Colombia charges 5 top army officers of aiding death squad

BOGOTA, July 27 (Reuters) -- Four Colombian army generals and a colonel were formally charged Thursday of turning a blind eye to a wave of attacks by an outlaw ultra-right death squad that culminated in the massacre of 18 civilians in May 1998, judicial officials said.

The move came a month after the U.S. Congress approved a record $1.3 billion package of mostly military aid to help the Colombian army, with one of the most dismal human rights record in the hemisphere, launch an offensive on drug traffickers and Marxist rebels.

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Earlier this week, the government Comptroller General's office said it had launched an investigation in a $3 million corruption scandal in the Army's air wing, due to spearhead the imminent U.S.-backed campaign.

The charges of dereliction of duty -- the latest sign of high level collusion between the army and paramilitary gangs -- were leveled at two former division commanders, one of whom is currently a member of the army's chief-of-staff, two ex-Brigade commanders and the former head of a anti-guerrilla battalion.

International human rights groups and even the U.S. State Department have frequently alleged Colombia's military is backing the paramilitary groups in a "dirty war" against Marxist rebels and their civilian sympathizers.

"The Attorney General's Office has formally charged five army officers for incidents that occurred in Puerto Alvira, Meta, in May 1998, where 18 people were murdered by a paramilitary group," read a statement issued by the Attorney General.

The statement named the accused as Gen. Jaime Humberto Cortes, former Fourth Division commander and currently the army's inspector general, Gen. Freddy Padilla, former Seventh Brigade chief and current Second Brigade commander, Gen. Agustin Ardila, former Fourth Division commander now retired and Gen. Jaime Uscategui, former Seventh brigade commander now retired.

A former battalion commander Col. Gustavo Sanchez was also charged.

The death squad suspected of carrying out the 1998 Puerto Alvira attack also allegedly massacred more than 30 other civilians in nearby Mapiripan in June 1997.

Prior to raiding Puerto Alvira, the paramilitary gunmen spent months roaming the countryside, murdering individuals suspected of supporting the guerrillas and blockading roads to prevent food supplies reaching civilians.

Despite repeated requests by the government's Human Rights Ombudsman, army commanders in the region took no action to combat the paramilitary force, which eventually attacked Puerto Alvira, mutilating and incinerating some of the 18 victims.

International human rights groups have warned the U.S. aid package, that was sanctioned by President Bill Clinton earlier this month, could drag Washington into a Vietnam-style expeditionary war.

They also fear the funding could fuel rights violations and collusion between the military and illegal paramilitary gangs.

U.S. aid to Colombia's military has been conditional on U.S. officials vetting recipient units for human rights abuses.

But a 1999 report by the U.S. General Accounting Office suggested vetting procedures may have been sidestepped by approving battalions or platoons for aid even though the rights record of the entire brigade or division had been questioned.

Copyright 2000 Reuters. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

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