Military Bases Delegation to Colombia
July 24 to August 2, 2010
Last fall, the governments of Colombia and the United States signed an agreement to grant the Pentagon use of seven military bases on Colombian soil. The agreement bolstered the United States’ military presence in the Andean region at a time when progressive movements in Ecuador, Venezuela and Bolivia struggle to reorganize their societies more equally, and victims of Colombia’s dirty war demand accountability. It also intensified the contentious mix of militarism and free trade that has characterized U.S. Latin American policy.
What role do the bases play in upholding free trade orthodoxy and advancing the counterinsurgency, anti-narcotics program known as Plan Colombia? How does the increasing militarization of Colombia affect grassroots politics?
JOIN US AS WE EXPLORE THESE ISSUES IN COLOMBIA. ON THIS DELEGATION, WE WILL:
- Visit several U.S. military bases
- Talk with Colombians who live and work near the bases
- Meet with human rights, labor, peasant, and community groups
- Meet with U.S. and Colombian government and military personnel
DELEGATION LEADERS: The delegation will be led by Susana Pimiento Chamorro and by Lesley Gill (Ph.D. 1984, Columbia); Vanderbilt U., Department Chair, Anthropology. Lesley’s research in Latin America focuses on political violence, human rights, global economic restructuring, the state, and transformations in class, gender, and ethnic relations. Her books include The School of the Americas: Military Training and Political Violence (Duke, 2004). Susana Pimiento is a Colombian-American attorney who co-directs Fellowship of Reconciliation’s Task Force of Latin America and the Caribbean. Based in Bogotá, she has undertaken research on military bases and played a very active role in the formation of the Colombia No Bases Coalition.
CONTACTS: Lesley Gill 615-322-2851, Lesley.gill@att.net
Ken Crowley 202-423-3402, ken@witnessforpeace.org
COST: Full Delegation Cost $1,225
Deposit $150 due June 10 Balance $1,075 due June 24
FOR is collaborating with Witness for Peace (WFP) to organize this delegation. WFP is a politically independent, nationwide grassroots organization of people committed to nonviolence.
