CSMONITOR/SIBYLLA BRODZINSKY : "President Juan Manuel Santos(Pictured) launched a bold new policy in September that aims not only to offer land to the landless, but to formalize land tenure, rationalize land use, and reverse the violent accumulation of land by illegal forces over the past two decades. In his inaugural speech in August, Mr. Santos, a centrist, vowed to give land to "those who work it with vocation and the sweat of their brow."
AND: "Opposition is coming from ranchers and landowners, as well as former paramilitary fighters who have taken up arms to form criminal gangs. At least 42 leaders of organizations fighting to regain lost land have been murdered in the past five years. Hernando Pérez was the latest victim. He was beaten to death Sept. 20, one day after participating in a government event in the northern Uraba region where Agriculture Minister Juan Camilo Restrepo had given land titles to 34 families."
Popular Posts
- RUSSIA : Putin's Police Make Preemptive Strike On Leading Protest Opponents.
- MEXICO: Narcos "Force Down" Police Helicopter In Michoacan.
- BOLIVIA: Morales Continues Verbal Assault On USA's "Meddling"; USAID Expulsion Threatened.
- BOLIVIA: Raging River Sweeps Away Bus, Truck; At least 34 Dead.
- SLOVENIA : 100,000 Public Workers Strike Over Wage Cuts; PM Jansa Under Pressure.
- VENEZUELA : After Denials...Chavez Admits He Needs 3rd Cancer Surgery.
- UKRAINE / EU : Kyiv Cancels Yalta Summit...After 13 Leaders Bail; Yulia Ends Hunger Strike, Accepts Medical Treatment.
- CZECH REPUBLIC: Poll Shows Czechs Finicky About Tolerance.
- ARGENTINA : Ex-President De La Rua Tried For Corruption.
- USA / PANAMA / MIDEAST : Oil Tanker Hits Destroyer In Straits Of Hormuz...Leaving Huge Gash.