The former Colombian captive Ingrid Betancourt has filed a law suit against Colombia’s government over her kidnapping.
Held hostage by FARC rebels for six years, Betancourt is seeking more than 5 million euros in lost earnings. Appearing in the Colombian capital Bogota last week at a two-year anniversary to mark the rescue, her decision has sparked outrage.
Posts Tagged ‘Bogotá’
Former captive sues Colombia for kidnap
July 10th, 2010 |
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Zoe Saldana In Chats For “Columbiana†Assassin Role
May 17th, 2010 |
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Avatar star Zoe Saldana is in early discussions for the lead role in Columbiana — a upcoming Luc Besson-produced action drama set in Latin America — according to a scoop from The Hollywood Reporter.The Dominican-American/Puerto Rican actress — whose credits include Star Trek, The Losers, and Death at a Funeral — would play a [...]
SXSW: Partial Band List/Panels
February 2nd, 2010 |
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SOUTH BY SOUTHWEST ANNOUNCES PARTIAL BAND LIST, PANEL INFO, STAGE NEWS
 Pretty Lights |
The South by Southwest (SXSW) Music Conference and Festival, scheduled to take place March 17-21, 2010 in Austin, Texas, is pleased to announce a few of the bands scheduled to perform, artists that are participating on panels and exciting changes at the SXSW Day Stage.
This year’s SXSW Music Conference will feature some notable artists that will be speaking on panels taking place in the Austin Convention Center. Judy Collins shares her thoughts on Where Goes English Folk Music?, John Doe joins Ian Rogers‘ panel The Cultural Significance of Direct-to-Fan Marketing, DJ Spooky encourages the spread of music into established cultural institutions in Performing Arts: New Frontier for Live Acts, Melissa Auf Der Mar exhibits her photographic side on Image Makers Of Rock and Soul, Suzanne Vega kicks MP3 butt on Music Artists: Getting A Digital Ass-Kicking, Andrew WK dissects rock star myths on What Becomes A Legend Most, Chris Walla highlights his studio work on Producers Adapt & Survive, Chris Frantz and Tina Weymouth recall early gigs on CBGBs Stories, and Anya Marina talks soundtracks on Case Study: New Moon.
Join these artists and over 350 other speakers for an enlightening look at the past, present and future of the music industry.
The SXSW Day Stage also in the Austin Convention Center, will be partnering with six great radio stations from around the country who will present Day Stage performances on their airwaves. These are KCRW, KEXP, WXPN, The Current, KUT, and Mexico City’s Reactor.
Each station will present a three hour block of music. Highlighting KCRW‘s block on Saturday March 20 will be Rogue Wave, Middle East and Lissie. More artists will be announced soon. SXSW Day Stage performances take place in Ballroom D from 12:00 p.m. – 6:00 p.m. on Wednesday, Thursday and Friday, and 12:00 p.m. – 3:00 p.m. on Saturday.
SXSW Initial Band List (selected from over 10,000 entries)
!!! (Brooklyn, NY)
Amaral (Madrid, SPAIN)
Anita Tijoux (Santiago, CHILE)
Apoptygma Berzerk (Oslo, NORWAY)
Athlete (London, ENGLAND)
Bajofondo (Buenos Aires, ARGENTINA)
Balkan Beat Box (Tel Aviv, ISRAEL)
Band of Skulls (London, ENGLAND)
Bear In Heaven (Brooklyn, NY)
Black Milk (Detroit, MI)
Black Rebel Motorcycle Club (Los Angeles, CA)
Bomba Estereo (Bogota, Colombia)
Broken Social Scene (Toronto, CANADA)
Chalie Boy (Hearne, TX)
Chamillionaire & Paul Wall (Houston, TX)
Cymbals Eat Guitars (New York, NY)
Deer Tick (Providence, RI)
Evan Dando (New York, NY)
Frightened Rabbit (Selkirk, SCOTLAND)
Fucked Up (Toronto, CANADA)
Grant Hart (St. Paul, MN)
Hauschka (Dusseldorf, GERMANY)
Here We Go Magic (Brooklyn, NY)
Hudson Mohawke (Glasgow, SCOTLAND)
Invincible (Detroit, MI)
jj (Gothenburg, SWEDEN)
Killer Mike (Atlanta, GA)
LA Riots (Los Angeles, CA)
Les Savy Fav (Brooklyn, NY)
Maldita Vecindad (Mexico City, MEXICO)
Marina & The Diamonds (London, ENGLAND)
Mayer Hawthorne & The County (Ann Arbor, MI)
Midlake (Denton, TX)
Miike Snow (Stockholm, SWEDEN)
Mr Hudson (London, ENGLAND)
Mundo Livre SA (Recife, BRAZIL)
Murs (Los Angeles, CA)
Natalia Lafourcade (Mexico City, MEXICO)
Pretty Lights (Charlottesville, VA)
Rye Rye (Baltimore, MD)
Sharon Jones and the Dap-Kings (Brooklyn, NY)
She & Him (Los Angeles, CA)
Shwayze (Malibu, CA)
Spoon (Austin, TX)
Steve Aoki (Los Angeles, CA)
Systema Solar (Taganga, COLOMBIA)
Texas Tornados (San Antonio, TX)
The Drums (Brooklyn, NY)
The Middle East (Townsville, AUSTRALIA)
The Soft Pack (San Diego, CA)
The Very Best (New York, NY)
The xx (London, ENGLAND)
Trae (Houston, TX)
VV Brown (London, ENGLAND)
Wolfgang Gartner (Austin, TX)
This list is subject to change. This is only a portion of the bands that will be performing at the SXSW Music Festival.
For more on SXSW, check out our 2009 coverage here.
‘Colombia-US base accord reached’
August 15th, 2009 |
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Colombia says it has completed talks with Washington on allowing US troops to use seven of its military bases.
Under the deal, the US military will be able to operate on Colombian soil to tackle drug-trafficking and terrorism.
A number of South American countries have condemned the plan and Argentina has said the bases are "not helpful".
Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez has expressed fears the move would amount to preparation for an invasion of his country by US forces.
Colombia’s foreign ministry said that Bogota had agreed the text of the deal with the US.
"This agreement reaffirms the commitment of both parties in the fight against drug-trafficking and terrorism," the ministry said in a statement.
The deal will now be reviewed in both countries before being signed.
‘Climate of unease’
Last week, Colombian President Alvaro Uribe visited several of his South American neighbours to try to calm fears over the proposed deal with Washington.
On Monday, South American leaders at a regional summit had reiterated concerns over the deal.
Mr Chavez warned that "the winds of war were beginning to blow" across the region.
The Brazilian president, Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, called for a meeting between US President Barack Obama and the region’s leaders, saying the "climate of unease disturbs me".
Washington wants to use Colombia as a regional hub for operations to counter drug-trafficking and terrorism.
The US has been forced to look for a new base for such operations after Ecuador refused to renew the lease on its Manta base, which the US military was using.
This article is from the BBC News website. © British Broadcasting Corporation, The BBC is not responsible for the content of external internet sites.
Alarm at US-Colombia troops plan
August 10th, 2009 |
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South American leaders at a regional summit have expressed fresh concerns over Colombian plans to grant American troops access to its military bases.
But at the gathering in Ecuador, they rejected a proposal to formally condemn the proposals, which would allow US access up to seven Colombian bases.
Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez warned that "the winds of war were beginning to blow" across the region.
Colombia says it needs US support to tackle drug lords and left-wing rebels.
The US wants to relocate its base for anti-drug operations in Latin America to Colombia, after Ecuadorean President Rafael Correa refused to extend an agreement allowing US access to a military base in Ecuador.
‘Unease’
The Brazilian president, Luis Inacio Lula da Silva – whose government had previously described the plans as a matter for Colombia – called for a meeting between US President Barack Obama and the region’s leaders to discuss their concerns directly.
"As president of Brazil, this climate of unease disturbs me," said Mr Silva, reports AP news agency. "I think we should directly discuss our discontent with the American government."
But during Monday’s Union of South American Nations (Unasur) summit in the Ecuadorean capital, Quito, Mr Chavez led criticism of the Colombia-US accord.
"The Yankees have started to command Colombian military forces"
Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez
Colombia’s rocky regional relations Uribe tours region over US pactThe Venezuelan leader warned that the July agreement between Bogota and Washington "could generate a war in South America".
BBC South America correspondent Candace Piette says that in a news conference at the end of their meeting, held in an ancient church in Quito, the 12 presidents looked uncomfortable.
Although a number of countries in the region had previously expressed alarm over the plan, the summit failed to back Venezuelan and Bolivian calls for a joint statement condemning the move.
Instead, Unasur members agreed to hold talks – in Argentina later this month – to discuss the controversial Colombian-US proposal.
Colombian President Alvaro Uribe, a staunch American ally, toured the region last week in an effort to persuade leaders that an expanded US presence would not threaten any other nation in South America.
But correspondents say South American leaders would like firm assurances from Washington that the US forces would not operate outside Colombian territory.
‘Provocation’
Monday’s Unasur summit was held amid growing tensions between Colombia and Venezuela. The Colombian president did not attend the meeting in Quito.
Ecuador severed relations with Colombia after Bogota ordered a raid over the border in March 2008 on a left-wing Farc guerrilla camp.
On Sunday Mr Chavez stepped up accusations against Mr Uribe, saying Colombian soldiers had recently been spotted crossing the Orinoco river, which forms part of the border, and entering Venezuelan territory.
He said the alleged incursion was a "provocation" and put Venezuelan troops on a war footing along the border with Colombia.
The foreign ministry in Bogota said the Venezuelan claims were "not true", because it had checked with Colombian military commanders near the border and they had not reported any such incursion.
"The Yankees have started to command Colombian military forces," Mr Chavez also said on Sunday.
Last week, Mr Obama said the Colombia-US plan would merely update an existing accord, Plan Colombia, whereby US military personnel already help the Colombians fight drug trafficking and left-wing rebels.
This article is from the BBC News website. © British Broadcasting Corporation, The BBC is not responsible for the content of external internet sites.
Uribe and Lula discuss base use
August 7th, 2009 |
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Colombian President Alvaro Uribe has received tacit support from Brazil for his plans to allow US troops to use Colombian military bases.
Brazilian Foreign Minister Celso Amorim said it considered the agreement to be a sovereign Colombian matter.
Peru also expressed support, while Chile and Paraguay said the accord was a matter for Colombia. Ecuador, Bolivia and Uruguay expressed disapproval.
Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez has cut ties with Colombia over the plan.
Mr Chavez has said he fears the move amounts to preparation for an invasion of his country by US forces.
President Uribe has visited several of his South American neighbours over the past three days in a bid to calm fears over his decision to open seven military bases to US forces.
"We reiterated the agreement with the United States is something naturally for Colombia’s sovereignty"
Celso Amorim
Brazilian Foreign Minister
Washington wants to use Colombia as a regional hub for operations to counter drug-trafficking and terrorism.
The US has been forced to look for a new base for such operations after Ecuador refused to renew the lease on its Manta base, which the US military was using.
"We reiterated that the agreement with the United States, which is limited to Colombian territory, is something naturally for Colombia’s sovereignty," Brazil’s foreign minister said after Thursday’s talks.
But during his two-hour meeting with Mr Uribe, Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva said the matter could have been handled more transparently, according to Brazilian media.
The Brazilian leader is also said to have asked for guarantees that the actions of US troops would be restricted to Colombian territory.
The BBC’s Gary Duffy in Sao Paulo says concern has been expressed in Brazil about the proximity of US forces to the River Amazon, an issue always of great sensitivity to Brasilia.
Even US President Barack Obama’s National Security Adviser, James Jones, conceded on a visit to Brazil this week that a better job could have been done when it came to preparing the ground for the agreement, our correspondent adds.
During this week’s whirlwind tour of Latin America, Mr Uribe steered clear of Ecuador and Venezuela, both of which have tense relations with Bogota and Washington.
Mr Uribe has accused Ecuador and Venezuela’s leftist leaders of links with the rebel Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (Farc), who have been seeking to overthrow the Colombian governments for 45 years.
Colombia’s accord with the US is expected to be raised again when Ecuador hosts a regional summit on 10 August. Mr Uribe and his foreign minister do not plan to attend.
This article is from the BBC News website. © British Broadcasting Corporation, The BBC is not responsible for the content of external internet sites.
Chavez freezes ties with Colombia
July 29th, 2009 |
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Venezuela is withdrawing its ambassador from neighbouring Colombia and freezing relations, following a dispute over weapons supplied to Colombian rebels.
President Hugo Chavez, who announced the move on Venezuelan TV, also said he was halting trade deals with Colombia.
The announcement came a day after the Colombia government said weapons bought by Venezuela from Sweden had made their way to left-wing Farc guerrillas.
Mr Chavez denied this and accused Colombia of acting "irresponsibly".
"I’ve ordered to withdraw our ambassador from Bogota," the Venezuelan leader said on Tuesday. "We will freeze relations with Colombia," he added.
Mr Chavez said Venezuela would substitute imports from Colombia with goods from other countries, notably Brazil and Ecuador.
On Monday the Colombian government said its troops had recovered Swedish anti-tank weapons in a raid on a Farc camp. The Caracas government denied supplying them.
The Swedish authorities have launched an inquiry into how the Farc had acquired the weapons.
The Marxist rebels have been fighting the Bogota government since the 1960s.</p
This article is from the BBC News website. © British Broadcasting Corporation, The BBC is not responsible for the content of external internet sites.
Aldo Civico: Colombia: The Calamity of Displaced People
July 27th, 2009 |
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On Sunday I visited the Tercer Milenio Park; the area only a few blocks away from the President’s palace that internally displaced people occupied in…
Colombia ‘bombs Farc jungle camp’
July 25th, 2009 |
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Colombian forces have bombed a rebel camp in the jungle, killing at least 16 suspected guerrillas, officials say.
The aerial bombing, south of the capital Bogota, was part of a hunt for the military chief of the Farc rebels, Jorge Briceno – known as "Mono Jojoy".
He leads the most powerful division of the left-wing group, and is believed to have some 4,000 men under his command.
Colombian rebels have been under pressure following a military campaign launched by President Alvaro Uribe.
He remain popular after seven years in office, and is seeking a constitutional amendment that would allow him to run for a third consecutive term.
Saturday’s bombing occurred in Meta province.
The Marxist Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (Farc) have been fighting the Colombian authorities since the mid-1960s. </p
This article is from the BBC News website. © British Broadcasting Corporation, The BBC is not responsible for the content of external internet sites.
Cameron Sinclair: Design goes to the White House
July 24th, 2009 |
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Today Michelle Obama will host a luncheon at the White House as part of the National Design Awards. Introduced in 2000, this is an official…
Colombia extradites Farc captor
July 16th, 2009 |
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Colombia has extradited to the US a rebel leader who held political hostages, among them Franco-Colombian politician Ingrid Betancourt.
Gerardo Aguilar Ramirez, alias Cesar, a former top Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (Farc) commander, faces charges of trafficking drugs to the US.
Cesar was duped in July 2008 into handing over his hostages to undercover soldiers and getting captured himself.
He is accused of guarding 15 of the Farc’s highest-profile hostages.
Cesar is now the unwilling guest of the US justice system, the BBC’s Jeremy McDermott reports from Colombia.
He has lost everything and is likely to spend the next 20 years in an American cell.
Farc’s greatest humiliation
Handcuffed and wearing a military-style combat helmet and bullet-proof vest, Cesar boarded a US government plane late on Thursday morning, leaving Bogota for Washington.
About 50 police officers escorted him to the US Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) plane, Colombian radio station RCN reports.
The former Farc jailer faces charges of drugs-trafficking as his guerrilla unit, the 1st Front, is a major drugs-trafficking organisation in its own right.
But Colombia’s supreme court denied a US request to charge him with kidnapping because his alleged crimes did not take place on US soil.
Cesar has been forsaken by his former Farc comrades who condemned him as a traitor after he was hoodwinked by an army intelligence operation masquerading as a humanitarian mission.
Undercover soldiers persuaded him to hand over 15 hostages in his care, among them Ingrid Betancourt and three US defence contractors.
Not only did he surrender his hostages but he was persuaded to accompany the mission, climbing aboard a helicopter where he was quickly overpowered and placed under arrest.
Without the support of his fellow rebels he will be utterly alone in the US, where he does not speak the language.
Alone to reflect on how he was part of the greatest humiliation ever inflicted on the Farc in 45 years of fighting, our correspondent says. </p
This article is from the BBC News website. © British Broadcasting Corporation, The BBC is not responsible for the content of external internet sites.