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 Americas & Beyond | April 2008 
Mexican Survivor Fears for Her Life
 Escambray
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| | Raul Reyes, the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia's No. 2 leader, in a 2004 photo. Reyes died in a March 1 raid carried out inside Ecuador that set off a regional diplomatic crisis. The army tracked Reyes down by intercepting a satellite phone call he made from along the Ecuador border. (Reuters/William Parra) | | |
Quito - Lucia Morett, Mexican survivor of the Colombian raid into northern Ecuador fears for her life because she is one of the witnesses of the brutal violations committed by Colombian soldiers participating in the strike.
Colombian army and police committed several crimes against international law and human rights of which "I am a witness and can now talk," Morett said.
"The Colombian government is particularly interested in silencing me, and I fear for my life," she expressed, adding that she had received threats to keep her mouth shut.
The Mexican national was released from hospital a few days ago and said she wished to return to her country but admitted that there are no guarantees for her safety in Mexico.
She explained that during the March 1, 12-hour attack on the camp of the Colombian Revolutionary Armed Forces (FARC) there were two bombings, and she saw how those wounded were shot dead by forces of the neighboring country.
There is a seven minute video of the operation, but the tape does not demonstrate the series of violations "or how the wounded were killed, or the insults and intimidations and even harassment I received from the military," she denounced.
"Those people preferred to kill off the injured as trophies of war rather than save the lives of the wounded. We could have bled to death had it not been for the attention of the Ecuadorian army," she added mentioning another two Colombians who were found wounded.
"I lived through hours of horror while receiving threats of death and sexual abuse," she pointed out explaining that her clothing was first ripped off from the waist down, but they changed their mind because she was bleeding and armed men began making comments about her body.
They spoke of her intimate parts, and that they would take her to Colombia "to become the girlfriend of one of them and that she would have to pay for everything she had done," she commented.
The Mexican repeated that she had no relations with the FARC and that she was there as a student with other colleagues to gather information for their work on the conflictive region.
Finally, she said she was unable to meet Raul Reyes, FARC spokesman killed in the operation. |
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