SWP Waterford Branch to Hold Meeting On Colombia Three

waterford | rights, freedoms and repression | event notice Saturday April 17, 2004 18:17 by SWP - Waterford swpwaterford at yahoo dot com 086-3274015

With John Connolly (brother of Niall Connolly), Des Bonass & Jimmy kelly

The Waterford branch of the Socialist Workers Party are to hold a public meeting on: ‘The Colombia Three: The Truth Behind The Case" with guest speaker John Connolly, the brother of Niall Connolly, one of the Colombia Three.

Other speakers at the meeting are Jimmy Kelly of the Socialist Workers Party and Des Bonass of the Bring Them Home Campaign, who was an observer at the trial in Colombia.

The meeting will take place in the ATGWU Union Hall, Keyser Street, Waterford on Thursday 22nd April at 8.00pm. All members of the public are invited to attend and participate in the meeting.

SWP TO HOLD PUBLIC MEETING ON ‘COLOMBIA THREE’ WITH BROTHER OF NIALL CONNOLLY


The Waterford branch of the Socialist Workers Party are to hold a public meeting on: ‘The Colombia Three: The Truth Behind The Case" with guest speaker John Connolly, the brother of Niall Connolly, one of the Colombia Three.

Other speakers at the meeting are Jimmy Kelly of the Socialist Workers Party and Des Bonass of the Bring Them Home Campaign, who was an observer at the trial in Colombia.

The meeting will take place in the ATGWU Union Hall, Keyser Street, Waterford on Thursday 22nd April at 8.00pm. All members of the public are invited to attend and participate in the meeting.

Niall Connolly, Martin McCauley and Jim Monaghan were arrested in Colombia over two years ago and accused of training the guerrilla organisation, FARC, in the use of explosives. Since then they have gone on trial where it was revealed that much of the evidence against the men was, at best untrustworthy and, in cases, fraudulent.


Claims that they were photographed with FARC guerrillas were withdrawn, forensic examinations were carried out in unsatisfactory circumstances, witnesses that the Colombian military claimed existed never materialised. Claims that the three were members of the IRA and were involved in terrorist activities were publicised throughout the world without a shred of evidence. Prominent in the issuing of this false information were the Colombian military who are engaged in a bloody battle with FARC, and the United States government which bankrolls the right wing Colombian government to the tune of several billion dollars a year in military aid.

The three have been held in appalling conditions in Bogota awaiting the verdict in their trial. They have been under constant threat from right wing paramilitaries and their rights to a fair trail have been violated time and time again.

Colombia has one of the worst human rights records in the world, with the autonomous military having close links to right wing paramilitaries who are allowed to murder trade unionists, political activists, community workers with impunity. The United States, under the guise of a ‘war on drugs’ funds the Colombian military and by extension, these right wing paramilitaries in an attempt to prevent the Colombian people turning to progressives movements to govern the country such as happened in neighbouring Venezuela, Bolivia and Argentina.

For more information, please contact 086-3274015.







SOCIALIST WORKERS PARTY, WATERFORD BRANCH

TEL: 086-3274015 E-MAIL: swpwaterford@yahoo.com