We have thought about writing a report on American PSYOP teams in South America
for years. To be honest, the Special Forces keep rather quiet about what they are doing
down there. There have been numerous articles in the military literature about Honduras
and Guatemala because of the insurgent wars fought in those nations, but not much has been
written about the other countries where the United States is heavily involved in
humanitarian projects. Much of the battlefield data comes from the magazines Special
Warfare and Veritas and I owe them both a debt of gratitude We don’t see a
lot of publicity articles in the military newspapers and we rarely see any product
(Posters, leaflets, etc.), produced and disseminated by American troops south of the
border. We have never had sufficient images to make an article worthwhile.
In 2010, I visited Ft. Bragg, North Carolina, the home of the 4th PSYOP Group
to do an interview. While there I got to visit several units and was able to actually
obtain a few modern leaflets that were being used in South America at the time. With the
addition of these few leaflets I thought that there might be enough to write a short, very
general article on the subject. We will briefly mention several nations where the United
States has been invited to help support the local governments. This is another of those
articles where we ask the reader to send in comments, anecdotes, and of course more
leaflets. The readers always become a major part of any story I write when they contact me
to say, “I was there and I brought back a leaflet.” Let us hear from you so we
can give proper credit to the troops that have suffered in the heat and the humidity in an
attempt to help those nations with various projects like health, mine-clearing, drug
interdiction and defeating insurgency and terrorism.
8th PSYOP Group Insignia
The U.S. Army regularly makes changes to make their forces more
efficient and better able to complete their missions. The name itself has been changed
from “Propaganda” to “PSYWAR” to “PSYOP” and most recently
“Military Information Support Operations.” For the purposes of this article we
will use the term PSYOP. The official mission of the 8th Psychological Operations Group
(Airborne) is to deploy anywhere in the world on short notice to plan, develop and conduct
psychological operations and Civil Affairs in support of coalition forces and Washington's
government agencies. Battalions within the group have been given different tasks and areas
of operation. The personnel of the 8th Group include regional experts and linguists who
have a profound understanding of the political, cultural, ethnic, and religious subtleties
of the target audience. They are also experts in technical areas such as journalism, radio
operations, graphic design, newspaper business, illustration, and long-range tactical
communications.
The subordinate unit of the Group assigned the responsibility of South America is
the 1st PSYOP Battalion (Southern Command). Each PSYOP Battalion can support a
corps. Within the PSYOP battalions are Tactical PSYOP Companies (TPC), each of which can
support a division. The Companies are made up of Tactical PSYOP Detachments (TPD), each of
which can support a brigade. The detachments can be broken up into Tactical PSYOP Teams
(TPT), each of which can support a battalion.
[Note: Prior to August 26, 2011, the 1st PSYOP Battalion (A) was a subordinate
unit of the 4th PSYOP GROUP (A).]
Insignia of the 1st PSYOP Battalion
The 1st Psychological Operations Battalion has regional responsibility for
Latin America; the southern hemisphere covered by Southern Command as well the region
covered by Atlantic Command. The Battalion produces and disseminates written propaganda.
It also has the ability to operate in the radio broadcast field. Their motto is
“First with the Finest.” Although none of the items we will mention are marked,
there is an assumption that they were disseminated by members of the 1st Psychological
Operations Battalion.
William Yaworsky mentions the 1st PSYOP Battalion in his article: “Like
Cassandra, I Speak the Truth: US Army Psychological Operations in Latin America,
1987–89.” He says in part:
The 1st PSYOP Battalion had a Forward Support Detachment consisting of 32
soldiers stationed in Panama. Alpha Company of the 1st PSYOP Battalion was subdivided into
a Strategic Studies Detachment (SSD); a Propaganda Development Center (PDC); a Printing
Press unit; and a tactical Operations Detachment (OpDet). I served for a time in all Alpha
Company units except the print plant. The SSD, staffed by approximately 50 soldiers,
conducted long-term studies of sensitive foreign countries and deployed primarily to El
Salvador to assist the PSYOP effort during that nation’s civil war. With about 40
soldiers, the PDC largely operated in Honduras, trying to influence both Honduran
attitudes and nearby events in Nicaragua. The PDC also collaborated in developing
propaganda with the Peruvian Armed Forces, although this work was largely undertaken at
Fort Bragg itself. By the late 1980s, the battalion was operating in El Salvador,
Honduras, Peru and Panama, countries sharing similar histories of military interference in
civilian affairs and human rights abuses.
The general concept of American PSYOP in Latin and South America is mentioned in U.S.
Special Operations Forces – 1996 Posture Statement. It says in part:
Civil Affairs and Psychological Operations in support of the U.S. Southern
Command’s area of responsibility are extensive and dynamic. CA forces participate in
a de-mining program in Honduras and counter-drug programs in several central and South
American countries.
PSYOP forces conduct foreign internal defense training and joint/combined
exercises, supporting humanitarian assistance exercises, and conducting combat and
peacetime engagement operation. PSYOP units have routinely provided five PSYOP teams, one
each for Colombia, Guatemala, Venezuela, Bolivia and Equator PSYOP personnel also provide
de-mining help for Honduras, as well as humanitarian support throughout the region. PSYOP
forces support counter-drug operations theater-wide by distributing information designed
to discourage illegal drug use and trafficking.
PSYOP PRODUCTS FOR LATIN AMERICA
This exhibit produced by the U.S. Army’s 1st PSYOP Battalion to display their
products depicts leaflets, posters, books, newspapers, magazines, records, calendars,
cups, backpacks, book bags, shopping bags, T-shirts and other items. The nations targeted
in this display are Guatemala, El Salvador, Ecuador, Colombia, Peru and Bolivia. Some of
the themes are eradication and interdiction of drugs, development of other crops,
humanitarian mine assistance, nation building, and human rights.
The entire Southern Command area of responsibility includes the landmass of Latin
America south of Mexico; the waters adjacent to Central and South America; the Caribbean
Sea, its 12 island nations and European territories; the Gulf of Mexico; and a portion of
the Atlantic Ocean. It encompasses 32 countries (19 in Central and South America and 12 in
the Caribbean) and covers about 15.6 million square miles.
Looking through some of my old data I find that SOUTHCOM held training exercises in
the year 2002 in Panama, Honduras, Guatemala, Argentina, Nicaragua and Chile. This shows
the extent of the American interest in Latin America. Additional data states that the
following terrorist organizations were closely watched by the Americans: the Revolutionary
Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC); the National Liberation Army (ELN); the United
Self-Defense Forces of Colombia (AUC); the Shining Path (Sendero Luminoso) and the Tupac
Amaru Revolutionary Movement (MRTA).
The above terrorist groups were known to use the following techniques: extortion;
kidnapping; hijacking; infrastructure sabotage; bombing; intimidation; use of narcotics
trafficking to fund other terrorist acts and assassinations and massacres.
Veritas volume 4, number 4, 2008 points out how the United States found
itself involved in Latin America and lists the wars of national liberation being fought at
that time; El Salvador, Argentina, Colombia, Bolivia, Venezuela, Chile, Guatemala and
Peru.
Some of the major missions facing the PSYOP teams in Latin America are:
COUNTERDRUG
Two Decades…
The above poster depicts Colombian forces in a poppy field. In the background an
aircraft sprays poison on the poppies. Hopefully it is not Agent Orange. The text is:
Support the Eradication
Two decades engaged in the national fight against drug trafficking
For a country free of drugs
Counterdrug operations support detection, interdiction, disruption, or reduction of
any activity that supports illicit drug trafficking. These activities include, but are not
limited to decision making and actions, applicable materiel, weapons, and resources used
to finance, support, secure, cultivate, process, and transport illegal drugs. To U.S.
diplomats in Central and South America and the Caribbean, PSYOP is an effective tool in
drug interdiction and eradication. In Colombia, PSYOP troops have worked against
terrorist, narcotic trafficking groups and insurgents. They have planned and enacted
information campaigns in Peru and Paraguay.
Anti-Drug Propaganda T-Shirt
It was not only leaflets and posters printed by the U.S. Army. Here a Colombian
wears a gift T-Shirt with the anti-drug propaganda motto:
We protect our country and our family. Say no to drugs
Looking for Drugs in Bolivia
Sergeant Tim Wallace of the 1st PSYOP Battalion was sent to Bolivia in 1989 to work
on counter-drug propaganda. He told me:
I was sent out to film illegal coca fields to bring back to the unit to be used
in future products. I spent most of the trip flying around in a Blackhawk helicopter flown
by Bolivian pilots looking for illegal coca crops to film from the air and the ground.
Later I found out that someone had snapped our photos while we had lunch with our Bolivian
pilots at an airport. They were later published in the local news service in Bolivia where
we were described as DEA agents. I heard that the bosses back at Ft. Bragg were not too
pleased by that.
Historian Philip M. Taylor said in an article entitled “Psychological Operations
in the 1990s:”
PSYOP Military Information Support Teams (MISTs) were deployed to Barbados, St.
Lucia and Grenada to work with local committees to develop drug awareness campaigns; media
ranging from bumper stickers to television commercials were used as part of the fight
against narco-terrorism. In Bolivia, the Dominican Republic, Guatemala and Jamaica, other
MISTs were deployed to work alongside anti-drugs campaigners directed at schoolchildren
using coloring books, videos and other media. In Bolivia, they were said to have helped to
decrease the numbers of hectares that were used to cultivate coca. In Belize, cholera
prevention materials were supplied, and in Venezuela, PSYOP personnel developed
information campaigns supporting "democratization, professionalization of the
military, civil-military relations, and counter-drug operations.
An Anti-Drug Comic Book for Venezuela
The Adventures of PeteJ
Captain Evan Phelps was a PSYOP officer at Ft. Bragg in the mid-1990s before the Cesar
Chavez took power in Venezuela and destroyed the nation with his Communist ideology. As
the commander of a Military Information Support Team (MIST) in Venezuela, Phelps helped
produce an anti-drug comic book using local printers. His team principally consisted of
Sergeant First Class Brad King and Staff Sergeant Fred Marble. The propaganda comic was
prepared in an attempt to slow or stop the transportation of drugs and the use of human
“mules.” The team worked with the Civil Defense Police within the Ministry of
Justice. The comic book was published and disseminated and was a great success.
In the comic, young PeteJ graduates from the police academy, and soon meets a young
girl named Rose. She is tempted by a dope pusher and succumbs to his urging that she
swallow rubber capsules filled with drugs to smuggle them inside her stomach. She is next
seen at an airport about to smuggle the drugs into Miami. There are drug-sniffing dogs in
the airport and her pusher sees them and flees, leaving Rose to her fate. She panics and
suddenly one or more of the rubber capsules breaks open in her stomach causing her death.
PeteJ attends her funeral and vows to get justice for Rose.
The pusher is next seen selling drugs to children, which threatens the youth of the
country. Peter is assigned to the case and watches the movements of the pusher. The drug
boss shows up at the pusher's home and the police raid the place. A heroic policeman in
full uniform tells the reader that drugs can be eliminated and there is a phone number to
be called by a citizen that wants to help law enforcement. The drug boss tries to shoot it
out and is killed. The pusher suddenly sees the errors of his ways. He weeps as he is
arrested. We are told that a new comic adventure is coming and the last few panels feature
patriotic images and anti-drug comments.
Anti-Drug Coloring Books for the Venezuelan National Guard
Miguelito, Norita and their friends
Captain Phelps told me the MIST team also helped Venezuela in the production of
patriotic and nation-building coloring books. The two books we depict feature typical
school boy Miguelito and his friend Norita. They were designed to promote the
children’s esteem in their society. There were so many various police forces that the
competition between them was fierce and the Guardia Nacional de Venezuela was always eager
to keep their place at the top as the friend to all Venezuelans. In the comic above, the
two children play various sports in school and are happy. They are approached by a drug
dealer but instead of sampling his wares they go home and tell their parents. The pusher
is arrested, and the children live happily ever after in a drug free environment.
The Children meet a Drug Dealer and immediately run away from him.
They are healthy children and do not consume drugs.
Miguelito and Norita have been taught that drugs harm their health.
Phelps told
me:
I have
attached two scans of our book. The first is a draft that was intended for
the National Guard in furtherance of our CD mission which, in Venezuela,
largely focused on the transshipment of drugs by human mules. After
expressing initial interest, the National Guard balked at the idea and
seemed to only want us to provide them with branded school supplies that
served more of their own purpose than ours. Despite this reaction, we saw
value in the product and found a willing ally in the CD police within the
Ministry of Justice (PETEJ). As you can see in the second version, the
details of the story had to be altered to better appeal to the sensibilities
and egos in the Ministry of Justice although the underlying messaging
remained largely untouched.
You may be
aware that the comic “Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles” was described by the
authors as a product of an evening filled with beer and pizza. If so, it
will not surprise you that the creation of our storyline largely paralleled
this creative method and large quantities of Polar beer were consumed in the
process as I, Sergeant First Class Brad King, and Staff Sergeant Fred Marble
hammered out the messaging in little more than an evening.
The program
was largely considered a success and the uptick in favor of the PETEJ
brought the National Guard back to our table. All such efforts, however,
ended when Chaves was released from prison and the Venezuelan society began
its process of socialist self-destruction.
HUMANITARIAN MINE ACTION
PSYOP soldiers handing out mine awareness materials
Humanitarian mine action consists of activities to reduce the social, economic, and
environmental impact of land mines, unexploded ordnance, and small-arms ammunition,
sometimes called “explosive remnants of war.” When approved by the Secretary of
Defense, the PSYOP teams plan, coordinate, and execute humanitarian mine action programs.
These programs include training the Host Nation in land mine clearance procedures,
providing mine awareness education and victims’ assistance, and assisting in building
a Host Nation capacity to sustain the programs after U.S. withdrawal. To U.S. diplomats in
Central and South America it is an educational vehicle to publicize landmine awareness in
schools and villages.
PEACE OPERATIONS
Military operations that support diplomatic efforts to reach a long-term political
settlement are categorized as peacekeeping operations and peace enforcement operations.
Peacekeeping operations are military operations undertaken with the consent of all major
parties of a dispute; they are designed to monitor and facilitate implementation of an
agreement (cease fire, truce, or other such agreement) and support diplomatic efforts to
reach a long-term political settlement. Peace enforcement operations are the application
of military force or the threat of its use, normally pursuant to international
authorization, to compel compliance with resolutions or sanctions designed to maintain or
restore peace and order.
FM 3-07.31, Peace Operations: Multi-service Tactics, Techniques, and Procedures
for Conducting Peace Operations, provides additional information on peacekeeping
operations:
During peace operations, military information forces are employed to create the
conditions for diplomatic, economic, and humanitarian efforts to succeed and to transition
the United States Government out of involvement. Multiple types of peace operations can
occur simultaneously within an operational area.
PSYOP forces support peace operations by informing local populations about the
availability of essential health and welfare services; Educating local populaces about
peacekeeping agreements and the intent of operations; Influencing local populaces to
cooperate with U.S. efforts to suppress anti-peace groups and their destabilizing actions;
Directing the populace’s compliance with security measures and safety programs;
influencing favorable attitudes toward U.S. policies among relevant groups; communicating
humanitarian efforts such as medical and veterinary aid, construction, and public
facilities activities to garner support for U.S. efforts.
VITAL MEDICAL SERVICES
Free Healthcare Events
For a Happy and Healthy
Belize
The poster and leaflet above were prepared for the Beyond the Horizon operation
in Belize by the 344th Tactical PSYOP Company (Airborne), in support of Army South's TF
Jaguar during summer 2017. The 344th is part of 17th Psychological Operations Battalion,
regionally aligned with Latin America, so it supports Army South's BTH mission annually.
Notice that the products are in English. Belize is mostly English speaking, so although
Spanish versions were printed, English was the primary language the PSYOP Company
disseminated. The blank fields were for us to mark in the dates, since they were often
changed at the last minute.
Operation “Beyond the Horizon” (BTH) is an annual exercise deploying regular
Army, National Guard and Reserve Soldiers for two-week rotations to work with the Belize
Defence Force and civic agencies, bringing vital services and resources to rural
communities. BTH is part of U.S. Army South and U.S. Southern Command's humanitarian and
civic assistance program.
Army South has planned and conducted BTHs since 2008 in the Dominican Republic,
Guatemala, Honduras and El Salvador. U.S. personnel from the Army Reserve, National Guard
and active-duty forces construct schools and clinics and provide medical, dental and
veterinarian support.
During the exercise, a total of nearly 1,800 U.S. service personnel representing Army,
Air Force and Marines deploy to Belize. Medical services include routine checkups,
immunizations, and eye exams, in addition to other types of medical care. The United
States, in cooperation with the government of Belize, has coordinated for the completion
of five engineering projects (three medical clinics, a three-room school as well as
barracks and facility improvements).
COUNTER-TERRORISM
Counter-terrorism operations are actions taken directly against terrorist
networks, and indirectly to influence and render global and regional environments
inhospitable to terrorist networks. Counter-terrorism operations are the offensive
component of programs established by the United States Government and friendly nations
designed to preempt the actions of violent extremist organizations. PSYOP activities
include influencing local populaces to decrease support for violent extremist
organizations, and to provide time-sensitive, actionable information to target violent
extremist organizations
COUNTER-INSURGENCY
Guerrilla…
This leaflet to the guerrillas in the field depicts a young daughter at the left, a
photograph of a happy family and a note. The text is:
Guerrilla, your family misses you.
“Poppa, Come back home and bring joy and brighten my life
again...”
Come home and make a better life for your family
The back of the leaflet depicts the same photograph in color and a child’s
happy drawing of “My Family.” The text is:
Go back and live a decent life with your family.
Demobilize now.
Counterinsurgency operations are comprehensive civilian and military efforts taken
to defeat an insurgency and to address any core grievances. An insurgency is an internal
threat that uses subversion and violence to achieve political objectives. Insurgents
usually benefit from solicited and unsolicited support from state and non-state actors,
including international terrorist organizations that seek to capitalize on such
opportunities. A comprehensive and concerted civilian and military effort is required to
defeat an insurgency, and to redress the basis for the dissent. Generally, when insurgent
movements receive significant external support, they pose an insurmountable threat, often
greater than the affected nation’s ability to defeat it independently.
There is a theory that counter-insurgency in Latin America saved the Special Forces.
Their numbers in Vietnam had declined from 13,000 to only 3,000 between 1969 and 1980.
With the rise of Communist and insurgent activity in Latin America, there was a need for a
trained elite force to help local nations resist and remain independent.rom 1980-1987 U.S.
Special Forces helped fight seven small brushfire wars in South America.
There may be some truth to this theory since an article in the October, 1993 issue
of Special Warfare states in regard to U.S. military aid to El Salvador in the
early 1980s:
We should have weighted the development of national PSYOP and Civil Affairs
campaigns much heavier in our initial concept. But there were no PSYOP or Civil Affairs
units on active duty, the restructuring from Vietnam had virtually wiped them out.
Some Examples of both the military and humanitarian action are:
BOLIVIA
Che Guevara
The American presence in Bolivia is most remembered by the death of Che Guevara in
that country by Bolivian Rangers trained by the American Special Forces. Guevara is
revered by the Left who consider him a great charismatic leader and collect his images on
posters and T-shirts. In fact, he was a poor leader, operated without much military logic
and was never able to revolutionize the peasants and form a local army. He had failed in
Guatemala, been quietly invited to leave Cuba by Castro when he insulted the USSR, failed
in Argentina, and again in the Republic of the Congo where he called his
communist-supported troops “lazy and undisciplined.”
The first American advisors were sent to Bolivia in 1967 tasked with the job of
training a 650-man Ranger Battalion. This was exactly what Che Guevara wanted. He believed
that the entrance of American forces would revolutionize the peasants and he envisioned
another Vietnam in Latin America. Unfortunately for him, he got exactly what he wanted.
The Americans worked hard to gain the support of the people and besides the military
training to the Ranger Battalion they took part in what we would now call civil affair
actions, with medical treatment and lessons on sanitation and health. They initially did
three MEDCAPs in Las Cruces and three in Los Chacos at the invitation of the Peace Corps.
They also helped the native people keep their land when it was about to be sold to
Japanese and Okinawan investors. Finally, they built a new school in Esperanza. These were
not “ugly” Americans.
By September 1967, Che’s small band of revolutionaries had fought the Bolivian
Army a number of times; taking losses in every battle and being slowly pushed back further
and further into the hills. His civilian support group in La Paz had also been arrested.
He was on his own with little food, ammunition, medicine and no way to communicate with
Cuba. On 8 October 1967, Che and his remaining fighters were trapped and captured in the
Churo Canyon. The following morning Che was executed on the orders of the President of
Bolivia. Che Guevara wanted a war and he got one. He thought that the Bolivians had the
weakest army in Latin America but with the training of the U.S. Special Forces, their
Ranger battalion became a fine aggressive military organization that could win battles on
their own.
COLOMBIA
As early as 2001, the U.S was sending Regional Information Support Teams
(RIST) and Military Information Support Teams (MIST) to Colombia. The term
“RIST” or “MIST” is used because it is more palatable than
psychological operations (PSYOP) to the governments and public of Latin America. The
number one mission of RIST Colombia is support to the Andean Ridge Initiative. The RIST is
the United States Southern Command’s number one priority in the drug war. In Bolivia,
the 4th PSYOP Group maintains permanent MISTs that coordinate their PSYOP programs with
the RIST in Colombia. In addition, temporary MISTs deploy for shorter duration to
Venezuela, Ecuador, Guatemala, El Salvador, the Bahamas, and the Dominican Republic. The
majority of peacetime PSYOP missions in the Southern Command are funded with counterdrug
money, but PSYOP also support a humanitarian demining mission each quarter. In 2001, there
were up to 14 soldiers for RIST manning at the United States Embassy in Bogota, Colombia,
but they produced as many products as the joint PSYOP task force in Sarajevo, which has 43
personnel. RIST Colombia’s main support effort is eradication, interdiction, and
institution building.
The nation-building leaflet depicts a number of Colombian soldiers setting up an
observation post on a hilltop while helicopters fly overhead. The text is:
Serving his people
The indigenous people and the Colombian Army united!
A Colombian Special Forces Morale Poster
This Special Forces poster was a morale booster. The regions where that poster was
distributed were the regions that there was minimal military presence. The populace in
certain regions was reluctant to report FARC activity because of the consequences sure to
follow. The Colombian military wanted to bring awareness to the people in those regions by
saying something like “We have an elite force that is fighting to keep our country
safe against those who terrorize.” It was hoped that this would build the confidence
of the people in their government.
A brief note about terrorism in Colombia. Special Warfare, Volume 31, Issue 3,
2018, discussed Colombia in depth. I add its description of the Colombian problem:
FARC: The Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia was a Marxist Leninist insurgent
group in Colombia from 1964 until 2016 when it signed a peace accord with the Colombian
Government. At the height of its strength in the 2000s, the FARC claimed to have some
18,000 men and women. Since the signing of the accord, the FARC has renounced violence and
handed over its weapons to the government and UN verification observers.
ELN: The National Liberation Army is a Marxist insurgent group that advocates a
composite ideology of Marxism and liberation theology. The ELN began its campaign in 1964
and despite a series of efforts to negotiate peace; the attempts have yet to result in
serious discussions. Colombia and the ELN are attempting to revive talks that failed in
early January 2018 following the termination of a three-month old bilateral ceasefire.
It was reported that the U.S. Army's 8th Psychological Operations Group regularly
worked in operations against the Colombian insurgent army FARC.The Colombian army took the
lead in the national response to the decades-old insurgency of the Fuerzas Armadas Revolucionarias
de Colombia, or FARC. The Insurgents plan was to create a revolutionary army capable
of taking on the security forces. To fund this endeavor and to gain manpower, FARC
exploited the narcotics trade. It taxed all facets of the drug trade. By protecting and
controlling production areas, it not only secured its income but recruited from the
peasants. The goal was the creation of a 28,000-man army divided into 48 guerrilla fronts.
Since FARC used cocaine to build an army, perhaps we should briefly look at the cocaine
trade.
Cocaine is produced from the cultivation and processing of the South American coca
plant. The coca plant is cultivated only in South America, with the major suppliers being
Colombia, Bolivia and Peru. Despite massive efforts by the United States Government and
local law enforcement and paramilitary organizations that have resulted in the seizure and
destruction of over 46% of the world’s cocaine supply, the market for this drug
continues to flourish. Historically, cocaine has followed the well-established trafficking
routes through Central America, then Mexico and then into the US.
Captured American contractors
Three U.S. contractors were captured during an anti-drug operation in 2003 and have
been held by FARC until 2008. The leaflet above depicts Keith D. Stansell, Thomas H. Howes
and Marc D. Gonsalves. The leaflet gives the phone numbers to call if any individual has
information about the three. Some of the text is:
Their families and friends are seeking information that would allow the rescue of
these people. They depend on you for their freedom.
Do you know where they are?
The three captives after their rescue: Keith Stansell, Marc Gonsalves and Thomas Howes.
All worked for Northrop Grumman and were captured in 2003 by FARC rebels after their light
aircraft crashed in the jungles during a counter-narcotics operation. They were freed on
July 3, 2008 during Operation Jaque, a daring operation that involved months of
intelligence gathering and a ruse in which the guerrillas were tricked into loading their
captives onto a disguised government helicopter. The three wrote a book about their ordeal
called: Out of Captivity: Surviving 1,967 Days in the Colombian Jungle.
It appears that PSYOP helped rescue the three U.S. contractors mentioned
above. The Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) held three defense contract
employees captive for more than five years. The tip lines promoted by PSYOP Soldiers
furnished actionable intelligence that facilitated the rescue. Once their ordeal was over,
all three former hostages recounted how the leaflets and messages that PSYOP Soldiers
produced kept their hopes up. PSYOP also played a significant role when a top FARC rebel
commander, Jorge Briceno (better known as Mono Jojoy), was killed in a Colombian military
raid in September 2010. This operation, supported by PSYOP, was a particularly severe blow
to Latin America's oldest and most formidable guerrilla insurgency.
Another Leaflet in Regard to the Three Hostages
This leaflet depicts the three on one side with various telephone numbers that can be
called and the text in part:
Speak up and claim up to 10,000 million pesos. Colombians, give information on the
location of the three American hostages kidnapped by FARC and receive this million peso
cash reward.
The back of the leaflet depicts three men with their hands tied and a chain
representing their captive situation being broken. Once again, various phone numbers at
the bottom of the leaflet. The text says in part:
Free Colombia from the chain of kidnapping
Four years ago these men were kidnapped. At present they are being held in captivity
away from their families and their freedom. Colombians, break your silence and help to
find them and the thousands of Colombians who are also in the same situation. We are
waiting for your call.
This leaflet was sent to us by Technical Sergeant Michael C. Bernhardt who worked in
the Air Force Special Operations Command in the 919th Special Operations Wing and the
711th Special Operations Squadron for 17 of his 23 years’ service. His crew at Duke
Field, Elgin Air Force Base, had been alerted to support a mission to drop the leaflets,
and they were standby to possibly pick up the hostages if released. The hostages were
rescued early and the mission was aborted.
Veritas, Volume 2, Number 4, 2006 mentions the drug trade in Colombia:
In 1987, the United States launched Operation SNOWCAP…A coordinated
12-country effort to disrupt the growing, processing and transportation systems supporting
the cocaine industry…The drug trade has a terrible impact on the United States. There
are 50,000 drug-related deaths yearly in the United States – with 19,000 directly
attributable to drugs….
Sergeant Victor Washington
U.S. Army Sergeant Victor Washington of A Company, 1st PSYOP Battalion was deployed
to Colombia as part of a MIST (Military Information Support Team) in 2008 and 2009 as a
multimedia illustrator. The next two leaflets that we depict were all designed by him.
My Daughter…
This leaflet depicts a Colombian mother looking at a photograph of her daughter who
has joined the rebels. At the right the mother and daughter are shown together. Half the
image is in full color, the other half in black and white. The text is:
My daughter, return home…
Without you my life has is colorless
Guerrilla, return home
The back of the leaflet has three small pictures of a man whispering to a friend,
talking to a guerrilla and holding a weapon. The text is:
Do not hesitate. Demobilize now. Plan to reclaim your life
INSTRUCTIONS
Demobilize, give your weapons to the nation.
We respect life and liberty. Do not hesitate, do it quickly!
Toll free phone: 128 ... Any of the authorities, unit of the military, or police will take
your call.
1. Do not tell anyone your plans.
2. Do not talk in public about your intentions.
3. Bring us your arms and explosives and receive a reward.
Washington told me:
The picture of the woman sitting on the bed holding a picture was our maid, with
a superimposed picture of her actual daughter over a picture frame. We staged that picture
specifically for the purpose of creating that product.
Sergeant Sam Harding
In 1993, Psychological Operations Specialist Sam Harding graduated from the PSYOP
School at Ft. Bragg. In 1994 he deployed to Haiti for Operation Uphold Democracy and was
awarded a Humanitarian Service medal there. He told me:
Officers were moving in and out of battalions and teams which made everything
difficult and might have caused some enlisted troops to retire. Every six months a new
officer would take over the teams and we enlisted would have to show them the ropes,
explain how things were done, sometimes brief for them to a Southern Command General
Officer, and conduct operations with the host nation simply because some officers lacked
the linguistic ability. Many Private First Class and Specialist Fours were doing jobs that
should have been done by Captains. In Haiti I was pretty new and still learning my trade;
I knew no Haitian Creole language so I mostly did basic grunt-work. I went on patrols,
guarded various locations and I actually did some product development, but that time was
confusing and I don’t remember the exact projects I was involved in.
In 1995 he graduated the Basic Spanish Language Course and was assigned to Company A of
the 1st PSYOP Battalion. He was then deployed to Colombia as team Sergeant of the Military
Information Support Team (MIST) as a psychological operations specialist. Harding worked
in the Product Development Work Station developing counter-narcotics products. He was
awarded the Joint Service achievement medal for his high-quality products supporting the
operation and impeding drug trafficking along with the Colombian police. His linguistic
abilities allowed him to work with the Colombian Navy to prevent and curtail the use of
illegal drugs. He told me:
Prior to 1995, our PSYOP efforts were mostly to inform the populace of land mines
left in place by insurgent forces such as the FARC or ELN. Kids would wander into areas
were these mines were located and either play with them or unknowingly detonate them by
disturbing them. Efforts were made to try to curb this by informing the population of what
the mines looked like. I don’t think I saved any of those leaflets but it was a
mainstay even during the time I was there. Also prior to 1995 great efforts were made in
the war against Pablo Escobar before his death in 1993.
During my time in-country from 1995 to 1996, we focused on the “King Pins”
of the Cali cartel. We also focused on informing farmers that if they grew illicit crops,
those crops would be eradicated by aircraft defoliants. However, the Government would pay
them to grow fruit instead. There were campaigns in effect such as “Say No to Drugs
(Dino ala droga) which involved Dino the owl and was exclusively made directly from
America's "DARE" campaign. Other efforts included increasing the reputation of
the Colombian National Police, Army and Navy in a positive way. They were considered
corrupt due to the cartels in the past having bribed them to look the other way. There
were campaigns in effect to stay away from the FARC or the ELN and not to join them. Much
of this fell on deaf ears since those guerrilla groups would provide medical, money and
food for farmers in distant areas that was more than the Government could provide.
Everything always looked good on paper but it was the follow-through that would be the
issue. There was an old PSYOP theory that you never ask the people to do what they cannot,
and in this case the farmers would be killed if they resisted. They had very little
choice. Much of our PSYOP activity was invisible and if we did anything, we always made
sure that the Colombians received the credit instead of us.
Joint Service Achievement Medal
He was awarded the Joint Service Achievement Medal. His award citation concluded:
Specialist Harding’s exemplary performance and dedication to duty represent the
finest example of Army professionalism. His ability in computers, psychological
operations, and the Spanish language to create PSYOP products supported the U.S.
Counter-narcotic objectives in Colombia.
Colombian Lanceros (Rangers) that Harding worked with in early 1996.
Harding is kneeling in the front row, second man from the left.
In February 1996, Harding was awarded a certificate from the Colombian Special Forces
for teaching a PSYOP Course in their non-commissioned officer school.
In April 1996, Harding graduated from the Colombian Army parachuting course. In 2000,
as a Reservist he retired as a Sergeant from the 305th PSYOP Company. Sam was kind enough
to send me some of the leaflets that he used in Colombia. They are below. He sent me
eleven leaflets to add to this article. I have changed a few words from the literal
Spanish to make the English translation work a bit better:
For a Drug Free Generation
This small 6.5 x 3.5-inch gummed sticker has a back that can be pulled off so it can be
placed anywhere. It depicts a happy Colombian boy and the text:
For a drug free generation
Let's collaborate 9800 19800
Bogota 280 2555
The National Police
Guarantee your Return
This cardboard anti-drug leaflet is 8.5 x 3.5-inches in size. The text on the front is:
Guarantee your Return
Don’t transport drugs
Your trip could be longer than you think
A Campaign of the Colombian National Police for a drug free
Generation
In case the reader does not understand the danger fully, the back of the leaflet lists
the penalties in different countries:
The U.S.A from 5 to 20 years; France from 5 to 20 years; Italy from 8 to 20 years;
Mexico from 7 to 12 years; Iran DEATH PENALTY.
Which is Better?
It is not enough to threaten the drug mule with incarceration; the farmer growing the
drugs must be encouraged to stop growing them. This can be done many ways; they can be
paid and encouraged to grow food crops, or they can be threatened with having their drug
crops sprayed with defoliants that might destroy the ground. The farmer was in a bad
position. On one side he was threatened by armed drug dealers, on the other by armed
government forces. He was between the proverbial rock and a hard place.
Which is Better?
This poster depicts a Colombian family eating formal dinner and the wreckage of a home
after a bombing by drug traffickers. The text is:
Which is Better?
A Colombia without poppies, safe and at peace,
Or a Colombia with Narco-guerrillas, terrorism and the social
problems they generate.
LET'S ALL WORK FOR A SAFER COLOMBIA
A second similar poster from a large group of posters on the same subject depicts
farmers in their fields. The text is:
LET'S ALL WORK FOR A SAFER COLOMBIA
Without the coke and the poppies - Free from Narco-Guerrilla violence and drug
traffickers – For a Colombia at peace.
COMPLAIN...
About prohibited plant crops and drug dealers – You will received a great
reward - Absolute privacy is guaranteed - Call free from any part of the country at 980
13913.
WARNING!
Many leaflets warn the farmers and the drug cartels in a nice way. Some go straight for
the throat. This small 4 x 5.5-inch cardboard leaflet depicts helicopters and points out
they are armed with the implication they might just kill those involved in the drug trade.
The text is:
WARNING!
Our Aircraft are Armed.
National Police!
No poppy cultivator escapes arrest!
The back depicts a farmer behind bars that look like poppy plants. The text is:
WARNING!
National Police!
To avoid arrest, immediately remove all poppy bushes from your crops.
Do you know what the guerrilla is?
Do you Know what the Guerrilla is?
Harding also sent some anti-terrorist leaflets aimed at FARC. The first depicts the
letters FARC with various symbols of death and torture. The text on the front is:
Do you know what the guerrilla is?
Fanatics, Gangs, hatred and Cowards
The back says:
50,000 deaths of innocents in 40 years.
Billions in material losses
Horror, crying and poverty, widows and orphans
Thank you Guerrillas!
COLOMBIANS
This leaflet depicts the Guerrilla movement FARC as Death and shows young men being
led to the slaughter. The text on the back is:
COLOMBIANS
When the guerrilla arrives at your house, he doesn't have the purpose of helping
your family. He just seeks your support to continue committing crimes.
FAMILIES
Don't let the guerrillas take your children. Their promises of equality, salary,
welfare and security are all pure LIES.
FOR PEACE AND PROSPERITY NOTE BOOK
Whenever American PSYOP units help a foreign country in turmoil, one of the efforts
made is to support the local government, police and military. It is not enough to attack
the criminals and terrorists; the “good guys” must be supported and the loyalty
of the people must be strengthened. In this case we see a Colombian solider giving a
soccer ball to a young boy while a young girl hugs him. This is actually a lined notebook
that the children can use in school. The text on the front is:
FOR PEACE AND PROSPERITY
THE COLOMBIAN NATIONAL ARMY
The back page of the booklet contains multiplication tables and the National Anthem
of Colombia. There are 11 paragraphs to the anthem. I will translate the first two:
The dreadful night has ceased.
Sublime Liberty beams forth the dawn of her invincible light.
All of humanity that groans within its chains,
understands the words of He who died on the cross.
Independence!" shouts the American world;
The land of Columbus Is bathed in heroes' blood.
But this great doctrine; "The king is not the sovereign" resounds,
and those who suffer bless their passion.
FOR PEACE AND PROSPERITY LEAFLET
This leaflet uses the same motto on the front as the book above. The leaflet targets
the family while the note book targeted school children. We see a soldier shaking hands
with a father while a mother with child and a young boy stand by. The text on the back is
long so I will just translate a sentence or two:
DEAR FRIENDS
Every day in the whole country, men and women who work with will and love
dedicate their selfless efforts to try to save the life, property and honor of all
Colombians.
This year, we want together with the authorities, government entities and private
companies, to undertake an intense activity to restore peace in the region and seek
development and a better way of living in the community. That is why the collaboration and
support that you as a Colombian can do is of vital importance…
The Marines
It was not only the Army that PSYOP Supported. This small 3 x 4-inch notepad
depicted a Colombian Marine on the front. Inside the cover was a 1995 calendar and on the
back was their Marine Hymn. The text on the cover is:
The Marine Infantry
The Country Trusts Me
The Colombian Naval Infantry is also referred to as the Colombian Marines. It is the
marine force of the Colombian National Navy. The 24,000-member Colombian Marine Infantry
is organized into a single division with four brigades, each with several battalions plus
numerous small security units.
The Navy
If the Army and Marines were mentioned in the PSYOP products of course the Navy
would be also. This is a book cover for a child in school. It is placed over the book to
protect it and every time the child picks up the book he is reminded of the glory of the
Navy and how they protect the nation. The cover depicts a sailor with two children and the
text:
THE NATIONAL NAVY
Working with you for the future of Colombia
The inside left cover depicts all the days of the week to mark in the child’s
classes and a Colombian patrol boat. The inside right cover has the multiplication tables
and the text:
We protect the sea so that your future is better
The back of the cover has the Navy seal and the Navy Hymn. There are four stanzas of
the song so I will just add the chorus:
Long live Colombia, I'm a sailor;
By my flag, by my inheritance I>
live in the jealous and fierce waves,
I am a knight of the wide sea.
Reward Poster One
Whenever there is a guerrilla war at some point the government will print
“Wanted Posters.” I show two here. One that mentions the rewards and one that
does not. The first poster depicts five culprits with the rewards offered from $10,000 to
$100,000. Some of the text is:
COLOMBIANS!
The true work of the subversives is: DESTROY COLOMBIA - KILL INNOCENTS - PROTECT
COKE LABORATORIES.
Report them!
Those responsible must be captured for their criminal actions against the
Colombian people. The government and the National Army guarantee absolute privacy to those
who provide information.
Reward Poster Two
As I mentioned, some of the posters do not mention reward amounts. It appears that
the ones with the heading “Colombians” do and the ones with the heading
“Guerrilla” do not. This poster also depicts five culprits. Some of the text is:
GUERRILLA
YOU MAY BE THE NEXT TO BE CAPTURED!
The true work of the subversives is: DESTROY COLOMBIA - KILL INNOCENTS - PROTECT
COKE LABORATORIES.
YOUR TIME IS RUNNING OUT - SURRENDER!
WANTED – Tomas Molina Caracas
This leaflet depicts another
FARC leader and offers a sizeable reward. In case the reader is in doubt,
notice all the banknotes at the bottom of the leaflet. The text is:
WANTED.
Tomas Molina Caracas
alias
Negro Acacio, Leader of Front 16 of the FARC.
REPORT HIM AND WIN 1.500 MILLION PESOS.
COLOMBIANS…
Two leaflets with the same
general text were prepared offering a reward for Jose Juvenile Velandia. The
text is almost the same so instead of a complete translation I will just say
that the Colombians are encouraged to inform on the whereabouts of Jose
Juvenile Velandia alias Ivan Rios. They are told that the denunciation of
this terrorist pays! Get 1,500,000 pesos for the information. You can change
your identity to protect your family. Cell and telephone numbers are given
where the informer may safely call.
An Assortment of Colombia leaflets
Colombian Police drop reward leaaflets
Anti-drug police in Colombia have dropped thousands of leaflets from helicopters
offering a $5 million reward for a drug lord implicated in attacks against police.
The leaflets were dropped over the town of Apartado, near Colombia's border with
Panama. Gulf Cartel leader Dario Antonio Usuga is the target of the reward. The
Colombian-born drug lord is also known as Otoniel. Colombia's Gulf gang has been
implicated in the shooting deaths of many of the one dozen police officers killed in the
border area over the last month. Rewards of $800,000 were offered for two top associates.
Leaflets were also aimed at locating drug plantations and labs.
Terrorism has many faces
This leaflet features the photographs of five terrorist leaders. Above them is
barbed wire and below them is the telephone number to call with information and a comment
that there is a reward for their capture. The leaflet names and describes accused
terrorists Luis Carlos Arango, Mantego, Mlirio Remorado, Luis Oscar Usuga Restrepo and
Alfredo Alarcon Nachado. The text is:
Terrorism has many faces
End the nightmare of terrorism and get a reward of up to
$5,000,000,000.
The back of the leaflet depicts happy Colombian children in school at
the left and working in the jungle at the right. Victor told me:
The children on the right side of the picture are working in a cocoa field,
harvesting coca leaves for the production of cocaine. The FARC hires these children to do
the dirty work for them. The phone number to inform on the terrorists is at the lower
left.
The text is:
What future do you want for your family?
Do not hesitate, inform now
Washington later told me:
The reward amount of course is in Colombian currency. That 5,000,000,000 pesos was
equivalent to about 1 million US dollars at the time. I designed many leaflets
for themes such as reporting FARC activities and about reporting narcotics trafficking
activities such as the use of semi-submersible drug subs. The leaflets encouraging FARC
members to "demobilize" has been and will always be a re-occurring theme. The
only time we deviated from deterrence of terrorist activities was when we had a major
operation called Operation Jaque in 2008 which three American and One French hostage were
rescued. I provided multimedia support for that mission.
Your Information
Another former member of the 1st Battalion sent me several leaflets that were used in
the fight against terrorism. The first one depicts wanted criminals, one of which has
already been captured by the government of Colombia. The leaflet capitalizes on the death
of Raul Reyes, and asks for information on additional FARC Commanders. The front of the
leaflet shows five terrorists and the text:
Your information resulted in the death of terrorist Raul Reyes.
Now we are looking for Edgar Tovar, Joaquin Gomez, Oliver Solarte and
Jairo Martinez.
Text on the back is:
For a Colombia in Peace. Call and receive your reward. Total
confidentiality.
Humiliation
The second depicts a FARC fighter eating rice from a banana leaf while his leader eats
a big meal of meat, beans and other delicacies. He also seems to have an attractive female
hanging onto his arm. The text tries to drive a division between the common soldier and
the bosses. It is:
Don't suffer further humiliation.
Why keep dealing with hunger, empty promises, diseases, maltreatment,
and torture?
Call Us!
The Three Ways
Other leaflets were prepared to increase pressure on the FARC and ELN to accept the
terms of the peace agreement with the Colombian Government. This leaflet depicts a
guerilla at the left with lines leading to three fates: a happy family, prison; or death.
The text is:
The three ways.
Guerrilla, it is in your hands to choose the destiny of your life.
Do not think about it, demobilization is the way out.
Come Free Yourself
A second leaflet is all text. It says in part:
Come, free yourself and enjoy:
Health; freedom; tranquility; a family; a profession; a job; economic
stability; a dignified old age.
Combat Support and Services Battalion No. 23.
Security is also in your hands.
To the members of the ELN, the Criminal Bands in the service of the narcotic
traffickers, and the networks that support terrorism and delinquency.
Government phone numbers appear at the far right.
A Wanted leaflet, depicting FARC leader Carlos Antonio Lozada
The text is:
For information that helps us find Carlos Antonio Lozada
312-432-0355
We absolutely promise to protect your life
Earn up to 1.2 million pesos
Julián Gallo Cubillos AKA Carlos Antonio Lozada is a former Colombian guerrilla member
of the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC). During his early years Lozada
allegedly became a member of the Communist Youth (Juventudes Comunistas), and later joined
the Colombian Communist Party and subsequently became a member of FARC guerrillas.
According to the US Department of State, Lozada is a member of the Higher Command of FARC
and participated in setting and then implementing FARC's cocaine policies directing and
controlling the production, manufacture, and distribution of hundreds of tons of cocaine
to the United States and the world.
Nostalgic Christmas Leaflets and Posters to FARC Guerrillas
We depict three of the propaganda leaflets, each with a different image but all with a
lovely family and child and the same message:
Before being a guerrilla
YOU ARE MY SON
Guerrilla there is another life
This leaflet depicts a guerrilla returning home to his family and hugging his child on
one side and the text:
Guerrilla there is another life, Demobilization is the way out to
another life.
The other side shows a smiling guerrilla who has returned home and now is working at a
legitimate job, and the text:
Change from the loneliness and fear Guerrilla, to a legal and
dignified life.
Demobilize
This leaflet depicts a Colombian family with a gaping hole where the Guerrilla should
be on the front. The text is:
Demobilize
Regain your place: Your family, your country, liberty, life and new
opportunities await you.
The back urges the guerrilla not to hesitate any longer, but to demobilize immediately.
Instructions are provided as to how the guerrilla can make contact with the government.
Some of the text is:
Do not tell anyone your plans
Do not speak in public about your boredom
Bring us your weapons and explosives. You will receive a reward
Colombian Government PSYOP
This Fredy Builes Reuters photograph published in December 2011 depicts
Colombian President Juan Manual Santos placing transparent spheres containing messages
urging the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) members to come over to the
government side. The spheres were placed in the Ortequaza River and contain a small
internal battery that keeps them lit for up to six days.
The government also wrote messages promoting peace on soccer balls
and floated them down the river toward the FARC rebel encampments.
The same issue of Veritas features an article on PSYOP in Colombia by Robert
W. Jones Jr. Some of his comments are:
For many years U.S. PSYOP had provided support to the U.S. Embassy in Bogota
through the auspices of the Overt Peacetime Psychological Operations Program
(OP3)…U.S PSYOP support was limited to counter-drug operations…By 1992, the main
component for U.S. PSYOP was the Military Information Support team (MIST)…
In 1997 Occidental petroleum lobbied Congress for help [against oil pipeline
attacks]. A 7th Special Forces Group reinforced company trained the Colombian 18th
Brigade to protect the pipeline…counter insurgency radio programs were developed and
broadcast…After 9/11, under “expanded authority,” PSYOP could now assist
not only the Colombian National Police, but also the Army, in the fight against
narco-terrorists…The MIST now changed its name to PSYOP Support Element (PSE), but
later changed back to MIST in 2006.
The Colombians now have their own PSYOP unit, the Groupo Especial de
Operaciones Sicologicas (Psychological Operations Special Group). Each Army
division headquarters is equipped with a tactical development center with a computer
workstation and print risograph machine.
Starting its operations in 1964, the Colombian terrorist group FARC used violent,
criminal methods, such as kidnapping for ransom, extortion, drug trafficking, blackmail,
and bombings. The rebel group based in the jungles of Colombia was responsible for more
than 6,000 kidnappings alone since the year 2000. Their prisoners were often military
personnel.
The Colombian military knew that FARC allowed the captives to listen to the radio. It
produced a song with a hidden Morse code message knowing that the FARC rebels were
uneducated and completely illiterate when it came to Morse code. The hit single, titled Better
Days, was performed by Natalia Gutierrez Y Angelo.
The lyrics were also written so they would invoke feelings of captivity and longing for
freedom, with the chorus going:
A new dawn singing this message
From my heart,
Although I’m tied up and alone I feel as if I’m by your side
Listen to this message brother
The Morse code message beeping in the chorus directly afterwards read:
19 people rescued, you’re next. Don’t lose hope.
Soldiers that were later released said that the message, once it was deciphered, was
passed through to other prisoners and it soon became well-known among the captives,
without ever being revealed to FARC. The operation was kept secret until 2011, when the
military officially announced that the song “Better Days” which had by then
become a cult classic was, in fact, part of the clandestine hostage rescue mission.
We are all Human Beings
I apologize for the lack of sharpness in the next two posters. Each photograph was
rather small and any attempt to bring it up to a proper size caused a loss of resolution.
The First poster depicts a guerrilla receiving medical treatment from the Army medics.
Often the guerrillas are told by their leaders that they will be killed or mistreated if
they surrender or are captured. Here they (and the Colombian Army) are shown and told that
they will be treated kindly and with respect. The text is:
We are all human beings. Respect the life of the wounded enemy
Over 30,000 Human Rights posters were produced and disseminated to the Colombian
general population and military. Messages on the posters included the commitment of the
Colombian military to the defense and protection of human rights in Colombia and emphasis
on the Joint Task Force South respect for human rights and international law.
Everything you should know…
In Vietnam, defoliants were used to take away concealment from the guerrillas. It
turned out that the Agent Orange was very poisonous and people have suffered for decades
since. Here the government is using defoliants and spraying to kill the crops of drug
producing plants. The text is:
Everything you need to know about glyphosate
Unfortunately because of the poor resolution we cannot translate the rest of the
booklet. We can assume that the people are told that it is a harmless product that will
not poison or injure man or beast. Glyphosate is a broad-spectrum systemic herbicide and
crop desiccant. It is used to kill weeds, especially annual broadleaf weeds and grasses
that compete with crops. It was discovered to be an herbicide by Monsanto chemist John E.
Franz in 1970. Monsanto brought it to market in 1974 under the trade name Roundup.
Thousands of eradication information booklets were produced and disseminated to the
Colombian general population. The booklets provided information on Glyphosate, the
herbicide that is used for aerial eradication in Colombia. The booklet’s objective
was to persuade Colombians that Glyphosate is not harmful to the environment.
In Colombia the Clock is ticking on Illicit Crops
This Eradication handbill was produced and disseminated to the Colombian general
population. The PSYOP supported objectives of this series of leaflets were to discourage
the planting of illicit crops and to provide notice that Colombian Security Forces would
continue to eradicate new illicit crops. A defoliation spray plane is depicted at the left
and a helicopter and Army trooper is depicted at the right. The text says:
In Colombia the Clock is ticking on Illicit Crops
We are going to eradicate them because this land also deserves a
future
Search for a legal cultivation alternative to plant
The planting of marijuana, coca and poppy is prohibited. Law 30 of
1986
Military Publications
The Soldier's Basic Primer.
Our Commitment is Colombia! The National Army.
This small
29-page handbook can be carried in the soldier’s pocket. It tells the
soldier about the history of the Colombian military and instills patriotism.
Some of the 26 chapters are: What is Colombia; Basic concepts; How to serve
the country; Democracy; Principals of the Army; Creed of the Army; Hymn to
the Flag; Military intelligence; Basic principles of shooting; and Safety
with firearms.
ON GUARD
The informative organ of the National Army of Columbia, issue of
December 2003.
Some of the articles on the front page are Changes in the chain of
command; Defeat the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia – People's Army
(FARC); "Vallenato" dies; and a New hierarchy for NCOs.
The story at
bottom left shows troops working on a sand table of the coming battle and
the text:
Offensive
actions carried out by members of the army's Third Brigade in the department
of Narino, led to the death of Luis Alberto Camancho Duarte, alias
'Vallenato' or 'Robinson,' second in command of the Arturo Medina Front of
the FARC, along with another guerrilla.
At the bottom
right we see the rank of Command Sergeants Major and the text:
Command
Sergeants Major: New hierarchy for NCOs. With the objective of giving a
greater boost to the career of non-commissioned officers, the National Army
created the rank of Command Sergeants Major, with which those who reach this
rank can become advisors to the commanders of all units.
This is the
rank I held. We are on the staff of the unit commander and at his beck and
call. We take the commander’s policies down to the soldiers and explain
them, and we take the comments and problems of the soldiers to the commander
where they can be heard and acted upon. We trouble shoot, handle hot spots,
and sometimes solve problems that need not land at the commander’s desk. Any
time I visited a subordinate unit my first words were, "What do you need?
How can I help."
Colombia – Operation Christmas
Colombian Ministry of Defense Poster
Before you became a Guerrilla you were my daughter
I hope you will be home this Christmas
Demobilize. Everything is possible at Christmas
In 2010, The Ministry of Defense had commandos put Christmas trees deep in the heart of
guerrilla territory. Colombian Special Forces soldiers infiltrated the remote Macarena
mountain range to dress an 82-foot high tree with 2,000 lights. When guerrillas approached
the tree, movement sensors made it light up and a banner announced the following message:
If Christmas can come to the jungle, you can come home. Demobilize.
Everything is possible at Christmas.
The army says it will put up trees in nine other rebel-held zones to spread the message
that Christmas is a good time to abandon armed struggle. “Operation Christmas”
was carried out by elite troops using Blackhawk helicopters. A commercial made by the
military shows the soldiers, dressed in camouflage uniforms and face paint, wrapping 2,000
lights around the branches and trunk. A Colombian military spokesman said, “For us,
the most important month is December. Many make the final decision about demobilizing this
month.”
Traditionally, the holiday season sees a larger number of defections as rebels reflect
on being away from home and loved ones. Colombian President Juan Manuel Santos said that
rebel leaders tell their followers that they will be killed if they turn themselves in,
but the Christmas trees give another message, he said. The first year that this campaign
was used 331 Guerrillas turned themselves in.
Mother’s Voice
In 2011, the Colombians created a campaign called “Rivers of Light” in
which family members put messages and small gifts in 7,000 LED-illuminated capsules sent
floating down rivers the guerrillas were known to frequent. In 2012, the MOD created
“Operation Bethlehem,” setting up searchlights in small villages, a beacon of
light that told the guerrillas where to go to turn themselves in. In 2013, Working with
the mothers of the guerrillas, under operation Mother’s Voice the MOD enlarged baby
photos of rebel fighters and emblazoned them with the message:
Before you were a guerrilla you were my child -- This Christmas
I'll wait for you at home.
There is also a humanitarian demobilization (amnesty) program that looks like the Chieu
Hoi (Open Arms) program of Vietnam. In addition to amnesty, the former guerrillas
are entitled to job retraining, a small business loan, and a cash bonus. Other innovative
techniques were a popular human rights card issued to Colombian soldiers that
depicted a bikini model on the back and a series of ads using chess pieces along with the
pictures of wanted guerrillas shown on nightly TV soap operas. The Americans also provided
school notebooks for Colombian children with anti-drug messages on the front and
back.
Reward Leaflet for the FARC leader known as Cano
The reward offers a reward of up to 2.5 million for anyone who will inform on the
terrorist leader. It tells the people that their decision will overcome fear.
Janice Burton wrote an article entitled “ARSOF in Colombia: 50 Years of Persistent
Engagement” for Special Warfare, October - December 2012, Vol. 25, No. 1. She said in
part:
Captain Maurice Valentine has been working closely with the developing Colombian
PSYOP force for more than a year. The team he has on the ground has been there eight
months.
“Everything we do is in support of the Colombian National Plan for
Consolidation and is aimed at security, support to the populace and providing a state
presence. For us, security is more of a support effort, working with the Colombian
National Police and Armed Forces.”
The U.S. PSYOP teams working in Colombia have a very straight forward plan and align
their missions with the objectives of Special Operations Command-Southern Command. They
have two intermediate objectives, the first of which is to counter transnational organized
crime and the second is maintaining positive U.S. military influence of the developing
Colombian forces. They do the latter by building the capacity within the forces to provide
humanitarian assistance and disaster relief, deterring and disrupting violent extremist
organizations and defeating attacks by those organizations.
More than 8,000,000 leaflets have gone out over the last years, which have had a
direct impact on the problem. According to Valentine at least 290 desertions from the
Fuerzas Armadas Revolucionarias de Colombia (FARC) have been a direct result of the
campaign. The campaign’s focus is based on what the individual is missing by his
association with the FARC or the drug traffickers. It encourages participants to come home
and be a part of their family.
The 4th PSYOP Group adds:
MIST Colombia consisted of one officer and eight enlisted personnel based out of
Bogota, Colombia and one analyst working from both Bogota and Fort Bragg. A primary focus
of the team’s mission was to provide PSYOP planning support to the Colombian
Military. In addition, the MIST worked closely with Joint Task Force Omega and Task Force
South Tolima efforts to pursue and capture or kill top FARC commanders as part of
“Defense Support to Public Diplomacy.” An important component of this effort was
to convince FARC insurgents to demobilize and provide operational intelligence for
Colombian Military Special Forces planners. In 2011 the MIST exploited the successes of
numerous Special Operations Forces missions including the death of FARC Secretariat member
“Mono Jojoy” and numerous FARC Front commanders. In November this effort
culminated in the death of the FARC’s supreme commander, “Alfonso Cano.”
The MIST also provided support to the Colombian Navy and counter-narcotics police by
developing, and disseminating products in support of a program seeking information on the
location of Self-Propelled Semi and Fully-Submersibles used to carry cocaine for eventual
entry into the United States. This data led to the location of multiple ship-building
locations. The MIST coordinated multiple counter-recruitment efforts to reach youth in
high conflict areas.
In 2013, FARC declared that it will continue to kidnap members of the Colombian
security forces, and announced that it would enforce a strike in west Colombia in a show
of strength as peace talks take place in Cuba:
“We reserve the right to take prisoner members of the security forces who
surrender in combat. They are called prisoners of war, and this happens in every conflict
around the world.”
The United States continues to aid Colombia and offer suggestions on more efficient
ways to teach psychological operations. Below we see two American PSYOP troopers training
in a Colombian PSYOP course.
From left: U.S. Army Sergeant Russell Robson and U.S. Army Captain Jake Bruder,
students in the Basic Psychological Operations Course, sit with Colombian Army Colonel
César Alberto Karán Benítez, commandant of ESMAI.
(Photo: Myriam Ortega, Dialogo)
U.S. Army Sergeant Russell (Rusty) Robson told me about his 2018 graduation from the
Colombian Army’s School of International Missions and Comprehensive Action (ESMAI).
Rusty is a 37F, PSYOP sergeant. He deployed with Company B, of the 1st PSYOP Battalion,
Detachment 1B30 to Bogota, Colombia, in early 2018. He worked in the U.S. embassy for 2
months working as part of the Military Information Support Team. He was then tasked,
together with Captain Jake Bruder, to attend the Colombian PSYOP course as a student, to
better understand the Colombian psychological Operations doctrine so that the Americans
could support it better and more efficiently.
The Graduating Class
The training was mentioned in the 10 July 2018 issue of DIALOGO, The Digital
Military Magazine. The article entitled “U.S. Service Members Train in Colombia”
was written by Myriam Ortega and says in part:
For more than 11 weeks, Colombian and U.S. service members strengthened their
knowledge on techniques and resources to transmit messages to hostile, neutral, or
friendly audiences to support the Colombian Army's institutional objectives. The course
covered the Colombian Armed Forces’ “lessons learned” on comprehensive
action tasks that strengthen the Colombian government while providing humanitarian
assistance to communities in need.
Colombian PSYOP Badge
Colombian Army Colonel Cesar Alberto Karán Benitez, commandant of ESMAI, said:
“We need to find other roles that favor the country’s development. We have a
myriad of capabilities to offer the Colombian people. Our new Army doctrine focuses on how
to help more, how to face the new challenges that come after conflict.”
ESMAI has become a pioneering school for regional training, evidenced by the high
number of international students. In recent years, more than 300 foreign officers and
noncommissioned officers trained in different disciplines. In June, two U.S. officers
finished the Basic PSYOP Course, while one Ecuadorean and two Mexican students took part
in the next edition of the course, in July. Other ESMAI courses attract international
participation as well, such as the Combat Camera Course that ended in August with 14
foreign students enrolled.
Special Warfare mentions ESMAI:
The U.S. Army’s 1st Psychological Operations Battalion can claim success
through the establishment of a dedicated Psychological Operations course at
Colombia’s Escuela de Misiones Internacionales y Acción Integral or ESMAI;
translated as The School of International Missions and Integrated Action. Acción Integral
serves as the Colombian equivalent of U.S. Civil Affairs and PSYOP, but they are
integrated within a single command structure from the Ministry of Defense down to
battalion and company levels.
Prior to the establishment of ESMAI, the training of Colombian PSYOP personnel fell
under the direction of Escuela de Relaciones Civiles y Militares (ERCM), the School of
Civil and Military Relations. The school's training was derived from the original mobile
training teams sent from 1st Psychological Operations Battalion (Airborne), and with the
assistance of ERCM instructors, trained Colombia Military forces in the art and science of
PSYOP.
The members of 1st PSYOP Battalion work in conjunction with the leadership of ESMAI
to constantly improve the capability and the relationship that has developed over the past
three decades. 1st POB Soldiers provide vast knowledge of PSYOP from operations around the
world, in both combat and non-combat environments.
The American Students Take Part in Civic Action Programs
Here they warn children of the danger of drugs
(Photo by Colombian Army Second Lieutenant Laurie Gutiérrez)
1st PSYOP Battalion Captain Jake Bruder added: “Our presence here serves two
purposes. To attend the course and learn about comprehensive action, because it’s
something new for us, and we want to learn how to support and help Colombia in the peace
process and in the Army’s development. Unlike the U.S. Army, the Colombian Army
implements PSYOP in exercises carried out within Colombia. We only conduct PSYOP outside
U.S. territory, in Colombia and other countries. I’m going to use that knowledge to
develop my team’s operations with comprehensive action brigades and battalions.”
The Class Graduation Plaque
1st PSYOP Battalion Sergeant Russell Robson said about PSYOP: “This tool can be
very powerful, we use it to win wars without firing weapons; it helps induce behavior in
our targets that favors our objectives. It’s been very good for us; especially for
me, because I made many friends here. I was able to see their situation in their unit,
outside the school, such as what they have to do when they get here. That helps us have a
vantage point on how to improve things. It also serves as an example to be better
soldiers, better leaders.
“One of the changes that should occur before reaching an international level is
a deeper understanding of target audiences. We are not talking about classes or big groups
of people; it might be only one person. And that’s the analysis we should do?an
analysis of psychographic and demographic conditions, as well as vulnerabilities. You must
look ahead. How will I do it, how to connect the whole strategic plan, and how will I
carry it out when I’m not from that country, when I don’t speak their
language?”
FARC Propaganda
We have seen some FARC propaganda but the images are generally small, blurry and
unusable (as shown above). We can tell you about one leaflet prepared by FARC. The rebel
group declared that it will continue to kidnap members of the Colombian security forces,
and announced that it would enforce a strike in west Colombia in a show of strength as
peace talks take place in Cuba. In a public statement signed by the peace negotiators
currently in Havana, the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) declared:
We reserve the right to take prisoner members of the security forces who surrender
in combat. They are called prisoners of war, and this happens in every conflict around the
world.
The group said that it had repeatedly tried to organize prisoner swaps, but the
government had rejected their approaches. The statement followed the kidnapping of two
police officers in the western Valle del Cauca province on 25 January 2013.
A 2023
Anti-Kidnapping Operation
In November 2023 the father of a famous and rich soccer star was
kidnapped, either by criminals or possibly the rebel National Liberation
Army (ELN). Anti-Kidnapping Military Forces in Colombia immediately started
dropping leaflets from a helicopter, appealing for information on the
missing father of Liverpool star, Luis Diaz. They have announced a reward in
exchange for information leading to his liberation and the capture of the
kidnappers.
The leaflet depicts picture of the kidnapped man and a reward for
his return. The most interesting part of a short film released by the
military forces is that instead of using a leaflet box or chute to cover the
ground with leaflets, it shows a soldier folding and dropping several
leaflets at a time. Notice the left hand in the photo above. It contains two
or three leaflets being dropped. The right hand holds the bulk of the
leaflets.
This photo was discussed by several PSYOP people who had mixed
feelings about it. Some of the comments were:
After my time in 4th PSYOP Group I worked as a State Department
Contractor in Colombia working Helicopter gun systems between 2003-2006.
During that time the leaflets were just shipped to wherever the Helicopter
Battalion was operating. And it was up to the Helicopter crew to
disseminate, no actual PSYOP personnel doing the work.
A second comment:
We did them by garbage bag in Iraq. The Brigade Combat team’s
demand around Baghdad was so intense, it was simpler to stuff them in
garbage bags.
A third added:
I had a night I dropped nearly a million pieces of product. This
would have never worked.
ECUADOR
Medical and Civic Action Day
During the Vietnam War the U.S. Army, in an attempt to win the hearts and minds of the
people performed what they called Medcaps and Dentcaps, where Psychological Operations
troops and medics went into the field and treated the people with free medical and dental
services to show that the Government cared about their welfare. A similar program was
sponsored again in Ecuador in 2007 when medical teams went into the countryside to help
the poorest people of the country. This poster has seven photographs showing the teams
helping the people in various ways. The text is:
Welcome to the Medical and Civic Action Day
Together for a Better Ecuador
1. Please take care of your children.
2. If you are given a number, please be respectful of your turn and wait to be
called.
3. Don't leave the line.
4. Be patient.
We will attend to you as quickly as possible! Thank you for your collaboration.
The Military does serve... ... because it is our duty
The U.S. Army Military Information Support Teams in Ecuador mostly seem to have been
involved in the war or drugs. The 1st PSYOP Battalion was responsible for placing
anti-drug billboards in many of the major cities in that country in 1970. We depict
several below along with where they were placed. Note that instead of attacking the drugs,
the billboards often attack the chemicals used to make those drugs.
Protect our Environment - Shushufindi
In this case, “white gasoline” could be used in the preparation and
purification of cocaine and thus it was outlawed in Ecuador. A young girl is depicted by a
stream contaminated by a white gasoline drum. This billboard says:
Protect our environment.
Call 1800-drugs 376-427.
Your identity will be protected. Denounce the illicit traffic of white gasoline
Suspicious Trucks – Tulcan, Mascarilla
In this billboard a soldier is depicted holding a handcuffed prisoner while the stopped
truck is seen in the background. The text is:
Denounce suspicious trucks circulating on third-level roads.
Call 1800-drugs 376-427.
Your identity will be protected. Denounce the trafficking of illegal chemicals
Respect – Poli, San Geronimo
This leaflet depicts an illegal truck that has been stopped and searched by local
government forces. We see the driver handcuffed behind the open dorrs and about to be on
his way to a long prison sentence. The text is:
Our country deserves respect.
Call 1800-drugs 376-427.
Your identity will be protected.
Denounce the trafficking of illegal chemicals
Unified – El Oro
This billboard depicts a drug trafficker under arrest in the center. At the left a
patriotic Ecuadorian has called the government. At the right we see the barrels of
chemicals used in the making of drugs. The text is:
United against drug trafficking.
Call 1800-drugs 376-427.
Your identity will be protected.
Denounce the trafficking of illegal chemicals
Unified II – Ecumil
This same message is used in another billboard with a confusing image of arms in
camouflage uniforms grasping each other. Perhaps it means all the services and police
united against drugs? In the center are chemical drums with a “prohibited”
symbol over them.
United against drug trafficking.
Call 1800-drugs 376-427.
Your identity will be protected.
Denounce the trafficking of illegal chemicals
A Void – San Lorenzo
I have seen this image done two ways. The meaning is that if the husband of a family is
caught drug trafficking he will be sent to prison and the family will be left without the
breadwinner. In one version of this billboard the place where the husband should be is
blank, in another, the silhouette is black. The text is identical in both formats. The
text is:
The illegal traffic of chemicals can leave an empty void in your
family
Call 1800-drugs 376-427.
Denounce drug trafficking.
The United States Special Operations Forces Posture Statement 1994 mentions
PSYOP personnel preparing counter-drug educational material for school children in
Ecuador. The pictures are in black and white and in the first a child is offered pills by
a drug pusher and says “NO.” In the second a hypodermic needed is depicted and
the text:
The Drugs kill Citizenship!
EL SALVADOR
1980s El Salvador Banknote Propaganda Leaflet brought back by a US
Advisor
One side shows a machine gun and offers a reward to any guerrilla who turns one in. The
text is:
Combatant approach the nearest barracks
$1500 Colon – Money in Exchange
The Armed Forces protects you
The other side bears a reproduction of an old El Salvador 100 Colon banknote. El
Salvador adopted the U.S. dollar as the official currency in 2001. The added propaganda
text to the propaganda Colon note is:
Hand over your weapon and receive money
Think of God, your country and your family
We know very little about PSYOP in Paraguay except that the U.S. Army 1st PSYOP
Battalion was there at least on one occasion.
In 2005, the U. S. Army Military Information Support Team (MIST) helped Paraguay's
National Anti-Drug Secretariat to design and use Wanted Posters and media spots in the
newspapers and on radio to obtain leads on their Most Wanted Persons. These advertisements
produced many calls and positive leads but faced stiff resistance reprisals. In the face
of mounting pressure, the drug traffickers obstructed the program through intimidation.
The locally-contracted billboard vendor reported three incidents that resulted in the
suspension of all postings in the region. In each case, the contract employees or the land
owners supporting implementation of the program received death threats.
In August of 2009, The 1st PSYOP Battalion was invited by the Ambassador, U.S. Office
of Defense Cooperation Paraguay, to deploy a Military Information Support Team (MIST) to
Paraguay. The Team was ordered to Asuncion, Paraguay from 1 October 2009 through 30
September 2010, to conduct the approved Trans-Regional PSYOP Program to support stability
operations whose purpose is to eliminate internal threats and deny conditions that could
be exploited by terrorists, drug trafficking organizations, and their enablers. The MIST
programs were to focus on disrupting conditions that could be exploited by violent
extremist activities and their enabling networks.
The Special Operations Command South did not have the organic assets to conduct PSYOP
planning to support Public Diplomacy so the MIST would align itself with other Department
of Defense and inter-agency information operation activities in order to disrupt illegal
activities that support transnational narco-terrorism and terrorism operations in
Paraguay. These activities would assist and enhance the partner nation in their ability to
deter the establishment of illegal institutions.
There were currently no active indigenous terrorist organizations in Paraguay. There
were no political groups or parties that were currently active in the country that are
specifically targeting U.S. interests. However, given the presence of sympathizers and
support for extremist terrorist groups in the border Area of Paraguay, Argentina, and
Brazil, visitors there could not discount the possibility of terrorist activity, to
include random acts of anti-American violence. The general threat in the designated
training areas in and around Asuncion is low for domestic terrorism and high for crime.
The U.S. Ambassador or his/her designated representative had final product approval and
dissemination authority of all PSYOP products intended for dissemination during peacetime
activities. Personnel were not authorized to deploy with weapons and deployed with organic
equipment minus weapons.
William Yaworsky discusses this campaign in an article entitled “Target Analysis
of Shining Path Insurgents in Peru: An Example of US Army Psychological Operations,” Journal
of Strategic Studies, August 2009. He says in part:
Specialist Tim Wallace was given a Peruvian Communist poster in and asked to produce
anti-Communist propaganda using the same general theme and look. In this poster we see the
Peruvian Communist leader Gonzalo holding the flag of the Peruvian Communist Party while
angry citizens march below holding AK-47 rifles. The Communist Party of Peru: Partido
Comunista del Peru, more commonly known as the Shining Path: Sendero Luminoso,
is a Maoist guerrilla insurgent organization. When it first launched the internal conflict
in Peru in 1980, its stated goal was to replace what it saw as bourgeois democracy with
"New Democracy." The Shining Path was founded in the late 1960s by Abimael
Guzman, a former university philosophy professor referred to by his followers by his nom
de guerre Presidente Gonzalo. Abimael Guzman was captured in Lima on 12 September 1992 and
his movement soon withered. The text is:
Tim prepared a number of different leaflets, each with a slightly different image and
text. In the first leaflet, the leader Gonzalo holds his people with chains around their
necks. Notice that in the leaflet Tim has added red color to the flag and the spear point
at the bottom of the poster. I asked Tim if he also added colors to the second and third
parody, but he said that he did not. The image is very close to the Communist poster but
says instead:
In this second Tim Wallace leaflet, Gonzalo is made to appear more evil by the addition
of devil’s horns to his head. A dead body rests on his pitchfork. While some people
are still chained, others are challenging the leader. The text is:
In the final Tim Wallace leaflet the people of Peru have turned against Gonzalo and his
pitchfork is melting. The text on this final leaflet is:
Jason Heeg wrote about PSYOP in Peru in an article entitled “Use of psychological
operations during the insurgency in Peru, 1970–1995: Limitations in a context of
human rights abuses” in the Journal of Intelligence and Terrorism Studies, 4
October 2016. Some of his comments are:
This leaflet shows a Peruvian policeman with his dog ready to find
anyone carrying drug contraband at any time. The rest of the text is:
The text on
this leaflet is like the one above so they would seem to be from the same
campaign. The picture is very high-tech, with what seems to be an X-Ray of a
person, a cache of cocaine, an AK-47, and a rocket. The text is:
The Peru “Shining Path” Movement also used PSYOP. Jason Heeg talks about it
in “The Shining Path’s Employment of Psychological Warfare during its Terrorism
Campaign in Peru, 1970-1992,” Special Operations Journal, Volume 3, Issue 2,
2017. He says in part:
The Peruvian police raided one of Guzman’s safe houses in Lima and uncovered 4
tons of propaganda and documents as well as video tapes and pictures of high-level
meetings. On 12 September 1992, Guzman was captured in another safe house in Lima, and
many of the other top leaders were captured within the next few weeks. On 24 September
1992, in Lima, the National Police invited journalists to photograph Guzman in captivity,
and the pictures were widely circulated across the country in print media.
Dialogo, the digital military Magazine mentioned Peruvian PSYOP in its issue of 23
August 2018:
Before Cesar Chavez took power in Venezuela and destroyed its economy with his
Communist theories that put the nation deep into debt, the United States regularly sent
Military Information Support Teams (MIST) to help the people both economically and in the
war against drugs. The operations had interesting names like “Denounce,”
“Don’t be a Mule,” “K9,” “Say No” and “Traffic
Center.”
“Denounce” targeted good civic-minded and honest citizens to create an
atmosphere of hostility towards the drug trade and to generate actionable intelligence for
the police. It worked relatively well. I have seen four posters using this theme. They are
all rather “arty” and modernistic. One depicts what seems to be the brightly
colored face of a drug dealer, another depicts a user with his head in his hands sitting
on the ground, a third and fourth shows flames over the nation. I have selected one with
the flames because it seems the most colorful. The text is:
The cross-trafficking of drugs by individuals was a point of concern and many of the
propaganda leaflets and posters worked on dissuading amateurs and others with reservations
about getting caught. It was not difficult to get these printed products placed
prominently in areas frequented by travelers. The characterization of the “mule”
was intended to identify the smugglers using the term already adopted by those responsible
for the illicit trade. I have seen about a dozen of these small leaflets. We depict three
of the anti-mule products. The text is:
This poster depicts Venezuelan government troops standing at parade rest with their
dogs. The text is:
A second poster depicts the same photograph but at the left a close-up of a large
police dog has been added. Both have the symbol of the National Guard at the bottom and
“National anti-drug campaign of the National Guard” along with a phone number to
call to inform on drug pushers. The United States had invested a great deal of money in
getting the Government of Venezuela trained drug dogs and then training the government
handlers to use them properly. They had developed an esprit de corps and the Americans
wanted to motivate them even further. There was some thought of printing
“baseball” cards for each of the dogs for the kids to collect, but that idea did
not come to fruition.
This reminds me of Nancy Reagan and her policy of “Just say no to drugs.”
This theme is very similar. In the poster above we see a pile of skulls and bones. The
text tells us who they are and what we should do:
A second poster depicts a dirty alley and the chalk drawing of a body that was found
dead there. The text is:
This is a series of posters that are almost like those you might see in a travel
agent’s office. There are wonderful full-color pictures of Venezuela, its people and
wildlife. However, each poster also has a warning about using drugs in the country. I have
seen a number of different posters but chose one that shows a bright colorful Toucan and
the text:
There is another type of poster which was called “cross trafficking.” I have
only seen one specimen of this type. At the left we see the chalk markings of a dead body
in the alley; at the right a drug trafficker is behind bars, and wearing a dunce hat to
boot. It talks about the penalties for those that traffic drugs in Venezuela and shows
that the penalties are very serious and worse than in other countries with the notable
exception of Iran. The poster implies that if you transport drugs you will end up dead or
in jail. The text is:
In the Pentagon’s 2011 budget, there was a request for a
“psychological operations program” for the Southern Command which coordinates
all US military missions in Latin America. The PSYOP had a 2011 budget of $768.8 million
and included “a 30-minute, five-day-a-week Voice of America Spanish television
program for Venezuela.” In the Pentagon’s 2011 budget, there was a request for a
“psychological operations program” for the Southern Command which coordinates
all US military missions in Latin America. The PSYOP had a 2011 budget of $768.8 million
and included “a 30-minute, five-day-a-week Voice of America Spanish television
program for Venezuela.”
The U.S. Government is strongly committed to land mine awareness throughout the Third
World. As part of the program a number of comic books were prepared to be read by
children. The first was entitled Superman - Deadly Legacy. It was prepared for
children in the Former Yugoslavia and was printed in both the Cyrillic alphabet used by
Serbs and the Roman alphabet used by Croats and Muslims. A Kosovo version of the comic
book was released in the school system through UNICEF and through non-governmental
organizations operating in the area.
A comic book in the Spanish language was released for children in Latin America on 11
June 1998 at UNICEF House at UN headquarters in New York City. It is entitled Superman
and Wonder Woman - the Hidden Killer. Soldiers from the 1st PSYOP Battalion
(Airborne), Fort Bragg, North Carolina, conducted assessments in Costa Rica, Nicaragua,
and Honduras, provided background information and photos and recommended a story line to
the creative staff at DC Comics. The collaboration ensured accuracy and that
Central American children would be able to identify with the villages, countryside and
clothing depicted in the new book. Once the story and artwork were completed, the
battalion tested the comic book in Central America to see if it conveyed the intended
message. Members of the Army’s Special Forces, as well as the staffs of UNICEF, U.S.
embassies and local governments, worked together to distribute the book throughout the
region.
The comic books were distributed through U.S. embassies, and presented to the
Ministries of Education in Honduras, Nicaragua and Costa Rica. A U.S. Southern Command
Mine Awareness Team assisted the host ministries of education in the distribution. The
initial printing was Six hundred fifty thousand copies of the book, 560,000 in Spanish and
90,000 in English. Mine-awareness posters based on the comic book, 170,000 in Spanish and
30,000 in English, were distributed in Latin America. The Spanish-language comic book
is 32 pages long and includes 24 pages of story and eight pages of activities targeting
children between 8 and 15. Text on the back is:
This book tells of the story of Brothers Miguel, Diego, and Sister Gabriella. One
brother suddenly finds himself in a minefield. He is rescued by the super-heroes, shown
some mine-warning signs, and then introduced to a military de-miner. Later, Gabriella
washing clothes in a stream also comes upon a mine. She is saved by Wonder Woman. The
children are shown signs and posters depicting different mines and meet a child who has
been injured. They then kick their soccer ball into an area that sets off another mine.
The book contains a number of mine warning stickers, and features a two-page scene
depicting a countryside with various signs and clues of hidden mine fields. The reader is
urged to place the stickers on those sites. It closes with a 10-point quiz and the
warning:
