Bolivia has now filed espionage charges against Vincent Cooper, a U.S. Embassy official who instructed Peace Corps volunteers and Fulbright scholar John Alexander van Schaick at mandatory orientation and security briefings “to provide the names, addresses and activities of any Venezuelan or Cuban doctors or field workers” they encountered.
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Van Schaick’s account matches that of Peace Corps members and staff who claim that last July their entire group of new volunteers was instructed by the same U.S. Embassy official in Bolivia to report on Cuban and Venezuelan nationals. […]
“I am supposed to be a cultural ambassador increasing mutual understanding between us and the Bolivian people,” van Schaick explains. “This flies in face of everything Fulbright stands for.”
The Fulbright program receives its funding from the U.S. State Department and the Peace Corps is a federal agency, but the State Department insists that neither group has the obligation to act in an intelligence capacity. In fact, both have strict regulations against members getting involved in politics in their host country.
Robert Naiman points out that Cooper tried recruiting the Peace Corps class back in July and the incident with van Schaick occurred in November.
Back in Dec Morales lashed out at the United States Embassy, questioning whether some of its development aid was being channeled to the political opposition. That was just months after Bolivia rejected a U.S.-backed free trade agreement and instead signed a pact with Cuba, Venezuela and Nicaragua (soon to be joined by Ecuador, Uruguay, the Dominican Republic, and St. Kitts) that has markedly heightened tensions between its members and the US and in recent weeks.
Democracy Now has more on this here and more on recent U.S. meddling in Bolivia here.
Filed Under: ABC, Foreign Policy, Intelligence Gathering, International Perspectives
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This was potentially putting these people at risk. Are we really that hard up for information?
My gut reaction before I turn to read the article?
OMG those b*sturds in D.C. have sunk so low that they would use the PEACE CORPS for espionage?
What does that do to the future of the PEACE CORPS?
I would think it would be made very unwelcome in the future in foreign lands and it would endanger those in the field trying to do good work.
Another nice move from this criminal administration.
When your asking peace activist type for intelligence of the enemy, then yes, you have to be very desperate.
Imagine the espionage Bush Co off pulls off with warrant less eavesdropping on their business competitors in this country.
I suppose it would be a bad idea to just say “Nuh uh” when “ordered” to do something like that, but I think it would be my gut reaction. How much do you get with a Fulbright, anyway?
Our government’s paranoia is reaching new levels of absurdity.
I just remember the movie “Spies like Us” and they were spies playing the part of the peace corp, when they launch into introducing themselves, “greetings! doctor, doctor, doctor, doctor, doctor, doctor, doctor, doctor, doctor,and doctor”
Is Cooper a Bush Co spook disguised as a Peace Worker?
Check this scumbag’s phone records and you’ll find Elliot Abrams cell number.
Bush & co. fucking up more goodwill opportunities for attempted political gain? Quelle surprise!! I’m sure Bush, Sr., a former ambassador, is rolling over in his grave…. oh, wait….
anyone familiar with the dastardly actions of the IMF/World bank, america, multinational corporations with in bolivia will quickly understand how despicable this bullshit is.
bolivia has been pissed on for centuries, and for the first time since pre-incan domination one of the indigenous bolivians, evo morales, runs the country. for decades the corporatocracy was able to rape bolivia, and now that they can’t they are trying to bring down the country.
the motto for the neoliberals (of which clinton is one) is that if corporations can’t control bolivia (or enter other “developing” nations here) no one will.
i wholeheartedly support bolivian actions in this matter.
I wonder how Jenna Bush’s peace mission to Paraguay went over.
“Hi, we’re going to be your new neighbors. We bring to you offering’s of peace. TV, cheap and abundant food, candy, deodorant, plumbing!”
Samson- @ 11:
Maybe Bolivia isn’t interested in a TV in every hut and a U.S. Oil Well in every rain forest.
Think they’ll televise his trial in Bolivia? Think the American media will broadcast it?
Open Veins of Lation America
read this, and more fully understand how white men have been bleeding latin america for CENTURIES
L.A. Confidential @ 13:
nor 30% of monthly income on privatized water…
Those miserable fucks. The one outreach of the United States that no administration ever despoiled and these shits just couldn’t leave it alone. A very dear friend of my daughter just started his training and is heading for Africa, now he’s at risk all because of these clueless pukes. I’m betting you can tell I’m pretty upset about this. We can not get rid of these guys quickly enough. Tell me again, why is impeachment off the table Reid and Pelosi?
This is why they hate us.
Chicken Little - NOT!! @ 17:
Because no doubt the Cons probably told them you mess with us and you’ll lose everything.
Why not destroy the Peace Corps? George W. Bush has been allowed to destroy every other government funded organization (i.e. FEMA, FDA, CIA, Bank Regulation Dept, FCC, Home Loan Regulation Dept., etc, etc, etc,) under the “watchful” eye of Nancy Pelosi and Harry Reid.
kerplunk @ 20:
The Beast will devour everything you can count on that.
L.A. Confidential @ 19:
Considering what these traitors have done to the Constitution and the rule of law already, what else do they have to threaten us with?
Bush and The Beastie Boyz in action.
I for one am surprised. NOT. Watch the film “The War On Democracy” and you will see all kinds of wonderful US gov’t facts.
biff diggerence @ 9:
True that.
kerplunk @ 20:
this IS how they are destroying the peace corps….
Chicken Little - NOT!! @ 22:
These guys are big on the idea of population control.
I shudder to think about it.
L.A. Confidential @ 19:
And apparently Reid and Pelosi don’t have the guts necessary to say “Bring it, biatch”
Unfortunately, what happened to Peace Corps is nothing new. Every intelligence agency from every nation uses every means possible to gather intelligence. If that means, using or planting a phony priest, college student, missionaries, teacher or what have you inside a group like Peace Corps then so be it. I do not think Morales is a stupid man. He knows full well that the CIA is capable of carrying out covert missions like this and so he took action. In fact, it is not out of the question that Morales’ intelligence agencies are and have been monitoring other foreign aid groups for some time now. They would be stupid not to.
America can’t wait for the Presidential Election and “hope” a Democrat will be elected.
Even if a Democrat is elected, chances are very high that the Nancy Pelosi, Harry Reid type of leadership will continue.
In the meantime America will be totally destroyed. Nancy “Off The Table” Pelosi should go down in history as the Benedict Arnold of her time.
Albatross @ 28:
Wasn’t JFK a Dem? What did he do to Cuba? What did Cuba ever do to the US?
Albatross @ 28:
Nope they aren’t going to risk the comforts and perks they have become accustomed to.
Reid and Peolsi are not Ghandi and Siddhartha.
Thank God for Amy Goodman and the sites like this. This kind of crap has been going on for years and the MSM is too lazy and beholden to corporate interests to bring it to light.
Could the internet be democracy’s salvation?
As a Returned Peace Corps Volunteer, I can attest to the great extent that Peace Corps goes to distance itself from the intelligence community, at least on the surface. There were always rumors of who in our group might be a spook, but that was all in good fun. Still, I had to work for months convincing my local community that I was there to help them rather then spy on them (mainly because on my first day in site I walk in wearing dark green army-looking carpenter pants…desmiado similar a la militar! Who knew?!).
I’m sure most of those new Volunteers laughed at Cooper and were no less pissed off at him. Nonetheless, the damage to PC Bolivia is done ,and Bolivian communities will now be very hesistant to allow new Volunteers into their villages. I don’t believe current Bolivia volunteers are in any imminent danger because most people around the world are just like us…they can spot bullshit when they see it. If they’ve got their community’s trust then they still have it. Still, bullshit coming from the U.S. scares people, makes them not want to be involved, for their own safety. Those people, the ones that need help the most, will therefore be the losers in this.
This isn’t the first time govt. officials have tried to use PC for intelligence (Bush’s cronies tried it before in 2002). But this is probably the most shamefully flagrant violation of American Goodwill.
It’s pretty damn noxious (not to mention pathetic if our real intelligence agencies are so bad that we need to have Peace Corps volunteers reporting on Venezuelan doctors), and I wouldn’t mind seeing this guy spend some time in a Bolivian jail for it, but it hardly measures up to espionage.
ConcernedCanuck @ 31:
They took back their casinos and resorts from the American mafia. The US government didn’t like that one bit.
goatsage @ 36:
LOL! Wasn’t there a US intelligence spy kicked out of Iraq pretending to be with the UN’s nuclear watchdog?
goatsage @ 33:
Only if the MFers can’t figure out a way to stifle it, and you know there’s a lot of evil brainpower being dedicated to figuring out how to do just that. Damn, I didn’t think I could get much more angry. Guess I was wrong.
ConcernedCanuck @ 31:
He told Russia and Cuba no nukes and won that one without loss of life but JFK’s real problems began when he started becoming a champion of Civil Rights and enemy of Corruption right here at home.
ConcernedCanuck @ 24:
adding to that, watch “Our Brand is Crisis” to get a better handle on just how american interests (in the guise of tad devine, james carville, bob shrum, etc. playing for the corporatocracy, the IMF and the world bank) attempted to, and succeeded for awhile, to undermine democracy in favor of corporate interests.
really, if anyone wants to understand the dangers of neoliberalism, the IMF, multinational corporations, monied interests, and the such read up on bolivia.
check out things like:
the tax war
the gas war
the water war in cochabamba
president sanchez de lozada (goni)
the bolivian miracle/mirage
the law of capitalization
war on drugs
goatsage @ 33:
This crap has been going on for century’s. As far as the internet it could be either a blessing or a curse.
We’ll find out soon enough.
Samson- @ 40:
I’ll check that one out. Succeeded for awhile? Um..they are winning…name one thing in the US that is not corporate controlled now? I would be hard pressed to name anything in my country either.
The good news is that many south and central american countries are empowering themselves against this type of imperialism.
It’s blowback on a continental scale.
Bush needs the peace corp because he has committed the bulk of our “diplomatic resources” to Iraq, Afghanistan, Pakistan, Gitmo, and black site rendition. The world is waking up. Neocolonial capitalism is on it’s way out. Good riddance. Spread the wealth. Don’t worry murkins. We’ll still have 30 brands of toilet paper to choose from. Only the top 0.5% of our population would have to make any significant adjustment (ie two homes instead of five). Small price to pay to raise the standard of living for the other 5.9999 billion people on the planet.
Capitalist credo: “I’ve got mine, so fuck you.”
L.A. Confidential @ 39:
I seem to recall the nukes in Cuba were in retaliation for US nukes in Europe, so again, I don’t see what Cuba ever did to have the US goliath try to squash it for how many years now?
Samson- @ 40:
Breaking ….
Nancy Pelosi expresses shock that Fulbright scholar John Alexander van Schaick would “snitch” on her beloved friend and President, George W. Bush and demands that van Schaick be sent to Guantanimo.
Midnight Rambler @ 35:
Agreed. It is noxious but it is done none the less. Our intelligence agencies may indeed be using to some degree actual Peace Corps volunteers as proxies but then again, Vincent Cooper may in fact be an undercover CIA agent posing as a Peace Corps volunteer. The charges stated against him obviously raised that suspicion in Bolivia’s counter intelligence agencies.