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Chapare,
Bolivia
Community
Charges
Torture
and
Human
Rights
Violations
by
US-funded
Anti-Drug
Force
1/26/01
(bulletin from the Andean Information Network) According to denunciations from the Nueva Tapacari Community in the Chapare coca-growing region, an UMOPAR (US-funded anti-drug police) unit occupied the region, beat residents and forcibly took them to nearby hills. UMOPAR agents interrogated them about the whereabouts of police officer Silvano Arroyo, reported missing since October 10, 2000. Apparently no one was detained during this mission. Representatives of the Chapare Human Rights Ombudsman's office (Defensor del Pueblo) confirmed the presence of approximately 50 armed UMOPAR officers and four plainclothes agents leaving the area at 1:30pm. Affected individuals include:
The absence of prosecutors, torture, and illegal detentions have characterized UMOPAR-led search missions for the missing and murdered officers since their initiation in October of last year. It is essential that Bolivian police forces and prosecutors respect clearly established legal norms in their investigations and respect the constitutional guarantees of all detainees, suspects and residents of the region. HUMAN RIGHTS OBSERVERS ATTACKED: A shot was fired at Dr. Godofredo Reinicke (Chapare Human Rights Ombudsman) and his legal assistant, Silvano Arancibia (the bullet barely missed Arancibia), as they entered the region on foot with two residents to investigate the denunciations. After several hours in the region they discovered that all the tires on their jeep had been punctured. They were later denied access to the UMOPAR anti-drug base in Chimore for over an hour, although Bolivian law mandates that representatives of the Human Rights Ombudsman's office must be allowed immediate entry into all government offices. These incidents indicate the continuation of a disturbing pattern of harassment and lack of respect for human rights monitors, as well as obstruction of their investigations that began during the national road blockades in September and October of last year. The following help is needed from the international community:
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