llame a Judy Orellana C hildren and Fam ilies, 503/731 -3147, ext. 2247. al teléfono 503/731-3147, ext. 2247. Advertise with diversity in c 1,1 nrt latth (f) h sctuer call 503.288.0033 or email: ads@portlandobserver.com getting too deeply involved in Colombia. U .S . A m b a ssa d o r A nne Patterson said recently that for eign investment in Colombia can only flourish if there is an end to the 38-year-old war. With only seven months left in office, Pastrana said in the inter view — held in a sitting room in the presidential palace — that he wants to be remembered as the man who set Colombia on an “ir reversible” path to peace. Pope Urges World Prayer Meeting ASSISI, Italy ( AP) — Pope John Paul II, deeply concerned about the impact o f the Sept. 11 attacks, urged prayers Wednesday so that a gath ering of world religious leaders in Assisi can contribute to an “au thentic and lasting peace.” Representatives of 11 religions were joining Roman Catholics and other C hristian denom inations Thursday, responding to the pope’s call to proclaim that religion should never become a motive for conflict. They include M uslims, Jews, B u d d h ists, H in d u s, Ja p a n e se Shintoists and representatives of African traditional religions. Speaking at his general audience at the Vatican, the pope stressed the need for “justice and forgive ness” and expressed hope that the gathering can make an actual con tribution toward real peace. This ancient hill town, the birth place of St. Francis, has played host to two earlier such gatherings called by John Paul: A daylong fast and prayer against nuclear war in 1986 and a rally for peace in the Balkans in 1993. The pope announced the latest peace day in N ovem ber, em pha sizing that religion m ust never be used as an excuse for violence and hatred. T he e c u m e n ic a l p a tria rc h , Bartholomew I, spiritual leader of the world’s 300 million Orthodox Chris tians, accepted the invitation. The Vatican listed a 29-member Islamic delegation and 10 Jewish represen tatives. EE.UU. suspende vuelos de prisioneros a Cuba 1 de diciembre - December 1 30 hom bres- 3 0 men aeropuerto internacional - in ternational airport alguien - someone, somebody AI Kaidah y el Taliban-A l Qaeda and the Taliban celdas - cells Con vención deGinebra -Geneva Convention encuentro - meeting espacio - space grupos de derechos civiles-civil rights groups la base naval estaounidense the United States naval base nivel federal - federal level Am trirw Family Insurant» is a proud sponsor of the Pullman Porters Notional Historic Registry which is the historic registry of African-American Railroad Employees from 186) to 1969. We salute those men of the Brotherhood of the Sleeping Car Porters labor union. If you, a family member, or a friend were formerly a Pullman Porter or Dining (ar Waiter, we ask that you register online at www.aphiliprandolphmuseum.com or call I-W 8 4 6 0 -8 IB to help us acknowledge these courageous men of history. Sin em bargo - However un avión de carga - an airplane cargo violar el derecho - violate the right Tune into SHOWTIME for “10,000 BLACK MEN NAMED GEORGE” The Portland Observer’s com mitment to cultural diversity in cludes the encouragement of a multi-lingual society. Readers can learn Spanish on this page by reading the words and phrases in bold p in t and gaining understand ing of its meaning with this com panion glossary. Premiering Sunday, February 24, at 8 PM ET/PT AH your Protection Under One Pool Company and its Subsidiaries Home Office Madison com l W ash in g to n (R e u te rs) - El P e n tá g o n o ha su sp e n d id o te m p o ra lm e n te lo s v u e lo s d ris io n e ro s c a p tu ra d o s en Afganistán hacia la base naval estadounidense en Guantánamo, Cuba, en parte debido a que ya no hay espacio en las celdas, dijeron hoy funcionarios de Defensa. Los funcionarios, que pidieron no ser identificados, dijeron que los vuelos militares a Guantánamo, donde 158 “deten id o s” de Al K a id ah y el T a lib á n ya se encuentran en pequeñas celdas bajo una estricta vigilancia, podrían reiniciarse la semana próxima. La decisión se produce en medio de críticas de grupos de derechos civ iles y algunos legisladores extranjeros sobre el tratamiento que reciben los cautivos y la negativa va designarlos como prisioneros de guerra bajo la Convención de Ginebra. Un funcionario de Defensa de alto rango dijo a Reuters que no estaba claro por qué exactamente los vuelos a Guantánamo, que han transportado grupos de hasta 30 hombres cada uno este mes, fueron suspendidos. Sin embargo, otros funcionarios indicaron que el espacio era limitado en la base y que se e stab an c o n s tru y e n d o in s ta la c io n e s permanentes de detención. “Han sido suspendidos por ahora”, dijo un funcionario, y agregó que el secretario de Defensa, Donald Rumsfeld, también examinaba la posibilidad de darle a los medios de prensa un acceso más cercano a los detenidos sin violar el derecho a la privacidad que tienen estos. R u m sfe ld ha d e fe n d id o el tratamiento dado a los cautivos — c o n s id e ra d o s e x tre m a d a m e n te peligrosos, y trasladados hacia Cuba encadenados y enm ascarados— diciendo que es humanitario. “No he encontrado una sola pieza de inform ación que sugiera que alguien ha sido tratado de alguna forma que no sea humana”, declaró Rumsfeld en un encuentro con la prensa en el Pentágono el martes. La suspensión del traslado de los detenidos a Guantánamo se produce en momentos en que el combatiente estadounidense del Talibán, John W alker Lindh, es trasladado por vía aérea a un aeropuerto en el área de W ashington para ser enjuiciado por acusaciones a nivel federal. W alker salió de Afganistán el martes en un avión de carga y se e sp e ra b a que a te rriz a ra en el aeropuerto internacional Dulles cerca de la capital más tarde el miércoles. Fue capturado el 1 de diciem bre en A fg a n istá n y a c u sa d o form alm ente el 15 de enero de conspirar para matar ciudadanos estadounidenses y apoyar la red Al Kaidah (La Base) de Osama bin Laden. 4 i
