FARC sought Bush assassination:
official
Colombia's main rebel group
asked followers to mount an
assassination attempt against
U.S. President George W. Bush
during his visit to Colombia
last week, Defense Minister
Jorge Uribe said.
There was no evidence Saturday
that rebels had even tried to
organize such an attack,
Shenzhen Daily reported on
Monday.
Uribe told reporters late Friday
that informants said the
Revolutionary Armed Forces of
Colombia, known as the FARC,
told followers to attack Bush
during his four-hour visit in
the seaside city of Cartagena
last Monday, where he met with
Colombian President Alvaro Uribe.
The defense minister, who is no
relation to the president, said
security forces were on full
alert during the visit. About
15,000 Colombian troops and
police, along with U.S. troops
and Secret Service agents
provided security. There was no
indication Bush’s life was ever
in danger.
Uribe did not say where the
informants had heard about the
purported order to attack Bush.
The Secret Service did not
comment on security details, as
is its policy. “We have full
confidence in the fine work of
the Secret Service and their
work with security officials on
the ground when the president
travels,” White House spokesman
Jim Morrell said Saturday.
The FARC has declared U.S.
troops in Colombia military
targets. The troops are training
local forces and providing
logistics and planning
assistance for military
operations against the rebels.
However, the rebels never
publicly declared Bush a target
during his first-ever visit as
president to Colombia. Bush
visited Colombia after attending
a summit in Chile.
Chilean socialist party chooses
presidential candidate
The Socialist Party of Chile on
Saturday nominated Michelle
Bachelet as its presidential
candidate for the 2005
elections.
The party, which is the largest
in the four-party coalition
government, chose Bachelet as
its presidential candidate, the
second one to represent the four
political parties in the ruling
coalition.
The Party for Democracy has also
expressed its support for
Bachelet.
Bachelet ranks first in opinion
polls on possible presidential
candidates, followed by former
Foreign Minister Soledad Alvear,
Senator Adolfo Zaldivar and
former Chilean President Eduardo
Frei (1994-2000).
The fourth presidential
candidate, from the Radical
Social-Democrat Party, has not
been named.
According to opinion polls,
Bachelet and Alvear surpassed
the main opposition candidate,
Santiago Mayor Joaquin Lavin.
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Pakistani president starts visit
to Brazil
Pakistani President Pervez
Musharraf arrived here Saturday
night in Brazil, the first stop
of his Latin America trip, for
talks with Brazilian leaders on
trade issues.
Musharraf is scheduled to talk
with his Brazilian counterpart
Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva on
Monday in Brasilia, the
country's capital. Their talks
are expected to focus on
boosting trade between the two
sides, which stands at 50
million US dollars now.
The two leaders are set to sign
four documents respectively on
drug trafficking, agro industry
hygiene, visa waivers and
mechanisms for regular political
elections, according to a source
with the Pakistani foreign
ministry.
Musharraf did not have any
official activities Saturday in
Rio de Janeiro, the Pakistani
consulate said.
Among his entourage are
Pakistani ministers of foreign
relations, trade, privatization
and information as well as a
group of businessmen.
He will visit Argentina on Dec.
1 and Dec. 2 and Mexico from
Dec. 3 to Dec. 4 before going to
Washington, London and Paris.
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