McColombia

Forrest Hylton is the author of Evil Hour in Colombia (Verso, 2006), and with Sinclair Thomson, co-author of Revolutionary Horizons: Past and Present in Bolivian Politics (Verso, 2007). In this interview with The Real News Network, Hylton says that neither McCain nor Obama really know what 's happening in South America.

In the third and last presidential debate Senator John McCain defended a free trade agreement between Colombia and the US as a "no brainer" and once again derided Senator Obama for never having traveled south of the border. It was evident that "Obama clearly was much better informed than McCain about the actual situation on the ground in Columbia" says Forrest Hylton, an expert on Colombia and Bolivia but thinks the presidential debates are in "utter disconnect....in relation to actual developments in the world".

In a continued effort by Columbian paramilitary forces to quell indigenous protest "13 or 14 indigenous leaders have been assassinated on the ground in the last two weeks." Hylton says "US money and aid to Columbia is what has allowed the paramilitaries to really take the over the country and to continue their assaults on the trade union and the indigenous rights movement."

The candidates continue to demonize South America as a "sort of vaguely threatening enemy [group] of nations" according to Hylton, who sees the solution "to repair the damage between US and Venezuelan relations [through] dialogue and negotiations.....[as] a very straight forward and simple thing to do."

For more stories with Pepe Escobar and Forrest Hylton watch The Real News Network.

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Comments

[KaAp]

Colombia ... not Columbia please .... And, yes, I wish that we really did begin to concentrate on the human rights abuses and what has happened to labor leaders under the presidency of Bush pawn Uribe.

[The Real News - Huffpost Blogger]

Nice recovery Dan ;-)

So little was mentioned by the MSM about this part of the debate. I'm happy at least that there's a space where people can learn more. What's at stake for the US in relation to ignoring attempts to negotiate with many leaders in South America is enormous. A keen understanding of the issues and an open discourse must be achieved. If you're interested, Forrest Hylton has been interviewed by The Real News on several occasions. Visit the site if you get a chance.

Geraldine

[Dan Kovalik - Huffpost Blogger]

I agree with the thrust of this article regarding the U.S.'s continued complicity in fueling a human rights nightmare in Colombia. This view is bolstered by a recent Human Rights Watch report which exposes Colombian President Uribe's active attempts to investigate and cut the ties between his government and the murderous paramilitaries in Colombia. I have covered this story in another Huffingtonpost article today: Check it out at:
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/dan-kovalik/obama-human-rights-watch_b_135614.html

[Dan Kovalik - Huffpost Blogger]

Sorry, there was an important type-o in my comment above. I mistakenly omitted a key phrase from the second sentence which changes the entire meaning of my comment. The second sentence of the text should read: "This view is bolstered by a recent Human Rights Watch report which exposes Colombian President Uribe's active attempts to thwart ongoing efforts to cut the ties between his government and the murderous paramilitaries in Colombia."