Puerto Rico News

Friday, July 12, 2013

Puerto Rico involucrado en el espionaje denunciado por Snowden

Puerto Rico involucrado en el espionaje denunciado por Snowden
Friday July 12th, 2013 at 3:17 PM

Algunos de los documentos filtrados por el ex empleado de la Agencia de Seguridad Nacional (NSA) y la Agencia Central de Inteligencia (CIA) Edward J. Snowden mencionan a Puerto Rico como centro de espionaje clandestino para varios países de Latinoamérica.

Según reportajes publicados en las versiones cibernéticas de los periódicos O Globo de Brasil, El País de España y The Guardian de Inglaterra, sobre los documentos hechos públicos por Snowden, ambas -la NSA y la CIA- mantuvieron una operación conjunta desde la base Naval en el barrio Sabana Seca de Toa Baja.

Esta operación en Puerto Rico servía para coordinar con otras oficinas en Brasilia, Bogotá, Caracas, Ciudad de México y Ciudad de Panamá mediante un programa llamado Fornsat, con el que la NSA y la CIA interceptaron miles de millones de llamadas telefónicas, mensajes electrónicos y de texto y comunicaciones por Internet privadas.

A raíz de las nuevas denuncias de Snowden divulgadas desde el pasado fin de semana, los Gobiernos de Brasil y Colombia han exigido oficialmente explicaciones al de los Estados Unidos sobre el aparente espionaje de telecomunicaciones de ciudadanos ajenos a su jurisdicción.

Uno de los artículos publicados por O Globo menciona que el mayor número de interceptaciones telefónicas y cibernéticas ocurrió en Brasil, seguido por Colombia, con quien los Estados Unidos mantienen acuerdos estratégicos para combatir el narcotráfico.

El artículo añade que la NSA intensificó las interceptaciones en Colombia y Venezuela, donde usaba el programa Boundless Informant, mientras el presidente Hugo Chávez agonizaba de un cáncer incurable en meses recientes.

Otro artículo publicado por el periódico El País menciona que las interceptaciones de comunicaciones cibernéticas se hicieron bajo el programa PRISM con la colaboración de portales tales como Facebook y Google, compañías que han negado las denuncias. Otros medios electrónicos han señalado a gigantes como Microsoft y YouTube como colaboradores de la NSA y la CIA.

El artículo de El País menciona que algunas de las interceptaciones se hicieron con el sistema X-Keystroke, en el cual se identifican los mensajes y las llamadas por el idioma de la conversación, implantado en Brasil, Colombia, Perú, Venezuela y la mayoría de los países de Centroamérica.

Otro artículo publicado por el periodista Glenn Greenwald de The Guardian el pasado sábado, y en el cual provee un enlace al publicado por O Globo bajo su firma, indica que los miles de millones de llamadas y correos electrónicos interceptados por la NSA y una gran compañía de telecomunicaciones se hicieron utilizando el programa Fairview.

Según Greenwald, con este programa prácticamente se elimina la posibilidad de que un usuario ajeno a los Estados Unidos navegue por el internet con alguna expectativa de privacidad o seguridad personal.

Peor aún, argumenta Greenwald, es que les permite a los aliados de Estados Unidos -incluyendo a los que son agresivamente opresivos – beneficiarse del espionaje indiscriminado de las comunicaciones de sus ciudadanos.

La traducción del artículo del pasado domingo de O Globo menciona que, aunque el presupuesto de la NSA es secreto, la Federación de Científicos Americanos (FAS) estima que la agencia gasta $75,000 millones anualmente. También se dice que cuenta con 32,000 empleados y tiene acuerdos estratégicos con más de 80 de las corporaciones principales mundiales de telecomunicaciones, internet, infraestructura, equipos, sistemas operativos y aplicaciones de computadoras.

The Guardian publicó el pasado sábado que el programa PRISM le permite a la NSA acceso a los correos de voz y áreas de charlas (chats) de los usuarios de portales tales como Facebook, Google, Microsoft y YouTube.

Algunos de los artículos consultados hacen referencia al programa de naciones aliadas a los Estados Unidos conocido como Echelon y que tenía su base de operaciones en el municipio de Toa Baja bajo la jurisdicción de la Marina de Guerra de los Estados Unidos.

Un artículo publicado por el periódico El Mundo de España en enero del 2000 menciona que Echelon puede identificar las palabras pronunciadas en conversaciones telefónicas y envíos de fax y texto y mensajes de textos cibernéticos y telefónicos. Otros portales del internet alegan que la capacidad de Echelon para reconocer las palabras pronunciadas es superior a la del oído humano.

Aunque la Base de Comunicaciones del Grupo de Operaciones de la Marina de Guerra en Sabana Seca cerró, aún queda el gigantesco cercado circular del Barrio Ingenio de este municipio que forman la espina dorsal de Echelon.

Según datos obtenidos en la internet, Australia, Canadá, Nueva Zelanda, el Reino Unido y los Estados Unidos formaron Echelon en la década del 60 en medio de la Guerra Fría para interceptar las troncales de las comunicaciones vía satélites.

O Globo menciona que la NSA y la CIA han dirigido la Primary Fornsat Collection Operations desde Sabana Seca, en referencia a Toa Baja, como parte de una red de 16 unidades de recolección de información a través de satélites de otros países.

Un documento desclasificado sobre la Historia de la Agencia de Inteligencia de Aviación de mediados de la década del 90 hace referencia a que empleados de la Corporación Raytheon operaban uno de los sensores bajo un contrato con el Centro de Sistemas Electrónicos del Grupo de Seguridad Naval y la NSA.

Moisés Quiñones, portavoz del Negociado Federal de Investigaciones (FBI) en Puerto Rico, informó al Centro de Periodismo Investigativo que estaba impedido de comentar sobre las denuncias de Snowden sobre Echelon o las interceptaciones telefónicas.

Quiñones agregó que el FBI nunca confirma ni deniega sobre investigaciones en curso ni puede divulgar sus técnicas investigativas.

Snowden, quien trabajó en seguridad de tecnología informática para la NSA en Japón y para la CIA y luego para los contratistas de éstas Dell y Booz Allen Hamilton fue despedido por esta última y acusado de espionaje por el Gobierno de los Estados Unidos a mediados del mes pasado.

Desde que sus denuncias fueron publicadas por The Guardian, Snowden escapó de su último lugar de residencia en Hawaii a Hong Kong, donde estuvo oculto varias semanas, y hace varios días se alega que permanece en el aeropuerto de Moscú aguardando por asilo político en alguno de los 20 países a los que se lo solicitó.

Los Presidentes de Bolivia, Nicaragua y Venezuela le han ofrecido asilo político a Snowden y el principal obstáculo que enfrenta es el de llegar a estos países desde Moscú luego de que su pasaporte fuera revocado a raíz de su acusación de espionaje en los Estados Unidos.

Tahani Shayeb Barakat y Ezequiel Rodríguez Andino colaboraron en esta historia.

Aunque la Base de Comunicaciones del Grupo de Operaciones de la Marina de Guerra en Sabana Seca cerró, aún pueden verse los enormes globos blancos en el Balneario de Punta Salinas en Toa Baja y el gigantesco cercado circular del Barrio Ingenio de este municipio que forman la espina dorsal de Echelon.

Quiñones agregó que el FBI nunca confirma ni deniega sobre investigaciones en curso ni puede divulgar sus técnicas investigativas.

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Snowden pedirá asilo en Rusia al no poder volar a América Latina

Evo Morales' Plane Grounding Causes Uproar Throughout Latin America

Evo Morales' Plane Grounding Causes Uproar Throughout Latin America
Friday July 12th, 2013 at 2:57 PM

The grounding of Bolivian President Evo Morales’ plane last week in Vienna continues to cause an uproar throughout the international community and has created a backlash over allegations that the United States ordered the move amid suspicions that National Security Agency leaker Edward Snowden was on board.

The Organization of American States adopted a resolution Tuesday that condemned the incident and declared solidarity with Morales, who blamed Washington for pressuring European countries to refuse to allow his plane to fly through their airspace. Bolivia asked the OAS for the measure along with both Venezuela and Nicaragua, two nations that have offered Snowden asylum.

"It is very clear that this is an event that goes beyond the explanations that have been given here," said OAS Secretary General José Miguel Insulza in a press release. "With all due respect to my European Observer friends, with all the affection that we have for them, there is a serious matter here that has not been clarified."

Spain, France, Portugal and Italy all closed their airspace to Morales’ plane, which was on its way back from Moscow where the Bolivian leader was meeting with Russian officials.

While Spain said it gave Morales’ plane the go-ahead to fly over the Iberian peninsula after receiving assurance that the NSA leaker was not on board, the European nation’s foreign minister did admit that a U.S. request had led it to delay approving the over flight. Spain also issued a curt apology to Bolivia for the international gaff.

“If any misunderstanding has taken place, I don't have any objection to saying sorry to President Morales," said Foreign Minister José Manuel García-Margallo, according to Al Jazeera

The OAS resolution came on the same day that the United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon spoke out against the incident, saying it was important to prevent them in the future and that a head of state should enjoy immunity and inviolability in such instances.

The UN and OAS statements are only the latest in a series of angry comments against the rerouting of the flight, which has soured relations between the United States and many Latin American nations. Along with the UN and OAS declarations, leaders from Ecuador, Uruguay, Bolivia, Venezuela and Suriname held a special meeting of the Union of South American Nations (UNASUR) last week in Cochabamba, Bolivia to discuss the situation.

“The international community is justifiably outraged,” said Eric Hershberg, the director of Latin American studies at American University. “Time and time again the United States has bullied the region with the attitude that ‘it’s my way or the highway.’”

Some experts, however, argue that Latin America’s irritation over the grounding is absurd, given that Morales openly stated while in Russia that he would grant asylum to the NSA whistle-blower.

Morales told Russian television last week that Bolivia “is ready to give political asylum to the people who expose spying activities” and was willing to “enter into discussions” with Snowden.

“It’s unfortunate what happened to Morales, but he very flippantly said he would give Snowden asylum,” said Chris Sabatini, the senior policy director at the Americas Society/Council of the Americas. “A more polished leader or delegation wouldn’t do something like that.”

Sabatini called the whole incident “a huge waste of time” as there are a number of other issues more important to Latin American nations, such as the peace negotiations in Colombia and the NSA spying scandal that erupted over the weekend in Brazil.

Brazilian newspaper O Globo reported that information released by Snowden showed Brazil and Colombia are top targets in Latin America for the NSA's massive intelligence-gathering effort aimed at monitoring communications around the world.

“Brazil and Colombia are responding to this situation in a much better way than other countries by approaching a much more serious problem,” Sabatini added.

Both Morales’ grounding and the NSA spying revelations have worsened relations between the U.S. and Latin America, which despite promises of improvement under the administration of U.S. President Barack Obama has remained stagnant.

“While the protests against the grounding are largely for domestic opinion, there will be no long term problems between these countries and the U.S. over the issue,” Hershberg said. “The big question is, Does the region see the U.S. as a partner who wants to work with Latin America on equal terms? From what is going on now, the evidence seems to indicate otherwise.”

Follow Andrew O'Reilly on Twitter @aoreilly84.

Puerto Rico police to receive raises, health increase increases, other benefits

Puerto Rico police to receive raises, health increase increases, other benefits
Friday July 12th, 2013 at 2:54 PM

SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico - Puerto Rico's governor is increasing the salary of all police officers by $75 a month following recent protests and sickouts.

Alejandro Garcia Padilla also announced Thursday that the government will increase health insurance contributions by $25 for a total of $125 a month. In addition, Padilla said that overtime pay will no longer be taxed.

The announcement comes after officers objected to cuts in retirement benefits and demanded higher wages and overtime pay.

Nearly 2,000 officers had protested with a sickout in April.

Puerto Rico has the second-largest police force in the U.S. with roughly 17,000 officers.

Corruption Rampant From U.S. to Venezuela, Study Finds

Corruption Rampant From U.S. to Venezuela, Study Finds
Friday July 12th, 2013 at 2:46 PM

From Washington D.C. to Caracas, people throughout the Americas feel that corruption in sectors of society is on the rise, according to a survey from a watchdog group.

Transparency International’s Global Corruption Barometer 2013 found that 58 percent of people in the Americas believe that corruption has gotten worse the last two years throughout the region, with political parties, law enforcement and judicial systems all ranking among the least trustworthy areas.

In the United States, mistrust and feelings of rampant corruption were mostly placed on the country’s political parties and the legislative system. A particularly harsh presidential race last year, the powerful emergence of the so-called Super PACS and a number of recent scandals surrounding the administration of President Barack Obama have been cited as the main reasons that 76 percent of those polled found political parties corrupt. About 61 percent said they believed there is rampant corruption in Congress and the White House.

“There has been a lot of issues out there in the news that cast a bad light on political parties and the country’s legislature,” Alejandro Salas, Transparency International’s regional director for the Americas, told Fox News Latino. “While maybe corruption hasn’t gotten any higher in the U.S., the stories emerging now have made this perception appear higher.”

Salas added that while the U.S. touts itself internationally as a bastion for democracy, these numbers and the recent scandals have challenged that assertion.

“The U.S. is a paradox,” he said. “It’s trying to find out what its democracy means.”

While the U.S. is struggling with perceptions of corruption in its political sphere, the country’s southern neighbor is dealing with alleged rampant corruption within its police forces.

About 90 percent of Mexicans surveyed said that there was an extreme degree of corruption in law enforcement and 80 percent in its judicial system. Even more shocking, about 61 percent of Mexicans said they had been fleeced for a bribe when they contacted the police and 55 percent when they got in touch with the judiciary.

Much attention has recently been put on the violence related to Mexico’s ongoing drug war and the ties between military and police with drug cartels. This level of corruption, however, goes back decades in Mexico and has become an ingrained part of the law enforcement and judicial system in the country, Salas said.

“It’s cultural because of decades that it has been like that and that’s just the way it works,” he added.

But rampant corruption seems to be a more recent problem in Venezuela. Citizens seem to be concerned over the perceived corruption among the country’s public officials and civil servants – in large part to the country’s consolidation of power under former President Hugo Chávez and current leader Nicolás Maduro.

“The intensity of corruption in Chávez’s Venezuela has had a strong political and social component, in addition to the purely financial,” wrote Gustavo Coronel of the Cato Institute

. “The conversion of democratic Venezuela into a rogue state has been based in systematic violations of the constitution and the laws and in the progressive elimination of administrative and institutional checks and balances.”

Salas reiterated this sentiment, saying that under Maduro the same subsystem of cronyism and corruption has been able to be sustained.

“It’s mostly weakness of the institution,” he said. “When the leader is a demanding force, all the other public offices don’t function the way they’re supposed to.”

The Transparency International survey questioned 114,000 respondents from 107 countries.

Follow Andrew O'Reilly on Twitter @aoreilly84.

US to send more resources, federal agents to help fight crime in Puerto Rico

US to send more resources, federal agents to help fight crime in Puerto Rico
Friday July 12th, 2013 at 9:51 AM

SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico - The U.S. Department of Homeland Security is increasing the number of agents and resources assigned to fight crime in Puerto Rico as part of a federal operation launched last year.

The agency said Thursday it would send 30 new agents to the U.S. territory to crack down on illegal weapons, drugs and money, as well as migrants living there illegally.

Federal agencies established Operation Caribbean Resilience in January 2012 in the north coastal town of Loiza, long considered a high crime area. Officials say that killings, assaults and robberies there dropped by 50 per cent or more.

The operation was later expanded to the San Juan metropolitan area.

Officials said the program will be expanded through September but did not provide further details.