Oct 14, 2004
Crime Wave Rattles Paraguayans
By PEDRO SERVIN
Associated Press Writer
ASUNCION, Paraguay (AP) - Gunmen abduct the daughter of a former Paraguayan president in a blaze of gunfire. The body of a kidnapped 10-year-old boy is found mutilated. A well-known businesswoman is still missing, long after her family paid a ransom for her release.
Paraguayans have been gripped by a string of high-profile kidnappings that have many worried a crime wave sweeping much of Latin America may now be reaching into this landlocked country of 6 million people. The kidnappings have dominated headlines and provoked a climate of insecurity in this impoverished South American country.
"There is a sense that robberies, assaults and kidnappings are quickly becoming everyday occurrences,'' said Antonio Lopez, a 30-year-old pharmaceutical salesman.
Paraguay is battling a protracted recession brought on in part by financial troubles in neighboring Argentina. And events in Paraguay mirror similar kidnapping waves experienced by Mexico and Argentina when they suffered economic meltdowns in the mid-1990s and 2002, respectively.
Paraguay has also been wracked by sporadic upheaval and many consider corruption even more of a scourge than the poverty that afflicts over 60 percent of the population.
Paraguayans have followed in detail the story of Cecilia Cubas, the 31-year-old daughter of former President Raul Cubas. She was kidnapped Sept. 21 on the outskirts of Asuncion in a commando-style ambush.
Police and her family say the younger Cubas was grabbed from her car as she was driving near her home, her car pocked with bullets by gunmen who blocked her path.
The operation took seconds, but the shock has continued to ripple through this country. Authorities have reported no leads in the case, and her family said they had one contact with the captors but no ransom request.
Police, meanwhile, have reported no motive in the abduction of the daughter of Cubas, who served as president from August 1998 until March 1999. Cubas was forced to resign when the assassination of his vice president triggered rioting and political turmoil.
On Wednesday, Paraguayans were stunned by the discovery of the body of the 10-year-old son of a tobacco magnate. The boy was taken captive two days ago as he left the Asuncion elementary school he attended.
Local reports quoted authorities as saying they found the body of Armin Anibal Riquelme Seif disfigured and severely bruised on the outskirts of the Asuncion, the third recent high-profile kidnapping.
"We are totally unprotected, we're at the mercy of bandits,'' cried Armin's mother, Yamili Seif.
In August of 2003, gunmen abducted Gilda Vargas, an Asuncion businesswoman. Local reports say her family eventually paid a hefty ransom, but she remains missing.
The kidnappings have put the 14-month-old government of President Nicanor Duarte in motion.
Forced to act while traveling in Europe, Duarte ordered 1,000 more police out onto the streets. On Wednesday he also fired his interior minister, Orlando Fiorotto, and a top police chief while ordering his aides to draw up a new national security plan.
Security experts say the surge in kidnappings in Paraguay also reflects a larger regional trend. Latin America accounts for 75 percent of the world's abductions, according to London-based business risk consultancy Control Risks Group.
The insurance industry estimates more than 7,500 kidnappings a year in Latin America, but analysts say those statistics and governments' counts aren't reliable because so few kidnappings are reported - only 1 in 10 by some estimates.
"What's happening in Paraguay is not out of step with what's happening in the rest of Latin America. It's spiraling everywhere,'' said Frank Holder, a New York-based consultant with security firm Kroll Inc.
Holder, who previously headed the firm's Latin American division, said kidnappings can prompt others to follow suit.
"Once someone is successful a couple of times at this, you have copycats and it tends to grow'' if not fought aggressively, he cautioned.
Several government officials and at least one former president were taking no chances.
"I've got my own bodyguards and I'm avoiding standing out,'' said former President Juan Carlos Wasmosy, who served from 1993 to 1998.
[Editor's Note: Poverty & desperation breed crime. Corruption in the ranks of the National Police helps ensure that criminal action goes unpunished. Criminal activity increases as it becomes obvious that the chance for success far outweighs any potential consequences. This is the situation we are facing now in Paraguay. Please pray for President Duarte (a believer) as he works to lead Paraguay out of this crisis. He ordered his staff to create a new national security plan today in order to try to put a stop to rampant crime. Also pray that the insecurity here will cause people to turn to the Lord.]
* This article may be freely reprinted provided it is used in its entirety without modification and includes the following sentence:
Article reprinted from Pryors of Paraguay [http://pryors.net/] - Gods Work in Gods Way! The Pryors are missionaries to Paraguay, South America who are purposed to pursue the Biblical plan for missions and prove that New Testament principles still work today.
Posted by David Pryor in In The News, Paraguay | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack
Oct 03, 2004
Paraguay Tri-Border Area Is Terror Haven
AP Finds Tri-Border Area in Paraguay Serves As Meeting Point for Islamic Terrorist Fund Raising
The Associated Press
CIUDAD DEL ESTE, Paraguay Oct. 3, 2004 — In this gritty border town known as a haven for drug smugglers, arms dealers and counterfeiters, stacks of money change hands in the open on every corner and thousands of people each day stream across Friendship Bridge into Ciudad del Este. They carry packages on their backs, in wheelbarrows or on carts, and border police stop few.
Such chaotic scenes give life to the city's reputation of lawlessness and U.S. officials' description of the tri-border area where Paraguay, Brazil and Argentina meet as a key South American point for Islamic terrorist fund raising to the tune of $100 million a year. Yet few arrests have been made or assets frozen, and local officials told The Associated Press they are ill-prepared to fully track financial movements and they discount terror links.
"We need more resources and greater controls," said Juan Carlos Duarte, a district attorney in Ciudad del Este who recently carried out several raids on currency exchange houses. "Frequently, it's difficult for even the Paraguayan Central Bank to track these movements. To get to bottom of this we need more staff. We won't be able to solve anything without more help."
Paraguay, Latin America's second-poorest country after Bolivia, is in the throes of a financial crisis that has left basics like computers for government offices hard to come by.
The raids carried out this spring are aimed, in part, at snuffing out illegal transactions and helping investigators piece together a money trail used by drug runners and counterfeiters and other purported businesses operating in Ciudad del Este, Duarte said.
Dozens of exchange houses some little more than one-room offices crowd alleyways offering to send money as far away as Asia and the Middle East. On street corners, money changers' fanny packs bulge with U.S. dollars, euros, Brazilian reals, Paraguayan guaranis and Argentina pesos. Store owners open cash tills brimming with bills.
Coming off Friendship Bridge, which connects Ciudad del Este with sister city Foz do Iguacu in Brazil, people load and unload boxes, carts, even trash bags filled with knockoff brands of televisions, underwear, diapers, leather jackets, and watches.
Meanwhile, street vendors and middlemen shout into cell phones and walkie-talkies. Private security officers, some clutching rifles, stand alongside armored trucks. It all is testament to this region's reputation as South America's contraband and smuggling capital a place where anything from drugs to arms to pirated software reputedly can be had.
That reputation brought U.S. scrutiny in the post-Sept. 11 era. Much of the focus has fallen on the 25,000-strong Muslim community in the area built up by former Paraguayan dictator Alfredo Stroessner during the 1970s as a trading hub for his iron-fisted regime.
Yet after more than three years under U.S. watch, American and some regional officials remain divided over the potential for terrorist links, and unregulated trade flourishes.
U.S. officials suspect as much as $100 million a year flows out of the region, much of it diverted to Islamic militants linked to Hezbollah and the Palestinian militant group Hamas.
Authorities in Ciudad del Este say many among the Middle Eastern immigrant community send money home, but it is difficult to determine where the funds end up. Contributions to religious groups are even harder to trace.
U.S. officials say much of the money is sent back through an assortment of difficult-to-trace means via couriers, complex wire transfers, some hand-carried.
"We are concerned about material support emanating from the area and its weaknesses: the ability to move people, goods, and money in a way that goes largely untracked," said Juan Zarate, the U.S. Treasury Department's deputy assistant secretary for terrorist financing and financial crimes.
In June, the Bush administration ordered U.S. banks to freeze any assets found belonging to a Ciudad del Este-based businessman. The Treasury Department accused Assad Ahmad Barakat of using his electronics store as a cover for Hezbollah fund raising, saying he mortgaged his import-export business to borrow from a bank in a fraud scheme and "coerced" other Arab merchants into making Hezbollah contributions.
However, some regional officials question assertions of terrorism links and maintain that fund raising for Hezbollah is legal here since it is recognized as a political party.
Paraguayan Foreign Minister Leila Rachid recently told the Argentine newspaper, La Nacion, that the fact that Hezbollah supporters send part of their salaries to the political party in Lebanon "does not mean there are terrorist cells" in the tri-border area.
Many in the Arab community have expressed outrage over increased scrutiny of the community, saying most are traders and small business owners from Syria and Lebanon.
At the Mosque of the Prophet Muhammad, the main mosque in Ciudad del Este, several people gathering for Friday prayers recently complained of unfair treatment.
"They say there are terrorists here or terrorist support only because they think there must be with so many Arabs living in one place," said Hassan Ali, an electronic salesman. "But where is the proof? Not one person has been convicted of terrorism here."
Yet, U.S. and Argentine officials point to arrests, including Barakat's, that they say prove the area has been a base for several people with alleged links to Hezbollah and other groups.
Another arrest involved Mohammed Ali Hassan Mokhlis, an Egyptian who reportedly spent time in the tri-border area, according to regional intelligence officials.
A suspected planner of the 1997 Luxor massacre of 58 foreign tourists at the Temple of Hatshepsut in southern Egypt, he was extradited to Egypt from Uruguay last year after he tried to cross into Brazil using a false Malaysian passport. Four Muslim militants also were killed.
Still, Brazilian and Paraguayan law enforcement see the main problems as drug and contraband trafficking. U.S. officials, who believe the terrorist risk is real, say they are helping train Paraguayan authorities to better monitor financial transfers and bolster border controls.
Meantime, the Brazilian city of Foz do Iguacu across the river from Ciudad del Este is fighting to improve the tri-border image. Last year, the city launched an advertising campaign in Latin American newspapers trying a lighthearted touch to play down claims of terror links.
Hoping to attract more tourists to a region that includes the world-famous Iguazu waterfalls, the city ran full-page ads featuring a photograph of fugitive al-Qaida leader Osama bin Laden and the caption: "If bin Laden would ever risk a visit to Foz do Iguazu, it's only because it's worth it."
[Editor's Note: We hear many rumors about terrorist activity in the Tri-Border Region around Ciudad del Este. Whether or not they turn out to be accurate or not, one thing is certain. That city is definatly riddled with crime. The top of which is smuggling and money laundering. Never the less, it is a tremendous mission field in which may be reached not only Paraguayans, but also Lebanese & Koreans. Pray that those working in that city will have God's grace and boldness to reach these people so in need of the Gospel.]
* This article may be freely reprinted provided it is used in its entirety without modification and includes the following sentence:
Article reprinted from Pryors of Paraguay [http://pryors.net/] - Gods Work in Gods Way! The Pryors are missionaries to Paraguay, South America who are purposed to pursue the Biblical plan for missions and prove that New Testament principles still work today.
Posted by David Pryor in In The News, Paraguay | Permalink | Comments (1) | TrackBack
Aug 03, 2004
Paraguay Mourns Hundreds Killed in Supermarket Blaze
ASUNCION, Paraguay - The death toll from a supermarket blaze soared by more than 100 to reach 464 Tuesday, as a security guard told investigators he was ordered to lock the building's doors to prevent theft just after the fire began.
[Editor's Note: Anytime there is a tragedy of such magnitude, we invariably ask, "Why does God allow suffering?" In answer to that question, we have posted an excellant article writen by James L. Melton. Read it here.]
Dozens of families were still searching for lost loved ones as investigators questioned the store's owners, manager and security guards over reports that doors were locked, trapping shoppers inside during Sunday's fire, the worst disaster in decades in this impoverished South American country.
The attorney general's office put the death toll at 464, saying 325 bodies had been identified and 139 others still had not. Officials also said 409 people remained hospitalized.
Hundreds were injured in the blaze that broke out during lunch hour Sunday at the three-story Ycuá Bolaños supermarket in a suburb of Asunción, the capital. The fire, accompanied by two explosions, quickly filled the supermarket, food court and parking garage, collapsing one floor. The fire blazed for seven hours before firefighters were able to put it out.
Police are investigating allegations the owner of the supermarket ordered the doors locked during the blaze so that customers could not leave without paying for their goods. Authorities detained a store manager and a security official on Monday. The arrests brought to four the number of people in custody in connection with Sunday's inferno.
The owners, a father and son, were detained for questioning within hours of the disaster. They have strongly denied that doors were locked to prevent theft.
Prosecutor Edgar Sanchez, who is leading the investigation, said a security guard told authorities that at the outset of the fire he received orders over a radio to lock the doors to prevent theft.
Sanchez said the guard "didn't know" who gave the order. "He couldn't identify the voice that spoke to him over the radio," the prosecutor said.
The store's owners, a business associate and four security guards have been taken into custody for questioning. Judicial authorities said they also ordered a freeze on the assets of Juan Pio Paiva, who owns the supermarket with his son.
But officials said they were trying to piece together survivor claims that locked doors might have impeded or slowed shoppers trying to escape.
As funerals and burials were held across the capital, the mood remained edgy. Authorities evacuated a second Asuncion supermarket Tuesday after reports of a gas leak.
At the site of the fire, firefighters and others continued searching for victims in the rose-colored building, which was cordoned off by yellow police tape and guarded by rifle-toting soldiers.
Nearby, some families were trying to locate the bodies of relatives missing and believed dead. Dozens of family members gathered to look over badly burned bodies. Others held up photographs, hoping rescue workers might recognize them.
The first services for victims were held around the capital Monday. In a neighborhood near the complex, some 25 grief-stricken families held wakes and vigils, many after the deaths of children.
Some of the victims were burned beyond recognition, and their caskets are to be marked for possible exhumation in the future to identify the remains, Asuncion Mayor Enrique Riera said.
A pregnant woman, a baby and dozens of children died near the toy section of the three-story complex. Some of the Sunday shoppers were burnt beyond recognition, hugging each other. Others died in an underground parking garage as fire spread after a propane gas blast.
Firemen & neighbors found the main entrance bolted and smashed their way in to reach survivors. "We couldn't get inside and the people couldn't get out," said Liliana Hernandez, 33, who lives next door.
Public Health Minister Julio Cesar Velazquez told reporters, "I have never seen a disaster like this. The firefighters were taking out, as best as they could, the bodies, the injured and people suffering from smoke inhalation. It's horrible."
Dozens of volunteer psychologists circulated among the crowd hoping to console relatives, and forensic experts urged some of them to take blood tests and bring dental records and X-rays to help identify victims.
"This is a moment of great anguish," said President Nicanor Duarte Frutos, who visited the site of the tragedy & declared three days of national mourning for the victims. "I've come here to provide support to the injured and the families of the deceased."
President Bush, Pope John Paul II and German Foreign Minister Joschka Fischer sent condolences to Paraguay. White House press secretary Scott McClellan said the U.S. Embassy and agencies are working with Paraguayan officials "to identify the emergency assistance that we can provide."
[Sources: AP & RFE/RL]
Posted by David Pryor in In The News, Paraguay | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack
Jul 19, 2004
Jewish Group Presses Paraguay To Close Mosque
By Damir Ahmad, IOL Correspondent
MOSCOW, July 13 (IslamOnline.net) – A Jewish lobby group is pressing Paraguay to close a mosque in the capital Asunción under the pretext of funding Palestinian resistance operations, the Russian Jewish News Agency (AEN) reported Monday, July 12., The Los Angeles-based Simon Wiesenthal Center, which is affiliated with the Jewish Agency, sent a letter to the Paraguayan presidency to shut down the Prophet Muhammad mosque in Asunción.
Citing alleged information from the US Central Intelligence Agency (CIA), the Jewish group claimed that the mosque was raising funds for Palestinian "terrorists" to carry out "bloody attacks" against Israeli interests.
It also alleged that the mosque has become a "hub" in South America to transfer cash to the Palestinians in the Middle East.
The group claimed that Israeli customs officials arrested two months ago three people carrying Paraguayan passports with huge sums of US dollars in their possession.
The Israeli officials said the three confessed they had been assigned by the mosque to transfer the cash to Palestinian resistance factions.
There are some 50 mosques in Paraguay. Prophet Muhammad mosque is one of two in Asunción.
Muslims represent 2% of Paraguay’s six million population.
[Editor's Note: The Jewish community here in Paraguay is small, but influential. Pray that they may be reached with the Gospel & realize that Jesus IS their Messiah.]
* This article may be freely reprinted provided it is used in its entirety without modification and includes the following sentence:
Article reprinted from Pryors of Paraguay [http://pryors.net/] - Gods Work in Gods Way! The Pryors are missionaries to Paraguay, South America who are purposed to pursue the Biblical plan for missions and prove that New Testament principles still work today.
Posted by David Pryor in In The News, Paraguay, Religion | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack
Jul 10, 2004
New Survey Examines the Impact of Gibson’s ‘Passion’ Movie
(Ventura, CA) - Mel Gibson’s controversial movie about the last twelve hours of the life of Jesus, The Passion of the Christ, stunned the movie industry by becoming the eighth highest-grossing domestic film of all-time.
Much of that success can be attributed to the fervent support of churches, many of whom labeled the movie as "one of the greatest evangelistic tools in history."
A new national survey of more than 1600 adults, conducted by The Barna Group, examines not only how many people saw the movie, but what impact the film had on their life.
Among the most startling outcomes drawn from the research is the apparent absence of a direct evangelistic impact by the movie.
Despite marketing campaigns labeling the movie the “greatest evangelistic tool” of our era, LESS THAN ONE-TENTH OF ONE PERCENT of those who saw the film stated that they made a profession of faith or accepted Jesus Christ as their savior in reaction to the film’s content.
Equally surprising was the lack of impact on people’s determination to engage in evangelism.
LESS THAN ONE-HALF OF ONE PERCENT of the audience said they were motivated to be more active in sharing their faith in Christ with others as a result of having seen the movie.
[SOURCE: The Barna Group]
Posted by David Pryor in Film, In The News, Religion | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack
Jul 06, 2004
Jesus Actor Mistaken for the Real Deal
James Caviezel has been swamped with requests to perform miracles by Mexican fans who believe he really is Jesus Christ. The 35-year-old actor, who played Jesus in Mel Gibson¹s THE PASSION OF THE CHRIST, was on a one-week tour of the east Mexican state of Veracruz.
According to Mexican newspaper "Reforma," dozens of residents from villages throughout the state, one of the poorest in the country, asked Caviezel to heal the sick and perform other miracles as he passed through.
The actor, who is himself a strict Catholic, said: "The belief of these people really moved me. It was a shock for me to see how they came up to me to ask for my help. I had to explain to them that I was only an actor, and wasn¹t really the son of God."
Mexico has the biggest population of Catholics in the world after Brazil and has been visited by the Pope five times.
[Source: www.ananova.com 7/6/04]
[NOTE: "For all of the 'missions-oriented' enthusiasm generated by evangelical leaders for THE PASSION OF THE CHRIST, they have disregarded the reality that the movie does nothing to dissuade Catholics from their Church's false gospel that can save no one." -- T.A. McMahon, The Berean Call]
Posted by David Pryor in Film, In The News, Religion | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack
Jul 01, 2004
Religious Leaders Defend Moons Capitol Hill Coronation As 'King of Peace'
(CNSNews.com) - When the Rev. Sun Myung Moon and his wife were crowned the "King and Queen of Peace" on March 23rd -- inside the Dirksen Senate Office Building with Members of Congress looking on -- few news outlets took notice.
But in the months since Moons March 23rd "coronation" as Messiah, a growing number of people are questioning the appropriateness of allowing a "coronation" to take place inside a government building.
At a press conference on Wednesday, Jewish, Muslim and Christian representatives from the organization that sponsored Moons coronation unapologetically defended the ceremony, its location, and Moons Messiah declaration.
"It was the spirit world that said he was the Messiah," said Archbishop George A. Stallings, Jr., pastor of an independent African-American Catholic congregation. Moon, founder of the Unification Church, was merely repeating the message, said Stallings.
The Interreligious and International Federation for World Peace, an organization founded by Moon and his wife, sponsored the March 23, 2004 ceremony where nearly 100 religious leaders received "Crown of Peace" awards and where Moon and his wife were honored as "King and Queen of Peace."
According to a recent Washington Post description of the event, more than a dozen lawmakers were there, and one of them - Rep. Danny Davis (D-Ill.) -- "wore white gloves and carried a pillow holding an ornate crown that was placed on Moons head."
Stallings, an organizer of the March 23 event, pointed out that the term Messiah is relative, and he said holding the ceremony in a U.S. Senate office building on Capitol Hill was meant to "elevate to a level of prominence" the achievements of award recipients.
"Every American citizen has a right to have access to any facility that is considered the property of the people of the United States of America, regardless of ones religious, political, racial or ethnic affiliation or association," Stallings said on Wednesday.
Members of Congress who attended Moons "coronation" are now trying to distance themselves from Moon - whose organization also owns the Washington Times newspaper.
At the event, Moon spoke of his communication with the "spirit world."
"The founders of five great religions and many other leaders in the spirit world, including even communist leaders such as Marx and Lenin ... and dictators such as Hitler and Stain, have found strength in my teachings, mended their ways and been reborn as new persons," said Moon at the ceremony.
Use of a Senate office building requires a senators approval. But organizers said they did not know which senator reserved the space for the ceremony, and they criticized the "witch hunt" that has occurred as journalists and constituents have questioned the relationships of congressmen to Moon and the Unification Church he founded.
"I experienced a miracle on March 23rd," said Rabbi Waldmann from Detroit, Mich., who blew the "shofar" or rams horn at the March 23 awards ceremony.
"I have never experienced Jews, Christians, and Muslims united in such a strong commitment to unity and peace. These people are simply coming together as brothers and sisters, breaking down the hatred and separation that is causing so much bloodshed. Rev. Moon is teaching about the one true God, the God of our common father Abraham, and causing his children to come together," Waldmann said.
At Wednesdays press conference, a representative read a statement from Moon, thanking the religious leaders who have stood by him.
[Source: Cybercast News Service]
[Editor's Note: Good grief, people! Bible-believing Christians would never be allowed to hold a major religious ceremony such as Moon's "coronation" in a Senate office building. And that is despite the claim that, "Every American citizen has a right to have access to any facility that is considered the property of the people of the United States of America, regardless of ones religious, political, racial or ethnic affiliation or association."
What is Rev. Moon really all about? Consider this: He has over 300 financial institutions all over the world including publishers, jewelers, and clothing stores. He owns two soccer teams, one of them in Brazil. He has purchased huge tracts of land along the Brazilian border with Paraguay, including an entire town on the Paraguayan side!
What does Rev. Moon believe & teach? Moon claims to be the messiah of the Second Coming and his wife is the Holy Spirit. He and his wife, called The True Parents where he is the True Father and his wife the True Mother, are the first couple to be able to bring forth children with no original sin. "The cross is the symbol of the defeat of Christianity." The Bible is considered scripture along with Moon’s work "Divine Principles." Sin is genetically based. It is not a moral issue. The thieves on the cross represent political movements. The thief on the right side of Jesus represents democracy. The thief on the left of Jesus is communism. Adam and Eve fell because of sexual sin. Eve had sexual relations with Satan. Jesus is a ‘true person’ though not God in flesh. The Holy Spirit is ‘the True Mother,’ or ‘the Second Eve." The church denies the doctrine of the Trinity.
Do you realize that the Bible speaks specifically about Rev. Moon? In 1 John 2:22-23 we read, "Who is a liar but he that denieth that Jesus is the Christ? He is antichrist, that denieth the Father and the Son. Whosoever denieth the Son, the same hath not the Father..." Rev. Moon and all others who deny that Jesus is Son of God are liars bound for an eternity in Hell. The politicians mentioned in the article above are being deceived and led astray by Satan, the true power behind Rev. Moon.
If you would like to read more about Rev. Moon, check out the Christian Apologetics & Research Ministry's full report on The Unification Church]
* This article may be freely reprinted provided it is used in its entirety without modification and includes the following sentence:
Article reprinted from Pryors of Paraguay [http://pryors.net/] - Gods Work in Gods Way! The Pryors are missionaries to Paraguay, South America who are purposed to pursue the Biblical plan for missions and prove that New Testament principles still work today.
Posted by David Pryor in In The News, Religion | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack
Jun 29, 2004
Paraguay Arrests Leader of Failed Coup
By Adam Thomson in Buenos Aires
Paraguayan security forces on Tuesday arrested Lino Oviedo after the popular former general and leader of a failed military coup returned to the country from exile.
Mr Oviedo, who has aspirations to lead the country, fled in 1999 to Brazil. He faces a 10-year prison sentence for staging an attempted military coup in 1996, which failed to overthrow Juan Carlos Wasmosys administration.
He is also accused of involvement in the assassination of Luis Mara Argana, the countrys then vice- president, in 1999, and of seven anti-Oviedo demonstrators in March of the same year.
Many believe Mr Oviedos decision to return marks the first step in a challenge to become president in 2008. "Oviedo is very ambitious," said a diplomat in Asunción yesterday. "He is certainly not coming back to tend his garden or write his memoirs."
Mr Oviedo insists the charges against him are the result of a political conspiracy. He told journalists recently that he intended to go back to his native country to clear his name and that he would go armed only with "a crucifix, a pencil and a small notebook. They have always helped me."
President Nicanor Duarte Frutos' administration, which took power less than a year ago, is taking Mr Oviedos return seriously. The general was expected to be escorted to a military prison 10km from the capital. From there it is thought he will be taken to Lagerenza, a remote military outpost close to the border with Bolivia, to make contact with his supporters more difficult.
Political analysts in Asunción yesterday agreed that Mr Oviedo continued to exert significant influence among Paraguays poor and mainly rural population.
"There is a widely-held view that 15 years of democracy have failed to improve peoples livelihoods," said Francisco Capli of First Analisis y Estudios.
"For many people, Oviedo represents the strong, authoritarian style of lead- ership that this country was so accustomed to in the past."
Indeed, with crime levels rising and with public concern centred on a recent wave of kidnappings, some believe that Mr Oviedo has timed his return to perfection.
Pablo Herken, an economist in Asunción, says the former military leaders arrival will undoubtedly be an important boost for Mr Oviedos Unace political movement, a branch of the ruling Colorado party. That, in turn, could prompt the opposition Liberal party to look to form an alliance as its only hope of obtaining power.
However, Mr Herken dismisses the idea that Mr Oviedos presence could jeopardise the current administration. "Paraguay is not Bolivia," he said. "There are important social pressures here but President Duarte Frutos commands high levels of popularity and it would be a mistake to see [Oviedos return] as a threat to stability."
[Source: Financial Times. Published: June 29 2004 22:17]
[Editor's Note: As Ive commented in past articles, this man is dangerous & warrants careful handling. Our President, Dr. Nicanor Duarte, once told me that immediately after Vice-President Arganas assassination, Duarte & his family were high on Oviedos "hit" list. As a result, his family had to go into hiding for awhile.]
* This article may be freely reprinted provided it is used in its entirety without modification and includes the following sentence:
Article reprinted from Pryors of Paraguay [http://pryors.net/] - Gods Work in Gods Way! The Pryors are missionaries to Paraguay, South America who are purposed to pursue the Biblical plan for missions and prove that New Testament principles still work today.
Posted by David Pryor in In The News, Paraguay | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack
Jun 03, 2004
Money Laundering by Arabs From Ciudad del Este Reported
from ABC Color on Thursday, June 03, 2004
An investigation by the Money Laundering Prevention Secretariat (Seprelad) has revealed that a group of merchants and businessmen from Ciudad del Este sent close to $50 million abroad without control from the Central Bank of Paraguay (BCP). All of those involved are of Arab origin.
Superintendent Prosecutor Juan Carlos Duarte has a concrete denunciation on the matter, but the prosecution case file is frozen.
The money laundering scheme on the border has another facet, in the sense that powerful businessmen and merchants of Arab origin are involved. This is what a Seprelad investigation revealed.
In a brief investigation, the agents of that state organism detected that a small group of businessmen and merchants had in just over a month sent $49.8 million outside the country irregularly. The information is being managed by the Seprelad with total secrecy.
A little over a month ago, the lawyer Simon Jara Sosa presented a concrete denunciation in the case. It was he who denounced Nassar Hichan Mohamad and his cousin Atef Ali Walav. The professional cites law 1015, which indicates that operations that have the rational characteristics of money laundering and are over $10,000 must be reported.
In his denunciation, the lawyer mentions the Seprelads investigations. "These operations, reported to that organism in the form of sworn statements, were not investigated and we believe that they could be covering up remittances sent to finance terrorism, using their companies or various fictitious people as a front to cover up this crime," says a section of the denunciation presented by Jara Sosa.
In another paragraph, the professional says that the denunciation that was presented to the Public Prosecutors Office is aimed at requesting an exhaustive investigation into these people for the punishable activities of smuggling, piracy, tax evasion, and money laundering.
Seprelad sources said that there was no indication that the dollars sent by the businessmen and merchants of the area were destined to financing supposed radical Islamic groups.
According to the information,the majority of the money comes from other illegal activities, such as smuggling and tax evasion. The millions of dollars are sent to tax havens and to the United States, according to the investigators.
In response to the information, the reference denunciation was sent to the prosecution unit in the charge of Superintendent Prosecutor Juan Carlos Duarte, who noticeably has not at all promoted a serious investigation into the case.
The representative from the Public Prosecutors Office also has another money laundering case that includes the clandestine money changers, in which, despite the evidence of illicit activity, the representative from the Public Prosecutors Office has not intervened.
[Source: Translated from the Paraguayan newspaper, ABC Color, by the Overseas Security Advisory Council (OSAC). Copyright 2004. All rights reserved.]
* This article may be freely reprinted provided it is used in its entirety without modification and includes the following sentence:
Article reprinted from Pryors of Paraguay [http://pryors.net/] - Gods Work in Gods Way! The Pryors are missionaries to Paraguay, South America who are purposed to pursue the Biblical plan for missions and prove that New Testament principles still work today.
Posted by David Pryor in In The News, Paraguay | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack
