It has been a time of scandals and shake-ups, with a lot of people trying to show off for a variety of reasons, some very difficult to understand. For instance, there is the case of illegal wiretapping by Police Intelligence. We do not know the details of the information Defense Minister Santos received, or how reliable it might be, but the interpretation each politician gave to the media was based on his or her own interests.

We have maintained, for quite some time, that illegal wiretapping and surveillance are being used to undermine, for example, the prestige of Military Intelligence. The so-called false positive operations were orchestrated precisely with these kinds of procedures. The press paid attention, but when the operations were shown to have been genuine and carried out successfully by different units, the press said nothing.On this occasion, the wiretaps were far more numerous and conducted for different reasons, some pretty mysterious.

Naturally, we do not believe all the police generals who were forced into retirement had any part in these shady affairs. National Police Chief General Castro resigned because he took political responsibility, not because he was implicated.Eleven others left because custom dictates they do so when an officer with less service time is appointed: in this case, General Oscar Naranjo. At any rate, causing a shake-up of these proportions does not appear to have been a wise move. The mandatory changes that occur every year, and are necessary, create problems in terms of the continuity of efforts.And, the impact of this shake-up will be particularly traumatic. Placing officers who have less command experience in positions of great responsibility could undermine the ability of the police to do their job. We wonder if it was necessary. And, the fact that it is not known exactly who ordered and conducted the illegal wiretaps is extremely serious.

In this case, a fundamental question is in order, and could point to the masterminds. Who would benefit by discrediting Military Intelligence?Who would gain by discrediting the demobilization process with the AUC?Who is bent on discrediting Colombia in an attempt to block military aid and to torpedo the FTA?With these important matters still pending and on the eve of elections, who wants to destabilize the country?These are the kinds of questions Sherlock Holmes or Agatha Cristie would ask. You find a motive! And, as if that were not enough, there are the false witnesses: Rafael García and somebody by the name of Pitirri (Castillo), who is exiled in Canada. The magazine Semana has lent itself to just about anything, but its motive may be simply that of any other tabloid, which is to sell copies.Apart from the fact that it owes the country an explanation for so many half-truths and inexcusable errors, in this case, it might have been played for a fool.The question remains: who benefits from all this?I think we all know. It certainly is not the government.The opposition, both legal and illegal, is clearly the beneficiary

The other serious issue concerns the torrent of accusations made by “Mono” Mancuso, a high ranking leader of the demobilized illegal self-defense forces. The Attorney General’s Office will be bogged down for a century investigating all of them.Mancuso’s claims are not proof enough to convict anyone, politician or military officer. This raises another question:If some of Mancuso’s claims are false, and we doubt they are all true, what does he want? General Carreño’s response was clear and convincing.If he had met Mancuso, it was while he was stationed in Montería. However, that was before Salvatore Mancuso was a known criminal. General Carreño also reminded the public that he fought hard against the AUC in Urabá, which is true. As a matter of fact, he was criticized for spending more time combating self-defense forces than the FARC. Other officers will respond as well. However, if there is no additional evidence, it is just one person’s word against another’s, which is tantamount to nothing.The same will happen with businessmen, public officials and politicians.Defense Minister Juan Manuel Santos responded openly, reminding the country that he met with Castaño and other AUC commanders, as well as Raúl Reyes of the FARC and ELN representatives, within the scope of a peace initiative that included a number of prominent Colombians and international personalities (including former Spanish president Felipe Gonzalez).At the time, President Ernesto Samper saw the entire process as a conspiracy against his administration and deliberately prevented it from moving forward.Did it have a chance of success?Subsequent events indicate it did not, but that is an assessment after the fact. Were those meetings wrong? Shortly thereafter, when Pastrana was a candidate, didn’t he meet with Tiro Fijo for the same reason?And, if we want to go back even further, didn’t former President Lopez meet with drug traffickers in Panama to hear their proposal?

In the face of these scandals and shake-ups, it is important to be objective and to remember who is doing the talking. Mancuso is no angel, and the authenticity of the tapes has not been verified. The response from several “para” leaders, who refute the authenticity of the tapes, is believable.Strangely, Semana has not wanted to publish them for analysis.Prudence should be the watchword at this point in time.A witch hunt would harm the country and cause serious injustices.