Uribe in his next visit to Europe will not be visiting the UK but leading Spanish MEPs (Socialist Party as well as Partido Popular) are inviting him to the European Parliament, where he will try to gain political support from the EU for the catastrophic Plan Colombia.
There has already been a rebellion at the European Parliament. Francis Wurtz, president of the Group of the United left with 49 MEPs, followed by the Greens with 45 MEPs and the Liberals with 53 MEPS have already opposed the presence of Uribe at the European Parlament. It is important that the Socialist group to which British Labour MEPs are affiliated changes its position to opposing the invitation.
CSC ask you to write to the MEPs from the different groups at the European Parliament - and your MEPs - asking them not to give any support and to stop the presence of the fascist Alvaro Uribe Velez at the European Parliament.
Please write to:
In Spanish:
1) Sr. Enrique BARÓN CRESPO Grupo Parlamentario del Partido Socialista Europeo, Presidente Partido Socialista Obrero Español Mailto: ebaroncrespo@europarl.eu.int Fax en Bruselas: +32 (0)2 284 9490
2) Sr. José Ignacio SALAFRANCA SÁNCHEZ-NEYRA, Grupo del Partido Popular Europeo (Demócrata-Cristianos) y Demócratas Europeos, Vicepresidente. Miembro de la Delegación para las Relaciones con los Países de Sudamérica y MERCOSUR.
Fax en Bruselas: +32 (0)2 284 9603
In English:
3) Mr Graham R.Watson, Group of the European Liberal democrats and Reform Party, Chairman European Parliament. Fax 0032 (0)22849626; e-mail: euro office@cix.co.uk
4) Mrs Jean Lambert, Group of the Greens/European Free Alliance, Vice-Chairman. Fax 0032 (0)22849507; e-mail: jeanlambert@greenmeps.org.uk
5) Mr James E.M. Elles, Group of the European People's Party (Christian Democrats) and European Democrats, Vice-Chairman. Fax: 0032 (0)22849951; e-mail: jelles@europarl.eu.int
6) Mr Gary Titley, Group of the Party European Socialist, Vice-Chairman European Parliament. Fax 0032 (0) 22849212; e-mail: gtitley@europart.eu.int
7) Your MEPs. Look up from on website http://www.europarl.org.uk/uk_meps/MembersMain.htm
Remembering that:
* Colombia has the worst human rights in the Western hemisphere, with over 300,000 displaced people and 7,000 political homicides each year
* the official armed forces and state sponsored paramilitaries are responsible for at least 80% of human rights violations
* Plan Colombia is a vehicle for US military intervention in Latin America that is failing in its declared objective of ending coca cultivation, while the fumigations are causing widespread suffering to peasants and damaging the environment
* Uribe is personally committed to increased repression rather than seeking a negotiated solution to the armed conflict. His latest law the "Antiterrorism Statute" provides the army with unfettered powers over the civilian population and has been widely condemned by human rights organisations
* any diplomatic or financial support from the EU for Uribe will strengthen his hand.