Cuba, Panama resume consular
ties
Cuba and Panama took the first
step Friday to resume their
diplomatic relations that were
suspended in August after the
then Panamanian President Mireya
Moscoso pardoned four
Cuba-Americans accused of trying
to kill Cuban leader Fidel
Castro.
Leaders of the two countries
reached agreement to resume
consular relations on the
sidelines of the 14th
Iberian-American Summit.
"Resuming consular relations has
been the first agreement"
between Panamanian President
Martin Torrijos Espino and Vice
President of the Cuban State
Council Carlos Lage Davila, said
Amado Riol, spokesman for the
Cuban consulate in Costa Rica.
Riol added a complete resumption
of ties will need further
negotiations, and could "take a
little longer."
The Cuban government cut off
diplomatic relations with Panama
after Moscoso pardoned four
exiles accused by Cuba of trying
to kill Castro, saying the
release is for "humanitarian
reasons."
The decision came just a week
before the end of Moscoso's
tenure. Panama's new President
Torrijos vowed to resume
diplomatic relations with Cuba
in his September inauguration
speech.
UN urges hostage release in
Colombia
The office of the United Nations
Human Rights Commission in
Colombia Friday urged the
Colombian government to speed up
proposals leading to the release
of hostages kept by guerrilla
forces.
Michael Fruhling, the office
director, told the press it is
indispensable to have a
humanitarian agreement between
the Revolutionary Armed Forces
of Colombia (FARC) and the
government to release the
hostages including politicians,
three US citizens, and members
of the military. Some of them
have been in the hands of rebels
for six years.
FARC, the country's largest
rebel organization, intended to
swap these hostages for 500
imprisoned rebels.
It also demanded setting up two
demilitarized zones in the south
for the prisoner swap.
The government rejected FARC's
request but announced last month
releasing 50 jailed guerrillas
as the first step to build
confidence.
In addition, the government
insisted any rebels freed in the
exchange be exiled from Colombia
or enter a government program to
reincorporate them into civilian
life.
FARC, established in the 1960s,
has about 17,000 members at
present. It has been in a
warring state with the
government since their
cease-fire negotiations failed
in February 2002.
|
|
|
In the
market for a change? Click
here! |
Venezuelan govt condemns
assassination of prosecutor
The Venezuelan government Friday
described as "brutal act of
terrorism" an explosion that
killed a state prosecutor who is
leading a probe into backers of
Venezuela's coup in 2002.
"We have the conviction that
this is a brutal act of
terrorism," Vice President Jose
Rangel told reporters.
He called the killing a "blow to
dialogue, peace, understanding
and efforts of repairing the
human and social fabric of the
country."
Witnesses said two explosions
rocked a vehicle just before
midnight Thursday as it drove
through Chaguaramos, southeast
of capital Caracas.
Interior and Justice Minister
Jesse Chacon confirmed the badly
burned body found in the vehicle
was Danilo Anderson.
Anderson was preparing a case
against nearly 400 people who
signed a declaration supporting
interim president Pedro Carmona
during an April 2002 coup which
removed President Hugo Chavez
from office for two days.
Chavez was reinstalled amid a
popular uprising denouncing the
coup.
Carmona, a former business
leader, is now living in exile
in neighboring Colombia.
Chavez has canceled a visit to
the Ibero-American Summit opened
Friday in San Jose, Costa Rica,
due to the attack, Chacon told
thestate news agency Venpress.
|
|
