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Top brass implicated in attack on union leader

In an interview with ANNCOL a former Colombian military intelligence
officer explains who was behind the December 2000 assassination attempt of
trade union leader Wilson Borja: Three top generals including Military
Commander Gen. Mora.

19.12.2002 (ANNCOL Bogota) In December 2000 a group of gunmen attempted to
assassinate Wilson Borja the leader of the public sector workers trade
union FENALTRASE. He was seriously injured and nearly died although those
responsible have not been punished and are today freely walking the streets
of Colombia. ANNCOL recently spoke to a former member of Colombian military
intelligence who has decided to name those responsible:

(For reasons of security the name of the former officer has been changed)

ANNCOL: Can you tell us exactly who was responsible for the attempt on
Wilson Borja's life?

Guillermo: The attempt to assassinate him was organised by military
intelligence units attached to the 13th Brigade of the Colombian army in
Bogotá - a unit with which I previously worked. The plan was sanctioned
both by General Reynaldo Castellano Trujillo, then the commander of the
13th Brigade, and by his superior General Jorge Enrique Mora Rangel, who
was then the head of the Colombian army and is now the most senior military
officer in Colombia.

Specifically the man responsible for planning the operation was Major Cesar
Alonso Maldonado of 13th Brigade military intelligence and it was he who
gave the orders to the assassins by mobile telephone. Many other lower
ranking officers and some professional soldiers were involved in planning
the operation although it was Maldonado who was in charge.

The assassins themselves were paramilitary gunmen from Tolima department
and they have been used in many operations before and have a good working
relationship both with serving and retired military personnel in Bogotá.

After the operation had failed the senior officers invited some of us that
had been involved to leave the army and join the paramilitaries. They said
that many soldiers had arrived in the paramilitary that way and that they
could organise it so there would be no problems. I did leave the army later
but I didn't go to the paramilitaries.

ANNCOL: How do you know that these men were responsible?

Guillermo: I knew Major Maldonado and was present during some of the
planning for the attack. During the course of conversations it came up that
some of his senior officers were also aware of the plans and I was in the
room on one occasion when he spoke about the Borja plan on the telephone
with General Castellano Trujillo - and it was obvious that they had
discussed it before.

I was also present when it was discussed that General Mora was very angry
that the attempt had failed and that he was accusing some of the people
involved in planning the operation of being idiots. People were talking
about it because they were scared of what Mora might do, some said he would
have everyone involved murdered.

ANNCOL: Can you corroborate your allegations?

Guillermo: Well there is a lieutenant who was in army intelligence called
Julio Cesar Bustamante and he would confirm most of this. He gave a
statement earlier this year explaining how the army had made detailed
preparations for the murder of Borja and how various senior officers in the
Colombian army had sanctioned the plot. I do not know if his experiences
were the same as mine and whether he named the same commanders but I am
sure that our knowledge would be similar and that the same names would
appear.

ANNCOL: Why was Borja targeted?

Guillermo: I do not know exactly why he was chosen although his name
appeared on a long list of trade unionists and other activists that were
meant to be assassinated. This list was drawn up by a group of senior army
commanders including those I have mentioned and others like General Freddy
Leon Padilla, and this list was then used to plan a series of
assassinations in conjunction with the paramilitaries. Carlos Lozano
Guillen, the newspaper editor, was also on the list as were various members
of the CUT trade union federation leadership such as Domingo Tovar.

ANNCOL: Has the government investigated any of this?

Guillermo: Well the public prosecutor handling the case, Luis Augusto
Sepulveda, asked that both General Mora and General Castellanos be
investigated for their links to the case but the Attorney General
immediately sacked him and he has now disappeared. So although some efforts
have been made those implicated are so senior that they are able to
effectively prevent any serious investigation. It is called impunity and it
is normal here.