Statement by President Alvaro Uribe-Velez, from Calamar, Bolivar Calamar, Bolivar, November 25 (SP).

"My friends and countrymen of Calamar, allow me to make a small change to the agenda for today, to offer some thoughts about the statement made by President Chavez. President Chavez, the truth, with witnesses, is that you were allowed to mediate with FARC, as you asked to do. You were allowed to meet FARC, as you asked to do. You were allowed to meet the ELN. You were allowed to have Rodrigo Granda taken from Cuba to Venezuela. And, as on so many former occasions, FARC again told lies, and again failed to keep their word. The truth, President Chavez, and the truth with witnesses, is that when there are no arguments left, and one resorts to insult, as you do, this not only affects international relations, but also, in this case, you with your insults and lack of arguments wound the dignity of the very people of Venezuela that you represent. The truth, President Chavez, is that we need mediation against terrorism, and not the legitimization of terrorism. Your words and your attitudes give the impression that you are not interested in peace in Colombia, but that Colombia should be victims of a terrorist government in the hands of FARC. The truth, President Chavez, and the truth with witnesses as ours is, is that we need people to help us overcome this tragedy of terrorism, but we need people who will not take advantage of the need for the humanitarian accord to invoke help for Colombia, and not come to Colombia simply to intervene there, and to pursue an expansionist project. The truth, President Chavez, is that if you are pursuing an expansionist project in this continent, Colombia has no place for that, project. The truth, President Chavez, the truth with witnesses, is that one cannot set fire to the continent, as you are doing, speaking a one day against Spain, the next against the United States; abusing Mexico one day and Peru the next, and the day after that, Bolivia. One cannot abuse a whole continent, or set it on fire as you do, by speaking of imperialism, when you, based on your own ambitions, are looking to set up an empire. The truth, President Chavez, is that we cannot abuse history, we cannot stain the memory of our heroes, by disfiguring them in popular demagoguery, in misleading the people. General Santander gave us the example of observance of the law. The truth, President Chavez, is that we cannot make a mockery of the law, as you do, trying to abuse General Santander, and exchange the rule of law for personal whim. The truth, President Chavez, the truth with witnesses, is that we cannot mislead the people by misinterpreting the legacy of the Liberator Bolivar. Bolivar was an integrationist, but not an expansionist. Bolivar independence to our nations, but he did not bring them a new era of subjection. Bolivar did not spend his time trying to remove European domination from the Americans, only to impose his own terms with the power at his disposal - as you wish to do - on the people of Venezuela and on the people of Colombia. The truth, President Chavez, is that the people of Colombia have every right to defeat terrorism, they have every right to accept mediation, but not the type of mediation which seeks political protectionism, or the political enthronement of terrorism. I am much concerned that you, in your electoral ambitions, now try to appeal to the old trick of encouraging hate against Colombia and against the government Colombia in Venezuela, in order to win electoral support. The truth, President Chavez, is that my government's record shows that throughout our difficult struggle against terrorism we have been respectful of all governments and of all countries around the world. I appeal to reflection, to the conscience of the people of Venezuelan, to examine this issue. While a Government is not capable of censuring FARC, it unfairly censures the Government of Colombia, and the contradiction is that the government of Colombia, confronted by terrorists, has never, ever lacked respect for the government of Venezuela or the people of Venezuela. The truth, President Chavez, is that our communiqué of yesterday is supported by our own precedents and our own actions: and it has witnesses. The truth, President Chavez, is that every minute, something new comes to light. Our Consul in the United States - who accompanied senator Piedad Cordoba to the meeting with one of the FARC prisoners who have been in American jails for drug-trafficking - has informed us that Senator Cordoba talked to the FARC prisoner about politics, and that is fair enough. She talked about a constituent assembly in Colombia, and that too is fair enough. All of this is entirely respectable, even if we do not agree with it. But the Senator also spoke of the need for a transition government in Colombia. The truth, President Chavez, is that this gives us in Colombia the right to interpret that during the mediation, to which you invited Senator Cordoba, in the light of the Senator's attitudes and these comments, that this mediation was more interested in making it possible to have a government with the influence of terrorism in Colombia, than in helping us to overcome the tragedy of the kidnap victims and to win peace. From Calamar, Bolivar, a region of our country now prostrated by flooding, I say to the world that we ask for help, and we receive it: but we do not accept expansionist projects. From Calamar, this region now prostrated by floods, I tell the world that here we have poverty and we have limitations: but we have our dignity. Money is there to be had every day, although in some nations there is not as much of it as in others. But dignity, respect for the individual in society, respect for individual freedoms - when these values are lost, it is difficult to win them back. We will continue to make every effort to defeat terrorism, and to rescue our fellow-citizens who have been kidnapped, but we will not allow advantage to be taken of our tragedy to support the cause of terrorism. We will not accept that anyone can take advantage of our tragedy to come to Colombia and introduce an expansionist project, which little by little is denying the freedoms that this continent has won for itself with so much difficulty".