Americans Held Hostage Day: 1966
2-13-03 - 7-2-08
Thank God and the Colombian Military - These Brave Heroes are Finally Free!
That's 1522 Days Longer than our Iranian Hostages Suffered in Captivity (11/4/79 - 1/20/81)
END OF FARC?
According to Colombia Reports on 8/3/08, "Colombia’s vice-President Francisco Santos said FARC commanders ‘Alfonso Cano’ and ‘Mono Jojoy’ are surrounded by Colombian security forces.
Santos said military forces have surrounded the two highest commanders of the rebel group. “We have all the leaders in sight and their hope for survival is slim,” he said.
The vice-president called upon the guerrillas to surrender and take part in a government-led reintegration process."
According to the Wall Street Journal on July 2, 2008 "Colombia's military said it has rescued 15 hostages, including former presidential candidate Ingrid Betancourt and three U.S. military contractors, from leftist rebels. Defense Minister Juan Manuel Santos made the announcement at a news conference in Bogota on Wednesday (7/2/08). Mr. Santos said the other 11 hostages freed were Colombian soldiers and police. Ms. Betancourt, Americans Marc Gonsalves, Thomas Howes and Keith Stansell, and the other hostages were taken to a military base. The Americans are now being flown to the U.S. from the base, Mr Santos said. Santos said the military intelligence agents infiltrated the guerrilla ranks and led the local commander in charge of the hostages, alias Cesar, to believe they were going to take them by helicopter to Alfonso Cano, the guerrillas' supreme leader. The hostages, who had been divided in three groups, were taken to a rallying point where two helicopters piloted by Colombian military agents were waiting. The helicopters took off with the hostages, Cesar and one other rebel, and those two "were neutralized" during the flight, Mr. Santos said. He also said Colombia had infiltrated the rebels' seven-man ruling secretariat, but did not elaborate."
Here's a letter I recieved the evening of 7/2/08 from a member of the US Military:

I saw your website and want you to know that during the course of their captivity there were many, many people in the U.S. intelligence field and U.S. Armed Forces, including myself, that worked tirelessly in the search for the 3 hostages in Colombia. I often showed the video of their "proof of life" from 2003 to my soldiers to remind them of who we were fighting for and the sacrifices and suffering that they and their families endured. I'm far from being a hero, but I did play a role in their search and I'm elated to know they are home safe now. In fact, I was so thrilled I took my family to a Colombian restaurant to celebrate their freedom.

Anyway, I read your site and just wanted you to know there are many people in the government that have cared and have worked hard to help them.
xxxxx

My response:
Hi xxxxx

I'm actually going to post your letter (of course without your name) and my response because you bring up some very valid points. I never meant to imply that there was not Americans or others who were hard at work to free the hostages. Whenever one decides to create such a website care must be taken not to intentionally insult any of the parties involved, including the hostages, their families, FARC, the US and Colombian governments or others. I certainly realize that there may have been operations, negotiations, etc that were going on that I of course was not privy to. When I was allowed to post my web site on certain military forums (some military forums would not allow me to link to my site, despite my passionate plea!), members would allude to the fact that things may be in the works but of course could not give details.

I was not trying to make this a political issue or embarrass the current administration (as the media has done in some cases). In fact the aid given to the Colombian government by the current administration has helped lead to the large decline currently seen in FARC. My only objective was trying to bring these men home and try to get the American public involved by notifying their elected officials and asking for a full accountability. I was trying to invoke an emotional but reasonable response by having Americans put themselves in the place of the hostages and their families so these men would not be forgotten.

The outcome that occurred on 7/2/08 was picture perfect, it did not involve loss of life, exchange of prisoners or payment to the leftists. You and your colleagues are the unsung heroes who tried to bring the hostages home, who emotionally felt the pain of these men and their families and for this I thank you. I never meant to take a slap at the military or the US government, I just wanted to bring these men home safely.

Take Care
Scott
This is the Story of Marc Gonsalves, Thomas Howes and Keith Stansell

Keith Stansell, Marc Gonsalves and Thomas Howes circa 6/03

Keith Stansell circa 1/07
Marc Gonsalves circa 1/07
Thomas Howes circa 1/07
Background Information:
On Febuary 13, 2003 a Pentagon-owned single engine Cessna carrying four American Department of Defense contractors (employed by Northrop Grumman) and one Colombian military intelligence officer crashed landed in southern Colombia when the plane's engine failed. On board the Cessna were two system analysts named Marc Gonsalves and Keith Stansell, as well as two pilots named Tom Janis and Thomas Howes. Almost as quicky as the plane had landed the group found themselves in the prescence of a narco-terrorist group known as FARC, the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia -- guerrillas with a violent history and a penchant for holding kidnap victims for years, and then, often, killing them. The American pilot, Tom Janis, and the Colombian military intelligence officer were led out and executed. The three surviving Americans, (Gonslaves, Stansell and Howes) were forced to marched with the guerrillas, deeper and deeper into the jungle. Howes said it ended up being a 24-day march on foot, on mule, and on the back of trucks. After this, the three Americans' exact location was lost by US intelligence. Three different Americans associated with Northrop Grumman did make an attempt to find the hostages by air shortly after 2/13/03 but were all killed when their plane hit a tree.
The Jorge Botero Interview:
In June 2003,  Colombian journalist Jorge Botero made the trek deep into the jungles to a steamy, wooden shack. Botero was escorted inside by a guerrilla commander, where he met the three Americans and recorded a tape to prove that they were alive and well – and ready to be traded for imprisoned members of the FARC Revolutionary Army being held by the Colombian government. A better summation with details can be found at the 60 minutes web site in an article called : The Forgotten Hostages, Contractors Captured in Colombia Tell Dan Rather their Story. In this interview, the three men gave a more descriptive account of what happened on 2/13/08, heartfelt messages for their family, and an urgent plea for our government to start meaningful negotiations for their release and avoid any type of military rescue. Interestingly, the guerrilla commander who escorted Botero turned out to be Mono Jojoy [Jorge Briceno], now FARC second in command.
November 30, 2007 Video:
During November 2007, Colombia's high commissioner for peace, Luis Carlos Restrepo, said that a video tape had been confiscated after the arrest of three suspected urban members of the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (Farc). The tape, which had no sound showed all three American hostages against a jungle backdrop. It also contained images of Ingrid Betancourt as well as Colombian hostages believed to be members of Colombia's security forces. Mr Restrepo said other evidence had also been seized, including some letters apparently written by the hostages. One was from Mr Howes to his wife and another, dated 26 November 2006, was his will. The date listed for the American's on the video was 1/07 and those images appear above.
Death of Raúl Reyes:
On March 1, 2008, the Colombian military attacked a FARC camp inside Ecuador’s territory, resulting in the death of over 20 people. Raúl Reyes was among the killed, along with at least 16 of his fellow guerrillas. Raúl Reyes was FARC’s international spokesman and considered to be FARC’s second-in-command. This was considered the biggest blow against FARC in its more than four decades of existence.
Death of Iván Ríos:
Iván Ríos was the Head of the Central Bloc of the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia and the youngest member of this guerrilla's Central High Command. Ríos was killed by his security chief on 3 March 2008 in a mountainous area of the western department of Caldas. Colombian military forces were involved in an operation to capture Ríos, when a FARC member named "Rojas", on 6 March 2008, delivered a severed right hand, a laptop computer and an ID to the troops."Rojas" claimed that they belonged to Ríos, whom he described as his boss. He claimed to have killed Ríos three days earlier. Fingerprint results proved that the hand did belong to Ríos, resulting in Colombian authorities going to recover the body.
Death of Manuel Marulanda Vélez:
FARC's co-founder and leading commander was Manuel Marulanda Vélez who died on March 26, 2008 after a heart attack. His death was kept a secret, until Colombian magazine, Revista Semana, published an interview with Colombian defense minister Juan Manuel Santos on May 24, 2008 in which Santos mentions the death of Manuel Marulanda Vélez. The news was confirmed by FARC-commander 'Timochenko' on Venezuelan based television station Telesur on May 25, 2008.
Recent Developements:
  • Emails found in the computers of Raul Reyes -- the No. 2 member of the FARC who was killed in a Colombian military strike on March 1 -- detail talks between Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez and the FARC to use the release of hostages to win the rebel group diplomatic recognition and force Colombian President Alvaro Uribe to halt his military offensive against the group. The only mention of the three Americans was "The three Americans would be there only if the (Americans) delivered Sonia and Simon [two FARC commanders serving prison terms in the U.S.]"
  • FARC Female Commander Nelly Ávila Moreno, alias "Karina" surrendered on 5/18/08 after 24 years in movement. Yet by negotiating her surrender under the government amnesty legislation known as the Peace and Justice Law, she can be sentenced to a maximum of eight years in prison.
  • On 6/8/08, Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez stated "The armed revolutionary has no place in modern Latin America. Catching his critics off guard, he called on the Marxist rebel army in neighbouring Colombia to lay down its arms and release its hostages, declaring that guerrilla armies are now "out of place".
    What You Can Do:
    If you are a United States citizen you can help bring these brave men home by contacting your Congressman and two Senators and tell them to contact their party leaders and the State Department to begin negotiations needed to free these men. Also contact President George W. Bush, Vice President Dick Cheney, Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice , House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid and tell them that you want a full accountability for these men and want to see them released.
    My Point of View:
    These men are former servicemen who served their country honorably and were lawfully employed as civilian workers within the confines of American and Colombian law. These men have been held captive for 1966 days and (along with their families) have endured tremendous pain and suffering. I am mindful and respectful of the U.S. government's official position of not negotiating with terrorists and I understand that by doing so may precipitate further acts of terror, but I feel that this case merits special circumstances.

    First, according to other pilots the risk of using single engine planes were putting all airborne civilian defense contractors at great and unwarrented risks. In the fall of 2002, two pilots who were also carrying out anti-drug aerial surveillance missions under Northrop Grumman's contract with the Pentagon wrote letters to company executives urging them to replace the single-engine Cessnas with twin-engine aircraft that would give the crews a backup motor in the event of a mechanical malfunction. "The failure to address these safety concerns will catch up to the company and could possibly result in loss of human life," read one of the letters penned by pilot Douglas Cocker. Two months later it did. On 2/13/03, the engine of the plane carrying Gonsalves, Howes and Stansell started making a strange whirring sound only minutes away from their destination. If the forementioned pilots' recommendations would have been heeded there is a great chance this would have never occurred. It should also be mentioned that the two engine policy was implemented shortly after the Americans were taken hostage.

    Second, even though the official U.S. policy is not to negotiate with terrorists, the US did deal with Islamic terrorists/extremists (either directly or indirectly) when dealing with the Iranian hostage crisis. I am not saying that this should not have been done as it is hard to see your loved ones and countrymen threatened and paraded in front of the cameras every night. I supported whatever means were necessary to bring the 52 Iranian hostages home. I just think that these men should be accorded the same efforts and considerations.

    Third, even though these men were functioning as civilian defense contractors they were working very closely with the Colombian military doing dangerous work to help combat this nation's "War on Drugs". This should escalate their status from civilian employees closer to active military being forcibly detained against their will. Their entire reason for being in Colombia was to advance the United States' position of controlling the flow of narcotics into the United States. For this country to place the rescue of these men at such a low priority is morally and ethically wrong and must not continue.

    Remember these men have loved ones here in the United States that are desperate to see them again. Please help these families by contacting your elected officials so these men can come home soon. Express to your elected officials that negotiations must be started or elevated in priority, either directly or through a third party. As stated above, email records before the death of Manuel Marulanda Vélez, Raúl Reyes and Iván Ríos suggest that FARC may be agreeable to a prisoner exchange. Of course a lot has changed in the past four months. If Hugo Chavez is sincere about FARC "laying down its arms and releasing all its hostages" and if FARC acquiesces changes may occur rapidly with the hostages being released without conditions.  

    Another thing I stumbled across on the State Department Web Site dated February 11, 2005 was the following:

    "The State Department’s Rewards for Justice campaign offers as much as $5 million for information leading to the apprehension or conviction of anyone involved in kidnapping of Marc Gonsalves, Thomas Howes, and Keith Stansell, or the murder of Thomas Janis. Acting on information gained from Rewards for Justice, the Colombian government captured a senior member of the terrorist group holding the three Americans. In addition to Rewards for Justice, the Department of Defense is offering about $340,000 and the possibility of a U.S. visa to anyone offering information leading to the successful resolution of the hostage situation."

    I assume the senior member of the terrorist group is Ricardo Palmera, better known as Simon Trinidad who was extradited to the United States and was sentenced to 60 years in prison without the possibility of parole.
    Another interesting aside involves the death of Ivan Rios. Like Simon Trinidad, Rios had a $5 million bounty for his capture. This prompted his own security chief to kill him and subsequently collect this bounty. Given these recent examples I think it very plausible to expect the safe return of these men if the $340,000 reward was increased 30 fold with amnesty to anyone who can deliver these men unharmed to US or Colombian authorities.
    Miscellaneous:
    a. The views expressed here are my own and may or may not reflect the views of Marc Gonsalves, Thomas Howes, Keith Stansill, their families, FARC, the U.S. government, the Colombian government, or any other entity.
    b. I am not associated with in any shape or form Marc Gonsalves, Thomas Howes, Keith Stansill, their families, FARC, the U.S. government, the Colombian government, or any other entity.
    c. The only purpose of this web site is too draw attention to these brave men and get them released as quickly as possible.
    d. Please email Scott Pace MD for any questions, comments, complaints, corrections, etc.
    e. If you are a Web Designer please link to this page or add hostage information to your page.
    f. If you are not a Web Designer but would like to create a Hostage Support Site then email me and I will send you step by step directions.
    g. Please do not forget Marc Gonsalves, Thomas Howes or Keith Stansill!

    Links:
    www.marc-gonsalves.com
    Number of Visitors Since 6/16/2008: 3261