Here’s an English translation of a note I just dashed off to Roberto Pombo, director of Colombia’s most-circulated newspaper, El Tiempo. 

(Other than a conversation or two with lawyers, this is the last thing I want to do about this today—there are more important things to do. But I’m looking forward to pursuing this as far as it goes. Enough of this lying crap.)

Dear Dr. Pombo,

In his column today, Plinio Apuleyo Mendoza [prominent author and right-wing columnist] says the following about me:

While Col. Mejía is denied conditional liberty, Guzmán lives today in Maryland, where he was brought by Adam Isacson, a FARC-protecting lawyer.

It would be hard for you to publish something more false.

  • I’m not a lawyer.
  • I didn’t bring anyone to the United States. Edwin Guzmán’s lawyers asked me to serve as an expert witness in his asylum case. I wrote an affidavit and appeared before an immigration judge, working pro bono. And that’s it. I still believe that Edwin Guzmán acted with courage by denouncing the criminal acts of his boss, Col. Hernán Mejía (now in prison). For this act, he received strong threats.
    [Note: Guzmán accused Col. Mejía, one of Colombia’s most decorated army officers, of conspiring with paramilitaries to boost his unit’s body count. Here’s what I wrote about the case when the news broke in 2007.]
  • I haven’t had contact with anyone identifying him or herself as a FARC member since 1999 and 2001, when I participated in meetings, with the full knowledge of the Colombian government, to discuss the peace process that was active at that moment. On those occasions, I voiced many complaints and disagreements about issues like kidnapping, coca, and the need to respect international humanitarian law.

What is certain is: El Tiempo just published in its pages a piece tying a private citizen with a group on his country’s list of foreign terrorist organizations. And it did so without any effort to verify what was written. This is very serious.

I request a published rectification, done in a fast, clear, and prominent manner.

In both of our countries, we’re living through a special moment. In this moment, many participants in public life are slandering and libeling with impunity. You, as journalists, are frequent victims of this phenomenon. Whether it comes from Uribe or from Trump, it’s important to resist this wherever it appears. And for that reason, I’m prepared to bring this issue to its legal consequences if necessary.

Sincerely,

Adam Isacson