Warlord's Sentence: A Convenient Curtain for Colombia's Deeper Wounds
📰 THE STORY: The Independent reports that Colombian paramilitary warlord Salvatore Mancuso has been sentenced to 40 years in prison for crimes against Indigenous people, specifically the La Guajira community, after previously serving time in the US for drug trafficking. 🔍 WHAT THEY'RE NOT TELLING YOU: Historical Context: Mancuso commanded the United Self-Defense Forces of Colombia (AUC), a
US-designated terrorist organization. However, the US supported and armed the Colombian military during the so-called 'war on drugs' and 'counter-insurgency' operations, despite overwhelming evidence of military-paramilitary collusion. A 2001 Human Rights Watch report detailed how US-funded Colombian brigades collaborated with paramilitaries responsible for massacres. From 2000-2010, the US poured
over $7 billion into Plan Colombia, much of which ended up supporting military units implicated in such atrocities. This isn't just about a 'warlord'; it's about state-sponsored terror. Double Standard: Western media quick to condemn 'warlords' in nations like Colombia rarely scrutinizes the Western governments, specifically the US, that enabled their rise and provided indirect (and sometimes
direct) support. When US client states commit atrocities, the focus is on individual 'bad actors,' not the geopolitical architecture that sustains them. Contrast this with the immediate and widespread condemnation of 'state-sponsored terrorism' when it involves US adversaries, often with far less direct evidence of culpability. Follow the Money: Plan Colombia involved billions in US taxpayer